April 10, 2025 • 40 mins
Planning a trip to Washington D.C.? Watch this before you go. Our local expert Alexandria Taylor shares everything you need to know about traveling to the capital of the U.S. Wondering where to stay, if you need a car, how to stay safe, or the best things to do? Alexandria has got you covered & more.
BONUS: Watch til the end for Alexandria’s ideal 1-week Washington D.C. itinerary - planned out step by step!
📰 Articles from Travel Lemming.com
-Things to do in Washington DC: https://travellemming.com/things-to-do-in-washington-dc/
-Where to stay in Washington DC: https://travellemming.com/where-to-stay-in-washington-dc/
-Museums in Washington DC: https://travellemming.com/museums-in-dc/
-Is Washington DC safe?: https://travellemming.com/is-washington-dc-safe/
-Day trips from DC - https://travellemming.com/day-trips-from-washington-dc/
💻 Perspectives from TravelLemming.com
- Visit Washington DC in the winter: https://travellemming.com/perspectives/visit-dc-during-the-colder-months/
- Planning a trip to the National Cherry Blossom Festival: https://travellemming.com/perspectives/what-to-know-about-the-national-cherry-blossom-festival-in-washington-dc/
- The difference between Washington & DC: https://travellemming.com/perspectives/local-distinction-between-washington-and-dc/
🎙️ Other Links Mentioned:
- Community meetups: https://www.meetup.com/pro/travel-lemming/
#WashingtonDC #DCTravel #TravelTips
00:00:00 – Teaser & Opening
00:01:00 – About Travel Lemming & DC Focus
00:02:00 – Introducing Alexandria
00:04:00 – DC’s Vibe & Nightlife (Brunch Culture!)
00:07:00 – Why Visit DC: Monuments & Free Museums
00:10:00 – Best Neighborhoods to Explore
00:15:00 – Cherry Blossom Festival Tips
00:18:00 – Day Trips & Surrounding Areas
00:20:00 – Getting Around (Metro vs. Rental Car)
00:24:00 – Where to Stay & Budget Advice
00:26:00 – When to Visit (Seasons & Weather)
00:29:00 – Safety & Common Mistakes
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
If you're planning a trip toWashington DC you're really gonna
(00:03):
wanna watch this episode Here's a30 second teaser of this episode.
(00:40):
Okay folks.
Welcome to the Travel Leming podcast.
I'm Nate Hick, the founder of TravelLeming, and your host for this podcast.
If you're planning a trip to WashingtonDC you're really gonna wanna watch this
episode because I'm gonna interview ourlocal expert, Alexandria Taylor, and we're
gonna cover everything you need to know,what to do, where to stay, and if you
stay till the end, she's gonna literallywalk through a one week itinerary with.
(01:03):
Everything you need to do so all theplanning work, can be done for you.
She'll also go over some common mistakes.
And, some general tips, for visiting.
So, really got an interestingpodcast coming here.
If you're new to this podcast though,I wanna tell you a bit about Travel Le
Travel LE is an online travel guide.
We have a team of locals stationedin dozens of cities around the
(01:24):
United States and around the world.
We write authentic guides.
If you're tired of all thatAI slop, if you're tired of
finding travel information, thatjust doesn't feel authentic.
You should really check out travel ing,and even if you're not going to DC we
have guides to destinations all over theworld, probably wherever you're going.
We also have other podcastepisodes that you can listen to.
(01:45):
With our experts interviewing them aboutcities ranging from London to Ireland, to
Disney World and everywhere in between.
And we have local communitymeetups, in several cities around
the United States and Canada.
So go to travel leming.com or just puttravel Lemming Plus wherever you're
going into your favorite search engine.
To find our guides, but let's get intotoday's episode where we're talking
(02:08):
about the capital of the UnitedStates, Washington, DC with travel
lemmings, local expert AlexandriaTaylor, who I'm, joined with today.
Thank you so much,Alexandria, for joining us.
How are you doing?
I am good.
How are you?
Great.
So excited to talk aboutthe nation's capital.
You know, I love DC I spent many of mysummers in law school and in college,
(02:30):
like interning at various places.
At one point in the CapitolHill, I worked in the Pentagon,
very briefly for a summer.
Just, you know, as young, naive Natewho thought he could change the world.
And I just loved exploring DC It's sucha fun city, so many free things to do.
So I think we're gonna have a lot to talkabout here, but first, why don't you just
go ahead and introduce yourself, a bitto the Travel Leming podcast listeners.
(02:50):
My name's Alexandria.
I'm a DC local resident.
I moved here in 2021 aftergoing to school in Virginia.
I, I'm from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,but I have a lot of friends
down here, so that's the reasonwhy I, I. Ended up moving here.
'cause I spent a lot of time visitingthem and just thought might as well move
if I'm gonna be down here once a month.
(03:11):
I, when I first moved here, Ilived in Adams, Morgan and I now
live in Petworth with my fiance.
And we just love exploring the city,finding new places to eat, trying new
pizza places, finding new dive bars.
And you're right, it's a, it's areally fun city to explore 'cause
there's so much happening in it.
So moving from Pittsburgh, youknow, that's prob, that's quite a,
(03:33):
quite a change in terms of cities.
Like what are the things that sort ofstood out to you about dc what do you
find, what have you noticed as, asbeing special or as, as being different?
Well, when I first moved here, I was in myearly twenties and when I was visiting my
friends, when I was in my early twenties.
So the one big thing that really drewme to it was the nightlife, honestly.
I was visiting my friends, going out.
(03:54):
Out to brunch, going out to bars andrestaurants and clubs afterwards.
And that was really fun.
That was one of the reasonsI wanted to move here.
But after moving here, the brunchis still a really big thing.
There's.
All kinds of memes online about howDC brunch is unmatched, and that's
still true years later, but DC justhas a lot of other things going on.
(04:18):
I love being up in the neighborhoods,kind of away from like the really
popular tourist spots and justexploring little niches and finding
little things that most people.
Wouldn't get to see when they, youknow, hang around the monuments
and, and the National Mall.
I think this is just a really specialplace because of the, the personality
(04:42):
of the different neighborhoods.
Yeah, absolutely.
And it's funny what you say about thebrunches, 'cause I remember that as well.
Like there, there really is part ofthe culture, especially on Sundays
and like a lot of them have like showsor like, it's not just like you go
to a restaurant and get a brunch.
It's like a, it's an activity, you know?
I don't know how else to describe it.
definitely.
Unlimited brunch, bottomlessbrunch, drag show brunch.
(05:03):
There's always some kind ofcool brunch going on in dc.
And of course, you know, how is it,you know, dC is kind of a special
place in the United States becauseit is the capitol, it's not a state.
It has special status and it's knownas being very political and a lot
of the people that work there, ofcourse, work in government or work
in some sort of a political thing.
How would you describe, like thesocial scene, the sort of vibe of DC.
(05:26):
I think in terms of the political,there's definitely like kind of
a polarizing, two sides to it.
There's people who live andwork with the government and
live down, like on Capitol Hill.
And then there's people who docompletely normal non-government jobs.
And I know people who do both.
Like I have friends whowork at the hospital.
My fiance's a teacher.
(05:47):
And then I have friends whowork for government, who are
government staffers and everything.
So, I think it's a little bit, youknow, it, it depends on who you meet.
It depends on your social circle.
I think one of the things aboutit being so political is that
it can be kind of transient.
There are people who move here andwork in the government, and then if
an administration changes or somethingbetter comes along, they move out.
(06:10):
But there's still a lot of people wholive here and build a life here and don't
work in the government and who are doing,you know, the typical everyday jobs that.
You know, aren't only found in DC SoI think it's a little bit of both.
And I think that even though thereis always some kind of air of
politics, 'cause it's kind of hardto avoid in dc it's not, you know,
(06:32):
everyone's one thing on their mind.
There's a lot more that people talkabout and think about in do in DC
besides just the political aspect of it.
Yeah, absolutely.
It's gotta be aninteresting place to live.
Let's talk about traveling there though.
So for folks who are planning a tripmaybe to the East coast and they're.
On the fence about whether or not theyshould wanna spend some time in DC versus,
(06:53):
you know, maybe spend some more time inNew York or Philly or somewhere else.
Make your pitch?
What makes DC special and whyshould people consider, going there?
And then also, who shouldconsider a trip to Washington DC.
Well, obviously the big part ofgoing to DC is the monuments.
It's gonna the National Mall,which is downtown, which is
where all the monuments are.
(07:13):
It's the free museums.
It's the history of the place.
Obviously it's a city like noother, but I think it's really
unique in that it has a lot of.
Past history and alsocurrent going on history.
So I think it's a really good place forpeople who are interested in history,
interested in the government being ableto tour, like the Library of Congress
(07:34):
and the Senate building and the SupremeCourt are really cool if you're into
politics and wanna, you know, see howthe government works and see, you know,
kind of behind the scenes like that.
I think it's also really greatif you love art and culture and
history because there's so manymuseums related to all of those.
There's the National Portrait Galleryand the National Art Museum, the National
(07:56):
History Museum, the Air and Space Museum.
So there's pretty much a museumfor any topic, any interest.
And what's great about them inDC is that they're all free.
So if you're looking to travel on abudget, you can still do that in dc.
Yeah, especially like if you've gota big group of family or anything.
Like that, that can really add up.
And just to set the scene for thereaders, you know, the National
(08:18):
Mall, which is kind of the.
The center of the city is a longstretch of Park At one end is the
Capitol and it goes straight throughto the Washington Monument and then
flanked on either sides are a bunch ofdifferent museums from I. Smithsonian,
and various other institutions, governmentbuildings and that sort of thing.
