Our Washington DC Itinerary for 3 Nights

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When we went to New York in October half term we decided to add three nights in Washington DC to make more of the trip. Our time in DC was mostly going to be seeing the Smithsonian Museums however, our visit to America coincided with the government shutdown so a lot of our plans had to change.

However, I thought I would share our intended three night / four day itinerary and also highlight what we managed to do and what we did instead of our original plans.

Washington DC 3 Night Itinerary

Day 1:

Check out from our hotel and get train to DC

Our only real plan for our first day was to get to DC and, due to the government shutdown, we delayed our train journey so we arrived in Washington later on our first day, pushing our plans back to Day 2.

Holiday Inn Washington Capitol – Natl Mall, an IHG Hotel

We stayed at Holiday Inn Washington Capitol hotel for our time in Washington DC and it couldn’t have been a better base for our trip. On-site parking, about a twenty minute walk from Union Station and with lovely staff. You can read our full review here.

McDonald’s

We ended up checking into the hotel and then just going next door to have McDonalds for dinner. We always have McD when we travel to other countries as a bit of a tradition but *spoiler alert* US McD is basically the same as UK McD just with fewer vegetarian options!

Day 2:

We started our first full day in DC with breakfast in our hotel and then got into proper tourist mode for a day of seeing the sights!

The plan had originally been to have a tour of United States Capitol, visit the Library of Congress and then stop at We, The Pizza for lunch. Followed by United States Botanic Garden, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum and Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. However, literally all of this (aside from the pizza) was closed or cancelled.

So, instead, here’s how we spent Day 2:

National Mall / Washington Monument

Our walk started heading for the National Mall with our first stop being the Washington Monument. We had booked to climb the monument but, due to the government shutdown, it was closed. So we made do with seeing it from the outside.

Tidal Basin Thomas, Jefferson Memorial, George Mason Memorial

We then decided to walk around the Tidal Basin which is a beautiful place to spend time. The walk was shorter than it looks we saw people putting away the pedalos and canoes for the winter. It would be a blissful place to spend time on the water. Find out more about boating on the tidal basin here.

We soon found ourselves at the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, one of our favourite monuments in Washington DC. Built in honour of one of the Founding Fathers, Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the America’s third president.

The memorial was built between 1939 and 1943 and features quotes from Jefferson that capture his ideology and philosophy. Most notably to us was his speech that featured, at least in part, in the Hamilton musical.

Our last stop on this side of the Tidal Basin was the George Mason Memorial which honours Founding Father George Mason, author of the Virginia Declaration of Rights that inspired the United States Bill of Rights. It has a sign saying The Forgotten Father – obviously because no-one remembers him and it was the first we had heard of him too! Sorry George.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial

The next monument we came to was the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial which was actually four memorials, one for each term that Roosevelt served as President of the United States.

Finished in 1997, the first part of the memorial is dedicated to Roosevelt’s inauguration and features a really simple but beautiful waterfall.

The second part focuses on The Great Depression and the third covers the impacts of World War II with another waterfall and a sculpture of President Roosevelt with his dog Fala.

The last part is set around pool of water with an image above that shows Roosevelt’s funeral procession down Pennsylvania Avenue. It also includes s a statue of his Roosevelt’s wife, First Lady Eleanor, the only depiction of a First Lady in a presidential memorial.

Our last stop on the edge of the Tidal Basin was the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial. We were lucky enough to see the Blue Angels do a flypast whilst we were here which really added to the experience.

DC War Memorial, National Park Service Stables, Korean War Veterans Memorial, John Ericsson Memorial

We then headed for the main stretch of the National Mall and walked past the DC War Memorial on the way which felt like a smaller version of the Jefferson Memorial. The District of Columbia War Memorial honours more than 26,000 residents and citizens of the District of Columbia who performed military service in the first World War, including 499 who died.

We walked past the National Park Service Stables which was a lovely surprise! The park service horses were grazing outside and they were so lovely to see. We could have spent hours just standing there watching them.

But, we moved on to the Korean War Veterans Memorial, the first really emotive monument hat we visited. The Korean War Veterans Memorial opened in 1995 and remembers those who served in the Korean War. It features 19 statues showing US military personnel in action and a granite memorial wall engraved with the names of the military who died in the war.

