*Travel Tips>>>Washington, D.C. Travel Tips

What's a good hotel in Washington DC?

Travel Info
I'm looking for clean, close to Reagan and the metro, not too expensive, with cheap kid-friendly eats nearby, and a pool. Am I setting my sights too high? Does anyone have any recommendations?

Travel Tips

The Metrorail in Washington DC does an excellent job taking care of the tourists. If you and your family are flying into DC then of the 3 airports (Reagon National, Dulles, or BWI) the best choices if you want to avoid taxis and are not carrying much luggage would be Reagan National Airport bec it has its own Metrorail stop, then Dulles Airport which is much farther out to the west, transportation into DC is much more expensive than Reagan.

Where to Stay might be rather expensive running $100 and up per night but the safest places where it seems like the bulk of the tourists stay are located in Arlington County VA as evidenced by the crowded Metrorail in the morning and evening commutes. Hotels in Crystal City, Pentagon City, Rosslyn, Ballston, Clarendon and Falls Church all have Metrorail stops. Also the one in Pentagon City has one of the larger indoor malls plus across the street is a Costco Warehouse. If you are renting a car and flew into Dulles, then it is possible to stay in nice lodging facilities in Fairfax County but you would have to pay for parking at the Metro or if you drove into DC, I would not advise bec parking is limited and tickets would simply ruin your vacation.

Best of Luck and Enjoy Your Well Deserved Vacation!
Others

WaterGate hotel
Look for a hotel jin Arlington thats metro accesible (not metro bus, metro) or in Falls Church (there's a days inn right across from east falls church. Alexandria may work too. Alexandria is right close to Reagan and Reagan is right near the Arlington/Alexandria border. Crystal City, Rosslyn, Courthouse Area, are good neighborhoods to look at in Arlington.

Maryland is another choice, but its a ways from National. (Most locals call it National, not Reagan.)
Holiday Inn on the Hill.
EDIT--Watergate Hotel was nice and had the best pool (olympic size as I recall). But I think it's closed.

Considering it's the nation's capital,D.C. has precious-few really good hotels, but tons of superb (not necessarily kid-friendly) restaurants! Congressmen and Senators have to eat,don't they? But they have their own residences. Just my theory...

Be wary of places just outside D.C. Even though you could save some money, you could get into a very iffy situation in terms of safety if you're not acquainted with the area in question. General rule, make sure the address is Northwest (NW).

We like to stay at the Hay-Adams or at the Madison. Either place has fairly good deals on on-line hotel search websites such as Hotwire.com, Hotels.com, Travelocity.com from time to time. (Not always.) The Madison doesn't have a pool, but they sometimes have vouchers for a pool at (I believe) the Marriott across the street. (The Marriott may be a good choice if you want the pool, but it's too big for my taste.) I'd double check this if a pool is a necessity. Another place that's nice, but boutique-y is Hotel George. None of these are really kid-type places, but they have a nice elegance about them, are in good locations, and are close to the attractions I presume you and your child want to visit. They're also close to the Metro stops you'll most likely need.

Like I said, the food is excellent in many of the nicer restaurants. They're not kid-type places per se, but would likely have something a child would eat. I think it's really a rather adult-centered town even considering all the important field trips kids should take there.
Personal experience.
I think Bill Clinton can answer that one! ;-)