And so, so many, it's not just thatthere are so many amazing museums.
(08:41):
I mean, the Smithsonian's someof the best museums in the world.
It's also that they're allright there, they're all free.
You can go between them.
You can go to multipleones in the same day.
It's, it's such an interesting place.
And I just, I loved, I loveit so much walking around.
So.
Lots to do, you know, families,couples, groups of friends,
maybe consider a trip to dc.
Okay.
Let's talk about planning, the tripthere and what the sort of essential
(09:05):
things to do are, what the experiencesare and how people should kind
of go about planning their trips.
As someone who lives in WashingtonDC what would you say to a first
time tourist are the best things todo or the essential places to go?
Yeah, so if you're a touristto DC for the very first time,
I would definitely suggest.
(09:25):
Going to all like the, as manySmithsonians as you can, touring the
Library of Congress or the White House,seeing the Supreme Court, and like you
said, all of that is on the NationalMall, it's a very walkable city.
So if you're down by the National Mall,you can hit multiple of those a day.
You can walk around, see the WhiteHouse and the Supreme Court all on the
(09:47):
same day if you're willing to walk.
Of course.
But if you are a first time visit, I thinkthose are definitely the most essential
things in what you should prioritizeseeing on your first time in dc.
And then outside of the mall, if you'relooking for some more nature spots,
rock Creek Park is a really great.
Area to visit.
It's a huge park in, upperNorthwest and it spans.
(10:09):
Acres.
It has stables, it hasparks, it has hiking trails.
It has a creek that runs through it.
Me and my fiance likewalking through there.
We like getting on the river.
I wouldn't condone getting on the rocks,but we have gone on the rocks before.
There's also a part of itthat's blocked off from cars,
so it's really great for biking.
You can rent a bike, you can bring yourbike and you can drive or bike on the
(10:33):
street without having to worry about.
You know, dodging cars in the city.
And then another place that I like that'svery naturey is Kenilworth Gardens, and
that's, down in Southeast and it's justa nice little, nature preserve area.
It has lotus flowers and liliesthat bloom in the summer,
that's my favorite time to go.
'cause it's so pretty.
And there's also really good birdwatching if you're into that.
(10:55):
We like to kind of go in thehidden trail in the back and
you can see a ton of birds.
It's honestly like you're not evenin the city in the first place.
Yeah.
That's so cool.
And, and earlier you also mentioned thatone of your favorite things about DC
as someone who moved there five yearsago is all the different neighborhoods.
If someone's visiting DC for thefirst time, what neighborhood should
(11:18):
they go out of their way to explore?
What are some of your favorites?
Some of my favorites, and this ismight be a little biased because I
live there, but I love Adams Morgan.
I think that's a really good place foryounger people and groups of friends to
go because there's a lot of restaurantsto try, a lot of bars to go out to.
The same could be said forDuPont Circle and Logan Circle.
(11:40):
Those are also some.
Pretty good going outneighborhoods, going out to eat.
There's some famous restaurantslike LED Diplomat, which is a
Washingtonian favorite place.
DuPont Circle or Logan Circle.
And both of those places have goodwalkable neighborhoods where you can
hop around from bar to restaurant.
(12:00):
There's also shops to visit.
And then I also think that you couldgo down to the wharf or Navy yard.
Those are kind of some newer, newlybuilt areas that also have some
restaurants and shops to go to.
But the big draw of Navy Yardis that it has the ballpark.
So if you wanna see a Nationals game oreven a concert like in the summer, that's
(12:21):
a really good place to go to as well.
And for listeners at home, Alexandriahas a guide to DC neighborhoods
that you can go and look up withlots more information, on all.
All the different neighborhoods thatshe's talking about and many more.
You can find that on travellemming, by searching travel
lemming plus DC neighborhoodson your favorite search engine.
Okay, next, let's talk about experiences.
(12:43):
And there's one in particular I wantto talk to you about because it's
going on right now, and that's theNational Cherry Blossom Festival,
and it's one of the big draws for dc.
Tell us a bit about that.
Absolutely.
So the National Cherry BlossomFestival, it's an annual event that
happens every spring, usually inlate March or early April, and it's
when the cherry blossoms that Japangifted to the United States bloom,
(13:07):
and it's really, really pretty site.
And it draws millionsof people every year.
Peak bloom changes every year.
The National Park Service will announcethat once it gets closer, like for
example, this year it was just this pastweekend, which was March 27th I believe.
So that's whenever the cherry blossoms areat their fullest and the best to look at.
(13:28):
But that's also.
The busiest time to go.
That's when the most people are there.
But they'll be in bloom from lateMarch to early April, so you can go
down there anytime and it's a freefestival, which is really cool.
So you don't have to pay toactually see the cherry blossoms
or do a lot of the events likethe Kite Festival or the parade.
My big thing about it is that it'sjust a really, really popular event
(13:51):
and therefore it's really, really busy.
So if you wanna go, youdefinitely have to plan ahead.
You definitely have to book yourhotel ahead and be prepared to
walk and be prepared for crowds.
'cause it's gonna be hundredsof thousands of people.
Yeah.
On the subject of planningahead, Alexandra, you've got
an entire guide to what to knowabout, attending the Washington DC
(14:14):
National Cherry Blossom Festival.
So it's got lots of tips.
She's got advice on hotelsand neighborhoods to stay.
All sorts of, helpful informationto help you plan that trip.
So if you've got that on yourschedule for next year, definitely
go check out that article.
Any other, any other tips orthings people should know before
planning a trip for the festival?
I.
I would say to not drive during thisfestival, it's gonna be really crowded.
(14:38):
When we were down here thisweekend, traffic was pretty
much at a standstill, so.
You are not gonna wanna drive,you're probably not gonna
wanna rent a car for this.
The best thing to probablydo is to take the metro walk.
You can get off at the metro atthe Smithsonian station, which
is on the mall, and it's about a10 minute walk to the tidal basin
where the cherry blossoms bloom.
And that's much better thansitting in traffic for hours.
(15:01):
Okay, so we've talked about the essential.
Things to do.
But now I wanna talk a bit aboutyour favorites as a local resident
of Washington dc what are some ofyour personal favorites or hidden gs?
Yeah, so I shared one ofmy head and gyms earlier.
It's Kenworth Gardens.
That's a really niceplace to go out and work.
I like to knit and crochet, sosometimes I take my projects out there
(15:25):
and just sit and enjoy the weather.
Speaking of knitting and crochet, I alsogo to the library and do a group there.
And I think the libraries are areally, really nice hidden gem.
Even if you're not.
Necessarily a book lover or a reader.
They have a lot of programs and sometimeseven put on concerts and stuff, so I
think that that's a really cool placeto check out, see what kind of events
(15:46):
they're having when you're in town.
My personal favorite libraryis the MLK Library, which is in
Chinatown, and it's one of thenewer libraries and it's beautiful.
They have a really nice rooftopand you can go up there for free.
Take your lunch, chill,eat, enjoy the view.
And that's probably one ofmy favorite places to go.
In terms of personal things that Ilike to do, me and my fiance like
(16:08):
to walk, like this weekend we walkedfrom the Tidal basin over to Capitol
Hill and just kind of checked out theneighborhoods, stopped in places to eat.
We're really big on trying differentpizza places around the city and
DC has a lot of really good ones.
He'll, probably not like me forsharing this, but Timber is one of
our top favorites and that's in ourneighborhood, and it's probably one of
(16:29):
the best pizzas in DC that we've had.
Don't everybody go there at the same time.
But thank you for sharing Alexandria.
Amazing.
So.
If you have longer in DC and Ithink it's also a nice city to
sort of get out of for day tripsbecause of where it's positioned.
I mean, it's between Maryland and Virginiaand it has, its along the northeast
corridor, which is the only sort ofreal rail corridor that we have, in the
(16:53):
United States for our European listeners.
So, you know, you mentionedearlier that you like taking
day trips outside of the city.
Talk to me about that.
What some of your favorite placesor your favorite towns to visit?
Yeah, so DZ is great for day trips.
Like you said, it's located kindof right in the center of things.
There's a DMV, which is.
Dc, Maryland and Virginia.
(17:14):
So you can really easily getto like Bethesda and Rockville,
which are in Maryland.
And then in Virginia you can getto Alexandria and Arlington, which
are all really great day trips, forshopping, for eating, for exploring.
And Arlington of course, has the ArlingtonNational Cemetery, which is also a big
draw when people come to visit dc and
And that is Arlington National Cemetery.
(17:35):
Is, is where many veterans and, are, are
Yeah, and the tomb of the UnknownSoldier, and the changing of the
Guard and all of those things are inArlington National Cemetery, which
is just over the river from dc.
If you wanna go a little bit further,which we like to do on the weekend,
sometimes there's Annapolis, there'sBaltimore, there's Richmond, which
(17:55):
we're all about an hour and a half totwo hours away, and those are really.
Fun cities to visit as well.
Annapolis is on the water,so it's a really fun city.
If you like to boat or do wateractivities, eat on the water little
bit coastal vibe and Baltimore andRichmond have more of that city vibe,
a lot of fun little activities ofthem, of their own to do with museums
(18:18):
and shops and all of those things.
And then if you're going even furtherout, there's like the Eastern shore
which has, ocean City, which if youwanna go to a beach, if you're in the
summer, it's like three hours from dc.
So that's also a really great option.
.Okay.
Well, you've got lots of optionsfor things to do in Washington, DC.
If you need more, we have a guide ontravel lemming from another DC local.
