Find out how to benefit from 1 day in Washington, DC

Washington, D.C., presents guests world-renowned museums and iconic landmarks just like the White Home, the Capitol and the monuments alongside the Nationwide Mall. Nonetheless, the town is not solely about historical past. There are additionally booming meals and leisure scenes.

Many People first come to the nation’s capital on a faculty journey. However if you happen to’ve by no means been to Washington, it may be arduous to prioritize the highlights or take pleasure in some sights and experiences that veer off from extra well-trod itineraries.

For many who may not be conversant in the town, my colleague, Emily Thompson, and I traveled there collectively in an try to craft the right one-day subject journey to Washington. In fact, your excellent day could differ from ours, however listed here are our must-visit locations for anybody seeking to discover the town, together with some methods to maximise factors and miles alongside the way in which.

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Nationwide Zoo

• Hours: 8 a.m. to six p.m.
• Price: Free, however entry passes are required for all company.
• Getting there: Three blocks from the Woodley Park-Zoo/Adams Morgan Metro station or a 15-minute Uber or Lyft journey from downtown. If you happen to drive your self, the Nationwide Zoo costs $30 for parking, so we suggest profiting from the plentiful avenue parking close by.
• Time required: One hour (8 a.m. to 9 a.m.).

Begin your day vibrant and early so you’ll be able to arrive at 8 a.m. for the opening of the Smithsonian’s Nationwide Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute. You may doubtless see the two,200-plus animals being extra lively within the morning than within the afternoon.

Emily and I arrived through the Connecticut Avenue entrance and walked down the Asia Path, the place we handed by the clouded leopard, sloth bear and purple panda displays.

However the true spotlight of the zoo was seeing Xiao Qi Ji, the large panda who was born to a 22-year-old mother in 2020, making her the oldest big panda to present delivery within the U.S. Whereas Xiao Qi Ji and his mother and father returned to a panda reserve in China in late 2023, a brand new pair named Bao Li and Qing Bao made their public debut on the Nationwide Zoo in January 2025 on the newly refurbished David M. Rubenstein Household Large Panda Habitat.

After an hour or so on the zoo, you will have hopefully labored up an urge for food.

Weekend brunch in Georgetown at Founding Farmers Fishers & Bakers

• Weekend and holiday-weekday brunch buffet hours: 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Price: $35.50 per particular person. Youngsters 3 and below are free, and kids ages 4 to 12 are $15.50.
• Getting there: A 15-minute Uber or Lyft journey, or a 45-minute downhill stroll from the zoo.
• Pay with: One in every of the most effective playing cards for eating, just like the American Categorical® Gold Card.
• Time required: 1 hour and quarter-hour for brunch and a stroll alongside the Georgetown Waterfront (9:30 a.m. to 10:45 a.m.).

Weekend brunch is an enormous deal in D.C., and Washingtonians fiercely debate about the most effective brunch spot, however I am an enormous fan of Founding Farmers Fishers & Bakers.

Serving what it calls “a competition of meals,” Founding Farmers Fishers & Bakers presents an elaborate brunch unfold with recent, sustainable substances from native farms and producers.

The buffet consists of choices just like the well-known bananas Foster French toast, a reside omelet station, molasses-glazed ham, freshly lower roast beef, spicy fried hen, seafood jambalaya, apricot-glazed salmon, chips and guacamole, and far, far more.

There are additionally chilly choices like bruleed grapefruit, housemade granola and coconut chia bowls.

The eating room is full of life and boisterous, and we estimate the restaurant serves round 500 hungry brunchers on peak weekends. Consequently, the buffet line can get a bit lengthy. Ask your server for the Bakers Pizza, Farmhouse Sushi and cinnamon rolls — these dishes are delivered to your desk upon request.

Our tip: Earlier than you permit, seize some Instagram-worthy pics on the Georgetown Waterfront.

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Nationwide Mall (Smithsonian museums)

Stretching from the Lincoln Memorial to the U.S. Capitol, the Nationwide Mall was designed within the 18th century by French American city planner Pierre L’Enfant. He envisioned a dramatic grand promenade much like the Tuileries Backyard in Paris.

Along with the gorgeous views of the Capitol and Washington Monument, the Nationwide Mall presents ample gardens and is fringed by a number of Smithsonian museums. This is an outline of the museums you’ll be able to entry from the Nationwide Mall:

• Nationwide Museum of African American Historical past and Tradition
• Nationwide Museum of American Historical past
• Nationwide Museum of Pure Historical past
• Nationwide Gallery of Artwork
• Nationwide Museum of the American Indian
• Nationwide Air and Area Museum (open however at present present process vital renovations)
• Hirshhorn Museum (the Hirshhorn’s sculpture backyard is closed till 2026 because it undergoes a $68 million revitalization)
• Freer Gallery of Artwork
• Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
• Nationwide Museum of African Artwork

The Holocaust Memorial Museum and Worldwide Spy Museum are a block south of the Nationwide Mall. The Spy Museum has an entry price of $31.75 to $37.05 per particular person relying on how early you buy tickets.

Plan to make use of the restrooms contained in the museums, and skip the meals vehicles and underwhelming museum cafeterias since there are many nice eating places to take pleasure in in Washington.

