Trip report (finally!) 8/5-8/7

Came to DC for a quick weekend visit (Sat-Mon) with the husband and kids (ages 7-our 4 year old twins) and had a great time. Stayed at the Grand Hyatt for a fabulous rate of $139/night including breakfast. If you can get that deal, it%26#39;s a steal for the location of the hotel and having the Metro literally right below the hotel. I have already reviewed the hotel on this site, do check it out, so I won%26#39;t repeat myself.

Day One -

Got into DC about noon. Parked the car across the street in an open lot for the entire weekend for $26 as opposed to Hyatt%26#39;s valet service (which may have been about $26/day!) Tried to check into the Grand Hyatt but a double room was not available yet. They held our luggage and we walked (about 10 minutes) to the Natural History Museum. Kids loved it - although I think my 7-year old was disappointed by the size of the Hope Diamond - I think she was expecting something even bigger!! They LOVED the insect zoo. We stayed for about 2 hours and then went to Ford%26#39;s Theater on the way back to the hotel. We were able to check in when we returned to the hotel. The hotel was packed with high school kids, which made for a lot of chaos. We then went to the hotel pool to relax for a little bit, which is located inside the fitness club. It does cost to use the fitness club, but the pool was free to hotel guests. The pool, while clean, was disappointing - very small. Granted, my kids were just glad to splash around, but this hotel is supposedly rated at 4 stars and I don%26#39;t believe that pool was really a 4* facility. There was literally no one else in there while we used the pool.

Went back to the room, showered, took the Metro to Union Station and went out for an early dinner at the Dubliner (my husband is from Ireland and swears by their fish and chips.) Good kids menu and nice for mom and dad to enjoy a couple of pints w/o the worry of driving! Went back to Union Station and walked around the stores a bit and then hopped back on the Metro. Kids were exhausted by the time we got back to the hotel, time for pjs, turned off the lights, turned on the TV and they were asleep in about 10 minutes!

Day Two -

We had a great breakfast buffet included in our hotel package, complimentary for 2 adults and 2 children at the Grand Cafe, right by the indoor lagoon. Everything was delicious and hot and they never charged us for the additional child, even though I did offer to pay (granted, he only had a bowl of rice krispies and an apple juice, but still!!) That was a really nice way to start our day.

Fortified, we then took the Metro to the Air and Space Museum and spent at least 3 hours there. When we walked in, we went right away to purchase IMAX tickets. We saw ';Walking on the Moon 3D'; - it was narrated by Tom Hanks and held the attention of our twins, who are 4, for the entire time. They 3D effects were great and the kept putting their hands out to touch things! That was definitely a highlight for them. After leaving Air and Space, we walked down to American History because my younger daughter HAD to see Dorothy%26#39;s ruby slippers (she is a big Wizard of Oz fan.) Got lunch along the way, some overpriced hot dogs, but them%26#39;s the breaks sometimes, you pay for convenience! I%26#39;m so glad the slippers were there because so many of the collections had been removed because they were getting ready to close and renovate the museum. It really does need a renovation FYI, it looks tired, although we enjoyed our time there. My 7 year old daughter loved seeing the flag that inspired the Star Spangled Banner as well as the collection of the First Ladies Gowns. The Price of Freedom: Americans at War exhibit was fascinating, although the little ones got bored rather quickly. We left American History after about 2 hours and walked back to the hotel. The kids swam again in the pool and then we went to dinner across the street at the Capitol City Brewing Company. Very kid friendly with a kids menu that all the typical stuff. I had a very good crabcake sandwich as well. My husband got a grilled lamb salad that he did not like, the lamb was tough. We shared a couple of appetizers and the crab and artichoke dip was our favorite. The have a nice selection of microbrews as well and since we had gotten there during happy hour, the beers were $3 each and all the appetizers were half price - so it was quite the economical meal! We then walked down to the White House to burn off some of those crab dip and beer calories and then back to the hotel, where we ordered room service dessert for the kids - surprisingly reasonable by hotel standards clown brownie sundaes were $3.95 each. They loved having dessert delivered to them in the room (delivery was prompt, FYI, within 20 minutes) and then they happily slept after devouring all that sugar, surprisingly!