(18:42):
You can find that by searching forDC things to do, travel lemming.
Now let's talk about planning a trip.
So if someone's at home, you'vesold them on going to Washington
dc they want to visit, they'vegot some idea of what to do there.
But let's go through some of thetraditional sort of trip planning stuff
to help help our listeners plan that trip.
First question we often get is,how long should you allocate?
(19:03):
How many days would you recommend?
To set aside to visit Washington DC.
I think the best amount of timeto visit DC is at least a week.
That way you can see a lot of themuseums, even though the museums are
really close together, they're hugeand there's so much stuff to do.
So you can probably only seetwo, maybe three in a day if
you're being quick about it.
(19:25):
So if you wanna see a lot of themuseums, I definitely recommend.
Spending at least a week in dc Andthen you also be able to do some
other things like the zoo, explorethe neighborhoods, go out to eat, see
the monuments, those kind of things.
A quick trip for DC you could do inlike three days and kind of expedite
things and maybe choose one or twomuseums to go to and, and another
(19:46):
day to explore the neighborhoods.
But I would definitelyrecommend at least a week.
Okay.
And how, how do you get to DC.
So one of the ways that a lot of peopleget to DC is by flying in, and there's
two airports that you can go to.
There's Reagan, DCA, which isjust over the river in Arlington.
And then there's Dulles, which is a littlebit further out into Virginia, but Dulles
(20:07):
is the bigger international airport.
So a lot more flights go through Dullesand both are on the metro line, I believe.
Dallas is on silver andReagan, DCA is on blue.
And so you'll be able to flyinto the city, take the metro
into the city, or an Uber.
But I always recommend the Metrobecause that's probably one of
the easiest ways to get around.
(20:29):
Yeah, let's talk about the DC Metroreal quick while we're on that.
'cause, I mean, I think it's one ofthe best things about DC in the us.
We don't have.
Underground subway systems like you seein a lot of, European or Japanese cities,
outside of, with a couple exceptions.
And one big one is dc which hasI think one of the better subway
systems, which it's called the Metro.
(20:50):
Tell us a bit about the metro.
You were, you were mentioning colorsfor the lines earlier, which is,
which is how they, they denominate it.
But just give us a very brief,sort of overview of, of the
Washington DC metro system.
Yes, so the Washington DMC Metrosystem allows you to pretty
much go anywhere in the city.
As well as some of the immediateplaces in Virginia and Maryland.
(21:12):
So I think it's the best way to getaround, especially because you, if you're
visiting, you can get a unlimited pass ora day pass so you can just buy that one
time, swipe it all day, and be able toget on the metro and also the bus system.
And I think those two combined,you really won't need a car in dc.
You can rent a car if you wantto go to some further out places.
(21:34):
If you're interested in maybe someof the hikes outside of DC or going
to one of the cities outside of dc.
But if you wanna stay in DC I definitelydon't think a car is necessary
because the metro system is so great.
And like you said the lines arenamed by color, so they run either
across the city or down the city.
It's pretty easy looking at the map to beable to figure out where you need to go.
(21:57):
There's some bigger metro stationsdowntown that allow you to change lines so
you can take one, get off, get on anothertrain, and to get to where you have to go.
In DC you'll probably only have to takeone, maybe two metros depending on where
you're coming from and where you're going.
Yeah, it makes sense.
Makes it easy to get around.
Well, with such a great metrosystem, do you need a rental
car If you're visiting DC.
(22:18):
I really don't think it'snecessary to have a rental car.
Like I said, especially if you'restaying in DC and you're doing
mostly things in and around dc.
You won't need a car to cross thecity, and if you can't get somewhere
by metro, you can get there by bus.
The only time I would really recommendhaving a rental car is if you want
to go further out the city wherethe metro doesn't go and you don't
(22:43):
wanna pay for an Uber for that,
like if you're going hiking to some ofthe spots outside of DC or wanna go to
Annapolis or Richmond during your DC trip.
But if you're just staying in thecity, I would say forget the car.
Parking's bad, traffic's bad, and juststick to doing the metro or walking.
Okay.
Makes sense.
So one big question peoplealways wanna know is, where
(23:04):
should I stay within the city?
And you've got a really detailedguide on travel lemming to where
to stay in Washington, DC You justsearch for where to stay in DC travel
lemming, and you can pull that up.
But Alexandria, where do you recommendin terms of the best areas, and
maybe some suggested hotels forwhere tourists might consider staying
(23:24):
during a visit to Washington DC.
So I think that if you're a firsttime visitor to Washington DC the
best place to stay would be somewherearound downtown so that you can get
to the National Mall, the monuments,the museums a little bit easier, and
you can stay downtown, you can stay inChinatown, you can stay in Foggy Bottom.
Those are all neighborhoods that kindof border, downtown border, the National
(23:46):
Mall, and you'll easily be able to get toall of those attractions, without having
to get on a car, even get on the Metro.
And then if you have been to DC beforeand you wanna kind of get away from the
kind of typical spots, I would definitelyrecommend staying more uptown and
somewhere like DuPont or Adams Morgan.
The Lion Hotel in AdamsMorgan is a really cool hotel.
(24:08):
It's a boutique space, so it'skind of, it's not like a high rise.
City Hotel.
So that's kind of cool to stay in.
And it's also right next to18th Street, which is where all
the restaurants and shops are.
So that's a really cool place to stay.
And then of course, if you wanna stayoutside of the city, there's also Bethesda
and Arlington, which are a little bitmore spread out, a little bit more
(24:30):
suburban, but still close to the city foryou to do all of the cool attractions.
And you probably find some cheaperhotels by staying in Virginia or
Maryland and, and taking the train in.
Definitely, definitely.
Okay, so speaking of money, iflisteners at home are probably thinking,
oh gosh, I wanna do so many things.
How much is this gonna set me back?
(24:50):
What do you think is a reasonableexpected budget, for a trip to DC?
So I think about $150 perperson is probably the best.
Like I said before, a lot of themus, the museums and a lot of the
attractions downtown are free.
So that's a really goodway to save on the budget.
(25:11):
But honestly, a lot of the moneyThat you bring for your trip
is gonna go to food and drink.
It's a little expensive in DC The cost ofliving's a little high, so eating out is
probably gonna be your biggest expense.
Whenever things like the museum andthe zoo are free, so I would probably
expect to spend about $150 per person.
(25:32):
And is that on top of the hotel?
And that would be on top of the hotel?
Yes.
And.
For the hotels, of course, when you'restaying more in the city center,
those are gonna be the most expensive.
So if you're looking to save alittle bit of money on the hotel,
look a little bit further out.
Look in Maryland, look in Virginia.
Those places are gonna havea little bit lower of prices.
Next up, let's talk about when to goto DC and, you know, DC's interesting
(25:56):
because it's latitude means that it verymuch has four distinct different seasons.
And you've already mentioned a bit how thecity changes depending upon the season.
You've also got a perspective pieceon travel leming where you talk
about why, you know, it might be.
Good to visit in the winter months,actually, certainly the summer is one
of the most popular months apart fromcherry blossom season in the spring.
(26:19):
But you have a whole piece whereyou talk about why visiting in
the winter months can actuallybe a unique experience, in DC.
So, you know, maybe tell us a bit abouthow, how you would think approaching that.
Is there any bad time to visit DC andwhen would you prefer, for people to
visit, if you were helping 'em choose.
I don't think that there are anyexplicitly bad times to visit dc It
just depends on how you wanna travel.
(26:41):
Like you said, summer isa really popular time.
It's when people are on vacation, that'swhen they're planning their trips.
So it's gonna be really,really busy in the summer.
The summer is also.
Really, really hot.
It gets really hot, it gets really humid.
I think this last summer we had multiplethree digit days, and sometimes when you
step outside you just instantly sweat.
(27:01):
And I think one of the big thingsto think about is that you're gonna
probably be walking a lot in dc soif you don't wanna walk in the heat,
the summer's not the best time to go.
And on a personal note.
The mosquitoes in DC are horrendous.
I get bit up like crazy.
So Summer's personally, not my favoritetime to be out, just because it's so
humid and there are a lot of mosquitoes.
(27:23):
Spring is a really nice time becauseyou get the beautiful weather, but it's
not quite as hot as it is in the summer.
There is caution around thecherry blossom season and 'cause
that's a really popular time.
But like I said, in my perspective piece,I really like it in the fall and winter.
'cause in the fall it's still really nice.
It's still really pretty, but theheat and the humidity has gone down.
(27:44):
So it makes being out and exploringthe city, walking around, eating
outside at all the restaurants.
It makes that way more comfortable.
And then the winter is just a good timebecause it gets cold, but it doesn't
get freezing cold at some places.
So you can still be out.
And of course there'll be some dayswhere it dips below and there's snow.
But for the most part,winters are pretty mild.
(28:07):
And you can be out, you can be exploring,and there's way less people, so
it's often a lot cheaper for hotels.
There's less people on the mall andin the museum, so you're not gonna be.
Fighting crowds as much.
So I personally would say fall and winter.
But of course, spring and summeraren't bad times to visit either.
Yeah, the humidity.
(28:28):
Boy, if that isn't something that yougotta be prepared for in DC in the
summer, I remember stepping outside andfeeling like you need to take a shower
after just five minutes of walking.
So makes a lot of sense tovisit in in other months.
As I remember, I, I think DCwas like built over a swamp,
Yeah.
It was like, as I recall in from myhistory class, it was like at the
(28:51):
beginning of the founding of the UnitedStates, the Maryland and, and Virginia
sort of gifted the federal government theland to build the new national capital.
