Thinking of taking the Kids to Wash. DC any suggestions?

[dotcommer]

We are currently in Connecticut, on our trek back to Arizona. My wife wants to take the kids to Washington DC. We are in a 37 foot coach. Any suggestions, about getting around in an RV, in DC? Are there some good RV parks etc.

[3_dog_nights]

Don't let the kids meet or talk with any politicians, you don't want to try to undo that kind of damage to their young brains......

[tatest]

Don't even try to get around D.C. in a 37-foot coach. While city buses and tour buses exceed that size, the operators know where they can go, where they can stop, and where they are forbidden. In general, there are few places to park, and limited places to just stop. As a family or individual, without a small towed vehicle, park somewhere on the fringes of the metro area and use public transportation to get around.

Same for NYC, Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago, etc where they have decent public transportation. Other places where they don't, I don't know. In Houston, I've never gotten closer than the suburbs, and even those were a challenge. I would park outside the city and have friends come to get me.

[uncle_t]

cherry hill is a very good park. shuttle to metro station,etc. it will also provide you with a bunch of stink bugs that will appear in your coach for up to a year. kept our cat on her toes and the stench is divine.

[charming]

Thanks for the suggestion. I looked up the Cherry Hill RV park and the drive to the Fitzgerald Tennis Center is doable.

Love to play tourist in DC. We are thinking about going up next summer to the tennis tournament. We used to go every year when we lived in Virginia. DH would stay over at a local motel and I would drive up for a day or two.

Our biggest concern has been the dogs. If we go we will use something like Rove.com and have someone come out each afternoon and walk the dogs.

[dotcommer]

Thanks everyone for all the info. We are at Cherry Hill, great place.

We will head out to DC in the morning. I will look into that 15 minute DC classs the park offers.

[oldave]

Cherry Hill has a class to explain how to get around DC
and what to see .
I recommend you take this short class .

We managed to go into the White House .
If this interests you , call your congress man and you may
be able to get in .
You will need to know specific dates and ID of each person .
I was in a wheel chair ( bad foot ) so a secret service agent
escorted me with my wife pushing through some back halls to
an elevator .
We saw the kitchen and other areas normally off limits , we
really enjoyed the tour and chit chat with the agent .

Ray D

[Georgew48]

Love Cherry Hill. You can catch the bus to the metro station right in the campground. Only way to go. If you. Just doing a day trip then you can park at Arlington and catch the metro to get back across the river and into downtown DC.

[stvdman]

Cherry Hill was where we stayed when the kids wanted to see DC. Super convenient with BUS/METRO service coming right into the campground. Get that SMART TRIP card and DC is all yours.

[dotcommer]

2gypsies wrote:
Here's good information on Cherry Hill RV and Washington, D.C., complete with photos.

https://wheelingit.us/?s=cherry+hill

Great review, thanks for sharing

[dotcommer]

THANK YOU EVERYONE!!!
We just reserved our spot at Cherry Hill.

We are heading out tomorrow.

[DrewE]

There are three campgrounds that I know of that are fairly close to Metro stops:

Cherry Hill, as has been mentioned many times, is by most all accounts quite nice but relatively expensive.

Greenbelt NP, not far from Cherry Hill, is quite inexpensive and pretty quiet but offers no hookups. It's a large campground so sites are very rarely unavailable. I stayed there for a week a couple years ago (over Thanksgiving week) and it worked out very well for me, walking to the Metro station. It did not strike me as a particularly sketchy neighborhood after dark (or during the day).

Lake Fairfax County Park (in Reston, VA) is somewhat in between the others in terms of amenities and cost; there's a water park and partial hookups, and it's also within reasonable walking distance or a quick drive to a Metro station.

[2gypsies1]

Here's good information on Cherry Hill RV and Washington, D.C., complete with photos.

https://wheelingit.us/?s=cherry+hill

[ArchHoagland]

This is what we did:




Go to Cherry Hill RV park.
CHERRY HILL RV PARK



Take this two day tour.
TWO DAY TOUR


Do not try to drive around in downtown Washington, DC

[GREGORYJ]

Another option, and if Cherry Hill is booked, is Greenbelt Park run by the National Parks Service. It's fairly close to Cherry Hill, and is about a 30 minute walk mostly thru the park to the METRO at Collage Park or 10 minute drive. It's camping in a forest setting , sites aren't services, but is only $20/day,
See more info here:

https://www.nps.gov/gree/index.htm