Washington D.C. Convention and Visitor's Assn. 1212 New York Ave. N.W. #600 Washington DC, DC 20005 (202) 789-7000 Population 606900 Time Zone Eastern Latitude/Longitude 38.88° /-77.03° Today's Forecast HIGH: 48 LOW: 33

• Washington DC Nightlife • Getting Around Washington DC • Washington DC Map • Washington DC Tours • Washington DC Weather • Washington DC Road Construction • Things to Do in Washington DC • Places to Stay in Washington DC • Start planning your road trip to Washington DC now! • Add this city to My Road Trip Ideas.

Attractions

Washington, DC, planned more than 200 years ago by French-born engineer Pierre L'Enfant, is one of the loveliest cities in the United States. Snow-white monuments, wide avenues, traffic circles, and spacious parks, rather than a forest of modern skyscrapers, define the landscape. By law, no building can be higher than the Washington Monument, and this restriction, coupled with the city's 8,000 acres of parkland, gives Washington DC a special beauty and openness.

Take advantage of the efficient and inexpensive Metro public transport to get around the city. Most of Washington DC's main landmarks and attractions are within walking distance of the mile-long National Mall. This wide park, which runs west from the U.S. Capitol to the Washington Monument, is lined with world-class museums, many of them part of the Smithsonian Institution.

The Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum consistently ranks as the most popular attraction in Washington DC, offering one-stop viewing of the history of flight, beginning with the original Wright Brothers Flyer, and progressing to a piece of the moon rock and the Apollo 11 lunar command module. Charles Lindbergh's Spirit of St. Louis aircraft is here, too, along with an IMAX theater and the Albert Einstein Planetarium.

For children, an opportunity to climb "Uncle Beazley," the statue of a triceratops dinosaur on the Mall outside the National Museum of Natural History, is the best way to begin an exploration of this facility's remarkable collection of dinosaur fossils. The exhibits in the Arts and Industries Building lead visitors through the technological ages of the United States. The museum also includes the children's Discovery Theater, which provides a changing program of puppeteers, dancers, singers, and mimes.

The National Museum of American History has the famed First Lady gowns collection and special exhibits on the development of the United States as a nation. The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden offers a garden studded with massive, modern sculptures, in addition to the museum's fine collection of 19th- and 20th-century art. The Smithsonian frequently hosts major festivals including the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, held annually from the end of June through early July.

Other stops on or near the Mall include the National Gallery of Art, the National Museum of African Art, the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery of Asian Art, the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) Museum, the Freer Gallery of Art (Asian and American art), and the National Archives, which houses the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights.

Timed tickets for a visit to the main floor state rooms of the executive mansion are distributed on a first-come, first-served basis during the peak visitor season (mid-March to mid-September). The White House Visitors Center--located in the Commerce Department Building at 1450 Pennsylvania Avenue--is the place to line up for tickets. A tour of the White House is well worth the wait.

The Renwick Gallery, located diagonally across from the White House, displays American crafts and decorative arts dating from the 19th century. Nearby, the Corcoran Gallery of Art is the capital city's oldest collection, with exhibits of American art dating back to the colonial period, as well as French Impressionists and Dutch and Flemish masters.

South of the White House and past the Washington Monument is the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. Just beyond, the Tidal Basin is lined with cherry trees; the delicate pink blooms inspire an internationally known festival each April. You can rent paddleboats for a leisurely tour of the Tidal Basin and a stunning view of the Jefferson Memorial.

The Capitol provides free daily guided tours, which begin at the magnificent white-domed Rotunda and proceed through Statuary Hall, with its life-size statues of famous Americans, to the original Supreme Court chamber. A limited number of passes are available for the Capitol Visitors Gallery, from which you can observe legislators in action on the floor of the House or Senate.

Adjacent to the Capitol are the U.S. Supreme Court and the Library of Congress, which also offer tours, as does the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. The headquarters of the Federal Bureau of Investigation on Pennsylvania Avenue provides a fascinating, behind-the-scenes tour of its crime labs, which ends with a riveting live firearms demonstration. The Library of Congress, the world's largest library, with 110 million items housed in three buildings, features an original copy of the Gutenberg Bible among its many exhibits.

Near the Capitol is the 1907 Beaux-Arts Union Station, home to Amtrak and over 100 upscale retail shops, movie theaters, and restaurants, and the U.S. Postal Museum, which exhibits a rare collection of airmail planes, stagecoaches, stamps, and letters.