But they gave 'em this like awfulswamp land between the two of them, and
then they sort of built up over that.
So that's why it's hot andhumid and mugging and you
have mosquitoes everywhere.
Right, and it is the water part of itthat still exists is very beautiful,
(29:12):
but the mosquitoes are not fun.
Yeah.
Okay.
Well, another question that a lotof people get, particularly about
American cities is about safety.
And I know you've got a whole guideon travel lemming about safety in
Washington DC so I'd suggest folksgo check that out for more details.
But give me the quick answerto, is DC a safe place to visit?
(29:35):
I think DC is a safe place to visit.
It's like a, it's a city like any other.
So of course there's crime, of course,there's things going on, but generally,
if you're visiting dc, if you're avisitor, you're probably not gonna be,
you know, experiencing crime that maybegets sensationalized on the news, but.
Of course you also justwanna be a smart traveler.
(29:57):
It's a city, so you don't wanna, youknow, be looking around lost, be, make
yourself look like a victim essentially.
But overall, DC is a really safe cityand there are a lot of neighborhoods
that have really low crime.
And you should be fine walkingaround at night during the
day by yourself as a woman.
You really shouldn't have to worry aboutthat too much, but you just wanna make
(30:19):
sure that you're practicing safe travel.
You don't wanna leave bags and cars, youdon't wanna be flashing your money around.
You don't wanna, you know, walkaround with your head down.
You wanna look like you know whereyou're going and what you're doing.
And for the most part, people will leaveyou alone, even whenever you're in the
not safest areas, if no one's gonna reallybother you if you're not bothering them.
(30:42):
Got it.
Good advice.
And remember, you know, as Alexandriasays, one of the important things is
picking the neighborhood where you stay.
So go check out her guide toWhere to stay in Washington DC and
that'll take care of a lot of that.
What are some other tips orcommon mistakes that you see
tourists doing in Washington, DC.
Yeah, I think especially if you'redown on the mall, one of my biggest
(31:02):
tips is to bring walking shoes.
And honestly, you should just havewalking shoes no matter where you're
gonna stay in dc especially if you'replanning to take the Metro walk, even
though it's not a huge city and it'snot very sprawling, like you will
be walking a lot for the most part.
So bring comfortable shoes.
In the summer, like I said, it gets reallyhot and humid, so have a water bottle.
(31:25):
You don't wanna be walking aroundenjoying your day and then trying
to find places to get water or evenhave to buy overly priced water that
they have stationed around the mall.
Definitely bring your water andcomfortable walking shoes and
comfortable, breathable clothes.
And like I mentioned before,doing public transportation.
It's the best way to get around DC.
You can get a seven day unlimitedpass for the boat that works on both
(31:48):
the metro and the bus, and so youonly have to pay for that once, and
then you can just swipe through.
But a really important tip for whenyou're on the metro is when you're
on the escalators, you wanna stand onthe right so you can let walkers up.
On the left.
They take that really seriously,especially when you're gonna
be down by downtown when peopleare trying to get to work.
(32:08):
You don't wanna be the touristthat's blocking the escalators
to get in and out the metro.
I wanna talk real quick aboutlike festivals special events.
We talked earlier about the CherryBlossom Festival, but are there any
other seasonal events that mightbe worth planning a trip around?
Yeah.
If you like culture, music, anddancing, there's the H Street Festival,
which happens annually in the fall.
(32:29):
It's pretty much like a giant block party.
They block off the streets around HStreet and that's in Northeast, and
so you get to try different foods,try from different restaurants, listen
to music, listen to performances.
There's shops that have tablesand booths for you to shop at.
That's a really cool festival to go to.
And then there's also BroccoliCity, which is a two day hip hop
(32:51):
festival, which is in the summer.
And so if you like hip hop, that's areally fun one to go to because they get a
lot of big name artists to perform there.
What about sports?
A lot of people like to travel to sports.
I think DC has a lot of teams.
Yeah.
Yeah, DC has a ton of teams, so there'shockey, basketball, soccer, football,
baseball, and most of them havetheir stadium or their arena in dc.
(33:16):
The city, the only one that doesn'tis the football stadium, which
is out in Landover, Maryland.
But the basketball team and theHON team play at Capital One
Arena, which is down in Chinatown.
And then the soccer team plays atAudi Field, which is in Navy Yard.
And the Nationals Park is alsoa Navy yard and all of those in
the city are metro accessible andthose are really fun to go to.
(33:39):
I've been to a couple myself.
It is busy with traffic and everything.
So again, the metro's, the best wayto get there, but they're really fun
events and they're worth planningaround if you're gonna be in the
city during one of those times.
Yeah.
For our listeners who are notfrom the USA, I really recommend
a baseball game 'cause that issomething that's uniquely American.
(34:00):
No better place to do itthan in the nation's capital.
Go.
Watch the Nationals.
There's tons of baseball games as well.
Like they have way more games thanthan many of the other leagues.
So there's a good chance if you'revisiting, that there'll be a game on.
So that's, that's a, that's a goodone to, to consider, especially
for our international visitors.
Okay.
Well, I think we've given all of theinformation that you would need to know
(34:21):
to plan a trip, but don't go away yetbecause we're gonna end with my favorite
segment here, where if you listening toall this and you're like, wow, that's.
That sounds like a lot.
Well, you have the option of goingand reading Alexandria's guides and
continuing to planning your trip.
Or I'm gonna, I've asked Alexandriato help prepare her sort of ideal
itinerary, and you can just listenand you can just copy and swipe this.
(34:43):
So earlier, Alexandria, you saida week is about what you would
say is the ideal time to visit dc.
So figure, we get a day to get in andget set all to your hotel and a day,
you know, the day at the end to leave.
So let's plan out sort of a sixday itinerary in the middle for
everything that you would need.
So give me, walk me through your ideal.
(35:03):
Itinerary for six days in Washington, DC.
Sure.
So on the first day, I'dstart in the morning doing a
walking tour of the monuments.
You can do the self-guidedand that would be free.
You can walk around tothe different monuments.
They're all pretty close together, andread about them on the plaques or look up
their history online and read about them.
(35:25):
There's also guided tours if you wantsomeone to tell you all that information.
So I would start with a walking tour,preferably in the morning when it's a
little bit cooler and you're not out inthe open with the sun bearing down on you.
So then after that I would grablunch downtown, and then after
finishing lunch, I'd spend theafternoon at one of the museums,
maybe two of them if you have time.
(35:47):
I recommend the National HistoryMuseum or the National Gallery of Art.
Those are two of thebiggest museums in the city.
So then the second day I do atour of the Library of Congress.
That's a really.
Fun place to visit.
It has its own exhibits aswell as a large library.
And then you can walk around theCapitol Hill neighborhood for lunch.
And there's a farmer's market onSaturday if you plan that out.
(36:09):
Right?
And then you can come back downthe hill from Capitol Hill and go
to the botanical gardens and see abunch of plants and flowers at times
they have a corpse flower blooming.
You might wanna plan around thatif you're interested in seeing that
kind of once in a lifetime event.
And then I would also suggest seeingeither the White House, the US Capitol
or the Supreme Court, and you caneither walk around and just view those
(36:32):
buildings or you can do a tour of them.
On the third day, I go to Embassy Row.
That's where the other countrieshave their embassies in the United
States in DC and they're reallycool, really pretty buildings.
A lot of times they have events, so youmight be able to go in and tour or go to
an event at one of the embassies, and thenyou'll be over in the Georgetown area.
(36:54):
So you can have lunch at Georgetown.
You can enjoy the architecture there.
You can have lunch on the wateror take a walk by the water.
And then you can head uptown and goto the National Zoo and the Washington
National Cathedral, which is also a reallygood place to see cherry blossoms if you
don't wanna go down to the tidal basin.
On day four, I would suggest steppingaway from the really populated spots
(37:17):
and find a DC neighborhood to explore.
I suggest DuPont Circle or LoganCircle, U Street and Columbia Heights
are also really cool places there.
You can get lunch, you can grab adrink, you can shop around, and you'll
be able to get kind of a feel of DCoutside of the monuments and museums.
And then in the evenings you cansee kinda the smaller monuments
(37:38):
that aren't typically viewed.
Like there's the MLK monument, which isa little bit separated from the others.
And then I would suggest endingthe night at a spot with live music.
If you can see something withGo-Go, that's a really great
way to get a feel for the city.
And then on day five, I would sayto head over to Arlington to visit
the Arlington National Cemetery.
(38:00):
You'll be able to.
See the changing of the guards andthe tomb of the unknown soldier.
And then you can also have lunch inArlington, which is kind of a small,
kind of suburban city outside of dc.
If you have a car or wanna take an Uber,you can go out to Mount Vernon, which
is a cool historical spot outside of dc.
(38:21):
And then you can go to OldTown Alexandria, walk along the
water and have dinner there.
And then on the sixth day, I would suggestseeing kind of a lesser known museum
like Planet Word or the National PostalMuseum, which are not as frequently
visited, but still really cool to go to.
And then I would say ran a bike andjust spent the afternoon seeing the
(38:43):
city biking around, just taking it in.
And then one of my favorite things to dois to actually see the monuments at night.
I think it gives a completely differentfeel to the city, and I like being
by the water with the lights ofthe monuments, lighting them up.
Yeah, it is really special.
When you see like the Jefferson,memorial, like reflecting over the,
the river, like absolutely gorgeous.
(39:04):
Awesome.
Well, so if you're listening, you've nowgot your whole week planned out for you.
But if you want more detail,Alexandria's got dozens of guides.
On travel leming.com, you can findthem by searching travel leming plus
DC plus whatever you're looking for.
