Washington D.C.

Accommodations near D.C.

Bethesda, Maryland was our destination of choice when traveling from Pittsburgh to Washington D.C. It is only four hours from our hometown with lots of hotels, dining options and cool shops to check out in town.

The Hyatt Regency is a great hotel that is close to the Metro with transit to Washington D.C

Buying a Smartrip card for each member of the family and loading it with money allowed us the freedom to head into D.C. to spend the day, check out the sights and have lunch and/or dinner multiple times.

Breakfast and Tours

Did you ever stumble upon the perfect restaurant and feel so lucky to have found it? That is the affect that 202 Donuts and Coffee had on my family and me. Walking from the Hyatt, spotting this sign, we decided to give it a try.

After perusing the menu board, we chose the egg bacon and cheese breakfast sandwich on an Arepa and washed it down with an Italian Cappuccino! It was a huge hit! Unfortunately we were too full to try the donuts which in hindsight is especially disappointing because the restaurant is now permanently closed. If anyone has any info if this eclectic gem is planning to re-locate or open again, please feel free to add an update in the comment section.

In the meantime, there’s plenty of other spots to check out. A recommendation on Yelp that we haven’t personally tried is the Clove & Cedar Coffeebar.

History

On a Saturday in March we had reservations at Ford’s Theatre with timed tickets that enabled us to visit the historic site to learn about the events of Lincoln’s Assassination. The Peterson House, was closed due to renovations in 2018, but we still visited the Theatre, Museum and Aftermath Exhibits. The tour took around two hours to go through the galleries to learn about the timeline that lead up to the killing of President Lincoln and the capture of his killer, John Wilkes Booth.

After finishing the tour of Ford’s Theatre and grabbing lunch, we walked to the US Capitol Building. It is located at the eastern end of the National Mall.

The Capitol building holds meetings of both the Senate and House of Representatives. On the day of our visit, we walked around the grounds and enjoyed the sunny 50 degree day and and took photos of the Capitol Dome, the US Capitol Complex and the Washington Monument.

Flower Exhibit/White House

Take a little time out from the hustle and bustle of the city and discover the blooms at the US Botanic Garden. The exhibit the day that we were there in March 2018, was called, “Orchid Spectrum.”

The array of vibrant colors and scents of the orchids was a wonderful show that would certainly please the photographer and avid gardener in your life.

After walking around US Botanic Garden and taking photos of the gorgeous flowers and plants, the next place on our agenda was the White House so we took a taxi cab to allow time for our feet to rest.

Upon our arrival, The White House was crowded with tourists so I snapped a few pictures of the façade and the surrounding statues. The main focus of our visit was to take photos for our family Christmas card with the White House as the backdrop. After the crowd thinned out, we were able to get our picture.

If you don’t want to only take pictures of the outside, careful planning ahead can allow for a free self-guided public tour of the inside.

Desserts

Be sure to make your way to Georgetowncupcake to try these beautifully designed and delicious cupcakes. Add a little tasty and artistic treat to your day.

Smithsonian’s National Zoological Park

This free D.C. zoo is definitely a fun outing. Finding a tucked away parking spot, our main objective was to see the Giant Pandas. They did not disappoint!

The Giant Pandas entertained the crowd as they somersaulted their roly-poly bodies down the hill from their enclosures and climbed the trees so they could look around at the guests.

The staff provided the Pandas with some frozen fruit ‘popsicles’ as a tasty treat.

Final Thoughts

Washington DC can be an economical tourist destination considering a lot of the attractions, museums and zoo have free admission. There is plenty to do within the city and the neighboring towns to keep busy for a weekend or an extended stay.