Fun things to do with my kids in DC

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our kids LOVED the National Postal Museum (right across the street from Union Station) at that age. Trust me OP, it is totally cool...complete with a stagecoach, big rig, train car (all of which the kids can sit in!), an indoor forest trail, mail-sorting interactive games, etc.

It is really quite impressive and one of the least-crowded museums in DC! And FREE!

Awesome thank you!
Is Building Museum worth going to? I thought I heard it was good but not sure.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We used to live in DC and will be taking a road trip back for a few days with our kids ages 6 and 3.5 (both boys) I think I know where we should go but please let me know if Im missing anything regarding museums, etc. Thx

- Tidal basin paddle boating
- Walk around the outside monuments
- Museum of Natural History, Building Museum, Air and Space Museum
- Zoo

Paddle boating is so not as fun as it may seem. Would not be fun with kids that young. You would have to do all the work.

Op here- we went paddle boating today and had a great time. Weather was gorgeous!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Air and Soace is currently about halfway closed for renovations. I think your boys would like Udvar-Hazy out by Dulles more than the main museum on the mall, TBH.

Great to know- thank you!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:+1 for the kids' area at the Museum of the American Indian. The Botanic Gardens are right next door, my 3 YO thought the fountains and the indoor rainforest were kind of cool and it doesn't take long to walk through.

Agree that Udvar-Hazy is a better bet these days than the original museum.

Be advised that security screening lines for all the popular Smithsonians back up quickly, so you'll want to either aim for early arrival (right when they open) or wait until later in the afternoon when the bulk of the crowds have left.

Is Udvar-Hazy where the planetarium is or is the planetarium on the mall?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our kids LOVED the National Postal Museum (right across the street from Union Station) at that age. Trust me OP, it is totally cool...complete with a stagecoach, big rig, train car (all of which the kids can sit in!), an indoor forest trail, mail-sorting interactive games, etc.

It is really quite impressive and one of the least-crowded museums in DC! And FREE!

Awesome thank you!
Is Building Museum worth going to? I thought I heard it was good but not sure.

Building Museum is fine.

[Anonymous]

Kennedy Center Millenium Stage has a free show every night of the year from 6 pm to 7 pm. When my kids were those ages we'd take in 15 to 30 minutes of a show and then go upstairs to the cafeteria for a treat and a walk outside on the upper level. Some shows are very kid friendly. You and kids can always sit on the stairs at the side of the stage!

[Anonymous]

If you are open to driving, Brookside Gardens in Silver Spring is beautiful this time of the year. And its free. Pack a lunch and snacks and enjoy the day with kids.

[Anonymous]

OP back here. In case anyone refers to this post in the future, I wanted to share that my kids loved Air and Space museum in DC, including the Imax 3d show and planetarium show. They liked the Natural History museum, but air and space was more fun/interactive. We all loved paddle boating at the tidal basin and my 6 yr old brought his scooter from home and had fun riding it around the mall when we were walking around that area checking out the outside monuments. Of course it was fun hanging out at our old local spots etc but in terms of the touristy stuff, I figured Id write an update in case anyone does a search in the future

[Anonymous]

Have you ever done Glen Echo? They have a great carousel, fun playground and a children's theater to catch a show. Buy show tickets in advance.

[Anonymous]

The US History Museum now has a HUGE play area on the bottom floor with adjoining areas for different age groups. One is a playground your little guy would like and the other is an inventor's area that your bigger guy would enjoy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP back here. In case anyone refers to this post in the future, I wanted to share that my kids loved Air and Space museum in DC, including the Imax 3d show and planetarium show. They liked the Natural History museum, but air and space was more fun/interactive. We all loved paddle boating at the tidal basin and my 6 yr old brought his scooter from home and had fun riding it around the mall when we were walking around that area checking out the outside monuments. Of course it was fun hanging out at our old local spots etc but in terms of the touristy stuff, I figured Id write an update in case anyone does a search in the future

Hi OP,
We are in a similar situation (used to live in DC, moved away last year and planning a short visit this summer with 3 & 5yo) and I was just starting to plan activities so this is all very helpful. Can I ask where you recommend renting the paddle boat, and if you think this is a good idea even in the heat of August?
Thank you!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP back here. In case anyone refers to this post in the future, I wanted to share that my kids loved Air and Space museum in DC, including the Imax 3d show and planetarium show. They liked the Natural History museum, but air and space was more fun/interactive. We all loved paddle boating at the tidal basin and my 6 yr old brought his scooter from home and had fun riding it around the mall when we were walking around that area checking out the outside monuments. Of course it was fun hanging out at our old local spots etc but in terms of the touristy stuff, I figured Id write an update in case anyone does a search in the future

Hi OP,
We are in a similar situation (used to live in DC, moved away last year and planning a short visit this summer with 3 & 5yo) and I was just starting to plan activities so this is all very helpful. Can I ask where you recommend renting the paddle boat, and if you think this is a good idea even in the heat of August?
Thank you!

Hi! We went to the Tidal Basin. Across from the Jefferson memorial they have paddle boat rentals. You just go there (theres a parking lot right in front of it) and rent the paddle boat(s). No need to reserve in advance. The day we went this past week was 83 degrees and not too hot. I think it would be fine in August. Just be sure to have hats and sunscreen. We also went to the World War 2 memorial that day and you can dip your feet in the fountain area (which I never knew when we lived there) and was soo amazing for us to cool off in since it was 83 and full sun that day. Def recommend doing that in August. It was so nice to be back PP. Still feels like home to me even though I only lived there for 6 yrs and am now 4 hrs away. In August Id def do the water fountain at Georgetown Waterfront for kids to run through, and any of the spraygrounds if you have downtime.I hope you have a great visit too!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP back here. In case anyone refers to this post in the future, I wanted to share that my kids loved Air and Space museum in DC, including the Imax 3d show and planetarium show. They liked the Natural History museum, but air and space was more fun/interactive. We all loved paddle boating at the tidal basin and my 6 yr old brought his scooter from home and had fun riding it around the mall when we were walking around that area checking out the outside monuments. Of course it was fun hanging out at our old local spots etc but in terms of the touristy stuff, I figured Id write an update in case anyone does a search in the future

Hi OP,
We are in a similar situation (used to live in DC, moved away last year and planning a short visit this summer with 3 & 5yo) and I was just starting to plan activities so this is all very helpful. Can I ask where you recommend renting the paddle boat, and if you think this is a good idea even in the heat of August?
Thank you!

Hi! We went to the Tidal Basin. Across from the Jefferson memorial they have paddle boat rentals. You just go there (theres a parking lot right in front of it) and rent the paddle boat(s). No need to reserve in advance. The day we went this past week was 83 degrees and not too hot. I think it would be fine in August. Just be sure to have hats and sunscreen. We also went to the World War 2 memorial that day and you can dip your feet in the fountain area (which I never knew when we lived there) and was soo amazing for us to cool off in since it was 83 and full sun that day. Def recommend doing that in August. It was so nice to be back PP. Still feels like home to me even though I only lived there for 6 yrs and am now 4 hrs away. In August Id def do the water fountain at Georgetown Waterfront for kids to run through, and any of the spraygrounds if you have downtime.I hope you have a great visit too!

Thanks so much for the details OP, much appreciated.
We were only there for 4 years but still miss it a lot too, especially the kids.
Hopefully they will behave when we have our paddle boat adventure!