And by the way, as I would remindyou, we have guides on travel
lemming to destinations all overthe United States, all over Europe.
(39:26):
Even if you're not planning to go to dcjust try searching travel Lemming Plus
wherever you're going to go find those.
Well, thank you so muchfor joining us, today.
Alexandra, any parting thoughts?
What would you say to someone bef,you know, before they go about, DC.
I think it's just areally fun city to visit.
I would definitely recommend it, there'smore to DC than the monuments and the
(39:47):
neighborhoods and the culture and thehistory of it is really what makes DC so
I would suggest seeing all parts of DC.
Awesome.
Good advice.
Thank you so much Alexandria.
Alright.
Thank you so much for listening.
Please go ahead and like, and subscribe.
It really helps us out when you hit thatlike button just takes you a second.
But it lets us know that you enjoyedthis podcast and if you listen this
(40:08):
far, I'd also really appreciate it.
If you would consider leaving acomment down below or sharing our
podcast with one of your friends.
And, if you want to keep listening,we've got more than a dozen podcasts
to different destinations allaround the world, all around the us.
So go check out one of those next.
If you're planning a trip toWashington DC you're really gonna
(00:03):
wanna watch this episode Here's a30 second teaser of this episode.
(00:40):
Okay folks.
Welcome to the Travel Leming podcast.
I'm Nate Hick, the founder of TravelLeming, and your host for this podcast.
If you're planning a trip to WashingtonDC you're really gonna wanna watch this
episode because I'm gonna interview ourlocal expert, Alexandria Taylor, and we're
gonna cover everything you need to know,what to do, where to stay, and if you
stay till the end, she's gonna literallywalk through a one week itinerary with.
(01:03):
Everything you need to do so all theplanning work, can be done for you.
She'll also go over some common mistakes.
And, some general tips, for visiting.
So, really got an interestingpodcast coming here.
If you're new to this podcast though,I wanna tell you a bit about Travel Le
Travel LE is an online travel guide.
We have a team of locals stationedin dozens of cities around the
(01:24):
United States and around the world.
We write authentic guides.
If you're tired of all thatAI slop, if you're tired of
finding travel information, thatjust doesn't feel authentic.
You should really check out travel ing,and even if you're not going to DC we
have guides to destinations all over theworld, probably wherever you're going.
We also have other podcastepisodes that you can listen to.
(01:45):
With our experts interviewing them aboutcities ranging from London to Ireland, to
Disney World and everywhere in between.
And we have local communitymeetups, in several cities around
the United States and Canada.
So go to travel leming.com or just puttravel Lemming Plus wherever you're
going into your favorite search engine.
To find our guides, but let's get intotoday's episode where we're talking
(02:08):
about the capital of the UnitedStates, Washington, DC with travel
lemmings, local expert AlexandriaTaylor, who I'm, joined with today.
Thank you so much,Alexandria, for joining us.
How are you doing?
I am good.
How are you?
Great.
So excited to talk aboutthe nation's capital.
You know, I love DC I spent many of mysummers in law school and in college,
(02:30):
like interning at various places.
At one point in the CapitolHill, I worked in the Pentagon,
very briefly for a summer.
Just, you know, as young, naive Natewho thought he could change the world.
And I just loved exploring DC It's sucha fun city, so many free things to do.
So I think we're gonna have a lot to talkabout here, but first, why don't you just
go ahead and introduce yourself, a bitto the Travel Leming podcast listeners.
(02:50):
My name's Alexandria.
I'm a DC local resident.
I moved here in 2021 aftergoing to school in Virginia.
I, I'm from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,but I have a lot of friends
down here, so that's the reasonwhy I, I. Ended up moving here.
'cause I spent a lot of time visitingthem and just thought might as well move
if I'm gonna be down here once a month.
(03:11):
I, when I first moved here, Ilived in Adams, Morgan and I now
live in Petworth with my fiance.
And we just love exploring the city,finding new places to eat, trying new
pizza places, finding new dive bars.
And you're right, it's a, it's areally fun city to explore 'cause
there's so much happening in it.
So moving from Pittsburgh, youknow, that's prob, that's quite a,
(03:33):
quite a change in terms of cities.
Like what are the things that sort ofstood out to you about dc what do you
find, what have you noticed as, asbeing special or as, as being different?
Well, when I first moved here, I was in myearly twenties and when I was visiting my
friends, when I was in my early twenties.
So the one big thing that really drewme to it was the nightlife, honestly.
I was visiting my friends, going out.
(03:54):
Out to brunch, going out to bars andrestaurants and clubs afterwards.
And that was really fun.
That was one of the reasonsI wanted to move here.
But after moving here, the brunchis still a really big thing.
There's.
All kinds of memes online about howDC brunch is unmatched, and that's
still true years later, but DC justhas a lot of other things going on.
(04:18):
I love being up in the neighborhoods,kind of away from like the really
popular tourist spots and justexploring little niches and finding
little things that most people.
Wouldn't get to see when they, youknow, hang around the monuments
and, and the National Mall.
I think this is just a really specialplace because of the, the personality
(04:42):
of the different neighborhoods.
Yeah, absolutely.
And it's funny what you say about thebrunches, 'cause I remember that as well.
Like there, there really is part ofthe culture, especially on Sundays
and like a lot of them have like showsor like, it's not just like you go
to a restaurant and get a brunch.
It's like a, it's an activity, you know?
I don't know how else to describe it.
definitely.
Unlimited brunch, bottomlessbrunch, drag show brunch.
(05:03):
There's always some kind ofcool brunch going on in dc.
And of course, you know, how is it,you know, dC is kind of a special
place in the United States becauseit is the capitol, it's not a state.
It has special status and it's knownas being very political and a lot
of the people that work there, ofcourse, work in government or work
in some sort of a political thing.
How would you describe, like thesocial scene, the sort of vibe of DC.
(05:26):
I think in terms of the political,there's definitely like kind of
a polarizing, two sides to it.
There's people who live andwork with the government and
live down, like on Capitol Hill.
And then there's people who docompletely normal non-government jobs.
And I know people who do both.
Like I have friends whowork at the hospital.
My fiance's a teacher.
(05:47):
And then I have friends whowork for government, who are
government staffers and everything.
So, I think it's a little bit, youknow, it, it depends on who you meet.
It depends on your social circle.
I think one of the things aboutit being so political is that
it can be kind of transient.
There are people who move here andwork in the government, and then if
an administration changes or somethingbetter comes along, they move out.
(06:10):
But there's still a lot of people wholive here and build a life here and don't
work in the government and who are doing,you know, the typical everyday jobs that.
You know, aren't only found in DC SoI think it's a little bit of both.
And I think that even though thereis always some kind of air of
politics, 'cause it's kind of hardto avoid in dc it's not, you know,
(06:32):
everyone's one thing on their mind.
There's a lot more that people talkabout and think about in do in DC
besides just the political aspect of it.
Yeah, absolutely.
It's gotta be aninteresting place to live.
Let's talk about traveling there though.
So for folks who are planning a tripmaybe to the East coast and they're.
On the fence about whether or not theyshould wanna spend some time in DC versus,
(06:53):
you know, maybe spend some more time inNew York or Philly or somewhere else.
Make your pitch?
What makes DC special and whyshould people consider, going there?
And then also, who shouldconsider a trip to Washington DC.
Well, obviously the big part ofgoing to DC is the monuments.
It's gonna the National Mall,which is downtown, which is
where all the monuments are.
(07:13):
It's the free museums.
It's the history of the place.
Obviously it's a city like noother, but I think it's really
unique in that it has a lot of.
Past history and alsocurrent going on history.
So I think it's a really good place forpeople who are interested in history,
interested in the government being ableto tour, like the Library of Congress
(07:34):
and the Senate building and the SupremeCourt are really cool if you're into
politics and wanna, you know, see howthe government works and see, you know,
kind of behind the scenes like that.
I think it's also really greatif you love art and culture and
history because there's so manymuseums related to all of those.
There's the National Portrait Galleryand the National Art Museum, the National
(07:56):
History Museum, the Air and Space Museum.
So there's pretty much a museumfor any topic, any interest.
And what's great about them inDC is that they're all free.
So if you're looking to travel on abudget, you can still do that in dc.
Yeah, especially like if you've gota big group of family or anything.
Like that, that can really add up.
And just to set the scene for thereaders, you know, the National
(08:18):
Mall, which is kind of the.
The center of the city is a longstretch of Park At one end is the
Capitol and it goes straight throughto the Washington Monument and then
flanked on either sides are a bunch ofdifferent museums from I. Smithsonian,
and various other institutions, governmentbuildings and that sort of thing.
And so, so many, it's not just thatthere are so many amazing museums.
(08:41):
I mean, the Smithsonian's someof the best museums in the world.
It's also that they're allright there, they're all free.
You can go between them.
You can go to multipleones in the same day.
It's, it's such an interesting place.
And I just, I loved, I loveit so much walking around.
So.
Lots to do, you know, families,couples, groups of friends,
maybe consider a trip to dc.
Okay.
Let's talk about planning, the tripthere and what the sort of essential
(09:05):
things to do are, what the experiencesare and how people should kind
of go about planning their trips.
As someone who lives in WashingtonDC what would you say to a first
time tourist are the best things todo or the essential places to go?
Yeah, so if you're a touristto DC for the very first time,
I would definitely suggest.
(09:25):
Going to all like the, as manySmithsonians as you can, touring the
Library of Congress or the White House,seeing the Supreme Court, and like you
said, all of that is on the NationalMall, it's a very walkable city.
