Mistakes Tourists Make on the National Mall (Washington DC)

[@flywithflorin]

Rob, your channel deserves to be over 100k subs. You are one of the best (if not the best) when it comes to DC info. I bumped into your channel last year and you deserve so much more attention.

[@TripHacksDC]

Thanks for the kind words

[@MommyGuideInc]

Hi Rob sad that you’re tours are fully booked. Arrived the other day and I am very grateful for all your videos which helped me prepare for this trip last minute.

[@johnchang3665]

Looking 👀 for good food, in D.C. ? Then I personally recommend this place called The Old Ebbitt Grill, trust me it’ll knock your socks off !!!!! 👌👍😉

[@spunkyb5249]

We hit up DC on the 4th of July. On our first day, we booked a full day bus tour (with some walking) of the monuments. We were so glad we did. We saw all the monuments and were able to enjoy the rest of our DC trip at a leisurely pace, with the help I received from your videos. We even returned to a couple of the monuments to get more pictures and to relax and enjoy the views. On my first trip to DC a long time ago, I had no plan and missed some of the monuments on foot. I was exhausted on that trip, and I was young!

[@jchan3358]

If you're walking the mall and are near the pools, bring bug repellent! I was there in late August and the mosquitoes and fleas almost ate me alive after sunset. Other than that, the Mall was a wonderful experience.

[@infolover_68]

Definitely concur with you: some Americans don't know or care about their own culture and history while some foreigners just go to DC for useless selfies (boasting to friends and relatives about it). That's a wasted opportunity to live and appreciate what the city has to offer!!

[@tessat338]

The National Gallery of Art has a nice café in the basement between the East Wing and the West Wing. It is a great place to take kids because there are lots of things to see and places to run around. There is a waterfall fountain that goes by a window that you can sit right next to, and there is a light tunnel between the two museums that kids are fascinated by. FYI, the restaurant and the gelato bar close early. When our kids were little, a friend of mine and I used to stroll the kids around the fountains outside of the National Gallery of Art. Sometimes we would take the kids inside for ice cream for them and coffee for us. The National Gallery of Art also has some of the nicest and least crowded bathrooms on the Mall.

[@RCT3Crashes100]

Having been to DC for the first time (as well as my first ever trip to the USA as a whole!) from the UK last month, I can say that starting earlier in the morning to see the monuments is definitely an underrated way to explore. On the first day of the trip, I met up with a friend to visit the Natural History Museum, and our meeting point was at the Washington Monument, so I went on foot from my hotel, which was about two blocks south of the Mall. I set off at a relaxed pace at around 8 AM, and being able to see everything waking up and the morning sunlight shining off the architecture was really cool! Also made for some pretty great photographs. I think the next time I'm in DC (which will hopefully be very soon - my intention to return is _extremely_ strong!) I'll bring an action camera with me and wear it on a mount so I can capture some footage of the route I took for most of the fortnight I was there :)

[@TripHacksDC]

Sounds like a great trip.

[@sandserpenthiss]

4:41 Don't know if you noticed this, but a Circulator passed in the background while you were talking about the Circulator. 😆

[@philb7789]

How feasible would it to pedal bike the national mall and see the monuments?

[@richardwolfe9231]

I will be there in 8 days but I can't afford your tour

[@MaryJaneHancock]

Do you know of a hotel in Arlington or Alexanderia that is on the public transportation route? Struggling to find an affordable hotel in DC. Thank you for your assistance 😊

[@TripHacksDC]

These are my recommended hotels: triphacksdc.com/hotels there are several in Arlington and Alexandria.

[@TripHacksDC]

Hotels in Northern Virginia Near DC Metro? 🚇

[@dylancarter6375]

Great Video Rob! I remember my first time taking on the National Mall, and broader DC. I felt kinda lost, had no idea where I was going (with a map clutched in my fingertips.) I was so overwhelmed by everything around me. But with some determination, research, and a little help from a great KZbinr/Tour Guide now my trips to DC are fun, relaxed, and easy. And I don't have to look like the tourist with a map out at all times! 😅

[@TripHacksDC]

Nice 🙂

[@Scipio488]

#1. AMEN. My office is on the Mall and it will SAP THE LIFE FROM YOU if you are not prepared for its vastness.

[@Mikelovesmuseums]

The podcast episode with Noelle was great! I had no idea of some of the museums discussed

[@TripHacksDC]

It was one of my favorites to produce

[@homeschoolmom779]

I'm hopefully taking my son on a red eye bus tour to DC in a few months..he is wanting to see the US mint store also (hes into coins) just don't know how much walking that would be 😮

[@Sherlock24jp]

the big mistake to me was no pre order ticket to visit the top of Washington Monument in the official National Parks web site and If you want to purchase them at the ticket house outside of the Washington monument you need to be in lined around 7:00 am.

