District of Columbia - Pitstops for Kids

Washington DC Bike ’n Roll Monuments at Nite Tour

September 26, 2014 By Amy Hagstrom

We love patronizing Bike ’N Roll whenever we’re in major cities (and want to save our feet from lots of walking). We’ve reviewed Bike ’N Roll in NYC, and didn’t hesitate to book a tour with Bike N Roll DC during our trip to Washington DC with kids.

We opted for the Monuments@Nite tour, because we visited DC in the heat of the summer, and hoped for a cooler ride. We also got a prettier one: the monuments lit up at night are fabulous! We booked our tour for our first evening in the city, which was perfect timing:’biking the sites’ gave us a nice orientation to the area, and allowed us to see all the major monuments in one evening. After biking them, I am convinced we could not (read: would not) have walked to them all in one day, let alone in three hours.

The Monuments@Nite tour took us from Bike ’N Roll’s location at L’Enfant Plaza (an easy Metro ride from almost anywhere) to the Tidal Basin, Jefferson Memorial, FDR memorial, the new MLK Jr memorial, all the war memorials (including the new WWII one), and of course, the Lincoln memorial and Washington monument. We saw the White House from a distance, as well as the Capitol. About half of the three hour tour was in daylight; we switched on our bike lights around the halfway mark at the Lincoln memorial.

Our guide—without exception—was the best tour guide we had in DC. This includes all the official guides we had in the Capitol, White House, and Mt. Vernon. He was great with kids, engaging them in the conversation constantly, and had a wealth of information. He impressed me right off the bat by remembering every kid’s name on the tour, and ensuring they were all safe on their bikes. I learned so much about the monuments that I never would have guessed from just looking at them myself.

Our guide also had lots of tips for how to spend the rest of our trip, making us doubly glad to have booked the tour at the beginning of our stay in DC. He had lots of info about the city in general, the various controversies about each monument, and general historical trivia.

Our tour ran from 7 pm to 10 pm, but we actually went overtime, and were not back to the Bike ’N Roll kiosk until almost 10:30 pm. Because of this, and the nature of the tour (on bikes), I’d recommend it for kids 6 and up. DC is very flat, so it’s not strenuous, but kids definitely have to be able to follow directions. We were given a water bottle and a snack en route.

A few tips: If arriving via Metro, head up the stairs to your left the moment you come out of the station to the street. The kiosk is at the top of those steps. We made the mistake of continuing out to the sidewalk and walked around the building…making us late. Gratuities are nice at the end; we always recommend tipping 10% of the cost of the tour.

Date last visited:

June 2014

Cost:

Adults are $45 and kids are $35. And it’s worth every penny. Families can book other types of tours as well, or rent bikes without a guide.

Directions:

L’Enfant Plaza is just past Independence Ave (on the far side of the Mall). Take the Metro to the L’Enfant station. If you can’t find the kiosk, give them a call…they answer right away and can guide you there.

Wondering where to stay in DC? Check out our review of Grand Hyatt Washington.

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Washington DC with kids: Smithsonian Museum of Natural History

September 17, 2014 By Amy Hagstrom

We love, love, love the free Smithsonian museums to visit while in Washington DC with kids. The granddaddy of them all is the National Museum of Natural History, which is definitely worth half a day of your time. While planning our DC trip, I doubted whether we’d want to make the stop; I knew the museum was great, but reasoned that we have toured numerous museums of natural history in the US, from Atlanta’s Fernbank Museum to San Diego’s The Nat. But at the insistence of my son, we went, and we’re so glad we did.

There’s so much going on in this museum. The first level (actually called Level 2; the ground floor houses the IMAX and cafe) houses the permanent Mammals Halland Ocean Hall, each excellent in their own right, but what wowed us most was the Hall of Human Origins. This exhibit documents the ‘birth’ of homo sapiens from their ancestors and follows the path from earliest man to present day, including adaptations and population changes. It concludes with impacts of humans throughout the ages, both good and bad. It made all of us think, from the youngest to oldest.

Upstairs (Level 3), their dinosaur wing (called the National Fossil Hall) is under renovation until 2019, but in the meantime, the Rex Room downstairs by Mammals offers a window into the work ongoing by museum staffers. During our visit, we watched their 3-D printers create model triceratops.

The Minerals and Gems Hall houses to the Hope Diamond, definitely worth checking out (though my kids thought it would be bigger!), and adjacent, the live Butterfly pavilion (extra fee) and live bug zoo (included) lead to the Eternal Life in Ancient Egypt exhibit (on indefinitely display). This may have been our second-favorite stop, where we learned the ancient Egyptians sometimes mummified animals like cats and even bulls in addition to humans. There are actual mummies here (one of which is a small child), so sensitive children may need to be warned (or skip it).

We spent three hours touring exhibits and another hour eating at the cafe, and still didn’t see everything. When you arrive, expect a short delay at the security point.

Date last visited:

July 2014

Distance from the interstate:

Minutes from I-66 and I-395. Close to I-95.

Admission:

Free. IMAX movies are extra. Butterfly exhibit is approximately $6 per person, and requires timed ticket in summer.

Hours of operation:

10 am to 5:30 pm daily, except Christmas Day. Extended hours are possible in summer.

Dining:

There are two cafes in the museum. The main one is a large cafeteria with the usual: burgers, fries, pizza, sandwiches, grab-and-go items, and snack foods. Expect to pay premium prices. The second is a natural cafe with healthier options, located one floor up. It’s much smaller, but also seemed to be less crowded. Tip: No matter what we do, we always bring water bottles and refill them at water stations. We save $10-15 per meal by not purchasing drinks, and save from adding to the plastic bottles piling up, too.

Directions:

The museum is located at 1000 Constitution Avenue, Washington DC. Get off at the Smithsonian Metro stop, or walk from most points on the Mall.

Wondering where to stay in DC? Check out our review of Grand Hyatt Washington.

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