5 Day Washington DC Itinerary – History, Hiking, Art and Culture

I moved to DC about two decades ago and never regretted it.

Washington is a wonderful place to live in. It’s also a great city to visit for a few days. It’s not as large as some other capitals and you can cover a lot of ground even during a short trip. You can always go back to see more.

In DC, you’ll find anything which suits your taste: historical monuments, great restaurants, shopping opportunities, art galleries and museums of all kinds, sports events, animal encounters, and perfect hiking trails.

I bet there are a few things which you didn’t know about DC.

Are you aware that the iconic Hope Diamond is on display nowhere else but in Washington DC?

Did you know that the incredible Hillwood Estate in DC used to belong to the richest woman in the US- Marjorie Merriweather Post? Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens houses a large collection of French art and the largest collection of imperial Russian art outside of Russia.

And guess what – Ginevra de’ Benci of the National Gallery of Art is the only work by Leonardo da Vinci publicly displayed in the Western Hemisphere.

Well, these are just a couple of facts off the top of my head. There is much more to discover in Washington DC.

Check out the Washington DC 5-day itinerary I’ve put together below. I’ve compiled it not based on common tourist itineraries but things which DC residents like me do on a regular basis.

Day 1 (hitting the tourist spots)

Key things to see

So, let’s start your Washington DC 5-day itinerary.

The first day is a good time to explore all the great historical monuments which the city has to offer. Whether you are into history or not, it’s definitely good to get the main highlights.

DC is a perfect walking city. You can see a lot of landmarks without needing to get into a car. They are located quite close to one another. If you are not too much into walking, you can also take advantage of bikes or scooters available throughout the city.

In addition, there is a good transportation system with metro and bus readily available in the downtown area. If you want to see the White House first, a good metro stop to get off is Metro Center. There are several other metro stops scattered around downtown, so you’re never too far from metro. There are also buses circulating in all different directions.

Some of the sites you’d definitely want to see on the first day include Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, the Reflecting Pool, the DC World Memorial, the World War II Memorial, the Korean War Memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, the Tidal Basin, and, of course, the White House.

All of these attractions are located rather close to one another, so it’s very convenient.

Keep in mind that all these sites get very crowded by tourists. Coming earlier in the morning is always better for taking good photos. But if that’s not a huge deal for you, it’s fine to come at any time of the day.

There are also a lot of great museums located in that area (good metro station to get off is Smithsonian). However, I don’t suggest going to the museum on the first day. They have quite extensive exhibitions, so you might not have enough time. You’d need a dedicated day (or days) to cover the museums.

In terms of food, you won’t find an abundance of restaurants in that area. But there are plenty of food trucks which offer some reasonable choices so that you won’t go hungry.

Another place you might want to visit is the Washington National Cathedral. It’s a bit further away, but there is a bus going to it, and the whole visit would not be too long. You could take N2, N4 or N6 to it from Farragut Square. The good thing about that area is that there are some good restaurants along the Wisconsin Avenue. You can reach them by walking from the cathedral.

Additional suggestions

If you have time and interest, it’s also a good idea to stop at Georgetown. This is a beautiful area with its unique cobblestone streets and lovely houses where you’ll be able to find a lot of nice stores and excellent restaurants. You can also walk down to the Washington harbor and take a short cruise along the Potomac river, or just take a nice walk by the water.

Depending on the time you’re visiting, the outdoor skating rink might be open. It usually works from November till March. It’s a very popular place among both locals and tourists and gets quite crowded, especially on weekends.

If you still have some energy left in the tank, you can finish your day by going to a show at the Kennedy Center for performing arts. When planning your trip, you can check their website and see if something interesting is going on.

I’ve put a lot of ideas here, so if you can’t do all these things in one day, they can spill over to the next day.

In any case, these are just suggestions and you can slice and dice them the way you see fit.

Days 2 and 3 (museum days)

Do you like museums?