We then walked to the John Ericsson Memorial, dedicated to the man who invented the the screw propeller, revolutionising naval history. He also designed the USS Monitor, the ship that helped win the American Civil War.

Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, World War II Memorial, Lincoln Memorial

Next we wandered along the side of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, loving the peace that it offered in an otherwise fairly busy area. Over the course of the day we saw the Reflecting Pool from so many different views and it was always a beautiful sight.

At the end of the Reflecting Pool is the World War II Memorial, one of the biggest memorials in the area and somewhere that so many people were visiting to pay their respects. The memorial is dedicated to Americans who served in the armed forces and as civilians during World War II and features 56 pillars that represent the U.S. states and territories

We walked back along the Reflecting Pool, along the other side, and climbed the steps to the Lincoln Memorial, one of the most famous monuments in Washington DC. The Lincoln Memorial is dedicated to Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States.

The Three Servicemen Statue, Albert Einstein Memorial

After the Lincoln Memorial we we wandered to The Three Servicemen Statue, part of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and commemorating the Vietnam War. It was the first memorial depicting an African American on the National Mall.

Next up we walked to the Albert Einstein Memorial. Unveiled in 1979, it celebrated the centennial of Einstein’s birth, a man who had such a huge impact in the world of science. The statue is quite big and it was great to sit in the shadow of such an iconic man.

Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Vietnam Women’s Memorial

The next two memorials we saw were the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the Vietnam Women’s Memorial. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is one that I had read about in The Women and seeing so many names of those who lost their lives, along with tributes that had been left to them, was really emotional.

The Vietnam Women’s Memorial is dedicated to the nurses and women of the United States who served in the Vietnam War, along with eight trees around the outside to remember each of their eight servicewomen who lost their lives during the war.

Constitution Gardens, Signers’ Island

Our next stop was Signers’ Island in the middle of Constitution Gardens, another peaceful part of the National Mall. Signers’ Island is home to the 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence Memorial. The memorial is made up of 56 blocks, one for each signer, along with a copy of the signer’s actual signature, their name, occupation, and hometown.

The White House

We then walked to The White House, through the President’s Park. Due to all the work being down to The White House at the time, there was a lot of hoarding up and area closures to restrict the views of the public. Because of this we had to walk all the way around the building to the far side where a little area was open to give a very specific view of the White House, far from the building work taking place. Despite the very censored view, it was fantastic to see.

World War I Memorial, Pershing Park, General John J. Pershing Statue

We were then heading to Ford’s Theatre but the walk took us through Pershing Park, seeing the World War I Memorial and General John J. Pershing Statue on the way.

Old Post Office Museum – Waldorf Astoria Washington DC

We had planned to climb up the tower at the Old Post Office Museum which gives great views of the area. But, as it was closed due to the government shutdown we made do with seeing it from outside. Most of the building is now home to the Waldorf Astoria hotel and it’s such a beautiful building.

Ford’s Theatre, National Portrait Gallery

We walked past the National Portrait Gallery, again closed due to the government shutdown, and found ourselves outside Ford’s Theatre, the place where Abraham Lincoln was assassinated.

90 Second Pizza

We were exhausted after a long day of sightseeing and exploring so finished with a much needed sit down and food at 90 Second Pizza. The pizzas were made super quickly, were a great size and so tasty – we would definitely go there again.

After our pizza we walked back to the hotel. It was about a twenty minute walk but was lovely to see Washington DC as the sun was going down. It was such a nice finish to a long but lovely day.

Here’s a little map of our day exploring the Washington DC sights:

Day 3:

This day again started with breakfast in the hotel and then was, amazingly, exactly the day we had planned.

Union Street Station Car Hire

We hired a car for the rest of our trip through Avis and arranged to pick it up from Union Street Station so our first port of call was walking back there – the same route we did when we arrived in Washington DC 36 hours before!

Alexandria

Once we had the car we hit the road and went to Alexandria, stopping off at Trader Joe’s for a mooch on the way.

