Hi All,

Have been traveling by car and will be touring Washington DC.

Do you know of decent but not expensive hotels for our stay? I would feel okay paying up to $150 a night. I don't know whether finding one in Washington DC or surrounding area is better or finding one in Virginia.

First time here. I plan to visit the tomb of the unknown, Smithsonians, Spy museum, and National Archives. I'm hoping a tour bus would be available like in other tourist cities. Any other suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks.

The Trump hotel in DC is suppose to be beautiful. I understand it was originally a Post Office building.

Maybe you could mention you will be wearing your MAGA hat and that should get you a nice discount!

It's been years since I've stayed at a hotel in DC. However, I would try to stay as close to DC as possible, as the driving from Virginia into and out of DC will waste a lot of your time. You could also use the Metro to get around some places.


All of the Smithsonians were my favorites and could spend a week going through all of them. Arlington national cemetary is beautiful too. Georgetown is a cool city to check out as well and close to DC.

$150

Good luck with that. You'll need to stay outside of the city or be OK with roaches and crackheads.

In February, I stayed at the hilton garden inn in the 'courthouse' neighborhood in VA for work. It was ~2 blocks from metro station & 2-3 stops to the national mall. It was also a nice area, easy walk to many restaurants.
I just looked at google maps, most in that area are about $100 right now, I think it was more then but I was on short notice & only stayed 2 nights.

Hotels around Thomas Circle can had for around $150 a night. I did a training in DC and stayed at the The Washington Plaza Hotel, which is currently listing at $134/night for advance purchase. $149 is their best.

It's a nice hotel, and only a few blocks from the White House.

There's also a Holiday Inn, a Marriott Residence Inn and a few others that may be higher.

quote:

Originally posted by smlsig:
The Trump hotel in DC is suppose to be beautiful. I understand it was originally a Post Office building.

Maybe you could mention you will be wearing your MAGA hat and that should get you a nice discount!

On a serious note. One of the best views of the city is from the top of the old post office building. Likely the best view you can currently get.

Look at Old Town Alexandra. Easy access to DC via Metro, good food in walking distance and close to the water.

I stayed in Rosslyn when I did a work detail to D.C. i liked it. Hotels and their prices both good. Metro station handy. IIRC, Arlington National Cemetery and the USMC Memorial are both walking distance. Anything else by Metro

The Trump hotel:

Wife and her sister did the tour a couple of years ago. Their hotel was not too far away and they rode the buses (highly recommended) to near the Trump. Went in to look around, were duly impressed, then set out by the front door. A Trump limo driver asked if he could be of assistance. SIL asked about getting to the Willard for lunch and he told them to wait right there and brought a Trump hotel courtesy limo around and drove them. Part of the hotel guest service, he said. They enjoyed lunch at the Willard, saw some recognizable faces, but didn't call for a ride back to the Trump.

Holiday Inn Rosslyn @ Key Bridge
1900 Fort Myer Drive
Arlington, VA 22209

When our daughter had an internship in DC we stayed here. In July 2018 the cost was $92/night. It's clean albeit a little dated.

quote:

Originally posted by comet24:
Look at Old Town Alexandra. Easy access to DC via Metro, good food in walking distance and close to the water.

Thanks everybody. I booked a courtyard hotel in old town Alexandria for $120 a night. Free parking, free shuttle to the metro.

Last time I was there I stayed at the W and it literally looks down on the White House. It was pretty cool. From the roof top bar you get a really good look. The whole time we were on the roof I was thinking that the old as music was gonna wake the president. There was a V-22 Osprey circling the city all night which was pretty cool. If you get a room with a good view you can watch Marine one taking off from the lawn through out the day.

$150/ night goes a long way in Crystal City. Plus it has it's own metro station which is served by the yellow and blue lines. It's a reasonable ride to any destination in the district. The Metro in DC is very nice and very safe. You don't really need to take a car from your hotel unless you want to.

quote:

On a serious note. One of the best views of the city is from the top of the old post office building. Likely the best view you can currently get.

there is a better view, but you have to do dirty work to get it:

Three years ago I stayed at the Harrington which has rooms for $ 135, really inexpensive for a location close to the Mall (just two blocks from the J. Edgar Hoover Building), though it also has ... character. Not roaches and crackheads, but there was a definite cheap 50s feeling to it. Particularly as I was in a funnel-shaped room overlooking the air conditioning exhausts in the backyard, my own air conditioning with a rod to adjust airflow at the outlet up on one wall, a bathroom door I had to open with the shoulder, and an old fashioned CRT TV set which I had to pull out of the socket to fulfill my electrical needs.

