Frugal Things To Do In Washington, DC
The MoneyLifeNetwork occasionally does contests, events and other fun projects and this is the latest…Frugal Things To Do In…Your City, State. We have the distinct honor of providing information on fun and frugal things to do in Washington, DC. I have to tell you, that we got lucky here as there is more to do here frugally than almost anywhere! I hate to gloat but I am a proud Washingtonian.
Washington, DC is very accessible from three different airports: Dulles International Airport in Virginia, Reagan National Airport and Baltimore Washington International Airport. Also helpful when searching for the cheapest plane tickets is to search using WAS, this will search all three airports at once. The easiest to get into the city is by using Reagan National Airport as it sits directly on a Metro Train rail ,which permeates into the city. I really like Prime Time Money’s article on Frugal Things To Do In Dallas, TX so I am going to use his style as a template. Hopefully he won’t mind. 
Getting Around
Public transportation is one of the highlights of DC as the Metro can take you almost anywhere you want to go. There are also tour buses all over the place that will give you a wonderful tour of almost all of the historic landmarks.
- Metro
This costs a few dollars each way depending on where you would like to go. Some say that DC has one of the nicest train systems in the country, but if you ride it everyday…ugh. In any case it beats New York’s tunnels in cleanliness and ease of use from what I hear. Take a look at the map and use Google and see where you need to go and head in the right direction. Don’t worry if you get turned around, you can always go back: once you are in the system you can move around as you please and will only be charged as you leave. A Day Pass makes it very easy to take advantage. (On a side note: I take this an hour each way to work and its one of my biggest financial gripes. $10 a day! But I use it to commute…)
- Tour buses
Most of these are double decker and cycle through the city for most of the day. At first it was strange to me to have tourists watching me walk to work but I have gotten used to it. These go to all the historic sites which we will get to in a bit. For prices and routes, see here. - Tourmobile
These are longer extended buses that also have “Free All Day Reboarding.” This might be favorable as I read in the paper a few days ago that the trees along some of the paths for the double decker tours are a little low at the moment and its like a scene out of Indiana Jones up there. Either way, its great time though.
Historic Attractions
For the most part, these are all free, or are very affordable. They are also very rich in history as many are integral to the foundations of America so be prepared to learn.
- The White House - The most famous house in America. While free, the process to get a tour is arduous: a request must be made through one’s Member of Congress and are recommended up to 6 months in advance. The site does have video tours though. Frank has done a White House Tour and recommends it to anyone who knows they are coming to the city in advance.
- Washington Monument - An old attraction, 555 feet, 5/8 inches high and can be seen 30 to 40 miles away on a clear day. A great spot on the 4th of July, although we can watch from the building where Frank and I work.
- The Capitol Building - The main focus from our offices windows, and an amazing place to visit. Frank comes here often although you will need a tour, free of course. Personal tours are free and made by your member of Congress. I recommend going this route versus the Capitol tour guides just because of the freedom it allows. The Capitol building is Franks favorite building in DC, the history is amazing.
- Thomas Jefferson Memorial - The author our country, he shaped many of our ideals. Very nice place right on the Potomac. A great site for the Cherry Blossom Festival as well. See below.
- Lincoln Memorial - You may recognize this as many movies show this memorial, sits on the reflecting pool where you can look down and see the Washington Monument and the Capitol Building behind it.
- National Mall - The center of the city where most of the touristic action is. You can’t miss it. No really…its huge: almost 2 miles long and covers over 300 acres!
- Ford’s Theatre - The famous theatre where Lincoln lost his life when he was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth.
- Iwo Jima - The official name is the Marine Corps War Memorial and it depicts the famous flag raising on Iwo Jima during World War II. The memorial is dedicated to all Marines who have given their lives in the defense of the United States since 1775.
- Vietnam Wall - A very popular memorial that has thousands of names, worth visiting
- Mt Vernon - An amazing site on the Potomac, this is where George Washington actually used to live.
- National Zoo - This is a surprisingly large zoo with tons of attractions. Not quite as big as the San Diego Zoo but worth visiting.
- Pentagon - While you can’t really get a very good tour of this building (free although a reservation is required), you will most certainly go past it if you are anywhere south of DC.
- U.S. Supreme Court Building - I was surprised to see such a humble page for this, but when the renovations are done you could visit this for free as well.
- National Archives - This has everything, and I mean just about everything. Really cool stuff!
- Library of Congress - If you are a big fan of reading, then this is recommended for you. I haven’t been yet but I have a huge picture of it in my office. Very inspiring.
Did I mention that Georgetown is also a really cool part of town to check out? Not all of it is frugal but there are some nice historic dives to share a beer after walking all day…
Museums
These are some of the best in the world: be warned, you cannot do very many of these in one day. Be ready to do some walking inside these massive buildings, although they are very worth it. Use Google Maps to find what you are looking for here. All are free!
- International Spy Museum - You get to go on an actual spy mission and much of what is on display has been stolen. Very cool stuff. There is also a Spy Store where you can buy real spy gadgets!
- Smithsonian Institution - A huge compilation of museums, spanning an area from 3rd to 14th Street.