Hopefully, you do, because DC is a perfect city for museum lovers.

I suggest devoting one or two days of your Washington DC itinerary to museums simply because Washington has such a wide selection of them. They have extraordinary collections and many of them are totally free, thanks to the incredible generosity of various donors or federal funding.

Which museums you will choose to visit will obviously depend on your interest and availability of time. I cannot prescribe it here.

Some of the options which I would recommend include National Museum of Natural History, the National Air and Space Museum, the National Gallery of Art, the National Museum of the American Indian, the National Portrait Gallery and others. You can look up their rankings on TripAdvisor and other sites, but I would just go for the museum which sounds the most interesting to you. They are all great and you will definitely not be disappointed.

Entrance to all Smithsonian museums is free. You can spend a couple of hours in several museums, or pick one which you are really interested in. Many museums are located right next to one another, so it’s really easy to move between them. Like always, coming earlier in the morning will yield you better pictures. Try to hit the museum you are most interested in first, and then go to others.

National Museum of Natural History

Without doubt, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History is one of the best museums in DC. Its vast collection will take you on a tour of the fascinating history of our planet, from its beginning and through many years of transformation. The exhibits include the Mammals hall, Fossils Hall, Ocean Hall, Mineral and Gem Collection, as well as Insect Zoo and Butterfly Pavilion.

If you are into dinosaurs, you’re in luck. Some of the coolest items on display include dinosaur fossils. You’ll see the remains of stegosaurus, sauropods and other dinosaurs. You’ll also learn how dinosaurs changed from one era to another until finally coming to extinction 66 million years ago after a giant asteroid hit the Earth and caused firestorms, mega-tsunamis and eruptions, the debris blocking the sun.

Another must see hall is the one featuring the mineral and gem collection. There are a whopping 350,000 mineral specimen and 10,000 gems. Beyond doubt, this is one of the largest and most impressive collections in the world!

You’ll see a lot of fragments of meteorites and learn about their origin- like the fragment of a 300,000 ton meteorite that struck the Arizona desert 50,000 years ago. If you visit Arizona, you can see the Meteor Crater created by this meteorite.

You’ll also see plenty of astounding gems on display. There are 7,500+ individual gemstones ranging from half a carat to almost 23,000 carats.

One of the treasures is the world famous blue Hope Diamond. It weighs 45.52 carats. The beauty of this diamond is as incredible as its history.

If you’d like to know more about the Hope Diamond and other interesting items in the museum collection, check out my blog posts:

Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History and Its Treasures

The Hope Diamond and other Famous Gems in Washington DC

National Museum of the American Indian

The exhibitions at the National Museum of the American Indian display a number of important events in the Native American history.

You’ll be able to see a rich collection of Native objects, photographs, media and archives which cover the entire Western Hemisphere. In addition, the museum has a wonderful gift shop, which is an exhibition in itself. There are plenty of extraordinary arts and crafts which will appeal to both adults and children. Make sure you spend some time browsing through.

If you want to learn more about this museum, check out my blog post: National Museum of the American Indian in Washington DC

National Gallery of Art

This is a must see museum for any art lover.The National Gallery of Art boasts a magnificent collection of paintings, sculptures, drawings, photographs and works of decorative art. There are 150,000 artworks in the collection which covers American and European art and spans over a thousand years.

The National Gallery of Art was a gift from Andrew Mellon, a former secretary to the treasury and a philanthropist. He financed the construction of the building and its maintenance, as well as gifted the original 26 sculptures and 126 paintings to its collection. He also commissioned architect John Russel Pope to make the design of the buildings. Interestingly, both Mellon and Pope died within 24 hours of each other, in 1937.

The museum is open from 10:00 am till 5:30 pm every day of the week. The entrance is free and no tickets/prior reservations are required.

The museum is comprised of the East and West Wings. There is also a lovely Sculpture Garden outside. In order to reach the garden, you’ll need to leave the building of the museum and walk across the street. The garden boasts a number of modern sculptures, some fountains and a cafe where you can eat a relaxing lunch.

