Things to Do in Washington

Centered along F Street from 5th to 10th Streets NW, and set North of Pennsylvania Avenue and south of Mount Vernon Square, between the White House and the Capitol, Penn Quarter is one of the most commercially-condensed areas of the city. This entertainment district in the east end of downtown unfurls around the Verizon Center, a sports, concert and events arena. Blending almost seamlessly with D.C.’s thriving Chinatown, Penn Quarter features a wide variety of its own nightlife, art galleries, restaurants, shops and more.

Some of the most popular attractions in Penn Quarter are the Newseum, a museum dedicated to the history of news-gathering and reporting around the world; the interactive International Spy Museum; the National Portrait Gallery and American Art Museum, which inhabit the same building; and Ford’s Theatre, where President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in 1865.

On Thursday afternoons and evenings (3 to 7 p.m.) from March to December, the FRESHFARM Penn Quarter farmers’ market is held on 8th Street NW, between D and E Streets.  A foodie destination, the neighborhood is especially renowned for restaurants and bars helmed by celebrity chefs like Jose Andres and Michel Richard.  

Street parking in this neighborhood is limited, and area lots tend to be expensive. However, Penn Quarter is within walking distance of two Metrorail stations: Chinatown-Gallery Place (Red, Yellow and Green Lines) and Archives-Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter (Yellow and Green Lines).

One of the first homes ever built in the nation’s capital, the historic Federal-style Octagon House was designed in 1799 by William Thornton for wealthy Virginia landowner Colonel John Tayloe III. During the War of 1812, Tayloe volunteered the house as a French embassy in order to save it from destruction, and two years later, when the White House was set ablaze by the British, he offered it to President James Madison as a temporary executive mansion. Madison used a second-floor room of the house as his study, and it was here that he signed the 1815 peace treaty that ended the war with England.

Approximately 15 minutes south of downtown Washington, the 18th-century Old Town – the local nickname for the historic center of Alexandria -- hugs the western bank of the Potomac and blends the area’s cultural melting pot with America’s Colonial era. Originally laid out in 1749, this condensed commercial district full of cobbled streets and the well-preserved 18th century buildings features boutique and mall shopping, restaurants, nightlife, and lots of opportunities for sightseeing.

Many of the neighborhood’s most popular dining destinations offer sustainable takes on American cuisine, like Hank’s Oyster Bar and Restaurant Eve, and vintage pubs and taverns harken back to the area’s early days. Thai, Vietnamese, Mexican and Afghan eateries are common sights in Old Town, reflecting a steady influx of immigrants to Alexandria since the late 1980s.

Local attractions include steamboat tours on the Potomac; Colonial homes that offer daily tours, such as the Carlyle House (1753); and the Torpedo Factory Art Center, which used to be a center for munitions manufacturing and now houses a warren of artists’ studios.  From 7 a.m. to 12 noon every Saturday, one of the country’s oldest farmers’ markets is held in Old Town’s Market Square.

Free 24-hour parking passes called “proclamations” are available at the Alexandria Visitors Center (221 King Street), provided only to non-Alexandria residents. Proclamations are valid at two-hour metered spaces around Old Town and may be renewed once.

The area’s Metrorail stop is King Street-Old Town, which serves the Yellow Line from downtown Washington, D.C. From the King Street station, visitors can catch the Free King Street Trolley, which is free to ride, runs every 15 minutes, and stops at 20 different points around Old Town.

One of the newest branches of the Smithsonian, this 2004 museum is dedicated to the history, arts and culture of Native Americans throughout the Western Hemisphere. Its permanent collections, which contain thousands of artifacts, are supplemented by those at its sister institution, New York City’s long-established Museum of the American Indian.

Set on the National Mall along Independence Avenue, arguably D.C.’s most condensed museum mile, the NMAI stands on its own, a modern, curvilinear design amidst landscaping reminiscent of the American Southwest and Midwestern plains.  The focus of its collections leans heavily towards native tribes of the United States, but its extensive object, media, photo and paper archives also illustrate the history and cultures of tribes from Canada, Central and South Merica, and the Caribbean.

A destination of itself the museum’s renowned café, Mitsitam, offers seasonally-changing menus, a chef’s tasting menu, and is the only eatery in the city to offer Native American specialties like fry bread.

Dedicated in 2008, this roughly 2-acre site honors the 184 people who died in the September 11, 2001 attack on the Pentagon. Set on the west side of the Pentagon Reservation and landscaped with 85 maple trees, this quiet memorial is largely composed of 184 illuminated benches and reflecting pools which face the south side of the Pentagon, where American Airlines Flight 77 hit the building on 9/11.

Each illuminated bench, as well as a nearby granite wall, bears the name and age of an individual victim; the wall grows higher from east to west in relation to the victims’ ages. Visitors can see that the youngest person killed was three, the oldest was 71, and several of the 59 people killed aboard Flight 77 were family members.

An audio tour of the Pentagon Memorial is available by phone at (202) 741-1004. Parking is available at the Pentagon’s South Lot, and the memorial is adjacent to the Metrorail’s Pentagon station, which serves the Blue and Yellow Lines.

Designed by American architect Willoughby Edbrooke, this enormous Romanesque Revival building was the largest office building in D.C. when it opened in 1899. Now listed on the National Register of Historic Places, it was far from beloved in its own era. Considered dowdy by the time it opened for business, when architectural fashion had turned to rounded, more romantic Beaux-Arts design, it was soon abandoned in favor of a new mail depot building over by Union Station; 15 years after it was built, it was commonly referred to as the “old” post office.