Since time is proscribed (and also you want a few days to see all these museums), we suggest deciding on one or two museums that curiosity you probably the most. As an aviation fanatic, I wanted to maintain my eyes on the time on the Air and Area Museum so I did not miss out on our different stops.

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Afternoon tea at The Ritz-Carlton, Pentagon Metropolis

Since you’ve got been on the go for a number of hours on the Nationwide Mall, a fancy afternoon tea throughout the river in Arlington, Virginia, is the right approach to recharge for the afternoon and night actions forward.

The Ritz-Carlton, Pentagon Metropolis presents one of the crucial decadent afternoon teas within the space. Although costly, it is a surprisingly good worth because it’s troublesome to seek out comparable experiences for below $90 in Washington.

Between March 14 and April 13, a barely enhanced Cherry Blossom Tea can also be served Friday by means of Sunday for $88, together with a glass of glowing wine. When Emily and I went, the tea sandwiches and pastries had been delicious, and the selfmade scones served with clotted cream and native jam paired excellently with the sakura cherry rose white tea.

Arlington Nationwide Cemetery

• Hours: 8 a.m. to five p.m.
• Price: Free for all, however you need to current an ID.
• Getting there: 10-minute Uber or Lyft journey from Pentagon Metropolis.
• Time required: 1 hour and quarter-hour (3:45 p.m. to five p.m.).

The ultimate resting place of some 400,000 veterans and their dependents, Arlington Nationwide Cemetery is a spot to acknowledge the sacrifices made by those that have served our nation.

Cease by the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, devoted to unidentified troopers who misplaced their lives in service to the nation. The Altering of the Guard ceremony, which takes place on the tomb, is a solemn and shifting occasion each half-hour from April 1 by means of Sept. 30 and on the hour from Oct. 1 by means of March 31.

One other must-see web site at Arlington Nationwide Cemetery is the John F. Kennedy Gravesite. An everlasting flame marks the gravesite of President Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1963. The flame symbolizes the president’s enduring legacy and is a poignant reminder of his service to the nation.

Guests preferring a narrated hop-on, hop-off bus tour can reserve a ticket, although a ticket is not required to enter the cemetery.

After, take a bit break to clean up at your resort earlier than the night actions.

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Evening monument tour

• Touring hours: 7:30 or 8 p.m. till 10-10:30 p.m.
• Price: From $53 per particular person.
• Getting there: Excursions go away from numerous landmarks so finances 15-20 minutes to take an Uber or Lyft journey or public transit to the start line.
• Time required: Two to a few hours within the night.
• Pay with: Guide utilizing Viator. Provoke your buy utilizing your favourite purchasing portal to earn additional factors. Then, pay with a bank card that earns nicely on common journey purchases.

When you have a bit time earlier than the tour (as we did), cease by the foyer atrium of the Waldorf Astoria for drinks and tapas at The Bazaar by José Andrés.

Then, it will be time in your monument tour. Each evening, Washington’s monuments come to life with dramatic lighting shows.

After I had household and buddies go to me once I was a pupil at American College, this was my favourite go-to night tour. You’ll be able to go for an open-air trolly, electrical cart or bus, which all supply comparable experiences. The electrical cart is a extra intimate expertise with fewer folks, however it is a bit shorter than the others.

Whichever tour you choose, it will hit the highlights, just like the Capitol, White Home, World Struggle II Memorial, Korean Struggle Veterans Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Lincoln Memorial and Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial. Make certain to ebook a tour that allows you to get out and take photographs as a substitute of 1 that simply shortly drives by.

Since our go to fell throughout peak cherry blossom season, petals rained down on us as we handed by MLK’s quotes — actually a rare reminiscence of our epic day.

Ben’s Chili Bowl

• Hours: Sunday to Thursday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 a.m.
• Price: $10 to $20 for an entire meal.
• Getting there: 10-minute Uber or Lyft journey.
• Time required: half-hour (10:30 p.m. to 11 p.m.).

Few issues are extra D.C. than Ben’s Chili Bowl.

Based in 1958 by Ben Ali and his spouse Virginia, Ben’s Chili Bowl turned a preferred gathering place for civil rights activists in the course of the Nineteen Sixties. The U Road Hall, referred to as Black Broadway, is rooted within the thriving African American arts and leisure scene exterior Ben’s doorways.

Ben’s has gone hand-in-hand with civil rights in D.C. by donating meals and offering shelter to these in want in the course of the 1963 March on Washington and 1968 riots.

The restaurant remains to be well-known for its Half Smoke chili canine, fries and milkshakes. However greater than the meals, it is in regards to the institution’s legacy as a gathering place for civil rights activists in the course of the Nineteen Sixties.

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Backside line

Feeling a yawn approaching?

If you happen to made it this far, you’ve got been out of your resort room for round 15 hours, as Emily and I had been, however hopefully, the remaining stops all through the day have made it extra manageable.

In truth, there is no approach to see the whole lot in sooner or later. In any case, when you have the time, I might reserve a complete day on the Nationwide Mall alone, hopping from museum to museum.

However a correct subject journey to Washington goes past the museums and monuments, highlighting American tradition and the town’s vibrant neighborhoods, together with Georgetown, the U Road Hall and Columbia Heights. Hopefully, you will be wanting to plan your subsequent journey to Washington earlier than this one is over.

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