The museum is comprised of the West and East Buildings. Connecting them is a gorgeous Multiverse installation. Over 41,000 LED nodes light the way, exciting both adults and children.

As you walk through the galleries, you’ll see many famous art works, such as sculptures by Rodin and Degas, paintings by Leonardo da Vinci, Rafael, Bronzino, Rembrandt, Fragonard, El Greko, Vigee-Lebrun, van Dyck, van Gogh, Rubens, Picasso, Monet, and many others.

Probably the most famous of the art works displayed here is Leonardo’s Ginevra de’ Benci. This is the only painting by Leonardo publicly exhibited in the Western Hemisphere.

Planet Word Museum

One of the hidden gems which I recommend visiting in DC is the Planet Word museum.

It’s a smaller museum and not part of the Smithsonian, but it’s very unique and interactive. You’ll have an opportunity to learn a few words from different languages (we tried Chinese and Hebrew), try your singing skills, trade jokes with your friends/other visitors, and even use words to change the landscape in the picture.

I was greatly impressed by a very interesting and interactive show featuring the history of English language. You’ll learn which other languages and nations influenced English during different periods and discover which words came from which language. We also learned an interesting fact that teenage girls is the most influential group when it comes to language development. Thanks to teenage girls, a lot of new words were introduced into the English language.

Before coming to the museum, it’s worthwhile getting online tickets. They don’t take too many people at a time, so getting timed entry tickets is a good idea. If you show up without a ticket, it’s still okay but they might ask you to wait a bit. When buying tickets, they recommend a donation of $15 per person, but you can pay a smaller amount (or none at all).

Day 4 (hiking day)

I bet by now you are exhausted of crowds, monuments, museums and art galleries.

This might be a good time for changing gears and doing something less touristy. For example, you might want to do some hiking or biking. May be even kayaking? Or you could have a picnic and see the flora and fauna of DC.

Here you’ll have many options for your Washington DC itinerary. My favorite hiking places in DC are Rock Creek Park and Capital Crescent Trail.

Rock Creek Park

Rock Creek Park is a great place to visit for both families and single travelers. This is a large park which boasts many hiking trails, bicycle paths, and picnic areas. It also offers an opportunity to explore some historical places, like the Peirce Mill. In addition, you can ride horses there, play golf and tennis, or visit a lovely Nature Center and Planetarium. Plenty of things to do.

The atmosphere at the park varies from day to day. On weekends, the park is usually very animated, with thousands of people riding their bikes, walking along the paths, hiking, or having a picnic with their friends and family. It’s not easy to get a parking space or a picnic table, so arriving early (definitely before 11 am), is recommended.

On weekdays (or bad weather days), you will likely find a much quieter park. You’ll see some walkers and bicyclists here and there, perhaps a few families having a picnic, but overall this will be a much more peaceful experience. No problems with parking, you’ll have a wide choice of parking spaces.

The park located centrally and there are multiple entrances. The one we usually go to is Tilden Street NW (near Peirce Mill). It’s easiest to access the park by car, and there is a lot of parking available. And it’s also close to the red line stops (Van Ness/UDC or Cleveland Park). However, you’d need to either walk or take a short cab ride from there. Another good option is biking.

For animal lovers, the Rock Creek Park is a paradise. It offers an opportunity to see a lot of mammals, birds, amphibians, and insects. Some of the common mammals you can find here include red and gray fox, different varieties of squirrel, white tailed deer, raccoons and others. You will also find over 150 species of birds, such as warblers, woodpeckers, brown creepers, and many more.

The Capital Crescent Trail

This shared-use rail trail runs for about 11 miles from Georgetown in DC to Silver Spring, Maryland.

The Crescent trail does not quite offer the same level of variety as the Rock Creek Park, but it’s still a great area to take a walk or ride a bike. Or watch some cute deer.

