This can not be said too many times: you will be in DC smack on the middle of the Cherry Blossom Festival.
It is too early to predict peak blossom dates, but it WILL be crowded. Plan accordingly. Plan to enjoy the blossoms, and accept the fact that there will be throngs of people. (Like visiting Disney World in the summer versus visiting the last week of September.) Relax and enjoy the moments you can’t possibly plan.
http://havecamerawilltravel.com/cherry-blossoms/2015-peak-bloom-forecasts/
When we took our kids to DC, I carefully planned an itinerary that mixed things up a bit…a parent interest, a child interest, a parent interest, a child interest…with rest-stops, meals and snacks fitted in appropriately.
My kids loved the Natural Museum, Space Museum and the other typical kid-friendly spots. My younger son LOVED the Bureau of Engraving and Printing…loved seeing how money is made, loved seeing all those piles of sheets of money.
The WH tour is a must!
Newseum! kids like it.
Both kids liked the trip down to Mt Vernon.
Skimmed through this thread and saw a couple mentions of visiting monuments at night. My tween and teen absolutely LOVED the “Monuments by Moonlight” tour. After being on your feet and walking all day, it can feel like a luxury to sit back on the bus for a couple of hours (you are able to get off and on at each stop for taking photos). Our guide was fantastic and really made it interesting for my 12 and 14 year olds.
If you see nothing else, go to the Renwick Gallery where Pennsylvania Avenue meets the NW corner of the White House and see Ghost Clock and Banquet. They will impact your tween for life.
The Renwick Gallery is closed for a major renovation.
I would take a grumpy tween who is determined to be sullen and bored to the Holocaust Museum. Knock them out of their adolescent self-absorption. Then let them pick some things to visit.
I almost crashed my car the first time I drove into DC when they were in bloom. They were so beautiful, I forgot to watch where I was going!
Has anyone ever been to the Mansion on O Street? I have that on our list to do next time we are there, I just heard about it recently. It looks like you can pay $20 for a brief tour and explore for hidden rooms/doors on your own. And it also looks like you can stay there (hotel/b&b). Anyone been there? Is it worth the stop?
I think there are some lovely ideas in here about trying to find things that a “grumpy tween” might enjoy, but I am enough of a curmudgeon to suggest that you plan for things you’ll enjoy and let the grumpy tween be a grumpy tween sometimes. It doesn’t hurt kids to learn that the world does not revolve around them.
One museum I’m pretty sure no one has mentioned, and which is a personal DC favorite of mine, is the Daughters of the American Revolution museum. http://www.dar.org/museum It is small, but it focuses on the contributions women have made to American history and arts. I found it fascinating.
Good to know about the DAR Museum. We are always looing for new things to see in DC. I have a couple of places on my list to see on a future visit-Hillwood Museum and Gardens (Marjorie Merriweather Post’s house) and President Woodrow Wilson’s house.
The new George Washington University & the Textile Museum complex is scheduled to open near Foggy Bottom on March 21, 2015. The GWU Museum will feature exhibits about the founding and evolution of Washington DC. The Textile Museum, which moved from its location next to the Woodrow Wilson house in Kalorama, features over 19,000 textiles from 6 continents. http://museum.gwu.edu/who-we-are
If you are visiting the Library of Congress on Capitol Hill, there is a great cafeteria located on the 6th floor of the Madison Building. It offers terrific views of DC looking toward the Potomac and Anacostia Rivers, and it has a huge variety of foods (deli sandwiches, salad bars, ethic foods, etc.) at a very reasonable price. It is open to the general public.
I loved Wilson’s house. But I like old houses.
Thanks for all the great suggestions and advice! For awhile, I thought we weren’t actually going to go, since DH was dragging his heels about travel arrangements with the NSF. But, his finally booked flights this week, so we are going after all on March 28. It looks like the cherry blossoms will be late this year, so perhaps that will help a tiny bit with the crowds.
We had to fly in and out of Baltimore to get halfway reasonable flights. That has a side benefit, since I’d noticed that Wicked starts playing in Baltimore on April 1, and dear-grumpy-daughter has been asking to see it. So, we got tickets for the night before we leave, and she is quite happy about that. Something to look forward to. And, DS can see the Enigma machines at the National Cryptologic Museum, which he’s excited about. (He’s on a hacking team that does well nationally, so the NSA may be on the lookout for him…for recruiting.)
Anyway, I’ve compiled a list of your suggestions and will let the kids Google some things to set priorities.
Thanks!!
Sounds like a Win/Win/Win–good place to start your vacation, @Ynotgo.
And I know it will be a while, but come back and let us know how it goes!
I went to the textile museum to see the house, not the contents, though actually when we went it was fabulous show.
Sounds like a good trip, glad your hacker son will be able to see the cryptology museum, I’ve never been but my youngest went one summer in middle school when he studied Cryptology at CTY.
BWI is on the DC side of Baltimore. In my opinion, It’s a better airport than National in terms of parking, traffic, access and longer runways, so growing up, it was my preferred airport if prices were the same.
Get tickets ahead of time from your congressperson’s office and get background checked for the White House.
Bureau of Engraving, Newseum, FBI (not sure if it’s still available, check w/ congressperson’s office), all Smithsonians, go up the Washington Monument, Zoo, White House, Capitol, Arboretum, Spy museum (kids love this one), Library of Congress, Kennedy Center, Ford’s Theater…honestly, I think she’ll love it all. It’s pretty cool.
Yes, forgot Arlington Cemetery. A really fascinating tour.
We, too, have traveled with a grumpy teen. All of the suggestions above are great and I’d also like to add a trip to the mall - the kind she’s probably more familiar with 
Our favorite was the Fashion Center at Pentagon City. Also, we gave grumpy S my fancy camera and he surprised us with some wonderful shots around DC.