Mrs. R and I are contemplating a trip to the East coast to see various historical sites. We’re interested in visiting the Mall in Washington DC. We’ve heard that you should avoid driving into downtown Washington, but instead should stay in a suburb and take the Metro into town.
What would be a good suburb to stay in? Would prefer easy freeway access, nice but not too pricy hotels, easy access to the Metro.
Any tips on using the Metro as a total newbie?
Thanks in advance!
Roslyn, VA, which sits across the Potomac from DC. Lots of hotels and an easy metro ride into the city. Roslyn also has the Iwo Jima Memorial. I lived there for a year when I joined the Foreign Service. The Mall also has a free bus service called The Circulator, but it can get very crowded. Plan on doing a lot of walking.
There have been a number of threads on visiting DC with lodging, attractions, etc, if you do a search. If you end up staying in Northern Virginia, Mount Vernon is an easy day trip.
I always stay in Tysons Corners. There are a couple hotels within walking distance of Spring Hill metro station that I think are super convenient and relatively inexpensive.
[Moderating]
Advice is better suited for IMHO. Moving.
Here’s some help from an excellent site called WikiTravel.
As usual, if you’re interested in meeting other Straight Dopers, we might be able to do a Dopefest when you come.
But we will expect you to bring pictures of your models.
I’d recommend finding a hotel on the Orange, Silver, Blue, or Yellow lines in Arlington or Alexandria. If your hotel is next to a Metro station, you’re pretty much golden.
Selfish comment—I really wish tourists would avoid transit—rail or road—during peak rush hours.
Me too, and I wish the commuters would avoid it too.
We always stay in Crystal City when we go - it’s easy to get to via highway, very close to the airport and has a nice Metro station. There’s also an underground network of shops and restaurants there. Convenient when it’s raining.
I’ve been there three times recently and am probably moving there later this year.
First, I strongly suggest the excellent short videos on the YouTube channel Trip Hacks DC.
Here’s their video on using the Metro
I’d suggest staying in DC itself and don’t even think about driving. Metro and Uber/Lyft are convenient.
I like the Days Inn 4400 Connecticut Ave NW which is a 2 block walk from Van Ness Metro. It’s not at all luxurious but getting a hotel for under $150 a night in DC proper is rare. It’s in a residential neighborhood and near American University.
Oh, and here’s my thread from last September about visiting DC. I absolutely love it, even though I’ve had rain every time I’ve visited, so I still hadn’t seen all of the National Mall.
https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=857475&highlight=Washington
I’ve stayed in Rosslyn, Crystal City, and Alexandria, and transportation-wise I prefer Rosslyn. The places I happened to stay in Arlington were far away from the Metro (but I was there for a party so it didn’t matter). Crystal City would be my second choice for DC access: it does indeed have lots of shops in close reach, but it isn’t as close to the highway as Rosslyn: it sort of feels like you have to navigate DC traffic anyway to reach it even though you are still in the suburbs.
Of all the places I’ve driven, Washington is my least favorite. It was as close to a nightmare as I would like to get. The Metro is great.
Really? 95 is a bear and the beltway backs up, but I find it fairly easy to get in and out of town. I usually take the George Washington Parkway and it usually moves pretty well. Parking is what kills me. I’d rather drive in DC than Manhattan any day of the week. Manhattan to me is like playing Frogger and getting through a tunnel or across a bridge you can just forget about.
Just FYI, both Rosslyn and Crystal City are Arlington. Arlington is a county with several neighborhoods.
I had originally had “Arlington and Alexandria” in there but had meant to delete the Arlington because I did not remember the exact other place I stayed at there, but I deleted the Alexandria by mistake.
I had considered suggesting this one as well. It’s reasonably priced, the neighborhood is very safe, there’s DC’s best bakery three doors down, and you’ll spend less time on the Metro compared to being in the suburbs.
Crystal City and Rosslyn are also valid options, but it’s like having a hotel room in an office building surrounded by other office buildings.
Oh, yes, there’s absolutely nothing charming about Crystal City or Rosslyn. They are concrete jungles.