One great place which you can visit is the Fletcher’s boathouse which has been around since 1850’s. Pretty cool, don’t you think?

This place offers rowboat, canoe, kayak and bike rentals; there are also some snacks and drinks to buy. A lot of people enjoy doing water activities on the Potomac. If you are one of them, be sure to check out this place. The Fletcher family has been operating the boathouse for 145 years until the last family members finally retired and National Park Service took over the operations.

The Fletcher’s boathouse (now called Fletcher’s Cove) is only open March through October, so check the exact dates before heading there. During other months, you can still walk around and look at the river. However, you won’t be able to rent any equipment.

Day 5 (Animals/nature or art)

For the last day of your Washington DC itinerary I have several options to choose from.

If you have kids with you, one good idea is to pick a place where you can see animals. One option is Smithsonian’s National Zoo, which is greatly loved by both tourists and locals. If you are not in the mood for a traditional zoo, you can also opt for a more interactive experience, like NOVA Wild in Virginia (30-40 minute drive from DC).

Smithsonian National Zoo

This 163-acre zoo is one of the largest in the US. It’s situated on the slopes of the Rock Creek Park. The zoo boasts a wide selection of animals, wealth of educational information about different species, souvenir shops, cafes, food stands, a butterfly garden, a merry go round, and a children’s playground. It’s a wonderful place where your family can spend a whole day, have a ton of fun and also learn a lot.

Among the animals, you can expect to see pandas (a magnet for all the visitors), elephants, zebra, cheetah, lions and tigers, bears, an ostrich, bison, eagles, lemurs, seals and sea lions, farm animals, various amphibians and reptiles, and other animals.

A big advantage is that admission to the Smithsonian National Zoo is free of charge. 

However, keep in mind that you still need to get tickets online (even if they are free).

For more information about the zoo and things you can do there, check out my blog post:

Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington DC

NOVA Wild

NOVA Wild is an interactive zoo located in Reston, VA (about 40 minute drive from DC). It’s open every day of the week from 10:00 am will 6:00 pm.

Compared to the National Zoo in DC, NOVA Wild has fewer animals and much smaller premises. It’s a 30-acre zoo, so it’s not very large. NOVA Wild is also not free. Adult general admission tickets are $20, and tickets for kids and seniors are $15 each. One bucket of food will cost you $20.

However, NOVA Wild has several important advantages. First, it has much more interactive exhibits. Second, the small territory makes it easy to cover without getting overly tired. Third, there are fewer visitors, so you have plenty of space. And finally, you have an opportunity to get close to the animals which are used to people and happy to interact with you.

Once you enter, you will immediately spot some animals you can feed. These include goats, pigs, and cows. All the animals are very friendly and will rush to the fence to greet you and ask for food.

The bird pavilion is also very interesting. It houses chickens of different breeds and several peacocks. Did you know that there are more than 300 breeds of chickens in the world? Turns out, there are. And you’ll find some really cool ones at NOVA Wild. You can feed all the birds with the food which they gave you upfront.

Interested in NOVA Wild? Check out my blog post about activities in this interactive zoo:

NOVA Wild – Interactive Zoo in Reston, VA

Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens

In case you’d prefer a more artistic experience for your last day in DC, I would suggest visiting the Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens.

Compared to downtown museums and galleries, at Hillwood there are generally fewer tourists and you can expect a quiet and relaxing atmosphere. Essentially, you will walk around the gardens, enjoy the outdoors, have a relaxing lunch and browse through the incredible art pieces inside the mansion which once belonged to a heiress, socialite and businesswoman Marjorie Merriweather Post. The exhibition includes many beautiful objects of French and Imperial Russian art which will definitely make your jaw drop.

The art collection at the museum is amazing, but I think the story of Marjorie Merriweather Post might be even more incredible than all the treasures she had assembled.

