Washington, DC, USA

Washington DC highlights

The Wharf
National Mall
Planet Word
Alexandria

Why visit Washington DC?

For a better understanding of American history with brilliant museums set among tree-lined avenues.

Getting there and around

At the end of August 2022 we took an Amtrak train from Penn Station New York to Union Station Washington DC. The train took 3.5 hours. The journey was very comfortable and we enjoyed looking out the window seeing rivers, bridges and glimpses of Philadelphia and Baltimore along the way.

On arrival into Union Station (an impressive cavernous building), we took a taxi to our hotel, 10 minutes drive away.

To get around Washington DC we hired bikes, walked, and used buses, the metro and Uber.

Accommodation

Hyatt Washington DC The Wharf

The Wharf

The Wharf on the south-western waterfront was historically home to the fish market and a large African American community which was displaced in the mid-twentieth century to build a highway. The area subsequently declined and was cut-off from the rest of the city.

The new mixed-development has reconnected the area with the rest of the city and has brought new residential and commercial uses. There were lots of cafes and restaurants along the waterfront next to the hotel.

The Wharf is a smart, expensive and touristy area; and while it is great that it’s safe and clean, it also felt quite artificial. We have started seeking out ‘normal’ residential areas for practical things like groceries and laundry, and often enjoy these forays into the ‘real’ parts of the cities we are visiting.

National Mall

We hired an e-bike, a kid’s bike, and an adult hybrid with a tag along bike from Unlimited Biking. The three bikes with helmets and insurance cost £80 for two hours. We cycled to the Washington Monument, WWII memorial, Martin Luther King memorial, Vietnam War Memorial, Korean War Memorial, Lincoln Memorial Pool, Lincoln Memorial, the White House, and then back to the Washington Memorial where we started.

We were impressed by how clean and pristine everything was; the Parisian-style tree-lined boulevards; and the magnitude of the monuments.

As with our experiences cycling around Vancouver and Copenhagen, we found that Washington treats cyclists very well - with safe, flat and easy to navigate cycle ways. We thought this was a very fun way to take in the sights quickly!

Planet Word

We had hoped to visit the museum of African American history but unfortunately we didn’t manage to get tickets (but it’s good that it is so popular). We did see the building from the outside though and it looks beautiful.

We considered the Spy Museum but it’s expensive and apparently can be a bit lost on kids who don’t know who James Bond, the CIA or Watergate are. We also considered visiting the Smithsonian Natural History Museum but our kids aren’t massively into looking at fossils and stuffed animals in glass boxes…

…so we settled on Planet Word as an alternative activity. This museum aims to bring language to life. It’s free but donations are welcome. We were really happy with our choice because the museum was very interesting and fun! We went in the late afternoon and it wasn’t busy at all.

All of the museum was interactive and easy for kids to engage in. We loved the talking tree at the entrance, the giant wall of words (this was a really clever exhibit - beautifully designed and executed), karaoke singing, the interactive library, and painting with adjectives. We enjoyed it so much we went back for a second visit the next day!

Alexandria

We had planned to take the water taxi from the Wharf to Alexandria first and then to Georgetown. However, it turned out the water taxis didn’t start running until 11.45am. So to reach Alexandria, we decided to take the yellow line metro instead.

We had a short morning stroll through Alexandria. Located in Virginia, across the river from downtown Washington, Alexandria has been home to George Washington, Dave Grohl and Jim Morrison.

It was a sweet little town with small shops and interesting restaurants. The Georgian tree lined streets were very pretty. We had a simple but tasty Vietnamese lunch.

We then went to investigate taking a water taxi to Georgetown from the Alexandria dock - a single ticket to Georgetown was £36 per person, and to the Wharf was £30 per person. A boat ride to Georgetown would set us back nearly £150 and we’d still have to make our way back to the Wharf after that! We couldn’t stretch to those prices so we caught an Uber back to the Wharf instead (£20).

We found DC’s public transport exasperating at times! The SmarTrip ticketing was cumbersome because everyone had to have their own card and it was frustrating that we couldn’t pay with a contactless debit card. Unlike the water taxis in Vancouver which are reliable and affordable public transport, Washington’s water taxis are sporadic and are essentially expensive tourist cruises.

Final Thoughts

We enjoyed our short stay in Washington. It was nice to experience a quieter and more relaxed city after frenetic New York. The tree-lined streets and green spaces made the city feel smart and spacious.

It was surreal walking around the sights of the National Mall; we were glad we had a chance to see the famous landmarks. Alexandria was nice and Planet Word was a good museum that we’d highly recommend to other families.

When we picked up our hire car from Georgetown we could see it was a lovely place and we said that if we ever return to DC we would make it a priority to properly visit (and possibly stay in) Georgetown.