I’ve written about our morning in Alexandria here but in brief, this is everything we saw in Alexandria and the route we took to see it all in just a couple of hours:

• Alexandria Visitor Center (Ramsay House)
• Torpedo Factory Art Center
• Tall Ship Providence
• Captains Row Old Town Alexandria
• Athenaeum
• Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum
• Market Square
• Carlyle House Historic Park
• Alexandria City Hall
• Gadsby’s Tavern Museum
• 508 Cameron St – Replica of George Washington’s Alexandria bolthole
• 523 Queen St – Spite House, slimmest house in the US
• Kate Waller Barrett Branch Library
• Christ Church Alexandria
• Friendship Firehouse
• Alexandria History Museum at the Lyceum
• 517 Prince St – Murray-Dick-Fawcett House

Here’s a little map of our time exploring Old Town Alexandria:

George Washington’s Mount Vernon 

After leaving Alexandria we drove to one of the top places on our list to visit in this part of the world – George Washington’s Mount Vernon. The estate was home to George Washington, the first president of the United States, and his wife, Martha and it lies on the banks of the Potomac River, Virginia, around 15 miles from Washington DC.

During our afternoon at mount Vernon we did two different tours. The first was the Mount Vernon Mansion Tour which showed us inside the house. It was undergoing a lot of renovation work when we visited and so we could only see inside on an escorted tour.

We then did the Mount Vernon Hamilton Tour which was a great way to learn about George Washington’s life and American history. The tour wasn’t about Hamilton, but it used Hamilton to help explain history – and it was fantastic! A real highlight of our time at Mount Vernon.

So, Mount Vernon was originally built by Washington’s father, and the house was expanded a lot over the years. After an expansion in the 1770s it became George Washington’s home for the rest of his life – and we got to see his old and new tombs, where he now lays at rest with his wife by his side.

Much of the estate was made up of farms and plantations, worked by slaves from when it was first acquired and through to after Washington’s death. As you can imagine, that whole estate has strong links to the slave trade although George Washington did free his slaves on his death and provided for them for the rest of their lives.

Mount Vernon was made a National Historic Landmark in 1960 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is owned and maintained by the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association who open the estate daily for visitors and put on special events throughout the year.

The Mount Vernon Inn Restaurant

After Mount Vernon we went to the The Mount Vernon Inn Restaurant which sits happily at the start of the Mount Vernon estate, just a short stroll from the car park. The The Mount Vernon Inn Restaurant offers traditional food in a building that is true to the times of George Washington. It’s classic in style and we felt at home the minute we sat down.

The meal was lovely. We had four different dishes – Chicken Caesar Salad, a Fried Green BLT, a Triple Decker Club Sandwich and a Bacon Jam Burger. The service was great and the food appeared so swiftly. It was our nicest meal in America and one of the cheapest too. We’d definitely go back.

Day 4:

Our last day was meant to be full of adventures! We had planned to go to the National Archives Museum, Old Post Office Museum, Smithsonian National Museum of American History and then drive to the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. However, we had to cancel all of that due to the government shutdown.

Here’s what we did instead:

We checked out of our hotel and headed to one of the closest Cracker Barrel restaurants for breakfast – in Waldorf, Maryland. Cracker Barrel is somewhere we always try to go when we’re in the US and we had such a nice breakfast – with steak and eggs, loaded hash browns and even cinnamon rolls. It was great!

After a lovely, leisurely breakfast we spent the day doing a road trip around various shops. We started with Books-a-Million in Waldorf and then went to Walmart, Target and Trader Joe’s before spending a couple of hours at the Tanger Outlets at National Harbour.

This outlet centre had so many of our favourite shops – Gap, Old Navy, Converse – and so we picked up some discount bargains along with a Starbucks and had a pretty chilled end to our trip.

We finished the trip with shopping at Tysons Corner Center – mainly to go to a Lego store to get Little Man’s Lego Passport stamped – before heading to the airport. We flew home with British Airways from Washington Dulles Airport and it was as smooth as it could be from dropping our car off and arriving at the airport to arriving home in the UK.

We had such a great trip and here are our top tips for Washington DC:

• Visit when there isn’t a government shutdown in place if you can – there will be loads more to see and do.
• Explore all the Washington memorials on foot and at your own pace. They are great to see.
• Book to go up the Washington Monument, it’s only $3 each.
• Hire a car to see sights that are further afield.
• If you go to Mount Vernon, do the Hamilton Tour!