[@jonellebullard4523]

Hi, we booked the trolley moonlight monument tour. It was very expensive! The reviews were great. Hope it’s worth the money!

[@MommyGuideInc]

I’ll be here for 3 weeks and will try to go to every museum here.:)

[@gregt8646]

holocaust museum is really good, and american history is another top one

[@thomasreiser]

I would add the Korean War memorial to the list of to be checked out at night

[@collinsvisual]

Can I use a professional camera at the National mall?

[@adityabiyani387]

nice

[@mister62085]

The one with Archie bunkers chair is always the best

[@liortepper3619]

Thanks a lot Rob

[@TripHacksDC]

No problem 👍

[@DG-hm1on]

Be careful when renting the scooters, like Lime or Bird. Mainly because they can be tricky to navigate on the gravel areas of the mall and many a folks have taken a bad fall of them. Bikeshare is where it's at. You can do a rental for 8 bucks for 24 hours, and just grab and go when you feel like it.

[@TripHacksDC]

Bikeshare is my go-to

[@delanorrosey4730]

Has the USDA Cafeteria reopened to public access? Thanks!

[@TripHacksDC]

It has not.

[@yourcatalyst22]

Rob is there a night monument guide tour that you can recommend for December since your not doing one till Spring? Going to be in town a Dec 20-24

[@TripHacksDC]

Private tours run year round including during your dates. These are the other local tour companies I recommend: www.triphacksdc.com/local-washington-dc-tours/

[@oztrevino]

I’m going in December again for the third time! So excited 😊

[@TripHacksDC]

Have fun!

[@Josy8289]

Great tip about the circulator bus!!!

[@TripHacksDC]

Glad it was helpful!

[@KeziahWestwood]

Another great video Rob!

[@TripHacksDC]

Thank you!

[@andysmith2621]

If you plan to ride the circulator plan to wait between 20 min and 2 hours...

[@wisdomoutdoors]

I’ve learned a great deal from your videos We are driving down to dc on January 2nd-7th from Quebec Canada Had booked on Hotwire for 61$ but it was out by Dulles airport. I took your advice and cancelled! I rebooked the Hampton Inn whitehouse. It cost a little more but I’m really relieved I watched your video Staying downtown is a good call! Thanks Will continue watching more

[@delanorrosey4730]

@@wisdomoutdoors I'd recommend seeing all of Rob's videos, including older ones with "obsolete" information. Driving? Be advised: Parking in DC is expensive, traffic might be busy, parking spaces may or may not be accessible depending on location you wish to visit, and some locations are easily accessible faster/convenient via walking or Metro. There is also electric scooters (location and rent by app) and Capital Bike sharing (CaBi had no issues with me using my own anti-theft device on the bike, provided it doesn't damage the bike and is removed upon completion of trip.) (Recommended to see which mode of transportation works best for you.) (On several of Rob's videos, he shown how he got from the Waterfront to the Spy Museum to the National Mall within minutes.) On a day trip to DC (I'm a few hours away from DC, I arrived by train. I pre-ordered my own desired Metro Card and downloaded the app to top up.) Literally hopped off Amtrak, took the Metro Red Line to the Zoo and was the first one there by 8am opening. Had a blast, saw the whole zoo before 3pm (Zoo closes at 4pm, I believe). Had plenty of time to get McDonald's at the Woodley Park Zoo station, eat/bathroom, hop back on the Metro Red Line to go to Union Station and back home.) I used a trip planning app Rob recommended to make my own map of the monuments/museums/places of interest. Also included locations of public bathrooms, police stations, hospitals (I took notes of their addresses, phone numbers just in case.) I essentially made two routes of the National Mall - Upper and Lower - and separated them East/West. That way, I can continue where I leave off with the most efficiency. As for the West side, I can easily access desired sites via Arlington Cemetery Station. (I need to add restaurants and eateries Rob and guests recommended on previous videos.) There's the USDA Cafeteria (not sure if public access is allowed presently), food trucks by National Mall, NASA Building (official offices, not tourist destination). A few blocks away from the Zoo was a couple restaurants Rob and a Zoo worker recommended.

[@delanorrosey4730]

@Andy Smith Did you download Circulator bus schedule/app to track location of buses?

[@andysmith2621]

@@delanorrosey4730 we had both the app and paper map/schedule. You can track the buses on the app when that function is working which we found to be about half the time. The week we were there, Oct 1st, we found them to be near their schedule 1 day the balance of the days they were always very late and unpredictable. It's a great concept and maybe we got a bad week. If this is typical performance then it's only good if you can actually see it coming.

[@TripHacksDC]

Sorry you had a bad experience but 20 minutes to 2 hours is not generally accurate.

[@juicy202]

Rob, you are killing it with content!

[@TripHacksDC]

Thanks, JC!