<p>Son would like to do this trip between end of school and start of summer session. We’ve done DC, and Dulles is really far away if we stay in the DC area, like we did before, so we missed the Dulles Air and Space Museum the first time around. I also mentioned a possible trip to Mount Vernon this time, and he was interested. He’s a bit of a history buff. I thought maybe we could stay in Virginia and perhaps catch a cab to a Metro stop and stay near the Mall for a day or two. Last visit, the Museum of American History was closed for renovation, and son REALLY wants to see it and maybe the Portrait Gallery and art museums in that area this time around. Oh, and he also just wants to be gone for a few days, no more than five. Where is that Star Trek Transporter when you need it!</p>
<p>Definitely do-able if you have a car for the trips out to Dulles and to Mount Vernon. I don’t know whether either of those are very do-able by public transportation. Although you could cram Udvar-Hazy and Mount Vernon into one day, it would be a very tiring day so I don’t recommend it. The Portrait Gallery is right at the Gallery Place Metro station so that one is easy to get to!</p>
<p>You can use the trip planner function of [Metro</a> - Home page](<a href=“http://www.wmata.com/]Metro”>http://www.wmata.com/) to find out if you can get from point A to point B by some combination of public transit.</p>
<p>Enjoy your trip!</p>
<p>The easiest way to see the Dulles Air and Space Museum would be to fly into Dulles (IAD) rather than Reagan (DCA) or Baltimore (BWI), see the museum, and then travel from there.</p>
<p>(Sorry - me again)</p>
<p>I went to those places a couple of summers ago. The Dulles wing of the air museum is right at Dulles so fly into there if you can. We went to the museum right after it opened in the morning and it was pretty cool - we were about the only people in the museum and this was in the tourist season in the summer. There were more people there by the time we left but it wasn’t ‘crowded’. The lack of crowds was way nicer than the ultra-crowded air/space museum in DC. You can stay in a hotel very close to Dulles. Some to consider are the Homewood suites and the Staybridge suites (Dulles/Herndon). If you have a rental car then you can do it all. If not, you could cab to the museum. You could then either cab or take other transportation from the hotel to the Metro station and then take that into DC and back. Since every other person visiting wants to head into DC the hotel we stayed at has the recommended ways to get to DC without a car - I think their shuttle would take people to a point where they can take public transportation to get there. There are also tour companies who do it. We had a car so we drove to the Vienna metro station and took it in.</p>
<p>We went to Mt Vernon as well but since we had a car we just drove there. We saw lots of tour buses there so that’s probably an option but renting a car may be easier and more flexible.</p>
<p>I wonder if you could take a boat to Mt. Vernon? It’s right on the river and has great hiker/biker trails along the GW parkway nearby also.</p>
<p>^^^ there are some cruises on the Potomac that stop at Mt. Vernon, but I understand that it is a rather steep climb up the hill! I recommend that my out-of-towners drive there because then they can control their itinerary better. I haven’t been there for several years myself, so I don’t know how much time visitors might want to spend in the new museum at the entrance.</p>
<p>Well, flying into Dulles isn’t an option for us. We have lots of unused travel funds on Southwest, and there are no nonstop, inexpensive flights to Dulles, but plenty of choices to BWI. I’m thinking of renting a car, even if it sits in a parking lot at 30 bucks a day, just so we can get in the car and drive to Mount Vernon and Dulles. Thanks for the tip on the boat. I had opted to perhaps stay on the National Harbor and take the boat to Mount Vernon, but if it’s a climb up a steep hill to the museum from there, perhaps not. The rates are outrageous at the hotel we stayed at last time on our visit to DC, so I’m even looking at outskirt hotels, perhaps Alexandria, to drive to Dulles Museum and to Mount Vernon, as well as perhaps to a Metro stop to get to the Mall for the Gallery and American History museum. We are the type to pay extra to stay closer and take cabs, although I wasn’t expecting to pay 400 bucks a night for a room!</p>
<p>How about these? I haven’t stayed at either, but they’re far less than $400/night.</p>