So if you're down by the National Mall,you can hit multiple of those a day.
You can walk around, see the WhiteHouse and the Supreme Court all on the
(09:47):
same day if you're willing to walk.
Of course.
But if you are a first time visit, I thinkthose are definitely the most essential
things in what you should prioritizeseeing on your first time in dc.
And then outside of the mall, if you'relooking for some more nature spots,
rock Creek Park is a really great.
Area to visit.
It's a huge park in, upperNorthwest and it spans.
(10:09):
Acres.
It has stables, it hasparks, it has hiking trails.
It has a creek that runs through it.
Me and my fiance likewalking through there.
We like getting on the river.
I wouldn't condone getting on the rocks,but we have gone on the rocks before.
There's also a part of itthat's blocked off from cars,
so it's really great for biking.
You can rent a bike, you can bring yourbike and you can drive or bike on the
(10:33):
street without having to worry about.
You know, dodging cars in the city.
And then another place that I like that'svery naturey is Kenilworth Gardens, and
that's, down in Southeast and it's justa nice little, nature preserve area.
It has lotus flowers and liliesthat bloom in the summer,
that's my favorite time to go.
'cause it's so pretty.
And there's also really good birdwatching if you're into that.
(10:55):
We like to kind of go in thehidden trail in the back and
you can see a ton of birds.
It's honestly like you're not evenin the city in the first place.
Yeah.
That's so cool.
And, and earlier you also mentioned thatone of your favorite things about DC
as someone who moved there five yearsago is all the different neighborhoods.
If someone's visiting DC for thefirst time, what neighborhood should
(11:18):
they go out of their way to explore?
What are some of your favorites?
Some of my favorites, and this ismight be a little biased because I
live there, but I love Adams Morgan.
I think that's a really good place foryounger people and groups of friends to
go because there's a lot of restaurantsto try, a lot of bars to go out to.
The same could be said forDuPont Circle and Logan Circle.
(11:40):
Those are also some.
Pretty good going outneighborhoods, going out to eat.
There's some famous restaurantslike LED Diplomat, which is a
Washingtonian favorite place.
DuPont Circle or Logan Circle.
And both of those places have goodwalkable neighborhoods where you can
hop around from bar to restaurant.
(12:00):
There's also shops to visit.
And then I also think that you couldgo down to the wharf or Navy yard.
Those are kind of some newer, newlybuilt areas that also have some
restaurants and shops to go to.
But the big draw of Navy Yardis that it has the ballpark.
So if you wanna see a Nationals game oreven a concert like in the summer, that's
(12:21):
a really good place to go to as well.
And for listeners at home, Alexandriahas a guide to DC neighborhoods
that you can go and look up withlots more information, on all.
All the different neighborhoods thatshe's talking about and many more.
You can find that on travellemming, by searching travel
lemming plus DC neighborhoodson your favorite search engine.
Okay, next, let's talk about experiences.
(12:43):
And there's one in particular I wantto talk to you about because it's
going on right now, and that's theNational Cherry Blossom Festival,
and it's one of the big draws for dc.
Tell us a bit about that.
Absolutely.
So the National Cherry BlossomFestival, it's an annual event that
happens every spring, usually inlate March or early April, and it's
when the cherry blossoms that Japangifted to the United States bloom,
(13:07):
and it's really, really pretty site.
And it draws millionsof people every year.
Peak bloom changes every year.
The National Park Service will announcethat once it gets closer, like for
example, this year it was just this pastweekend, which was March 27th I believe.
So that's whenever the cherry blossoms areat their fullest and the best to look at.
(13:28):
But that's also.
The busiest time to go.
That's when the most people are there.
But they'll be in bloom from lateMarch to early April, so you can go
down there anytime and it's a freefestival, which is really cool.
So you don't have to pay toactually see the cherry blossoms
or do a lot of the events likethe Kite Festival or the parade.
My big thing about it is that it'sjust a really, really popular event
(13:51):
and therefore it's really, really busy.
So if you wanna go, youdefinitely have to plan ahead.
You definitely have to book yourhotel ahead and be prepared to
walk and be prepared for crowds.
'cause it's gonna be hundredsof thousands of people.
Yeah.
On the subject of planningahead, Alexandra, you've got
an entire guide to what to knowabout, attending the Washington DC
(14:14):
National Cherry Blossom Festival.
So it's got lots of tips.
She's got advice on hotelsand neighborhoods to stay.
All sorts of, helpful informationto help you plan that trip.
So if you've got that on yourschedule for next year, definitely
go check out that article.
Any other, any other tips orthings people should know before
planning a trip for the festival?
I.
I would say to not drive during thisfestival, it's gonna be really crowded.
(14:38):
When we were down here thisweekend, traffic was pretty
much at a standstill, so.
You are not gonna wanna drive,you're probably not gonna
wanna rent a car for this.
The best thing to probablydo is to take the metro walk.
You can get off at the metro atthe Smithsonian station, which
is on the mall, and it's about a10 minute walk to the tidal basin
where the cherry blossoms bloom.
And that's much better thansitting in traffic for hours.
(15:01):
Okay, so we've talked about the essential.
Things to do.
But now I wanna talk a bit aboutyour favorites as a local resident
of Washington dc what are some ofyour personal favorites or hidden gs?
Yeah, so I shared one ofmy head and gyms earlier.
It's Kenworth Gardens.
That's a really niceplace to go out and work.
I like to knit and crochet, sosometimes I take my projects out there
(15:25):
and just sit and enjoy the weather.
Speaking of knitting and crochet, I alsogo to the library and do a group there.
And I think the libraries are areally, really nice hidden gem.
Even if you're not.
Necessarily a book lover or a reader.
They have a lot of programs and sometimeseven put on concerts and stuff, so I
think that that's a really cool placeto check out, see what kind of events
(15:46):
they're having when you're in town.
My personal favorite libraryis the MLK Library, which is in
Chinatown, and it's one of thenewer libraries and it's beautiful.
They have a really nice rooftopand you can go up there for free.
Take your lunch, chill,eat, enjoy the view.
And that's probably one ofmy favorite places to go.
In terms of personal things that Ilike to do, me and my fiance like
(16:08):
to walk, like this weekend we walkedfrom the Tidal basin over to Capitol
Hill and just kind of checked out theneighborhoods, stopped in places to eat.
We're really big on trying differentpizza places around the city and
DC has a lot of really good ones.
He'll, probably not like me forsharing this, but Timber is one of
our top favorites and that's in ourneighborhood, and it's probably one of
(16:29):
the best pizzas in DC that we've had.
Don't everybody go there at the same time.
But thank you for sharing Alexandria.
Amazing.
So.
If you have longer in DC and Ithink it's also a nice city to
sort of get out of for day tripsbecause of where it's positioned.
I mean, it's between Maryland and Virginiaand it has, its along the northeast
corridor, which is the only sort ofreal rail corridor that we have, in the
(16:53):
United States for our European listeners.
So, you know, you mentionedearlier that you like taking
day trips outside of the city.
Talk to me about that.
What some of your favorite placesor your favorite towns to visit?
Yeah, so DZ is great for day trips.
Like you said, it's located kindof right in the center of things.
There's a DMV, which is.
Dc, Maryland and Virginia.
(17:14):
So you can really easily getto like Bethesda and Rockville,
which are in Maryland.
And then in Virginia you can getto Alexandria and Arlington, which
are all really great day trips, forshopping, for eating, for exploring.
And Arlington of course, has the ArlingtonNational Cemetery, which is also a big
draw when people come to visit dc and
And that is Arlington National Cemetery.
(17:35):
Is, is where many veterans and, are, are
Yeah, and the tomb of the UnknownSoldier, and the changing of the
Guard and all of those things are inArlington National Cemetery, which
is just over the river from dc.
If you wanna go a little bit further,which we like to do on the weekend,
sometimes there's Annapolis, there'sBaltimore, there's Richmond, which
(17:55):
we're all about an hour and a half totwo hours away, and those are really.
Fun cities to visit as well.
Annapolis is on the water,so it's a really fun city.
If you like to boat or do wateractivities, eat on the water little
bit coastal vibe and Baltimore andRichmond have more of that city vibe,
a lot of fun little activities ofthem, of their own to do with museums
(18:18):
and shops and all of those things.
And then if you're going even furtherout, there's like the Eastern shore
which has, ocean City, which if youwanna go to a beach, if you're in the
summer, it's like three hours from dc.
So that's also a really great option.
.Okay.
Well, you've got lots of optionsfor things to do in Washington, DC.
If you need more, we have a guide ontravel lemming from another DC local.
(18:42):
You can find that by searching forDC things to do, travel lemming.
Now let's talk about planning a trip.
So if someone's at home, you'vesold them on going to Washington
dc they want to visit, they'vegot some idea of what to do there.
But let's go through some of thetraditional sort of trip planning stuff
to help help our listeners plan that trip.
First question we often get is,how long should you allocate?
(19:03):
How many days would you recommend?
To set aside to visit Washington DC.
I think the best amount of timeto visit DC is at least a week.
That way you can see a lot of themuseums, even though the museums are
really close together, they're hugeand there's so much stuff to do.
So you can probably only seetwo, maybe three in a day if
you're being quick about it.
(19:25):
So if you wanna see a lot of themuseums, I definitely recommend.
Spending at least a week in dc Andthen you also be able to do some
other things like the zoo, explorethe neighborhoods, go out to eat, see
the monuments, those kind of things.
A quick trip for DC you could do inlike three days and kind of expedite
things and maybe choose one or twomuseums to go to and, and another
(19:46):
day to explore the neighborhoods.
