Washington D.C. with Three Kids

If you plan on visiting the White House you need to contact your representative to get tickets. You might not have enough time to get tickets - they say 4 to 6 weeks notice.

I would take the Metro ANY chance I got. If you used to live here you know that DC in July is WICKED humid and HOT and parking SUCKS. Buy the smart trip cards in advance so that you don't have to worry about standing in line with kids in the Metro to buy or reload cards.

With kids that young? I would DO ONE THING - Zoo or museum. Parking for the Zoo is a ZOO - so I would take the metro (Red line and get off at Woodley Park/Zoo) and walk up from there.

With kids that age? I wouldn't plan on spending much time in any museum as they will most likely get bored. Especially the 4 and 18 month old. I don't know your kids so I don't know how they would handle things like this either. I've never lived in Chicago so I don't know how much the weather will be different. I don't know how your kids react to schedule changes and being out of their normal surroundings, so it's hard for me to answer.

The Washington Memorial is closed. Will be closed for a few more months as the earthquake did some damage that they are trying to fix.

I would plan on having a picnic on the National Mall and playing games there!!! Flying a kite is fun too!!!

I would also look into the Duck Tour - where you see DC from Land and water... http://www.viator.com/tours/Washington-DC/Washington-DC-D...

The Baltimore Aquarium is NOT cheap but fun for kids. Since you are driving here - I would do that as well.

Good luck!! Have fun!!!

We live in the DC area and it gets HOT in the summer, but you know that if you used to live here. My kids LOVE to do things (they are 9, 7, and 5 now) but we only do one thing per day. Maybe because we live about 90 minutes from the city so a nap and going back is not doable.

The zoo takes a full day if you do it right, or maybe that's with our commute, but still. Take your time and enjoy the things you do.

Also, the Duck Tour is a great and fun way to see a lot of the city...you can also do the double decker hop on and off buses, which will let you get around to do a lot of the things you can do in the city.

I'd plan at least a half day (4 hours) for the Natural History Museum. The dinosaurs are really cool - plus there is lots of other stuff to see, but you'd need to break it up some.

If I were taking my kids (they are now 7, 4 and 3) I'd plan for a few hours in Natural History, go outside (if it isn't ungodly humid/hot) and see what's happening on the Mall. See one of the sculpture gardens, or visit the Conservatory (totally worth walking through) then go back and do a bit more of the Natural History Museum.

I don't think it's realistic to do both the zoo and a museum in one day.

Just enjoy yourself.

My son was a baby when we lived there, and I loved spending time in the Art Museums too... my kids still love our local art museums. There is a really neat waterfall/fountain in the basement of the National Museum of Art between the classical building and the modern art area - there is a place to eat there too - we never ate, but sometimes stopped for coffee and to use the bathroom.

I'd FOR SURE take the Metro, even with a stroller.

The only frustrating thing with the Metro is that sometimes the elevators are under repair, so with a double stroller it might be a pain. I'd guess you could figure out if any you might need were broken by checking their website.

Good luck!

I love DC with small kids. We did the Metro with infants always without any problems :) We have done all sorts of the museums etc. with small kids. But I really do love the zoo with small kids -- but would probably stay the whole day with that one event. It is far from other museums and well worth staying the whole day! Also well worth to stay the whole day at the American History Museum.

Restaurants are usually crowded, no matter where you are, but either bring some food or get food from the lunch trucks from outside the museums.

If you can only stay a day or so, go to the zoo, have fun!

It is worth getting tickets in advance for the Washington Monument too -- free is you get them in advance!

I would go to the Old Post Office for lunch vs any of the museums. They are PRICEY for food. You could spend a couple of hours at any museum, easy. I haven't tried to do anything with the Zoo in the same day, but they all close at 5 so maybe one in the AM, leave for lunch, and the other in the afternoon before dinner? Depends on your kids, really. I would check the Metro schedule (heard on WTOP that they're doing some "rush hour plus thing" on at least the yellow line) and use that. I'm pretty sure you can take 2 kids under 4 with you on your fare for free.

Double check the ages on the duck tour. Some do not allow children under 3 for the water portion, so that could be a hassle.

Honestly, your kids will probably get bored rather quickly in any of the Smithsonian Museums, though your best bets are the Air and Space one and the American History one (and at least they are all free!)
It will be freaking HOT and you will be walking a LOT so be prepared for that with good shoes, hats, sunscreen and lots of water.
Parking is a nightmare at the Mall and pretty much near all of the sights you'll want to see so definitely take the Metro, even with a stroller, it's so much easier.
It's too bad your kids aren't a little older, we found that renting bikes was a great alternative to walking. You see so much more that way!
Good luck and enjoy, it's an amazing and very moving place to visit :)

I would not do the Zoo and a Museum in the same day.

The food is way over priced. I would brown bag it and have a picnic. The lines can be long but move fairly quick.

The Native American Museum is awesome! In the last 2 months we've done the Air and Space, Natural History and Native American. The Native American one was the best. They have a special area for kids that is hands on. They learn about basket weaving then get to weave a giant basket. Kids love it. Your 18 mo wouldn't be able to help probably but the other two are the perfect age for it. They get "passports" and stamp them at the different stations. It was a lot of fun and a lot to do.

I would never park in or around the mall. Parking is awful and it's much easier to take metro. You can drive to a metro station to save time. I don't know about during the summer or the stations in Va, but alot of the stations require a smart trip card to pay the fee, so keep that in mind. It's free on the weekends though. Some still have meters, just check and make sure before you leave out.

Have fun!!!!

I wouldn't do museums and the zoo in the same day, either! If your kids are early morning people, keep in mind that the grounds of the zoo open super-early, and you can often see animals in their outside habitats by around 8-9 AM. We have pretty good luck parking in the lowest lot (the one right off Rock Creek Parkway) in the mornings around 8-9 AM. It's not that crowded if you're early, and you miss a lot of the wicked heat that way, too.

I'd give a whole day to the Natural History Museum (or as much of the day as the kids can stand). There's also a new kids' section at the National Musuem of the American Indian (I think the kids' zone opened last fall), and the restaurant there is excellent (not cheap, but different and yummy). There are several really good blogs about activities for kids in DC; check out http://kidfriendlydc.com/ and http://bedtimemonsters.blogspot.com/. And there are loads of great parks in Northern VA for the days when you're not in the city. Enjoy!

I have been to both the museum and zoo...I wouldn't do them the same day. They are not that close AND both take at least a good day to see on their own.
There is a cafe at the History Museum and I would budget 4ish hours...at least. AND...Don't leave the musuem without seeing the Hope Diamond.
There is a cute kid area on the second floor too.
I don't know about parking since I have only taken the metro.