Marjorie Merriweather Post was born in 1887. She was the only child of C.W. Post- a famous American innovator. He was a pioneer in the prepared foods industry and founded a Postum Cereal Company (later General Foods Corporation). In 1914, C.W. Post passed away and Marjorie became the owner of the rapidly growing corporation. She also inherited US$ 20 million, a very large sum at that time.

For most of her life, Marjorie was considered the wealthiest woman in the US. She utilized a large part of her fortune to collect various art pieces and donated a lot of it to the American people. Some of the most famous gems on display at Smithsonian have been donated by Marjorie Merriweather Post. Thanks to her, everyone can now enjoy the beauty of these jewels.

Marjorie sure led an interesting and eventful life. She was married four times and had three daughters.

Her third husband, Joseph Davies, was the ambassador of the US to the Soviet Union in the 1930’s. During this time, the couple acquired a lot of priceless art pieces for their collection, including the chandelier from the Catherine Palace, the summer residence of Russian tsars, Faberge art works, a large portrait of Catherine the Great, the chalice and nuptial crown, and other masterpieces. Many of these items were seized from the owners by the Soviet authorities under Joseph Stalin.

You will also find many incredible French art works, including the portrait of The Duchess of Parma and Her Daughter Isabelle by Jean-March Nattier, two luxurious commodes designed by Jean-Henri Riesener (the official cabinetmaker of King Louis XVI and Queen Marie-Antoinette, portrait of Empress Eugenie, the wife of Napoleon III by Franz Winterhalter, and tapestries woven in 1730s at the celebrated Beauvais factory in France.

If you’d like to know more about Marjorie Merriweather Post and her collection, you have no other choice but to visit Hillwood.

When is the best time to visit DC?

It’s good to keep in mind that DC has humid subtropical climate. Its summers are very hot, spring and fall can be quite rainy, while winters are generally mild.

DC weather is very unpredictable, so you won’t be able to guess whether it will be rain or shine, cold or hot during your trip.

If you’re interested in taking nice photos, summer, late spring or early fall (till about mid-October) is definitely your best bet. If you want to visit in summer, keep in mind that some days could be very hot (100F+) and humid. It does not cool off even at night.

Winter can be okay to visit, but you might get unlucky. We often get a couple very cold weeks in January and February (around 0F), but generally you can expect temperature to hover around 30-40F. Snow storms are most common in February. If there is a lot of snow, the city gets paralyzed and you won’t be able to do much. It’s very beautiful, however.

When you start planning your trip to DC, you might also consider various special events going on there.

For example, cherry blossom festival always attracts a lot of people. You can see some gorgeous cherry trees in full bloom and take gorgeous photos. The time of the peak varies from year to year, depending on the weather, so you’d need to check. Sometimes it can be in the end of March, sometimes well into April.

DC is also quite festive around July 4th. You’ll have an opportunity to watch fireworks near some of the famous landmarks, making this an unforgettable experience.

Mubadala Citi DC Open

Over the summer, DC also hosts Mubadala Citi DC Open, a tennis tournament which attracts a lot of good players. This tournament takes place at the the William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center in Rock Creek Park. Usually it starts the last week of July. This year we had some stars like Paula Badosa, Victoria Azarenka, Taylor Fritz, Aryna Sabalenka, Sebastian Korda and others. You need to buy tickets well in advance because the tournament usually sells out.

A big advantage of going to Mubadala Citi DC Open is that you can see famous players up close, compared to larger tournaments like US Open and others. Kids always have a great time getting autographs from their favorite stars. Overall, it’s a great family experience.

The Final Word

I hope you enjoyed this Washington DC itinerary.

I think it’s important to see key tourist attractions, so make sure you hit all the landmarks on the first day or two. Being in Washington DC and not seeing the White House or the Washington Monument would not make sense. But I also recommend devoting some time to activities which are less touristy, yet quite interesting. I’m sure you will appreciate seeing these two sides of DC.

All in all, you’ll have a great time in DC no matter what you do.

Hope you enjoy your trip!