<p>[Windsor</a> Inn (Washington, United States of America) | Expedia](<a href=“http://www.expedia.com/Washington-Hotels-Windsor-Inn.h539626.Hotel-Information?icmcid=TRIPA.ExpediaHotelsBucket3US.10568.A&icmdtl=y0110318j_S2AotRkb0C28MJcA2jogAAw.539626.HtlDt26.A.QCI.84044.fi.0.28970.en_US.1.6&chkin=06%2F17%2F11&hashTag=roomsAndRates&chkout=06%2F21%2F11&eapid=21187-1&rm1=a2#]Windsor”>http://www.expedia.com/Washington-Hotels-Windsor-Inn.h539626.Hotel-Information?icmcid=TRIPA.ExpediaHotelsBucket3US.10568.A&icmdtl=y0110318j_S2AotRkb0C28MJcA2jogAAw.539626.HtlDt26.A.QCI.84044.fi.0.28970.en_US.1.6&chkin=06%2F17%2F11&hashTag=roomsAndRates&chkout=06%2F21%2F11&eapid=21187-1&rm1=a2#)</p>
<p>[The</a> Henley Park Hotel (Washington, United States of America) | Expedia](<a href=“http://www.expedia.com/Washington-Hotels-The-Henley-Park-Hotel.h11191.Hotel-Information?icmcid=TRIPA.ExpediaHotelsBucket3US.10568.A&icmdtl=YX110318j_S2AotRkb0C28MJcA2jogAAo.11191.HtlDt26.A.QCI.84069.fi.0.28970.en_US.1.5&chkin=06%2F17%2F11&hashTag=roomsAndRates&chkout=06%2F21%2F11&eapid=21187-1&rm1=a2#]The”>http://www.expedia.com/Washington-Hotels-The-Henley-Park-Hotel.h11191.Hotel-Information?icmcid=TRIPA.ExpediaHotelsBucket3US.10568.A&icmdtl=YX110318j_S2AotRkb0C28MJcA2jogAAo.11191.HtlDt26.A.QCI.84069.fi.0.28970.en_US.1.5&chkin=06%2F17%2F11&hashTag=roomsAndRates&chkout=06%2F21%2F11&eapid=21187-1&rm1=a2#)</p>
<p>Mount Vernon is definitely do-able via public transportation plus a short taxi ride. Allow a full day, especially with a history buff. The visitor center (maybe 4-5 years old) is filled with exhibits and movies and will easily suck up several hours even before you get to the historical buildings.</p>
<p>^^^Slithey, what public transportation would one take to get from the DC area to Mount Vernon? Is there a Metro stop nearby that one can pick up a taxi from?</p>
<p>Son absolutely loves the Metro. </p>
<p>Is there also a Metro stop that we can take a taxi from to the Dulles Air Museum?</p>
<p>Public transportation to Dulles is very difficult. Check the museum website and the metro system website for ideas. For affordable hotel rates try kayakDOTcom. I’ve had good luck with that website.</p>
<p>The Henley Park Hotel, mentioned above, is nice and in a pretty good location for doing things on the Mall. We’ve had people stay there who have liked it.</p>
<p>You can get to both Dulles and Mount Vernon using a combination of Metro and bus, but it will take a while. Neither is at all close to a Metro station, so I think a cab ride would be pricey.</p>
<p>Personally, I’d rent a car. You could use up a whole day trying to get out to Dulles and back using Metro/bus.</p>
<p>You might try finding a hotel in Alexandria on the Yellow Line. The Yellow Line is a pretty easy trip into DC, and if you rent a car, the daily parking fee would likely be less than at DC hotels.</p>
<p>Actually found a couple of Marriott brand hotels in Alexandria. Some seem near to a Metro stop, some even offering shuttles to the Metro. May just drive to Union Station and park and take a Metro for Mall visiting, then drive to Mount Vernon and Dulles. </p>
<p>Is there any area in Alexandria we should stay away from, ie, dangerous part of town?</p>
<p>I know years ago, when we visited DC, my sister was worried about what part of town we’d stay in, since we were on foot, so want to get a heads up before I book a hotel in Alexandria.</p>
<p>PS, we prefer Marriott brands because we’re Reward Members, and we actually have a couple of free night certificates we’ve earned from college visits that we might want to cash in for this trip.</p>
<p>We vacationed in Virginia and the DC area for a couple of weeks about 2 years ago. We stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn Arlington Courthouse Plaza. It was only about a block from the metro station which was very convenient as we just walked to the Metro station every morning. We never felt unsafe.</p>
<p>FWIW all of us are interested in history but none of us were that thrilled with our trip to Mount Vernon. It was OK but couldn’t compare at all to Monticello.</p>
<p>If you get a chance try to go to the Sunset Parade at the US Marine Corp Memorial. It was very moving.</p>
<p>Thanks, proudwismom, will do that one day. Googled it, and it doesn’t start until June. </p>
<p>I was surprised as well that son was interested in Mount Vernon. I had looked at their site a while back, and I don’t think he’ll be that interested in it. But he was curious. We both would like to see Monticello, but that’s going to be too far a drive. Maybe another trip. </p>
