Am History is a lot of reading. Not much hands-on . And your kids don't have an appreciation for history yet so skip.

Postal Mus is fun andvhands-on. Next to Union Station so great food choices.

Am Indian is a lot of reading too, but there is a hands-on interaction floor my kids loved.
Dh and I traded off so we could each see the rest of the museum bc the kids wanted to keep staying on the kids' floor.

Nat History is great. Lots of great visuals so reading not neccessary.

Pass on the Bot Gardens. Unless your kids are into plants, it's just greenery everywhere . A nice walk, but not compelling enough to go out of thevway for it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:take your kids to the postal museum! I know that sounds really strange, but I think they will both love it. There is a big rig they can “drive” that my 3 and 5 yr olds were obsessed with. There’s a mail sorting activity and a package throwing/sorting activity and big table with markers to color on.

I don’t know about food but it’s right next to union station

The postal museum is a hidden gem. My kids still talk about the taxidermy dog with all the tags on his jacket.

Yes! It sounds like it would be lame, but my kids love it. We used to do a different museum every Friday. Postal Museum and American History were the biggest hits (though if the play area is closed at the latter, skip it, because that was the best part) followed by American Indian. I enjoyed the food at the American Indian Museum, but my kids weren’t excited.

Our most successful days followed this pattern: arrive at the museum just as it opened, tour and do the play areas, then have a picnic lunch at the Botanic Gardens or nearby park. Then home. By that time, we were tired and the museums were super crowded. We never did more than one in a day unless we combined an indoor place with an outdoor one-the carousel or the garden.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Eat at the American Indian museum. It's near the Botanic Garden.

+1 http://www.mitsitamcafe.com/

+2
this museum also has a great kids area on the top floor. (American history has one in the basement but it’s dark and crowded)

Agree with natural history as well — lots of things to look at. You might prefer American history a bit more when kids are older.

My kids also really liked the Hirschorn sculpture garden when they were small.

I don't think the American Indian kids' area is open. They closed it for Covid and it was still closed when I was there in the fall.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Eat at the American Indian museum. It's near the Botanic Garden.

Not for kids

Just sneak a bit of meat in-between bites of that fried bread.

YES. Fry bread. The only place you're getting Navajo tacos around these parts.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Eat at the American Indian museum. It's near the Botanic Garden.

Not for kids

Just sneak a bit of meat in-between bites of that fried bread.

Mine loves the National Gallery, Hirshhorn, or American Art museum (Chinatown). Hirshhorn and National Gallery have sculpture gardens, AAM has a neat atrium and lots of nearby lunch options. National Gallery has gelato shop in basement Also the garden at Smithsonian castle is beautiful and you can get a snack on castle.

Anonymous wrote:take your kids to the postal museum! I know that sounds really strange, but I think they will both love it. There is a big rig they can “drive” that my 3 and 5 yr olds were obsessed with. There’s a mail sorting activity and a package throwing/sorting activity and big table with markers to color on.

I don’t know about food but it’s right next to union station

The postal museum is a hidden gem. My kids still talk about the taxidermy dog with all the tags on his jacket.

take your kids to the postal museum! I know that sounds really strange, but I think they will both love it. There is a big rig they can “drive” that my 3 and 5 yr olds were obsessed with. There’s a mail sorting activity and a package throwing/sorting activity and big table with markers to color on.

I don’t know about food but it’s right next to union station

Anonymous wrote:I would only do one museum and that would be natural history. The kids love dinosaurs, the ocean section and the gems.

+1 I was surprised at how much my 5 yo loved it

At that age my kids loved the transportation area of the American History museum and the kids area of the American Indian museum. Neither of them were into the Natural Histiry museum much, though one of them did love the butterflies.
I would eat at a food truck at the mall. Expensive, but still cheaper than museum food.

I would only do one museum and that would be natural history. The kids love dinosaurs, the ocean section and the gems.

My toddler loves vehicles and we checked out American History last week. The lower level full of cars, trucks, trains was surprisingly fun, even for me. FYI the kids play area in American History is closed right now.

There's a carousel on the mall as well.

Botanic Garden is lovely and has a childrens garden.

Cafeteria in basement of National Gallery is not bad. For those saying "kids will eat anything"--perhaps the adults would like an edible meal as well

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Eat at the American Indian museum. It's near the Botanic Garden.

+1 http://www.mitsitamcafe.com/

+2
this museum also has a great kids area on the top floor. (American history has one in the basement but it’s dark and crowded)

Agree with natural history as well — lots of things to look at. You might prefer American history a bit more when kids are older.

My kids also really liked the Hirschorn sculpture garden when they were small.

I think a 3 and 6 year old would really like eating a hotdog on the mall with an ice cream after. They can also run around a bit before you go to the next museum. Pro tip - my kids loved the last car in the train so they could watch the tunnel out the back window.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Eat at the American Indian museum. It's near the Botanic Garden.

Not for kids

They have kids meals, some kids like more sophisticated food, and it’s the best food you’ll find for adults. I think it’s a great place to go.

I would say the African American museum and American Indian museum are tied for best food.

Oh good tip. Thank you.