Travel info Travel tips Travel advice
*Travel Tips>>>Washington, D.C. Travel Tips

What is the traffic like in Wash. DC?

Travel Info
We will be going through Wash. DC this summer and want to see the sights while we are so close. Is it best to take a tour by one of their shuttle/bus services or should we drive our self and park? Also, is it good to stay in a hotel outside of the city or best to just pay the higher price and stay close?
Thanks! I appreciate any info on this.

Travel Tips
Let's put it this way...I try not to leave my house between 4 and 7 pm everyday. Take the metro (subway), if you can. You will love DC. It is a beautiful city. You can stay in Rockville,Bethesda, or Gaithersburg, MD and take the Metro into town. Do take the tram tour, you will get an overview and then you can hit the highlights by yourself. By the way, DC has a very nice, clean, no graffiti subway. No eating/drinking allowed.
Others
DON'T try to drive and park, it's horrible. The best thing to take is the Metro (like a subway) everywhere. It might be easier to stay at a hotel near a suburban Metro station and then commute that way.
I grew up 10 minutes out of DC.
I'd recommend taking the tour busses--- there is not a lot of parking by many of the more popular attractions and museums, and there's a lot of one-way streets. It's not worth the frustration, in my opionion. There's a "Hop On, Hop Off" tour bus service; you buy a day pass or a weekend pass, and you can ride the bus as many times as you want, jumping off to go to your choice of attractions then getting back on to go to the next thing or back to the hotel. These busses take you to Arlington Cemetary and some even go to Mount Vernon, not just the attractions that are right in the city, so it's a great way to see everything with no stress.

I'd recommend staying in the city, at a hotel on/near that bus route, or near the Orange line Metro, as many of the popular attractions are on the Orange line. If you stay outside of the city, you'll spend so much time going back and forth that it won't be worth the few dollars a night you are saving on the hotel. Also if you are flying in, skip the rental car; you can get a zipcar for a few hours near most of the hotels if you want to take a day-trip but you really don't need one the rest of the time.
The car traffic in DC is the worst in the USA
traffic is not that bad during the day during rush hour it can get iffy i would suggest taking the subway or walking.
BUMPER TO BUMPER
Tags
San Diego San Francisco San Jose Seattle St. Louis Washington, D.C. General - United States Aberdeen Belfast Birmingham Brighton
Related Links
  • What is the traffic like in Wash. DC?
  • How do i ask my congressman for a tour of the capitol building in washington dc?
  • Is there a memorial (like the Washington Monument or Lincoln memorial) to Benjamin Franklin?
  • When is the next time the cicadas supposed to come out on the Maryland area?
  • Why is the whie house called the white house?
  • I'll be going to DC this summer. How do I ride the Metro for cheap?
  • Great Hair Salon in Washington D.C.?
  • What are some ideas for a great DC Daytrip?
  • Is there any building in the States that looks like White House?
  • Driving cross-country from Denver, Colorado, to Washington, D.C.?
    •    

    Travel Info Categories--Copyright/IP Policy--Contact Webmaster