Destination
Type of Activity
Editors Pick
Read MoreArena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater
The country’s first regional theater to win a Tony Award, Arena Stage is a wonderful national repertory company with a theater-in-the-round. It’s known for its fabulous sets and special effects, and productions often begin their journey to Broadway here. The...
Read MoreBlues Alley
Yes, it’s literally in a back alley in Georgetown, but this has been one of the great jazz and blues venues in America since it opened in 1965. Over the years, it has hosted giants like Dizzy Gillespie, Sarah Vaughn...
Courtesy Dumbarton OaksRead MoreDumbarton Oaks
On a quiet hilltop on the northern end of Georgetown, Dumbarton Oaks, a 19th-century estate, is one of the city’s hidden treasures. The late and hugely influential American landscape architect Beatrix Farrand spent thirty years working with former owners Mildred...
Read MoreFolger Shakespeare Library and Theater
Featuring the world’s largest collection of printed works by William Shakespeare, this historic library and research center across from the Library of Congress was opened in 1932 by the Folger family. It runs a number of educational programs, and is...
Read MoreFord’s Theater
Infamous as the site of President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination on April 14, 1865, Ford’s is a historic site as well as a running theater (the plays and musicals staged here oftentimes focus on American history). Museum tours guide visitors through...
Read MoreFreer and Sackler Galleries
Part of the Smithsonian, these two galleries, which are connected underground, specialize in Asian art: Japanese screens, ancient Chinese bronzes and jades, Biblical manuscripts, illuminated Islamic manuscripts, ancient Egyptian statues. (A lot of the artworks on the walls of the...
Read MoreGeorge Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens
With vast gardens and more than a dozen outbuildings, George Washington’s 8,000-acre estate makes a wonderful historic day trip from D.C. It’s on the Potomac River, sixteen miles south of the city. Kids will enjoy seeing the staff decked out...
Read MoreGeorgetown Garden Tour
Explore the beautiful gardens Georgetown has to offer during this annual springtime tour, which is sponsored by the Georgetown Garden Club (it’s been running since 1928). Different homes and private gardens are showcased each year.
Read MoreHillwood Museum and Gardens
It’s off the beaten track, in the Cleveland Park/Forest Hills neighborhood, but a visit to Hillwood, the former home of Post Toasties heiress Marjorie Merriweather Post, is worthwhile. Situated in Rock Creek Park, the estate was built in the 1920s...
Read MoreInternational Spy Museum
Some people complain that the Spy Museum is campy, but I think it’s a blast. It’s more tightly orchestrated than most museums; you start in a room where you are told to pick and memorize a cover identity, which you...
Read MoreJazz in the National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden
For a pre-dinner activity in D.C., stroll through the National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden for live jazz performances any Friday night during the summer. This annual summer concert series is a favorite among D.C. residents looking for a place...
Read MoreJohn F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
The Kennedy Center, as it’s known, opened on the Potomac River in 1971 and houses three main theaters: the Opera House, Concert Hall and the Eisenhower Theater. Besides the National Symphony Orchestra, the Washington Opera and the Washington Ballet, the...
Read MoreMonuments by Moonlight
Yes, it’s touristy, but what fun! Offered seasonally by Trolley Tours, this two-and-a-half-hour tour leaves from Union Station and stops at the following memorials: Iwo Jima, FDR, Lincoln, Vietnam Veterans and Korean War. They look simply stunning in the moonlight....
Read MoreMuseum of the Bible
No expense was spared in the construction or design of the Museum of the Bible that displays the history and global influence of the Bible in state-of-the-art galleries. Opened in late 2017, the gleaming museum offers five floors of exhibits...
Read MoreNational Archives
Filmmaker Ken Burns calls this building “our national attic.” In addition to housing America’s Charters of Freedom—the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights—it contains 9 billion historical records, including scientific documents, patents and family histories. A...
Courtesy Kevin AllenRead MoreNational Building Museum
Honoring architecture, design and building, the National Building Museum is set in an imposing—and impressive—19th-century building, which features a grand, colonnaded entrance. There are frequent exhibitions appropriate for children and adults, and some temporary shows worth seeing, covering topics ranging...
Courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of African American History and CultureRead MoreNational Museum of African American History and Culture
At a ceremony led by President Barack Obama, the National Museum of African American History and Culture opened in September 2016 as a monument and celebration of African America. Designed by Ghanaian-British architect David Adjaye and constructed out of recycled...
Read MoreOld Town, Alexandria
Just across the Potomac from downtown D.C. is Old Town, Alexandria, a lovely neighborhood full of charming brick houses, a bit like Georgetown in vibe. The main drag, King Street, is lively and a pleasant place for a stroll, although...
Read MoreRenwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum
Dedicated to American crafts and decorative arts (and part of the Smithsonian), the Renwick is small and easily manageable. It’s great to just drop in for a few minutes if you are walking by. Some highlights of its permanent collection...
Read MoreSmithsonian Institution
This magnificent cultural collection encompasses sixteen museums in the D.C. area, including the Renwick Gallery (American Art), the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, the Portrait Gallery and the National Air and Space Museum.
Read MoreSmithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum
Parents with kids in tow should make a beeline to the Air and Space Museum on the National Mall (there is another branch in Virginia). The museum, which claims the largest collection of historic air- and spacecraft in the world,...
Read MoreThe Newseum
This architectural beauty, in Penn Quarter, was designed by New York architect James Polshek and makes a huge emotional impact. One of the first exhibits is dedicated to 9/11, with a big, mangled piece of the antenna from the top...
Read MoreThe Phillips Collection Museum
Renoir’s impressionist Luncheon of the Boating Party is the most famous painting on display at this exquisite museum, which features American modernism works and contemporary art. Sunday concerts are held October through May, and art classes are also offered. Closed...
Read MoreTudor Place
Georgetown is full of National Historic Landmark homes, but most are privately owned. If curiosity gets the better of you and you want a glimpse inside one, take a self-guided or docent tour of Tudor Place. Set on 8.5 acres,...
Read MoreU.S. Capitol Building
If you only have time to see one thing in Washington DC, head to the U.S. Capitol, where the country's biggest decisions are made and laws are passed. There is an excellent visitors' center and regular tours are bookable online....
Read MoreUnited States Holocaust Memorial Museum
In the 1970s, President Jimmy Carter, along with author Elie Wiesel, developed the concept for a memorial in Washington DC to the victims of the Holocaust. In the early 1990s, a museum was built that today stands as one of...
Read MoreWashington National Cathedral
Take a guided tour of this gorgeous Gothic cathedral (the sixth largest in the world), and admire its gargoyles, flying buttresses and dramatic stained-glass windows. Afterward, stop by the Bishop’s Garden, which has a pretty gazebo and lovely landscaping. The...