But I would definitelyrecommend at least a week.
Okay.
And how, how do you get to DC.
So one of the ways that a lot of peopleget to DC is by flying in, and there's
two airports that you can go to.
There's Reagan, DCA, which isjust over the river in Arlington.
And then there's Dulles, which is a littlebit further out into Virginia, but Dulles
(20:07):
is the bigger international airport.
So a lot more flights go through Dullesand both are on the metro line, I believe.
Dallas is on silver andReagan, DCA is on blue.
And so you'll be able to flyinto the city, take the metro
into the city, or an Uber.
But I always recommend the Metrobecause that's probably one of
the easiest ways to get around.
(20:29):
Yeah, let's talk about the DC Metroreal quick while we're on that.
'cause, I mean, I think it's one ofthe best things about DC in the us.
We don't have.
Underground subway systems like you seein a lot of, European or Japanese cities,
outside of, with a couple exceptions.
And one big one is dc which hasI think one of the better subway
systems, which it's called the Metro.
(20:50):
Tell us a bit about the metro.
You were, you were mentioning colorsfor the lines earlier, which is,
which is how they, they denominate it.
But just give us a very brief,sort of overview of, of the
Washington DC metro system.
Yes, so the Washington DMC Metrosystem allows you to pretty
much go anywhere in the city.
As well as some of the immediateplaces in Virginia and Maryland.
(21:12):
So I think it's the best way to getaround, especially because you, if you're
visiting, you can get a unlimited pass ora day pass so you can just buy that one
time, swipe it all day, and be able toget on the metro and also the bus system.
And I think those two combined,you really won't need a car in dc.
You can rent a car if you wantto go to some further out places.
(21:34):
If you're interested in maybe someof the hikes outside of DC or going
to one of the cities outside of dc.
But if you wanna stay in DC I definitelydon't think a car is necessary
because the metro system is so great.
And like you said the lines arenamed by color, so they run either
across the city or down the city.
It's pretty easy looking at the map to beable to figure out where you need to go.
(21:57):
There's some bigger metro stationsdowntown that allow you to change lines so
you can take one, get off, get on anothertrain, and to get to where you have to go.
In DC you'll probably only have to takeone, maybe two metros depending on where
you're coming from and where you're going.
Yeah, it makes sense.
Makes it easy to get around.
Well, with such a great metrosystem, do you need a rental
car If you're visiting DC.
(22:18):
I really don't think it'snecessary to have a rental car.
Like I said, especially if you'restaying in DC and you're doing
mostly things in and around dc.
You won't need a car to cross thecity, and if you can't get somewhere
by metro, you can get there by bus.
The only time I would really recommendhaving a rental car is if you want
to go further out the city wherethe metro doesn't go and you don't
(22:43):
wanna pay for an Uber for that,
like if you're going hiking to some ofthe spots outside of DC or wanna go to
Annapolis or Richmond during your DC trip.
But if you're just staying in thecity, I would say forget the car.
Parking's bad, traffic's bad, and juststick to doing the metro or walking.
Okay.
Makes sense.
So one big question peoplealways wanna know is, where
(23:04):
should I stay within the city?
And you've got a really detailedguide on travel lemming to where
to stay in Washington, DC You justsearch for where to stay in DC travel
lemming, and you can pull that up.
But Alexandria, where do you recommendin terms of the best areas, and
maybe some suggested hotels forwhere tourists might consider staying
(23:24):
during a visit to Washington DC.
So I think that if you're a firsttime visitor to Washington DC the
best place to stay would be somewherearound downtown so that you can get
to the National Mall, the monuments,the museums a little bit easier, and
you can stay downtown, you can stay inChinatown, you can stay in Foggy Bottom.
Those are all neighborhoods that kindof border, downtown border, the National
(23:46):
Mall, and you'll easily be able to get toall of those attractions, without having
to get on a car, even get on the Metro.
And then if you have been to DC beforeand you wanna kind of get away from the
kind of typical spots, I would definitelyrecommend staying more uptown and
somewhere like DuPont or Adams Morgan.
The Lion Hotel in AdamsMorgan is a really cool hotel.
(24:08):
It's a boutique space, so it'skind of, it's not like a high rise.
City Hotel.
So that's kind of cool to stay in.
And it's also right next to18th Street, which is where all
the restaurants and shops are.
So that's a really cool place to stay.
And then of course, if you wanna stayoutside of the city, there's also Bethesda
and Arlington, which are a little bitmore spread out, a little bit more
(24:30):
suburban, but still close to the city foryou to do all of the cool attractions.
And you probably find some cheaperhotels by staying in Virginia or
Maryland and, and taking the train in.
Definitely, definitely.
Okay, so speaking of money, iflisteners at home are probably thinking,
oh gosh, I wanna do so many things.
How much is this gonna set me back?
(24:50):
What do you think is a reasonableexpected budget, for a trip to DC?
So I think about $150 perperson is probably the best.
Like I said before, a lot of themus, the museums and a lot of the
attractions downtown are free.
So that's a really goodway to save on the budget.
(25:11):
But honestly, a lot of the moneyThat you bring for your trip
is gonna go to food and drink.
It's a little expensive in DC The cost ofliving's a little high, so eating out is
probably gonna be your biggest expense.
Whenever things like the museum andthe zoo are free, so I would probably
expect to spend about $150 per person.
(25:32):
And is that on top of the hotel?
And that would be on top of the hotel?
Yes.
And.
For the hotels, of course, when you'restaying more in the city center,
those are gonna be the most expensive.
So if you're looking to save alittle bit of money on the hotel,
look a little bit further out.
Look in Maryland, look in Virginia.
Those places are gonna havea little bit lower of prices.
Next up, let's talk about when to goto DC and, you know, DC's interesting
(25:56):
because it's latitude means that it verymuch has four distinct different seasons.
And you've already mentioned a bit how thecity changes depending upon the season.
You've also got a perspective pieceon travel leming where you talk
about why, you know, it might be.
Good to visit in the winter months,actually, certainly the summer is one
of the most popular months apart fromcherry blossom season in the spring.
(26:19):
But you have a whole piece whereyou talk about why visiting in
the winter months can actuallybe a unique experience, in DC.
So, you know, maybe tell us a bit abouthow, how you would think approaching that.
Is there any bad time to visit DC andwhen would you prefer, for people to
visit, if you were helping 'em choose.
I don't think that there are anyexplicitly bad times to visit dc It
just depends on how you wanna travel.
(26:41):
Like you said, summer isa really popular time.
It's when people are on vacation, that'swhen they're planning their trips.
So it's gonna be really,really busy in the summer.
The summer is also.
Really, really hot.
It gets really hot, it gets really humid.
I think this last summer we had multiplethree digit days, and sometimes when you
step outside you just instantly sweat.
(27:01):
And I think one of the big thingsto think about is that you're gonna
probably be walking a lot in dc soif you don't wanna walk in the heat,
the summer's not the best time to go.
And on a personal note.
The mosquitoes in DC are horrendous.
I get bit up like crazy.
So Summer's personally, not my favoritetime to be out, just because it's so
humid and there are a lot of mosquitoes.
(27:23):
Spring is a really nice time becauseyou get the beautiful weather, but it's
not quite as hot as it is in the summer.
There is caution around thecherry blossom season and 'cause
that's a really popular time.
But like I said, in my perspective piece,I really like it in the fall and winter.
'cause in the fall it's still really nice.
It's still really pretty, but theheat and the humidity has gone down.
(27:44):
So it makes being out and exploringthe city, walking around, eating
outside at all the restaurants.
It makes that way more comfortable.
And then the winter is just a good timebecause it gets cold, but it doesn't
get freezing cold at some places.
So you can still be out.
And of course there'll be some dayswhere it dips below and there's snow.
But for the most part,winters are pretty mild.
(28:07):
And you can be out, you can be exploring,and there's way less people, so
it's often a lot cheaper for hotels.
There's less people on the mall andin the museum, so you're not gonna be.
Fighting crowds as much.
So I personally would say fall and winter.
But of course, spring and summeraren't bad times to visit either.
Yeah, the humidity.
(28:28):
Boy, if that isn't something that yougotta be prepared for in DC in the
summer, I remember stepping outside andfeeling like you need to take a shower
after just five minutes of walking.
So makes a lot of sense tovisit in in other months.
As I remember, I, I think DCwas like built over a swamp,
Yeah.
It was like, as I recall in from myhistory class, it was like at the
(28:51):
beginning of the founding of the UnitedStates, the Maryland and, and Virginia
sort of gifted the federal government theland to build the new national capital.
But they gave 'em this like awfulswamp land between the two of them, and
then they sort of built up over that.
So that's why it's hot andhumid and mugging and you
have mosquitoes everywhere.
Right, and it is the water part of itthat still exists is very beautiful,
(29:12):
but the mosquitoes are not fun.
Yeah.
Okay.
Well, another question that a lotof people get, particularly about
American cities is about safety.
And I know you've got a whole guideon travel lemming about safety in
Washington DC so I'd suggest folksgo check that out for more details.
But give me the quick answerto, is DC a safe place to visit?
(29:35):
I think DC is a safe place to visit.
It's like a, it's a city like any other.
So of course there's crime, of course,there's things going on, but generally,
if you're visiting dc, if you're avisitor, you're probably not gonna be,
you know, experiencing crime that maybegets sensationalized on the news, but.
Of course you also justwanna be a smart traveler.
(29:57):
It's a city, so you don't wanna, youknow, be looking around lost, be, make
yourself look like a victim essentially.
But overall, DC is a really safe cityand there are a lot of neighborhoods
that have really low crime.
