Places to stay in Downtown RIC & DCA

[AIRMAIL]

Getting ready to take the family on a trip to RIC and DCA. Will only be in both cities for 2 days. Does anyone have any suggestions on some good places to stay that are nice and will not break the bank. In DCA we will being doing the tourist stuff. My little girl has never been and would like to visit all the sites. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[robbedagain]

i cant remember the name of the hotel but i believe there is one within a couple blocks from the smithsonian museum in the heart of DC.

 

[N109UW]

I was based there for 8 years and alot of people stayed out in Springfield, Va. The Blue line of the metro goes right there. If I am correct, there are Days Inn and that type of place there. The metro starts running at about 0530 and runs until about midnight. The blue line goes right to LaFlant center, next to the smithsonian Ins. Not a far walk to Lincoln memoria and Washington Mon from there either, Metro would run about 3 bucks depending on the time. Rush hour rates are just a little higher than normal. Yellow line goes to Arlington Cemetary. You can find a map if you google DC metro. Hope that helps and if I think of some other stuff, I will post it. Have a great time. Great place to be based in and on off days head into the District. I also had a bike there so I could ride down to Mt. Vernon from the crew lot along the Patomac river. About 27 miles round trip.

 

[tadjr]

Last time I went I stayed at the Hampton Inn in Crystal City. It was about 2 blocks to the Metro in Crystal City and you can get the orange or blue line right into DC and to/from the airport. It was a lot cheaper staying here and taking the metro into town (about a 10 min trip) than actually staying in DC.
Its a great city to sightsee in.

 

[Prince of PAWOBs]

If you are willing to spend a bit, there is a Hyatt on Wisconsin Avenue in Bethesda right across the street from the Metro station. It's a beautiful hotel, and the Red Line will take you right into DC. The nearest gas station is right up the street if you rent a car.

Bethesda also has several choice restaurants, as does nearby Chevy Chase.

If you are using Metro from DCA, take the Blue Line train from the airport and transfer to the Red Line at Metro Center. If using IAD, MetroBus has several choices to get to downtown and the surrounding area, including a bus that will take you to the Orange Line at West Falls Church.

 

[AIRMAIL]

These are all great ideas. It sounds like the metro goes everwhere. I never thought about staying outside DC and taking the metro in. I appreciate your thoughts and ideas. Thanks again!

 

[RICflyer]

If you want to stay in downtown Richmond I would stay at the Omni Hotel. It is near all the downtown sites. Also the Jefferson Hotel is great but a little walk from the sites, but a GREAT hotel.