First DC trip this summer and wanted some insight. We know we can't see them all during the time we're there. What's the GB recommendations?

Jefferson at night is nice.

American History is the best.

The Air and Space on the mall is a sheethole. I haven't been to the new one by the airport but it's supposed to be great.

I haven't been, but I've heard the Holocaust Museum is excellent.

Holocaust... At one point there was a special exhibit of Nazi propaganda that was recreated and translated to English. Very interesting.

Yep, the Holocaust Museum is a must. I went an hour and a half before they closed back in October and I really wish I had allotted more time. I was rushing through the floors, but I could have spent hours there. It was truly fascinating and sobering.

I enjoyed the Air and Space museum tremendously, but I've always been interested in flight. The Natural History Museum is cool, but I also really enjoyed the American History Museum. I kind of flew through that one too and wish I had more time to explore.

Oh, also check out the White House museum. It is pretty small, but there were some cool artifacts.

I enjoyed both Air & Space museums. The one at Duless has the SR-71 and Shuttle Discovery which are must sees. Friendship 7 and Apollo 11 are both at the one on the Mall.

American History and American Natural History.

The Holocaust Museum.

If you happen to enjoy running, I'd recommend running around the Mall at dawn or dusk.

Take the short drive to Quantico and visit the Marine Corps Museum. It is well worth your time.

International Spy Museum
National Arboretum where you can see the National Capital Columns
Mary Surratt Boarding House
East Potomac Park Mini Golf
And you need to see the basketball court in the Supreme Court
Fort DeRussy

The Natural History Museum is going through some major renovations right now and I don't think any of their fossils are on display. Just an FYI.

American History, Air and Space, and Holocaust museum are all fantastic. If you go at the right time to the National Archives you can see the Constitution and Declaration without too much of a wait.

Jefferson Memorial and USSC were both really awesome. Lincoln memorial was bland

national portrait gallery is very cool

Library of Congress is a must.

If Trump keeps the same protocols, contact your Congress member 6 months in advance of you want to visit the White House

Ag1997Chem said:

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Library of Congress is a must.

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I second this. And it's not for the books, but the building itself. They truly don't make them like that any more. And you don't have to be an architect to appreciate it. You can get there from a tunnel after your capital dome tour.

Library of Congress

See also the Smithsonian Castle for about the same reason; the building itself as much as the exhibits.

Smithsonian Castle

if you're in the capital area, Mount Vernon is only about an hours drive across the river. Also a great site to see if you're in the area.

http://www.mountvernon.org/

Smithsonian - annex at Dulles

Non-Smithsonian - toss between Mt. Vernon and Marine Corps museum at Quantico

Arlington National Cemetery is a must. Not a museum, but still a must-visit.
Holocaust Museum is definitely worth visiting.

National Gallery of Art. Not sure what all is in there now, but when I went it was the first time I had seen a da Vinci in person along with many other great artists.

Since no one else has mentioned it, the National Cathedral is really cool. And this coming from someone who is not really religious. It combines American History with Christianity in a seemless way. Also, just a super cool building, like visiting St Patricks in NYC.

The Newseum is pretty sweet. It's about the history of news.

I was denied for a white house tour this past summer.

We did visit:

Air and Space
American History
Natural History
Archives
Library of Congress
Capitol
Monuments tour at night (Lincoln, Jefferson, Iwo Jima, MLK, etc.)

Maybe others, but we had sore feet and spent a lot of time on the subway.

Don't use the independent hop on/ hop off bus, many complaints about the wait times. We just used the public buses sparingly and the metro back to the hotel in Alexandria.

American History and Air and Space
The Spy Museum is the best non-Smithsonian one.

Spy museum

wangus12 said:

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I enjoyed both Air & Space museums. The one at Duless has the SR-71 and Shuttle Discovery which are must sees.

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I agree. The Air and Space Museum at Dulles was better than the one on the mall. And the One on the mall is very good.

Thanks for the input. One other question: how long does it take to go through a museum on average? How many could we potentially do in a day without over doing it? We wanted to see how many we could choose during our time there.

Air & Space is cool, but the American History museum is the best museum I've ever been in. I can sit there forever looking at the Star Spangled Banner, or Lincoln's tophat. The section on vehicles and trains is awesome. That entire museum, start to finish, is badass.

I thought the natural history museum was a waste of time. If you've ever seen dinosaur bones, you've seen the NH museum.

I hit A&S, NH, and AH in 1 day, but i'd rather take a couple of days. That was really just flying through them and not spending nearly enough time to read a lot of the information. I'd say 2 solid days if you like to actually read everything you can, if not 3 days.

Holocaust Museum is one of the best museums I have been to anywhere. It is not just a look at exhibits in cases without giving you context. It is very narrative in the way it moves you through the building and connects you to both individual stories as well as the larger story of the war. It is somber but it also highlights those that worked to save lives or fought in the resistance - the Righteous Amongst the Nations e.g. Oskar Schindler. I remember leaving thinking, "What would I have done if faced with that?"

A&S Annex at Dulles is great - just a pain to get to as it is further out. I believe they still run a bus from the main A&S on the Mall.

I haven't been but I have heard that the Newseum - which is fairly new - is a pretty good one. It is supposed to have a a cool view of the capitol. And the Unabomber's cabin.

Also heard the Spy Museum is great.

Also there are some cool exhibits or things to see that aren't at "museums" but at the headquarters of various societies and organizations:

National Geographic HQ used to have cool exhibits but been more than a decade since been.

And if you are into photography, there is a permanent collection of Ansel Adam's work at Wilderness Society.

And take the Metro.

As to how many to do in a day, it sorta depends on you museum going style - are you just hitting the highlights or reading every word. I would say don't plan on doing more than 2 a day especially if you have to travel between them. Find a good guide book that gives tips on when some museums are open special hours or have the ability to reserve a time.

Personally, I would leave the monuments to after hours and do the museums during the 8-5 time period. But you are right, you won't see it all in one trip. Sometimes it helps to have a "theme" - especially with kids.

I got kicked out of the Holocaust Museum when I was in middle school.

I lit too many of the rememberence candles.

Tree Hugger said:

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I was denied for a white house tour this past summer.
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