Washington DC

Very easy. Park at Greenbelt station. There is a large Park and Ride lot there. You may want to consider purchasing Smartrip cards for each person ahead of time at the WMATA.com site. That way you're not dealing with the fare kiosks but can just get through the turnstiles and go. Study the maps a bit ahead of time. It helps to know not only which color route you need when connecting but also which direction you need to go, which is displayed on each train based on its final destination. Once you get a feel for it it's a piece of cake. No way would I drive myself around and try to park.

Also, take advantage of the free Circulator buses to get around the National Mall.

The Metro is incredibly easy to use to get to any of the DC area attractions.

We stayed at Cherry Hill a week or so ago. They do a presentation at 4:00 each day on Metro. They can help you alot!

enblethen wrote:
We stayed at Cherry Hill a week or so ago. They do a presentation at 4:00 each day on Metro. They can help you alot!

X2

Combine that with metro bus pickup in front of the campground store to subway train terminal makes it convenient for most DC museums . :C

Mike

Dave in TN wrote:
Very easy. Park at Greenbelt station. There is a large Park and Ride lot there. You may want to consider purchasing Smartrip cards for each person ahead of time at the WMATA.com site. That way you're not dealing with the fare kiosks but can just get through the turnstiles and go. Study the maps a bit ahead of time. It helps to know not only which color route you need when connecting but also which direction you need to go, which is displayed on each train based on its final destination. Once you get a feel for it it's a piece of cake. No way would I drive myself around and try to park.

Also, take advantage of the free Circulator buses to get around the National Mall.

NO need to drive to the Greenbelt station as the Metro bus will pick you up at the campground. No need to pre-purchase any fare cards. The multiple fare card vending machines are at every station, and for sale at the campground office. The train system is one of the most user friendly in the world, and if you get confused, just ask someone. However, just study the map on line before you go! It is really very easy.

METRO is by far the best way to get around, and Cherry Hill has an orientation with plenty of info to assist you. That said, if you’re going to do the Monuments, Memorials & Museums on the National Mall (you should), there’s quite a bit of walking between locations, and Washington, DC can be pretty hot in summer. Pace yourself, don’t try to do too much in one day.

If you do the National Zoo (not on Mall, but located between two Red Line METRO Stations), Pro Tip: Get off at Cleveland Park when arriving, and depart via the Woodley Park Station. That way it is downhill both ways.

NoVa RT wrote:
METRO is by far the best way to get around, and Cherry Hill has an orientation with plenty of info to assist you. That said, if you’re going to do the Monuments, Memorials & Museums on the National Mall (you should), there’s quite a bit of walking between locations, and Washington, DC can be pretty hot in summer. Pace yourself, don’t try to do too much in one day.

If you do the National Zoo (not on Mall, but located between two Red Line METRO Stations), Pro Tip: Get off at Cleveland Park when arriving, and depart via the Woolley Park Station. That way it is downhill both ways.

:B