- National Gallery of Art - See famous works of art from all over
- National Postal Museum - Pass this everyday on my way to work, awesome for the stamp lover!
- Natural History Museum - Inspires curiosity, discovery and learning, one of the more famous.
- National Air and Space Museum - One of my favorites, has all the artifacts from first flight to space shuttles and capsules.
- Crime and Punishment Museum - Everything ranging from jails, to torture, seems grim but interesting
- National Building Museum - Famous buildings, architecture, form and structure
- Newseum - The worlds most interactive museum, dealing anything and everything news related
- United States Holocaust Museum - Not for the faint of heart, I wouldn’t bring children. Very informing: you have never seen anything like this on TV.
- And several more…
Other
An important event here in DC is every springs Cherry Blossom Festival. The pictures are the best but to see it in real life is breath taking. I will warn you though, DC gets extremely busy. There are people from all over the world that come to see all the mass of blooms along the river. Couple that with a back drop of gorgeous memorials, and its an impressive site! Oh yea, and its free too…
We have many other special events but to be honest, they are so many to mention here…and this is already getting to be a very long article. Let’s move on, shall we?
Restaurants
This is one that might not be as frugal as you would have liked. There are zillions of places to eat but none are extraordinarily affordable that you would like. There are a few that warrant a visit…
- Ben’s Chili Bowl - Of course I would have to recommend this one. Not only does it have the same name, but it is world renowned for its chili dogs. Its at the top of this list and is a must.
- OpenTable.com - you can actually use this for any restaurant almost anywhere but its very well fleshed out for DC.
- Dirt Cheap Eats - Like I said before, there is too many to go into here. I am sure some of our local readers will have input on this and wholeheartedly welcome them in comments.
Conclusion
As you can see, there is an amazing amount of places to visit and see here in the nations capital. Plan your visit and come on by! I am also interested on a personal level to hear about anyone’s experience with the touring system here in Washington…please let me know how your visit goes in the comment form after the pictures!
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Comments
Well I am sure you will be happy to know that since your last visit the traffic issues are still awful. To this day, I have never brought my car into this place. Metro all the way!
Nice stuff. Just wanted to say that you put Iowa Jima instead of Iwo Jima. It gave me a good chuckle though…
I’ve never been to D.C., though I would really like to make a visit. I think it’s only like four hours from Pittsburgh (though I’d probably not want to deal with having my car there…so I dunno).
Great job!
Kacie- I’ve been a Washingtonian for over 25 years and been driving into the city for 12…there are plenty of parking garages and lots to park in that are relatively cheap depending on the day. Just keep in mind that DC has the worst layout of any city in the nation because of all the one-way streets so just keep an eye out for oncoming traffic ;o) I think that the train is the best way to go if you are from out of town since Union Station is in a great location.
This was a great article and only a tip of the iceburg of the many things to do in DC. There are always free (or cheap) concerts, festivals, and entertainment year ’round.
As I said above, this is my hometown. I guess I really took advantage of being able to go to the White House Christmas party, tour the WH, Capitol Bldg, and Pentagon growing up since now it looks so difficult to get a tour! I recommend any musuem (especially the Holocaust Musuem) and just walk around Eastern Market, G-town, Adams Morgan, etc etc.
Again, great article! Love the site :o)
@ The Dream: Awkward! Thanks for pointing that out. Its tough when you misspell something that is correctly something else. (did that make sense?)
@ Kacie: There are a few people in my office from the Pittsburgh area, and it doesn’t seem too bad of a drive.
@ sarameshell: These roads might have been put together like a rambunctious 4 year old, you are very brave. Thanks for stopping by 
Man, it’s funny that I haven’t been to most of the places in the Frugal Things To Do… project… I guess I don’t get around enough, but they all look like a lot of fun! Nice job!
Great post! I’m partial to the FDR Memorial myself, but everyone seems to miss it while at the National Mall.
Crystal City and Pentagon City (Blue or Yellow Metro) are also nice to visit for a change of pace if you like window shopping, but people who have trouble with impulse purchases should stay away
Nice post! Was in DC many, many years ago. I remember going to the Smithsonian and seeing Kermit the Frog and Indiana Jones’ hat. Ok, I was a lot younger then. Guess it’s time to go back and soak it all in again!
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Born in DC and lived nearby my whole life. If you’re visiting don’t miss the National Cathedral and gardens (in NW out Wisconsin Ave). You could take most of a day exploring this amazing building. I’ve seen most of the great cathedrals in Europe and while this one is not as old it rivals those in Europe. Don’t miss the small herb cottage shop and the bishop’s maze garden. Beautiful, and free too.
For those who LIVE in DC and aren’t tourists- a fun place to go on Monday nights is the Arlington Draft House where they play $1 movies with no food/drink min.
Find more frugal & fun tips for those who live in DC at http://www.funandfrugal20s.com.
@Stephanie: Thanks for the tip, got an address or a link for the Arlington Draft House?
Wow, great job - it makes me want to visit Washington D.C. again. The last time i was there was around 15-16 years ago and I was in high school. I think I’d appreciate it more now.