And you should be fine walkingaround at night during the
day by yourself as a woman.
You really shouldn't have to worry aboutthat too much, but you just wanna make
(30:19):
sure that you're practicing safe travel.
You don't wanna leave bags and cars, youdon't wanna be flashing your money around.
You don't wanna, you know, walkaround with your head down.
You wanna look like you know whereyou're going and what you're doing.
And for the most part, people will leaveyou alone, even whenever you're in the
not safest areas, if no one's gonna reallybother you if you're not bothering them.
(30:42):
Got it.
Good advice.
And remember, you know, as Alexandriasays, one of the important things is
picking the neighborhood where you stay.
So go check out her guide toWhere to stay in Washington DC and
that'll take care of a lot of that.
What are some other tips orcommon mistakes that you see
tourists doing in Washington, DC.
Yeah, I think especially if you'redown on the mall, one of my biggest
(31:02):
tips is to bring walking shoes.
And honestly, you should just havewalking shoes no matter where you're
gonna stay in dc especially if you'replanning to take the Metro walk, even
though it's not a huge city and it'snot very sprawling, like you will
be walking a lot for the most part.
So bring comfortable shoes.
In the summer, like I said, it gets reallyhot and humid, so have a water bottle.
(31:25):
You don't wanna be walking aroundenjoying your day and then trying
to find places to get water or evenhave to buy overly priced water that
they have stationed around the mall.
Definitely bring your water andcomfortable walking shoes and
comfortable, breathable clothes.
And like I mentioned before,doing public transportation.
It's the best way to get around DC.
You can get a seven day unlimitedpass for the boat that works on both
(31:48):
the metro and the bus, and so youonly have to pay for that once, and
then you can just swipe through.
But a really important tip for whenyou're on the metro is when you're
on the escalators, you wanna stand onthe right so you can let walkers up.
On the left.
They take that really seriously,especially when you're gonna
be down by downtown when peopleare trying to get to work.
(32:08):
You don't wanna be the touristthat's blocking the escalators
to get in and out the metro.
I wanna talk real quick aboutlike festivals special events.
We talked earlier about the CherryBlossom Festival, but are there any
other seasonal events that mightbe worth planning a trip around?
Yeah.
If you like culture, music, anddancing, there's the H Street Festival,
which happens annually in the fall.
(32:29):
It's pretty much like a giant block party.
They block off the streets around HStreet and that's in Northeast, and
so you get to try different foods,try from different restaurants, listen
to music, listen to performances.
There's shops that have tablesand booths for you to shop at.
That's a really cool festival to go to.
And then there's also BroccoliCity, which is a two day hip hop
(32:51):
festival, which is in the summer.
And so if you like hip hop, that's areally fun one to go to because they get a
lot of big name artists to perform there.
What about sports?
A lot of people like to travel to sports.
I think DC has a lot of teams.
Yeah.
Yeah, DC has a ton of teams, so there'shockey, basketball, soccer, football,
baseball, and most of them havetheir stadium or their arena in dc.
(33:16):
The city, the only one that doesn'tis the football stadium, which
is out in Landover, Maryland.
But the basketball team and theHON team play at Capital One
Arena, which is down in Chinatown.
And then the soccer team plays atAudi Field, which is in Navy Yard.
And the Nationals Park is alsoa Navy yard and all of those in
the city are metro accessible andthose are really fun to go to.
(33:39):
I've been to a couple myself.
It is busy with traffic and everything.
So again, the metro's, the best wayto get there, but they're really fun
events and they're worth planningaround if you're gonna be in the
city during one of those times.
Yeah.
For our listeners who are notfrom the USA, I really recommend
a baseball game 'cause that issomething that's uniquely American.
(34:00):
No better place to do itthan in the nation's capital.
Go.
Watch the Nationals.
There's tons of baseball games as well.
Like they have way more games thanthan many of the other leagues.
So there's a good chance if you'revisiting, that there'll be a game on.
So that's, that's a, that's a goodone to, to consider, especially
for our international visitors.
Okay.
Well, I think we've given all of theinformation that you would need to know
(34:21):
to plan a trip, but don't go away yetbecause we're gonna end with my favorite
segment here, where if you listening toall this and you're like, wow, that's.
That sounds like a lot.
Well, you have the option of goingand reading Alexandria's guides and
continuing to planning your trip.
Or I'm gonna, I've asked Alexandriato help prepare her sort of ideal
itinerary, and you can just listenand you can just copy and swipe this.
(34:43):
So earlier, Alexandria, you saida week is about what you would
say is the ideal time to visit dc.
So figure, we get a day to get in andget set all to your hotel and a day,
you know, the day at the end to leave.
So let's plan out sort of a sixday itinerary in the middle for
everything that you would need.
So give me, walk me through your ideal.
(35:03):
Itinerary for six days in Washington, DC.
Sure.
So on the first day, I'dstart in the morning doing a
walking tour of the monuments.
You can do the self-guidedand that would be free.
You can walk around tothe different monuments.
They're all pretty close together, andread about them on the plaques or look up
their history online and read about them.
(35:25):
There's also guided tours if you wantsomeone to tell you all that information.
So I would start with a walking tour,preferably in the morning when it's a
little bit cooler and you're not out inthe open with the sun bearing down on you.
So then after that I would grablunch downtown, and then after
finishing lunch, I'd spend theafternoon at one of the museums,
maybe two of them if you have time.
(35:47):
I recommend the National HistoryMuseum or the National Gallery of Art.
Those are two of thebiggest museums in the city.
So then the second day I do atour of the Library of Congress.
That's a really.
Fun place to visit.
It has its own exhibits aswell as a large library.
And then you can walk around theCapitol Hill neighborhood for lunch.
And there's a farmer's market onSaturday if you plan that out.
(36:09):
Right?
And then you can come back downthe hill from Capitol Hill and go
to the botanical gardens and see abunch of plants and flowers at times
they have a corpse flower blooming.
You might wanna plan around thatif you're interested in seeing that
kind of once in a lifetime event.
And then I would also suggest seeingeither the White House, the US Capitol
or the Supreme Court, and you caneither walk around and just view those
(36:32):
buildings or you can do a tour of them.
On the third day, I go to Embassy Row.
That's where the other countrieshave their embassies in the United
States in DC and they're reallycool, really pretty buildings.
A lot of times they have events, so youmight be able to go in and tour or go to
an event at one of the embassies, and thenyou'll be over in the Georgetown area.
(36:54):
So you can have lunch at Georgetown.
You can enjoy the architecture there.
You can have lunch on the wateror take a walk by the water.
And then you can head uptown and goto the National Zoo and the Washington
National Cathedral, which is also a reallygood place to see cherry blossoms if you
don't wanna go down to the tidal basin.
On day four, I would suggest steppingaway from the really populated spots
(37:17):
and find a DC neighborhood to explore.
I suggest DuPont Circle or LoganCircle, U Street and Columbia Heights
are also really cool places there.
You can get lunch, you can grab adrink, you can shop around, and you'll
be able to get kind of a feel of DCoutside of the monuments and museums.
And then in the evenings you cansee kinda the smaller monuments
(37:38):
that aren't typically viewed.
Like there's the MLK monument, which isa little bit separated from the others.
And then I would suggest endingthe night at a spot with live music.
If you can see something withGo-Go, that's a really great
way to get a feel for the city.
And then on day five, I would sayto head over to Arlington to visit
the Arlington National Cemetery.
(38:00):
You'll be able to.
See the changing of the guards andthe tomb of the unknown soldier.
And then you can also have lunch inArlington, which is kind of a small,
kind of suburban city outside of dc.
If you have a car or wanna take an Uber,you can go out to Mount Vernon, which
is a cool historical spot outside of dc.
(38:21):
And then you can go to OldTown Alexandria, walk along the
water and have dinner there.
And then on the sixth day, I would suggestseeing kind of a lesser known museum
like Planet Word or the National PostalMuseum, which are not as frequently
visited, but still really cool to go to.
And then I would say ran a bike andjust spent the afternoon seeing the
(38:43):
city biking around, just taking it in.
And then one of my favorite things to dois to actually see the monuments at night.
I think it gives a completely differentfeel to the city, and I like being
by the water with the lights ofthe monuments, lighting them up.
Yeah, it is really special.
When you see like the Jefferson,memorial, like reflecting over the,
the river, like absolutely gorgeous.
(39:04):
Awesome.
Well, so if you're listening, you've nowgot your whole week planned out for you.
But if you want more detail,Alexandria's got dozens of guides.
On travel leming.com, you can findthem by searching travel leming plus
DC plus whatever you're looking for.
And by the way, as I would remindyou, we have guides on travel
lemming to destinations all overthe United States, all over Europe.
(39:26):
Even if you're not planning to go to dcjust try searching travel Lemming Plus
wherever you're going to go find those.
Well, thank you so muchfor joining us, today.
Alexandra, any parting thoughts?
What would you say to someone bef,you know, before they go about, DC.
I think it's just areally fun city to visit.
I would definitely recommend it, there'smore to DC than the monuments and the
(39:47):
neighborhoods and the culture and thehistory of it is really what makes DC so
I would suggest seeing all parts of DC.
Awesome.
Good advice.
Thank you so much Alexandria.
Alright.
Thank you so much for listening.
Please go ahead and like, and subscribe.
It really helps us out when you hit thatlike button just takes you a second.
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(40:08):
far, I'd also really appreciate it.
If you would consider leaving acomment down below or sharing our
podcast with one of your friends.
And, if you want to keep listening,we've got more than a dozen podcasts
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