Day Three

Had our nice, relaxing breakfast buffet by the lagoon again, got our stuff together and checked out of the hotel. Got our car from across the street and drove to the Lincoln Memorial. Lucked out on a parking spot on a couple of blocks away and saw both the Lincoln Memorial and the Vietnam Vets Memorial. Good photo opps for the kids in front of the Reflecting Pool and the Washington Monument. It was super hot, got back in the car and drove to Georgetown (I cannot come to Washington w/o going to G-town at least once.) Parked, walked, shopped a little and then had lunch at Clyde%26#39;s. It was good, but I%26#39;m a little horrified that they charge $6 for a P%26amp;J sandwich - but this is Georgetown, after all! Hopped in our car and drove back to Philly where I dropped the hubby at the airport as he had a 7:pm flight for work to Boston.

Great trip - very geared towards the kids set, obviously! Otherwise I would be spa-ing it, shopping like a fiend in Pentagon City, staying and the Ritz and eating at Bistro Bis on Cap Hill!

Can%26#39;t wait to visit again soon.

Suzanne

Trip report (finally!) 8/5-8/7

Suzanne:

Great, detailed report, as usual. Thanks. The $6 pb%26amp;j does make me rethink Clyde%26#39;s as budget-friendly! We%26#39;ll have to take my niece to the IMAX - wasn%26#39;t sure if it was good for the under 5 crowd and now I know!

Trip report (finally!) 8/5-8/7

-Bistro Bis is good isn%26#39;t it. I love their scallops and apple tart.

Glad you enjoyed your stay. Since you are the Philly Expert, who has the best cheesesteaks (Steak and Cheese around these parts) Pat%26#39;s or Gino%26#39;s or do you have another option. Probably going to drive up there this weekend just for a quick day trip.

Mopsydog,

Definitely take the 5 and under set to see an IMAX film - the 3D one we saw worked well - the other one recommended for the younger set was called ';To Fly'; (that%26#39;s off the top of my head, I think that is what it is called) - but we literally got there 5 minutes after it started, so the girl at the desk selling tixs recommended the one we saw and it worked out well!

Mrs Maryland,

LOVE Bistro Bis. I had the best monkfish of my life when I was there with my girlfriends last year. And they make an incredible lobster bisque.

Aaah...the Great Philly Cheesesteak Debate... I actually kind of think that Pat%26#39;s and Genos more cater to the tourists. If I had to pick between the two, I%26#39;d go to Pat%26#39;s. My favorite in the city, however, is Jim%26#39;s Steaks on South Street - 4th and South. Tony Lukes at Front and Oregon also does a great cheesesteak as well (although they make a killer roast pork sandwich with broccoli rabe and sharp provolone that is phenomenal!) We Philadelphians could debate the best place to get cheesesteaks for hours, literally!

Suzanne

Suzanne:

I remember seeing To Fly myself when I was a kid - must have been the first IMAX released ;0) - a classic. It can be a little nauseating, though (since you feel sometimes like you%26#39;re flying).

And speaking of pork sandwiches, have you had the one from DiNic%26#39;s in Reading Terminal? It%26#39;s my husband%26#39;s new favorite!

MrsMaryland:

Being from Philly myself, I have to weigh in on the cheesesteak debate. I second the vote for Jim%26#39;s. A third choice would be Campo%26#39;s at 2nd and Market, very popular, but I haven%26#39;t been there yet. Have a fun trip if you go!

Suzanne--Thanks for posting your trip report--I had been watching for it. I know you%26#39;ve been at the shore this summer--time flies! Sounds like you got a great deal at the Grand Hyatt--the free breakfast was the icing on the cake--so to speak. I%26#39;m glad that you were able to get to the American History Museum before it closed for renovation. It sounds like the most popular exhibits were still in place--a wise move on the museum%26#39;s part. Just wondering---did you find the humidity to be worse here than in Philly?

SueFee,

The humidity was comparable to Philly. The last day was really hot (probably didn%26#39;t help to climb all those steps to the Linc Memorial in the day sun) - but didn%26#39;t feel all that different than Philly, in all honesty.

Can%26#39;t wait to visit DC again sometime soon (hopefully sans kids!) Make sure you come back to Philly and get yourself over to Mezza Luna for the most fabulous gnocchi!

Suzanne

Suzanne--You%26#39;re making me hungry LOL!