In my opinion, the best way to experience a city is by walking, so a lot of my suggestions involve, you guessed it, walking. But, because I couldn’t help myself, the list includes a few special places to eat and two bookstores.
- Walk or bike along Beach Drive (closed to traffic on weekends & holiday) through the beauty of Rock Creek Park. For the more adventurous, there are tons of trails in the neighboring woods, many of which are marked with USPS trail signs.
- FDR Memorial. A lot of people miss this monument because it’s hidden away behind the Tidal Basin.
- U.S Botanic Gardens. So peaceful and beautiful. Located in the shadow of the Capitol dome.
- The Phillips Collection. My favorite art museum in DC. Admission to its permanent collection, including Renoir’s iconic ‘Boating Party’ and a fabulous room full of Rothko’s is free during the week.
- National Building Museum. The space is beautiful, and they have a lot of interesting exhibits.
- Gravelly Point Park (Arlington, VA) is a great place to watch planes land/take off from National Airport. The planes fly right over your head.
- Wander through the Kalorama neighborhood and stroll along embassy row. The houses are big and beautiful, and a few famous people have homes here, including the Obama’s, Ivanka and Jared and Jeff Bezos.
- Nibble on yummy food at Union Market. While you’re here, check out the campus of Gallaudet University (a university dedicated to educating the deaf and hard of hearing).
- Stroll 14th Street (Between P street and U Street). A hive of activity with lots of shops and restaurants. While you’re here, check out the Barbie Pond.
- Rent paddle boards and kayaks at either the Key Bridge Boathouse or Fletcher’s Boathouse
- Have a beer at DC’s own Right Proper Brewery.
- Explore the sculpture garden at the Hirshhorn Museum. A great spot to sit and have lunch or read a book.
- Walk through Oak Hill Cemetery and Dumbarton Oaks Park on the edge of Georgetown.
- See if you can find the Capitol Stones, a huge pile of historic stones torn off the Capitol during a 1958 renovation, most dating from the building’s original construction, and dumped behind a maintenance shed in Rock Creek Park.
- Dupont Circle Farmer’s Market (Sundays, year-round)
- Bike the C&O Canal path (it goes all the way to the Pennsylvania border if you’re up for a long ride!), the Fort Dupont Trail and the Anacostia River Trail or ride out to Mount Vernon via the Mount Vernon Trail.
- International Spy Museum. I love this place, although it is one of the few museums in DC you need to pay to see.
- Visit the National Arboretum. Fun to explore any time of year and you can bring your dog. Two highlights: 1: The old sandstone columns from the U.S. Capitol. Andrew Jackson and Abraham Lincoln stood beneath them when they were inaugurated. They now sit in an open field. 2: The collection of about 150 miniature trees and the National Bonsai Museum.
- A few special (casual) places to eat: Ben’s Chili Bowl, Murry & Paul’s Restaurant, Pizza Paradiso (woman owned), Luke’s Lobster, Grilled Cheese DC.
- Wander the shelves of two awesome independent bookstores: Politics and Prose and Kramerbooks.
- If you’re thirsty at the end of the day, pop into A League of Her Own, a bar for queer women in the Adam’s Morgan neighborhood.
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