By the late 1920s, popular sentiment in Washington was that the building should be torn down, but the Great Depression prevented the demolition; instead, the Old Post Office was left to molder for about 40 years. In the 1970s, it was saved by community support and the National Endowment for the Arts, which now has its headquarters here; in addition to a few other government agencies, the Pavilion houses several restaurants, eateries, shops and services.

Free tours of the Pavilion’s 315-foot clock tower, which offers 360-degree views of downtown Washington, are given daily by National Park Service Rangers; tours meet by the glass elevators on the Pavilion’s stage level.

Despite its modern-day popularity, the Pavilion has proved a financial liability for the city. In 2012, real estate developer (and reality show star) Donald Trump announced he’d been approved to renovate the Pavilion into the Trump International Hotel Washington, D.C., which will include 250 hotel rooms, a conference center, a spa, restaurants and a museum dedicated to the building's history.

From its source in West Virginia to where it empties out in Chesapeake Bay, the Potomac River is rich in American history, so much so that it's often called "the Nation's River." George Washington, the first president of the United States, was born along the river, and all of Washington, DC, the nation's capital city, lies within the watershed.

Stretching over nine miles long and one mile across through the center of the city, this 1,754-acre forest park is one of the most distinctive and beloved features of Washington, D.C. Encompassing a leisurely, winding, and sometimes creek-side drive and numerous paths for walking and biking, Rock Creek Park provides a series of relaxing opportunities to sidestep a purely urban experience of the Nation’s Capital.

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Rock Creek Park is home to a few of D.C.’s best-preserved historical buildings and smaller parks: the water-powered Pierce Mill, built in the 1820s; the elegant Meridian Hill Park in Columbia Heights, which features a 13-tier manmade waterfall; and Georgetown’s 18th-century Old Stone House, a small museum and the oldest building in the city.

To acquaint yourself with the flora and fauna of the park – especially if you’re traveling with children - visit the Rock Creek Park Nature Center (5200 Glover Road, NW), which includes a wall-mounted beehive under glass and a small planetarium. The Center is free to enter and open Wednesday-Sunday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; not accessible by Metrorail or bus, the Center offers a free parking lot.

Three Metrorail stations, all serving the Red Line, provide access to sections of Rock Creek Park: Pierce Mill can be accessed via Van Ness or Cleveland Park, and the park’s main walking and bicycle paths are just down the hill from Woodley Park-National Zoo.

Part of the Smithsonian, the 163-acre National Zoo (as it’s most often called) is home to 2,000 individual animals of 400 species. Most famous for its Giant Panda Habitat and breeding program (which includes current panda residents Mei Xiang and Tian Tian), the Zoo is also home to a huge bird enclosure and over 60 flamingos; African mammals like cheetahs and gazelles; and a family of lowland gorillas.

A 2011 addition to the Zoo is The American Trail, featuring U.S. natives like California sea lions, bald eagles, grey wolves and brown pelicans. Nearby, the 15,000-square-foot Amazonia exhibit mimics the ecosystem of the Amazon Rainforest, with a cascading river, native palms and a 55,000-gallon aquarium; set underneath a soaring dome, the tropical landscape here is full of live creatures like toads, hummingbirds, monkeys and more.

Full of hilly terrain and steep paths, with both indoor and outdoor exhibits, it’s ideal to wear comfortable walking shoes and layered clothing for your visit to the Zoo. For refreshments along the way, there are five food stands from which to choose, including a West Coast-style surf shack and a Mediterranean café.

There is limited on-site parking available at the Zoo, but it’s set between two Metrorail stations -- Cleveland Park and Woodley Park/Zoo/Adams Morgan -- both of which serve the Red Line. Since the walk from Cleveland Park is level rather than uphill (as it is from Woodley Park), the Zoo recommends arriving at Cleveland Park and leaving from either station.

Part of the National Mall and National Park Service, this memorial to American citizens who served in World War II lies at the eastern end of the Lincoln Memorial’s Reflecting Pool. Designed by Austrian-American avant-garde architect Friedrich St. Florian and dedicated in 2004, this 7.4-acre, oval-shaped site consists of 56 granite pillars, two triumphal arches, and a reflecting pool with two fountains.

Each 17-foot pillar symbolizes a different U.S. state or territory, and the two 43-foot arches are dedicated to America’s victory in the Atlantic and Pacific theaters, respectively. On 24 bronze panels at the memorial’s entrance, moving bas-relief scenes depict the process of drafting and training soldiers, sending them overseas and into battle, and welcoming them back home, either alive or dead.  A series of over 4,000 gold stars symbolizes the sacrifices made by over 400,000 Americans from “the Greatest Generation,” and two pieces of “Gilroy Was Here” graffiti allude to the importance this cartoon soldier had for American troops abroad.

Visitor parking is available for free along Ohio Drive south of the Lincoln Memorial, or just south of the Jefferson Memorial in Lots A, B and C. No Metrorail stations are entirely adjacent to the Memorial, but the Farragut North, Metro Center, Farragut West, McPherson Square, Federal Triangle, Smithsonian, L’Enfant Plaza and Archives-Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter stations are all within several blocks’ walking distance.

Park rangers are on-site each day and offer tours every hour on the hour, from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m.