Questions about D.C. (and the Metro in particular)

Factual Questions
1

I am going to a week-long conference in D.C. this June. The hotel where I’m staying is located three blocks from the McPherson Square Metro Station and my conference is one block from Union Station. I’ll be flying into Reagan International.

Some questions:

I hope to do as much typical tourist stuff sight seeing as possible while I’m there. Is this a decent area to walk around in at night or in the afternoon?

Is the Metro safe to ride if you have baggage or are carrying a laptop case?

Are there any areas of D.C. that a tourist might be interested in that I should NOT visit after dark or unaccompanied?

For one week, should I buy Metro tokens each time or can I buy a one week card? And anything you can tell me so I won’t have this type of situation is much appreciated.

Thanks (and I’ll probably be asking more questions).

2

I visit DC often. From what I’ve seen, that’s a pretty safe area – a few blocks north of the White House. I once stayed a few blocks away, on L Street and 18th.

Generally, the Northeast area of the district is pretty much safe everywhere.

I’ve brought bags and my laptop on the Metro without a problem or even a situation where I even thought a problem would develop. Don’t worry about it.

Most tourist areas are safe, and it is well worth seeing the Lincoln or Jefferson Memorial after dark. Plenty of cops – not just for the usual protection, but for national security reasons. The rest of the downtown is pretty dead at night, since there’s nothing open for tourists. I’ve walked from my hotel on L and 17th to the mall after 9:00, well into dark, and it was just a pleasant evening walk.

As for your best choice for the Metro: it depends. How much are you using the Metro? If you plan to use it extensively, then a weekly pass is a good idea. Remember, too, that the Metro has a card system: you can buy a card for individual trips, but can also put more than the basic fare on them. You could, for instance, put $5 on a card and continue to use it until you run out.

Two things to note: You need your card to exit the Metro. Don’t get rid of it (the machine will take it from you if you’ve spent all the money on it). Also, if you don’t have enough money to exit, there’s a machine at the exit that lets you put the correct amount on your card.

3

Seems like a reasonable area to me. Here’s a good map showing locations of most of the popular touristy sites: map

Absolutely. I do that all the time.

I wouldn’t wander around alone after dark anywhere east of the Anacostia, or anywhere east of Georgia Avenue. (Not too many things a tourist would want to see, however.) There are other pockets of DC that are shady, but DC is gentrifying so fast that some areas that were considered bad just a few years ago are now close to being redeveloped and are now rather safe.

Metro doesn’t use tokens anymore. There are various sorts of passes available however: passes. I always use a pay as you go card, where money is added to the card and then debited for each trip. But, if you plan to ride a lot, the day or week pass might be better for you.

4

Thanks.

Also, most of the museums I want to visit (Holocaust, Smithsonian, etc.) close at 5:30 p.m… Can anybody recommend some things to do at night? (I’m not talking about bars or nightclubs [though I would LOVE recs for reasonably priced ethnic restaurants] so much as sight-seeing.)

I’d love to see Mt. Vernon while I’m there as it’s only 15 miles or so, but I won’t have a car. Does anybody know if there’s any type of public transport to a place where a cab to MV wouldn’t be prohibitively expensive?

5

About the only federal museum open after 5:30 is the National Archives, which stays open to 7:00 (through Memorial Day) and 9:00 after.

It’s also worthwhile to walk around the Mall at night, especially the Lincoln Memorial.

The Corchoran Gallery of Art is open until 9:00 on Thursdays, and is worth a visit (it’s also “pay what you wish” on Thursday night).

If you’re looking for a great restaurant, try Luigino. Superb northern italian (see menu). Try something with their olive tapnade. I also like Les Halles.

The Washingtonian has a first-class guide for top restaurants.

Our trip to Mt. Vernon was a specific tour. I see one for $35 that includes admission. Ask at your hotel; there’s bound to be something.

E-mail me for other suggestions.

6

I ran into the same problem with the museum hours when I visited Washington about 15 years ago (also for a conference). I wound up taking a Gray Line tour, which took about four hours in an evening. It might seem too touristy but the driver was very knowledgeable about the sites, and I always find it cool how the other people there are from so many different places.

