Things I Wish I Knew Before Travelling to Washington DC
- Georgia Louise
- Mar 20
- 3 min read
Updated: Jun 11
Washington DC, the capital of the US, is home to some of the most visited tourist attractions in the United States. From the White House, to the Capitol Building, the endless museums, and of course the memorials, Washington DC is a perfect destination for the ultimate history enthusiast! We visited here in the summer of 2024, and here are some things I wish I had known, before visiting.
There is a big homeless issue in Washington. Whilst this is normal for any big city, and it is definitely not an issue as such, there was just way more people sleeping on the streets and begging than I expected. It is a pretty sad situation there, and you more than likely will be approached, but from my experience, they are just people looking for a little bit of help, and everyone was still super friendly, and it really wasn’t a problem. Just something I noticed after visiting 7 big cities in a row, (this one stood out second only to Seattle). This seems to be a problem in the White House area specifically and a friend of mine who visited in the 1980’s said they had the same problem way back then
You often think of Washington DC, as a place to visit for the culture and the history, not the heat. Let me tell you this… I have never, NEVER, sweat so much just walking around as I did in Washington. I was SOAKED. (It was disgusting!). Washington gets hot, and it is humid too! I feel like I acclimatized to the heat in Washington and by the time we got to Vegas a week or so later - in 42 degree heat - I found it was a breeze for me, as I had already survived Washington!
The monuments are open 24 hours a day, and are free to visit. So if you are short on time, or dont want the tourist rush, go in the evening and see the momuments lit up under the night sky. We booked a Viator tour which picked us up at Navy Memorial at 8am and took us to some of the memorials teamed with a lunch stop and boat trip in lovely Georgetown. There are plenty of options for tours but one thing to note - our guide told us that to visit all of the memorials yourself in one day would involve walking around 8 miles! I’m glad we chose our tour with a guide on a lovely air conditioned bus!!
The food is delicious! We ate some of the best food ever in Washington. Considering we went to Las Vegas and ate at Michelin star and celebrity chef restaurants, the food in Washington, I would say was still 10 times better. Nicks on the waterfront in Georgetown had the best turkey sandwich, and Founding Farmers Fisheries and Bakers, also located on the waterfront, had absolutely stunning food and both were competitively priced.
The National Mall is 2 miles long. Take comfortable shoes, take a refillable water bottle, and get exploring. And don’t forget to get lots of pics - for me it was like being on a movie set with the Washington Memorial behind me! LOL!
There is a quadrant grid system, similar to New York in the City. NW is the most popular quadrant as this is where you will find the Capitol Building. There are lettered streets going East to West (K street being the most popular), and numbered streets going North to South. I’d say there would be minimal need for google maps if staying in or visiting these areas.
Dulles airport is connected to the Silver Train Line, and takes about an hour to get into the city.
Most museums around the National Mall are free, however a ticket may still be required as you will need to reserve a time slot. We visited the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, and the National Archives, and although both of these were free, we were required to book tickets in advance, to give us a guaranteed entry time slot.
If visiting GoergeTown, in the day time you will be able to take the subway most of the way and then walk for about 10-15 minutes; at night I would recommend a taxi or an uber to get back into the city.
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