Choose from 95 Fun Things to Do in Washington
National Museum of African American History and Culture
- While the museum is free to enter, timed-entry passes are required.
- Head to the third-floor observatory for stellar views of the Washington Monument and the city.
- The on-site Sweet Home Café offers traditional African American cuisine from four US regions.
- Tripods, selfie sticks, food, and drink are not permitted in the museum.
- The museum is fully accessible. Wheelchair rentals are available on a first-come, first-served basis, and open captioning is included in all exhibition videos.
National Museum of African Art
Practical Info
Petersen Boarding House
Practical Info
National Museum of American History
Practical Info
National Postal Museum
Practical Info
National Mall
- The National Mall is a must-visit for all first-time visitors to DC.
- Bring comfortable walking shoes; it’s a 1.9-mile (3-kilometer) walk from one side of the National Mall to the other.
- The National Mall and many of its major monuments and memorials are wheelchair accessible.
- Don’t forget to bring sun protection and plenty of water.
Pentagon Memorial
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.
National 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.
Lincoln's Cottage
Practical Info
National Japanese American Memorial
Travelers say this small gem, hidden among more epic D.C. structures is a sad but moving memorial that serves as a reminder of the horrors of war, the ugliness of humanity and the power of the human spirit to overcome even the most difficult adversities.
Practical Info
Library of Congress
One of the most iconic and impressive structures in Washington D.C., the Library of Congress contains a staggering 120 million items, including 22 million books plus manuscripts, maps, photographs, films and prints. But don't expect to see many books: Most are shelved on more than 500 miles of closed library stacks housed in the three different buildings. The Library - the world’s largest - is still nonetheless fascinating.
The centerpiece of the LOC experience is the historic 1897 Jefferson Building, where you can wander around the spectacular Great Hall, ornate with stained glass and marble. The artwork of the Great Hall reflects the beauty that emerges from such amassed wisdom, such as the goddesses and cherubs who represent different fields of knowledge. Multimedia kiosk provide the minutest details of the library’s awe-inspiring collection.
Anyone over the age of 18 carrying photo ID can use the library, and more than a million people do so each year. The Main Reading Room is in the Jefferson building, but it is just one of 22 reading rooms. The Library of Congress is a research library, meaning you can't check the books out, but you can read away inside its confines.
Practical Info
The Library of Congress is located on the east side of the Capitol. The visitors center, in the Jefferson Building, shows a brief film. The Madison Building also hosts concerts and screens classic films in the Mary Pickford Theater.
The National Digital Library is an online service that allows you to access papers, maps and musical scores in machine-readable format (the desks in the Main Reading Room are wired for laptops). Other tasty morsels available online include major exhibitions, prints, photographs, political speeches and films.
National Geographic Museum
Practical Info
There is limited, two-hour street parking available near the museum, as well as several public lots, and it’s within a few blocks in either direction of two Metrorail stations: Farragut North (serving the Red Line) and Farragut West (serving the Blue and Orange Lines).
National Gallery of Art
Affiliated with but not a part of the Smithsonian, the National Gallery needs two buildings (connected by an underground tunnel) to house its stunning collections (more than 110,000 objects) of painting, sculpture, and decorative arts from the Middle Ages to the present. Kids love the walking escalator that traverses the two buildings and conveniently empties into the airy cafeteria where you can press your nose against the giant sheet of glass and look out onto a cascading waterfall.
The original neoclassical building, known as the West Building, exhibits primarily European works, from the Middle Ages to the early 20th century, including pieces by El Greco, Monet, and Cézanne. Don't miss the room full of Renoirs, including the famous Girl with a Hoop.
Across 4th Street NW, the angular East Building is where you'll find the Calder mobile along with other abstract and modern works. Across 7th Street from the West Wing sits the National Gallery Sculpture Garden, a beautifully landscaped park of open lawns, a pool with a spouting fountain, and 17 sculptures. In warm weather, people linger for lunch on the wide rim of the pool.
Practical Info
The National Gallery of Art is located on the north side of the National Mall, convenient to metro and bus stops. An information desk has a floor plan and a calendar of events. Allow at least 2 hours to tour the gallery, more for exploring other buildings.
The gallery has a number of dining options, including the sculpture garden's Pavilion Café. On Sunday evenings, October through June, the gallery hosts a popular concert series.
National Portrait Gallery
- The National Portrait Gallery is a must-see for art and history aficionados visiting DC.
- As with all Smithsonian museums, admission is free.
- The Courtyard Café offers casual dining, coffee, and free Wi-Fi.
- The gallery is accessible to wheelchair users. Wheelchairs can be borrowed from the site for no charge.
National Museum of Natural History
- Admission to the museum and most exhibitions is free.
- Entrance to the butterfly pavilion is free on Tuesdays.
- The museum can be very crowded on Saturdays; during the summer, there’s a useful heat map on the website to help plan your visit.
- Dining options include a cafeteria and Café Natural, which serves coffee and a limited food menu.
- The wheelchair-accessible entrance to the museum can be found on Constitution Avenue.
Penn Quarter
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).
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA)
Practical Info
Lincoln Memorial
- Free audio guided tours are available by mobile phone or through the National Mall visitor’s app.
- National Park Service rangers are available from 9:30am to 10pm every day to answer questions.
- The Lincoln Memorial is wheelchair accessible. On the southeast corner, ramps lead from street level to the basement, where an elevator goes up to the statue chamber.
Rock Creek Park
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.
Practical Info
International Spy Museum
- The museum is extremely popular among kids, with plenty of interactive exhibits to entertain families.
- Lines can get long, sometimes stretching outside the building—purchase tickets in advance to save time.
- There is a lot to see and do within the museum; allow at least two to three hours for your visit.
- Visit the museum shop to find everything you need for your next secret mission.
- Strollers are not allowed but may be left in the coat room at no charge. Baby carriers are available to borrow.