<p>Now, I would like some feedback on the Yellow versus the Blue Line on the Metro from those who have used it recently. One goes under a bridge, the other goes over a bridge. As we are ones to enjoy the scenery while someone else is driving, even if it means a longer ride, we’d like to take the Metro that crosses over the river. Which one is it? And do both of them bring you right to the Smithsonian station?</p>
<p>Yellow goes over the river. It’s the one with the good view. Blue is the one with the stop near Arlington National Cemetery. </p>
<p>Get the reloadable SmartTrip cards for the Metro because they are also good for all the bus systems in the area too, and your fares will be discounted slightly. If you park in a metro lot you will need one to pay for prying there.</p>
<p>My last batch of tourists did the monuments by night tour bus. They said it was great.</p>
<p>Blue and Orange stop at Smithsonian. Yellow stops at L’Enfant Plaza which is just south of the Mall, at Archives-Navy Memorial near the National Gallery, and at Gallery Place which has an escalator that comes up right next to the Portrait Gallery.</p>
<p>Sounds like Yellow is the way to go. Want to see the National Gallery, the Portrait Gallery, and the American History Smithsonian Museum. Have seen the others on our last trip. Will use the car to go to Mount Vernon, if time, but definitely will see the Dulles Air Museum pretty much first stop, as this is not to be missed this time. Went to the Flight Museum and Boeing Factory tour in Seattle last year, and absolutely loved them. Thought that would suffice for the Dulles Museum, as we did get to see a Concorde, but really want to see the Enola Gay. I’m sure there are others as well to see. </p>
<p>Another thing we missed last trip, and MAY want to try to get in since we’re going before Memorial Day is the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. Any tips on what Metro stop to take to get there?</p>
<p>Looks like the Smithsonian stop (blue and orange lines) is the closest, but it might not be too bad a walk from L’Enfant Plaza (yellow). [U.S</a>. Bureau of Engraving and Printing - Washington, DC Tour Directions](<a href=“Home | Engraving & Printing”>Home | Engraving & Printing)</p>
<p>Metro publishes a handy little pamphlet with many major sights in DC that lists the metro stop and bus routes. The one I have is titled “Your Guide to Metro and the Nation’s Capital”. If you contact Metro, maybe they can send you one. [Metro</a> - Home page](<a href=“http://www.wmata.com/]Metro”>http://www.wmata.com/)</p>
<p>Another convenient way to get around downtown is to take the DC Circulator bus [DC</a> Circulator](<a href=“http://www.dccirculator.com/]DC”>http://www.dccirculator.com/) There are several different routes that run about every 10 minutes and is cheaper than the city buses. Happykid and her pals catch it near Dupont Circle when they want to go to Georgetown. The loop that goes around the Mall will start up again in April. It used to only operate on the weekends, but that may have changed.</p>
<p>We flew in to Dulles just last night (on Southwest). If you do end up flying into Dulles, we had a nice stay last night at the Sheraton Herndon. Prepaid $75, and had a great room (although to be fair, for some reason they put us on the “club” floor, which might be more posh than the rest of the hotel). The hotel isn’t really near any amenities (except close to the airport), and would be a good place to stay if you did end up flying into Dulles and wanted to do the museum/stay out there for a night. We do have a rental car, as we are doing a couple of college visits while here this week on spring break and we also are visiting relatives in Gettysburg one day.</p>
<p>If you decide Mt. Vernon isn’t for you after all, and you get a car, consider a day trip to Gettysburg. The visitor center was redone there a few years ago, and it is really great. Then tour the battlefield.</p>
<p>If you are down on the mall and looking for a good lunch, the Smithsonian American Indian museum has a great restaurant (we only went to the museum once, but we go back again and again just for lunch). The restaurant is easy in & out if you just want to do that.</p>
<p>Tomorrow we are checking out the Phillips Museum (modern art & impressionists from what I can gather, easy to take the metro). Never been, so we will see how it is.</p>