The Folger Shakespeare Library and Theater, located on Capitol Hill, has one of the finest collections of Shakespeare and Renaissance materials and the world's largest collection of Shakespeare folios. The theater, an accurate reproduction of an Elizabethan theater, offers regularly scheduled musical and dramatic performances.

The Pavilion at the Old Post Office is an up-to-date collection of approximately 80 shops and restaurants in a beautiful vintage building. Visitors may take the elevator to the top of the 315-foot clock tower for a superb day or nighttime view of the downtown area. Stop by the Navy Memorial and Naval Heritage Center for a free military concert during the summer months.

Several museums are located in the downtown area of Washington, DC. You might combine lunch in Chinatown with a visit to the National Museum of American Art, the National Portrait Gallery, or the National Museum of Women In The Arts, which displays the work of more than 400 well-known female artists from 28 countries. Afterwards, tour Ford's Theater, where John Wilkes Booth shot President Lincoln on April 14, 1865, and Petersen House, across the street, where Lincoln died. A museum in the basement of Ford's Theater contains an extensive exhibit on the assassination, including the clothes Lincoln wore that night and the gun John Wilkes Booth used.

If your schedule allows, spend some time in Georgetown. A section of Washington DC that predates the founding of the federal city, Georgetown is synonymous with elegant homes, trendy boutiques, and upscale restaurants. The C&O canal, which offers nostalgic, mule-drawn barge rides during the summer and fall, flows through Georgetown. It draws joggers, walkers, and bikers to its tow-path. With its lively nightclubs and bars, Georgetown presents quite a contrast to the governmental side of the city.

A memorial to President John F. Kennedy, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts is home to the National Symphony Orchestra. It contains six theaters that offer a constant menu of live drama, dance, and music. The building itself is well worth visiting for the Hall of Nations' display of flags and the Grand Foyer, which opens out onto a terrace overlooking the Potomac River.

The monuments of Washington DC are spectacular. Some of America's most famous memorials, such as the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, lie just beyond the Washington Monument. In the immediate area of the Abraham Lincoln Memorial, where the famous statue of President Lincoln gazes out over the reflecting pool, are the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the Vietnam Women's Memorial, the Korean War Veterans Memorial, and the Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial. Visitors may easily walk from one memorial to the next on well-tended park paths.

Across the river in Virginia, Arlington National Cemetery is the final resting place for more than 190,000 men and women. The changing-of-the-guard occurs at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier every hour on the hour.

In addition to Washington DC's wealth of museums, monuments, and historical attractions, the capital city "Beyond the Mall" is rich with art galleries, specialty boutiques, theaters, and neighborhoods with excellent restaurants and beautiful houses. Peer into history at the Frederick Douglass National Historic Site, Octagon House, and other historic homes.

When it comes to restaurants, Adams-Morgan offers a virtual United Nations of choices. It's a neighborhood with a blend of Latin American, Ethiopian, Italian, and French Creole cultures. Specialty shops and galleries line the winding streets where festivals, such as the annual Adams-Morgan Day, draw crowds of spectators.

Dupont Circle is a bohemian concoction of outstanding art galleries, antique shops, bookstores, specialty restaurants, all-night coffee houses, Victorian townhomes, and the Circle itself, a popular place for chess players, street musicians, and people-watchers. The atmosphere is akin to New York City's Greenwich Village, and it is one of the city's largest districts for commercial art galleries. While in the neighborhood, visit the Phillips Collection, a showcase of modern works, with exhibits representing artists that include Renoir, Cezanne, Manet, Matisse, O'Keeffe, and Picasso.

Most of the 150 embassies in Washington DC are on Embassy Row, along Massachusetts Avenue N.W. Although some foreign delegations are in modern buildings, designed to blend in with the spacious lawns that line the avenue, most are in elegant, turn-of-the-century mansions that provide a snapshot of the city's early history.

The Southwest Waterfront is a vivid reminder that Washington DC owes its existence to its strategic location on the Potomac. Modern-day Washington DC still clings to the riverfront. Beginning on Maine Avenue and running for several blocks, the riverfront has an array of yachts, fishing boats, seafood restaurants, and piers.

In the Upper Northwest of Washington DC lies beautiful Rock Creek Park, where First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt went horseback riding. Today, horses, joggers, and skaters share the paths of this forested area of the city. The park also has a golf course and a nature center. Beyond the park is the Gothic-styled National Cathedral, sixth-largest in the world. The cathedral's observation gallery provides a magnificent view of Washington DC, and its walled Bishop's Garden offers a glimpse into the garden styles of the 12th and 13th centuries. The National Zoological Park is a world-class zoo and home to the crowd-pleasing giant pandas.