Without having to drive around in it that is. My wife wants to go up there in the spring and I really don't feel like f**king with their traffic.

Does anyone know of reasonably priced decent hotels just outside of D.C. that are accessible from the Metro?

Also, is the metro the great way to get around everyone makes it out to be?



I'd appreciate any insight you'd care to offer.



Thanks.

Ive never been on the Metro and Ive been to DC a couple dozen times. We always stay downtown and walk around or if going out to Arlington I will drive.

Not sure about reasonably priced, but any hotel near a the blue, yellow or orange line in VA would be decent.

That said, depending on how much time you have, and what your budget is, I'm a fan of the Monaco in Old Town.  Jackson 20 is a very good restaurant, king street has lots of places to eat and drink and the King street metro (blue/yellow lines) is within walking distance, or you can take the king street shuttle.

Not sure about hotels, but the metro will get you to most places you want in D.C. easy enough.  I would say to figure out what you want to see first and then look at a metro map.

I thought we just did this thread.

See http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_8_24/550972_Washington_DC_Visit_ideas.html

Park somewhere like at the viena station and take the metro in. Metro is the way to go for sure. The day passes are a pretty good deal.

My advice - stay out of MD.  MD sucks.  

Find a reasonably priced place in Alexandria, Arlington, or Falls Church near the Metro if you can't find a reasonably priced place in DC.  Hotels.com is your friend.  There is a ton to see downtown...and most of it is free. Most of it is also walkable, so bring good shoes.  You won't need to spend much time on the Metro once you are downtown.

The Spy museum and the Newseum are exceptions to the free rule, but the Newseum is worth the price.  Last time I was there I saw that they had the Unabomber's cabin and a number of artifacts from prominent news stories, including some really powerful 9/11 artifacts.

If it's Spring, catch a Nats game.  The tickets are not that expensive...and it is a decent park.

If you can, grab a zip car for one day and head west...to see the NRA firearms museum...and further west to see the Udvar-Hazy annex of the National Air and Space museum.  Both are worth the trip...and both are free, although Udvar-Hazy will charge you for parking.  Tip from a local - get there at 4pm and you can park for free...and then you still have 90 minutes before it closes.


EDIT:  Just seeing that other thread. Lots of good info in there too.  Yeah, read that.  

I park on Ft Myer and walk in

DC DUCK Tours http://www.dcducks.com/

Ut-oh the thread police hit ya!   My favorite way to see DC is by flying over it or on TV. I swear my wife and I went there for our anniversary last year and half the city was walled off by cops in riot gear because 30 skinheads wanted to have a fishy pride parade or something. Ruined it for us. Again. Then you have parking and traffic.

Metro seems to be mainly designed for commuting - it's pretty good at getting you from various suburbs to some place within 6 blocks of your office.  It is NOT like the NYC subway that gets you where you want to be, eventually, for little money.  I think it depends on your tolerance for "cheap" hotels.  If you're willing to pay $150/night, you should be able to find some places downtown to stay in the smaller boutique hotels.  You can do cheaper in the suburbs, but nightlife sucks and restaurants are just as good as the neighborhood you're in.  I've lived around Arlington and real Alexandria (old town, Del Ray), and it's a great place to live but it can be a haul as a jumping off point as a tourist.

That being said, driving into the city isn't -that- bad.  Parking is the painful part.  But also keep in mind metro is going to be $2-3 something per person per trip, which starts to add up.  If you get an all day off-peak pass, it softens the blow a bit.  Being central helps a bit if you value you're time.  You could wait 20 minutes for a train to show up to go back to Alexandria or Arlington, and then another 20-30 min on the train.  If time isn't an issue, you can make out.

Metro sucks... period.

If you guys are good with walking, I would take Metro in an walk the mall, monuments, etc.  I've lived here for almost 10 years, and when I have visitors in town that want to see the city, that is how I do it.  Driving into the city will add headache and frustration to your trip.  Although Metro does have its drawbacks, it gives you the big city feel.  It's pretty neat if you're coming from a place without a big rail system.

Also, Arlington is pretty cool and has some nightlife, however, I'm sure the hotels within walking distance to the Metro stops will be a little more expensive.  If price is important but you still want to be in a safe area, try staying in Springfield and driving to the Springfield/Lorton metro stop on the Blue line.  It's a short drive that's not all the scary.  Definitely out of the congestion.

It's good that you're going in the spring.  In the summer it can be pretty hot and miserable.  Also know that during Cherry Blossom Festival, every high school in a 250 mile radius plans a bus trip to DC.  It's going to be busy.  I'd try to come right before the festival or right after.  The date for the festival is set far in advance, but the National Park Service continually refines the peak bloom dates on the trees.  They're really neat to see if you can make it in for that, but I'd avoid trying to come down the weekend of the festival unless you like big crowds.

Best thing you can do in my opinion is stay at a place on a metro stop if possible.
if you ride in on the metro, leave before 8:15 or after 9:15 and return before 4:30.

This might sound shocking, but I know you can call the Ritz Carlton at Pentagon City and get it for around $125 a night (but that also probably depends on vacancy levels). The metro is literally out front. Across the street from DEA and their museum, about 8 blocks from the Pentagon's 9/11 memorial, and connected to the Pentagon City mall.

See the Air and Space Museum at Dulles. International Spy Museum is pretty good, right now they have a Bond exhibit. Also, the Walter Reed Museum is a little hidden gem of a museum in this area (National Museum of Health and Medicine), as is the museum at Navy Yard.

If you have a decent crowd with you, driving and paying to park by the day is often a decent bargain.

I like seeing it from my rear view mirrors..

Courtyard near the greenbelt stop or holiday inn greenbelt are both nice for a ok price.  I fly in and take classes at UMD in college park now and then and always stay there near the school.   When I was in the military I worked at the pentagon one week a month for a few years so I have spent some time in the area. Most hotels in the area have shuttles to the metro stops but parking at the metro stops on the weekends is free so I usually drive to the stops.  A all day pass is $14 and gets you unlimited rides anywhere.  The best place to get a map that shows the attractions and metro stops is one of the major museums.  I picked mine up last time at the information desk near the cafe in the natural history museum and they are free.  Arlington cemetary and the national cathederal are both kind of out of the way but both also something that everyone should see at least once in their lives. The international spy museum is one of the few attractions that charge a entry fee but it's worth it.  Other cool stops are the american history museum, air and space ( it's always crowded) is nice but their off sight location outside of town is awesome and if it's nice outside go walk the mall and see all the outdoor memorials.  The best tour guide I have found is the DC for dummies book.  great info and ratings of most things in town.  Have fun!!

Haha.

I was going to say through the rear view mirror (ETA: beat by Rumson ), but this is too awesome.

Well, thanks for all the suggestions guys. A lot to shift through.

From a plane window going somewhere else....

on TV

I live on Old Town Alexandria and my wife takes the metro into DC for work everyday.  It's a lot easier then driving but bear mind that a lot of track maintenance gets done on the weekend which will slow down the schedule.  As mentioned earlier if you have a group of people it's actually cheaper to carpool and pay for parking (ParkMobile app)

When were you thinking of coming?  I book most of the travel for my coworkers and I might be able to find yall a deal.  Feel free to drop me a PM.

From the air while you're on your way to somewhere else.

Through a scope. If you must go through the city I'd take the metro. Buy a day pass.

Orbit. Nukes. Only way.

Google Images.