Trip Report:
Took UberX from IAD-Downtown DC: $55 flat rate each way. From my research, that may be the cheapest private transportation for that route. If I'm mistaken, let me know. Although there is a bus to the nearest metro station, this is far more convenient.
Hotel: Grand Hyatt Washington was over half the price of the PH DC. I believe the reason for the low rate was construction occurring in the lobby all day. Didn't bother us- we knew it was going to be loud and we were out anyways before the noise started. The rooms are on the small side, but I think this is the norm for downtown. Fridges are already in the room.
Anyways, great staff, small club lounge. The location was excellent, better than the PH in terms of Shabbat I think- we were able to walk to many attractions such as the National Mall, Air and Space, and National Archives. We were concerned that the metal detectors at the museums would be an issue on Shabbat, but it was not. AYLOR, but we were advised that so long as you do not have anything on you that would set off the metal detector, it is permissible. But some museums didn't even use their metal detectors.
Washington DC is actually a great city to spend Shabbat in due to the large amount of free museums. And when the weather is nice, the National Mall is a nice walk- there is a large pond/lake, and lots of grassy area for kids to run around.
I should mention that we don't usually like museums at ALL, but somehow DC's museums managed to keep us busy.
Air and Space (FREE)- very interactive. Great for all ages. Any avgeek will love the airplane section. I spent a good 2 hours in that section alone, it was fascinating. They have real planes that you can walk through, and a flight simulator. We were there on shabbat and there were a few muktzeh things we couldn't do, but definitely still worth the trip.
National Archive(FREE)- this is where the Declaration of Independence is kept. Worth a short visit. We were in and out in 20 minutes.
Museum of American History (FREE)- There is a large "transportation" exhibit, with cars, chariots/coaches, trains, etc. from throughout history. Was interesting. Good for kids. There is also a very interactive food section- showing how food has evolved in America, for example the creation of supermarkets.
Newseum- A must do. Admission is around $22 for adults, but when we went they were offering AAA discounts, and Living Social and Travelzoo also had deals. Kids may not have as much to do there, especially when there is so much else for them in DC. But we loved it.
Smithsonian Zoo (FREE)- Great zoo. A bit out of the way but worthwhile. There are many indoor enclosures to see the animals in during the cold weather.
Of course there is also the White House, and all the various memorials, but those can all be done in a few hours. We did not get to do a tour of the White House since we booked the trip last minute.
Food: AT the time of our trip, the only kosher restaurant in DC itself was Char Bar. I felt that the menu was great, but it didn't necessarily translate to the food. Coming from LA, the burgers nowhere near rivaled Jeff's, PKD, etc. The fries were homemade, but had no crisp/crunch, they were limp. So I wouldn't say it was bad, but we weren't impressed. But the staff was great, and after eating there a few times, they remembered us well towards the end. Of course there are many more options in Silver Spring and Rockville, but since our trip was short, we did not want to waste too much time schlepping out to the suburbs for food.
As mentioned upthread, there is supposed to be a new pizza restaurant called Silver Crust opening in the DC JCC soon. But as it wasn't open yet, we decided to leave Downtown DC for one meal, and headed to Nut House Pizza in Silver Spring. We chose this one because it was only a 5 minute walk from the Wheaton metro stop, so the most convenient. The pizza was just ok. Definitely not worth the trip. The place was old, dirty, and depressing looking. But there was a target right by the metro stop, so we finally got RedCards!
Shabbat food: Brookville supermarket has a decent selection of kosher food. On Friday they had challah, and we were able to pick up candles since we forgot to bring. We got deli meat, rolls, hummus and some other spreads. It was no feast, but it did the job.
Overall, a great weekend trip.
Topic Wiki
