In the second post on our 2016 visit to D.C. we’ll be listing 5 places we really enjoyed!
One of the greatest parts about the fantastic sites in D.C. is the fact that most of them are completely free! They do have security so be prepared to get rid of your bottled water at the door but the fact that you can see such historic and important artifacts at no cost is completely amazing. It also allows you to spend more money on food 😉 Everything I’m listing here was free of charge to enter.
- American History Museum We loved this museum! Some of our favorite areas included the Gunboat Philadelphia, the First Ladies section, Dorothy’s Ruby Slippers from The Wizard of Oz, and the HUGE star-spangled banner. The food in the cafeteria is decent (though certainly not mind-blowing) and their gift shop is awesome. This is a must-see in my book.
- National Archives This is also a must-see as you’ll get the opportunity to see the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the Declaration of Independence. Because of these important documents, the crowds here were no joke. Just be prepared to stand in line and it’ll be worth the wait.
- Library of Congress When we tell people we visited the Library of Congress most people say something along the lines of “oh, we didn’t have time to see that.” Please make time to see it! This is a beautiful building, they offer free tours, the gift shop is lots of fun, and they have a ton of amazing exhibits that rotate. The Capitol is really close by so just pop over after you tour that!
- White House Visitors Center Months before visiting D.C., we submitted a request for a White House tour. Unfortunately, their system wiped everyone’s requests and we were not able to get a slot (this was my third trip to D.C. and my third attempt to visit the White House. One day…) So instead, we went to the White House Visitors Center. It was small so it was a quick fun way to learn about the history of the White House. Be sure to pick up one of the official White House Christmas Ornaments – they have them available for most years/presidents and they are very nice. Oh, and it’s right down the street from the White House so it’s an easy and quick stop after snapping your obligatory White House pictures!
- Holocaust Museum This was easily the most moving stop during our trip (and there were several.) While you can walk into the museum and look around, you need reserved tickets – free of charge – for the Permanent Exhibition. You will want to see this section as it’s the most impressive parts of the museum. Slots for this fill up quickly – we got ours months in advance – and there were many disappointed people being turned away. Please don’t miss this amazing museum!
Other places we enjoyed include the Air & Space Museum, the Capitol, the Native American Museum (be sure to stop here for lunch, their cafeteria features Native American food), and the Botanic Gardens. Oh, and don’t miss the monuments!
Next time we would love to see the National Museum of African American History and Culture, which opened a few months visited! Here are a few pictures of our trip:
Take Away: You can’t go wrong in D.C. If you are short on time, pick your must-see places and expect to spend quite a lot of time inside – these buildings are huge! If you are here for a week or so, you should be able to tackle the majority of the sites, which I highly recommend! If you are visiting just a few days, like us, prepare to be utterly exhausted!
Up next: Come back in December for some ideas on a Colorado Stay-Cation (or, if you live elsewhere – some great places to visit in Colorado!)
Taffy and Lemonade 