7

There is a clickable Map that will let you know the Crime stats by district up to last Month

http://mpdc.dc.gov/mpdc/cwp/view,a,1239,Q,543336,mpdcNav_GID,1523,mpdcNav,|,.asp

You didn’t ask, but when people are coming I send them here
http://vrc.dc.gov/vrc/cwp/view.asp?a=1199&q=447107&vrcNav_GID=1410

From the Mount Vernon Official Site
http://www.mountvernon.org/visit/plan/index.cfm/pid/29/cfid/1924029/cftoken/97145019

Take Metro’s Yellow Line Train to Huntington Station in Virginia. Exit at the lower level (Huntington Avenue) of the station to catch a Fairfax Connector bus to Mount Vernon. For information about trains, call Metro at (202) 637-7000 or visit http://www.wmata.com/default.cfm

Board the Fairfax Connector Bus #101 (Fort Hunt Line) at Huntington Station for a 20-minute trip to Mount Vernon’s entrance gate. For fare information and schedules, call Fairfax Connector at (703) 339-7200 or visit http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/comm/trans/connector/schedulesmaps.htm#SouthCountyRoutes

8

That’s a great suggestion. (I am not the least little bit concerned with seeming touristy or doing tourist stuff when I travel- I’m a tourist, after all. :cool: )

9

You’re in a pretty safe area (2 blocks from my home). 14th Street hasn’t been the infamous red light district for 10 years or more. There is almost always pedestrian traffic on 14th, especially on Thomas Circle where you’re staying. Note: Thomas Circle is presently under construction (pdf).

There are too many ethnic restaurants in the area to name them all; you’ll need to tell us what specific cuisine interests you.

If it’s a warm evening, walk over to Dupont Circle. It’s always teeming with local life forms and businesses. 17th Street between P and R is good for restaurants with outdoor sidewalk seating, as is 18th between S and U streets.

What weekend will you be here? Capital Pride street festival takes place on June 12 and is worth a walk-through (it’s free). It’ll be on Pensylvania Ave between 3rd and 7th streets.

The Lincoln & Jefferson Memorials are lit for evening visits. I think FDR and the new WW2 memorial is, too.

10

I booked the tour through the hotel concierge and I believe I was picked up from the hotel as well. (I didn’t have a car either.) It is a shame that the museums in Washington typically aren’t open in the evenings, both for tourists and the local residents.

11

Some of the Smithsonian Museums have extended summer hours.

12

You can ask specific questions about what you want to visit, or you can just buy one of the many, many tourist guides to Washington. Please let us know when you’ll be in D.C. and we’ll set up a Dopefest just for you. I want to hear more about Eve Gordon (and whether you’re going to write a book or a movie script about her).

13

For nighttime entertainment that is not clubs/bars (and Dupont Circle is, FWTW, DC’s Gayborhood), there is theater (off the top of my head, national tours to be found at the National Theater, the Warner Theater, and half a dozen others), movies (chain movie theaters and indies), some private museums stay open later, and there’s always book readings, more subdued clubs, whether you want Jazz, Comedy, Poetry, whatever.

Two good sources:
Washington Post Arts and Entertainment or Sunday Source sections (requires free registration). Mostly established venues.
City Paper, good for other (more alternative) venues.
For both sources, but especially the City Paper, it’s good to pick up a paper copy when you first get in the city (City Paper is free, the daily Post is, what .35? .50?)

For shopping, try the Pentagon City metro stop. You get three malls within a block of one another, pretty much any store you could imagine from the cheap to the ritzy.

As others have said, Metro does not use tokens, but various types of farecards. What I, as a local, use is the Smartrip card. It’s required if you plan to park at a commuter metro station (yeah, I know you won’t), or if you plan to be coming back in the future (you can register the card so you don’t lose any money stored on it if you lose the card itself). The Smartrip card does cost some money itself, I think $5, but it’s solid and secure. Look over the page ataraxy22 linked to for the other options. I’d typically recommend the standard paper farecard, which you put on any amount you want, and it debits as you go along. You can refill the amount at any time, and when you get to the last day or two, can start putting on just enough to cover your fare, so that you exit your trip having spent not a cent more than you had to for Metro use.

14

Funny you should mention… (post number 8).

I’ll be there June 8-14, so I definitely plan to catch the parade. Speaking of, I’ve been told that Ziegfelds is a showtune bar and I’ve been told that it isn’t- do you happen to know which is true? (I’m that rarity- a gay southerner who loves showtunes- mostly it’s techno, alternative and even country down here.)

15

Never been there, so I checked Metro Weekly. They don’t say anything about showtunes nor does the Ziegfeld’s site say anything about it. You’ll hear ordinary people doing showtunes and everything else at Apex’s Karaoke bar (Friday night only). Sunday night I recommend Lizard Lounge.

Brace yourself - cover charges will be outrageous on Pride weekend.