Breakfast at the in-house restaurant was presided over by a Buddha type at the reception desk who told a black guy wearing a Stetson "next time you tie your horse outside, you shovel the crap away, too" to the latter's considerable amusement. At least I could understand him; upon my check-in, the hotel receptionist had inquired about a "castle charge" in what I thought was an attempt at a British accent, which after repeated puzzlement turned out to mean "cash or charge". A lot of the patrons were backpacker tourist types. I found it all very picturesque and would do it again; it was a break from all the Holiday Inn uniformity.

Not downtown DC but I often stayed at the Colony South in Clinton, MD, on Surratts Road. Reasonable and easy access to DC

I also recommend that you visit the Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam Memorial, and especially the Korean War Memorial at night

Hilton by Canopy at the Wharf is really nice. It's a few minutes from my office and not too far from all the museums and sites in DC. It's where my parents stayed when they came to see me. It might be a little over your $150 budget but it does include a very nice breakfast though.

quote:

Originally posted by Rey HRH:

quote:

Originally posted by comet24:
Look at Old Town Alexandra. Easy access to DC via Metro, good food in walking distance and close to the water.

Thanks everybody. I booked a courtyard hotel in old town Alexandria for $120 a night. Free parking, free shuttle to the metro.

I've stayed at the Hilton garden inn in Tyson's corner. Weekend is around $100. Weekdays is another story.

How many days are you there? Weekend or weekday?

The national zoo is a full day and a great trip (free). Be prepared for that Hill though. At the end of the day it's a hell of a climb back out of the zoo.

Consider parking at Union station ($25/day) 20 min drive or so from hotel. Use WAZE to help plan your trips into DC around traffic (there's a "later" button that will estimate drive times) It's really quite accurate to help you know when to leave the hotel. Museums don't open until 10am. Out front of the station is the depot for the big bus tour. If you have a friend/family member who works for Bank of America, their employee portal has SIGNIFICANT discounts on big bus (maybe other corporations do too?) Was $140 for family of 3 (2 adults, 1ch) for two full days and a night tour including Tix to madam Tussod's. The night tour is fantastic includes a stop and tour of Vietnam/Korean memorials and Lincoln. We didn't visit these on the day trip because we knew they would get seen on the night tour. However, if you want to make a charcoal etching of a name at the wall, you won't have time to on the night tour stop. BBT tour guides are a wealth of information and historical facts.

Consider going to big bus tour website and downloading the map and guide to loosly plan your day. The stops are every 15 min so you don't have to wait long. Last BBT bus leaves Union at 6pm and the full route is at least an HR, plan accordingly to get back to the station. There are several places to eat in the food court at Union as well as the main hall at union. Walgreens at union for last min needs. These stay open late.

Spyseum isn't cheap.

There are restaurants around madam toussouds and through China Town if you head on the BBT into the city square.

Park at the garage at Arlington and get the tour tram at Arlington as well. 3hr minimum to visit Arlington. We stayed for two changing of the gaurds.

The bureau of engraving is a great tour and is free BUT you have to visit the little ticket shack in the morning to reserve a tour time, get there as early as you can for best choice. Gift shop there is awesome and free. The ticket shack is near a BBT stop on the Washington monument side. Entrance to bureau and gift shop is on the other side of the building.

Washington monument is closed for renovations.

Consider heading to Chantilly to visit the Smithsonian Air and space museum, (free). It's the sister of the one in DC mall and the better of the two. It's massive and you could spend an entire day there. 3hrs is realistic to include some time in the various simulators (few dollars to ride).

Natural history and American history we're favorites for us and are next door to each other. 1.5hrs each minimum.

Hope this helps

You could try the Hotel Harrington.

https://www.hotel-harrington.com

When I took my son to DC year before last we stayed a night there. It's old, very old. But the rooms seemed clean. AC wasn't the best, but the windows do open. Kind of neat and nostalgic and relatively inexpensive.