commute time driving from Alexandria to Tysons Corner (Leesburg, Wyndham: hotel, vacation)

[hello2]

My daughter and I are planning a week to stay north VA. First time in the area, can't wait! The plan is for us to stay at the Wyndham in Old Town Alexandria (vacation club offers great discount and it looks amazing).
Daughter is attending a model camp in Tysons Corner during the week, how bad is the commute and which way is best to travel? Leesburg Pk.? Mapquest estimates around 25 minutes but I don't expect at 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. for that to be possible. Also is it a better idea to stay in the Tysons Corner area instead, the only issue for me is being able to take public transportation around town and into D.C. Great ideas for a great vacation would be appreciated, coming from the Knoxville, TN area any advice is welcome! Thanks! Oh yeah, our trip is going to be either late june or early july, summer traffic makes it a little better, right?

[TCJohnson]

WIll say that the waterfront of Old Town Alexandria is one of my favorite parts of the area. It is pretty short walk from the hotel on King Street.

Deffinitely check out the old Torpedo Factory. It has been converted into a gallery/artist studio.

As far as commute...Rt 7 is the most direct route but there is a lot of traffic lights, 25 mile an hour speed limit at parts and getting through 7 Corners will be an adventure.

Granted, I have not driven this during rush hour but Duke Street to Telegraph to 495 Might not be a bad route to take. Less traffic lights and better speed lmits.

[global_dev]

I made this trip from that exact area of old town on and off over the years. The traffic going west on the beltway is not bad until you hit the exits around 66 and 50 which are not too far from Tyson's. It eases up after some slowdown. Timing wise I would guess about 45-60 mins around 0800. The brunt of it is like a 5 mile portion that takes up the bulk. It is usually a pretty reliable trip. Leaving 5 minutes earlier or later can sometimes make a 30 minute trip difference.

Old Town is really nice to vist with great options for metro. And if I remember the Wyndham is literally right across from the metro behind a hotel. Great location. They tried to hard sell me with really disturbing tactics.

The same trip on 7 takes quite a long time, tons of lights. I've done it when I had plenty of time and didn't know how long it was going to take.

Going east at 1500 is not bad if you get back to Old Town (telegraph rd)before 1600 or wait until 1800. Otherwise traffic backs up to Eisenhower exit or Van Dorn trying to get over the WW bridge. It may have gotten better over the last year... there are various not too far out of teh way smaller main roads to get on off of 95 that are usually good for a portion of the way or get off at eisenhower or do something else until traffic eases up. I almost always got off at eisenhower after 1550. You just can't see the backup past eisnehower until its too late to get off and then your stuck in 4 lanes of slowness.

[TCJohnson]

Originally Posted by global_dev

I made this trip from that exact area of old town on and off over the years. The traffic going west on the beltway is not bad until you hit the exits around 66 and 50 which are not too far from Tyson's. It eases up after some slowdown. Timing wise I would guess about 45-60 mins around 0800. The brunt of it is like a 5 mile portion that takes up the bulk. It is usually a pretty reliable trip. Leaving 5 minutes earlier or later can sometimes make a 30 minute trip difference.

Old Town is really nice to vist with great options for metro. And if I remember the Wyndham is literally right across from the metro behind a hotel. Great location. They tried to hard sell me with really disturbing tactics.

The same trip on 7 takes quite a long time, tons of lights. I've done it when I had plenty of time and didn't know how long it was going to take.

Going east at 1500 is not bad if you get back to Old Town (telegraph rd)before 1600 or wait until 1800. Otherwise traffic backs up to Eisenhower exit or Van Dorn trying to get over the WW bridge. It may have gotten better over the last year... there are various not too far out of teh way smaller main roads to get on off of 95 that are usually good for a portion of the way or get off at eisenhower or do something else until traffic eases up. I almost always got off at eisenhower after 1550. You just can't see the backup past eisnehower until its too late to get off and then your stuck in 4 lanes of slowness.

FYI, for you out of towner, Beltway = 495.

[Alanboy395]

Originally Posted by hello2

My daughter and I are planning a week to stay north VA. First time in the area, can't wait! The plan is for us to stay at the Wyndham in Old Town Alexandria (vacation club offers great discount and it looks amazing).
Daughter is attending a model camp in Tysons Corner during the week, how bad is the commute and which way is best to travel? Leesburg Pk.? Mapquest estimates around 25 minutes but I don't expect at 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. for that to be possible. Also is it a better idea to stay in the Tysons Corner area instead, the only issue for me is being able to take public transportation around town and into D.C. Great ideas for a great vacation would be appreciated, coming from the Knoxville, TN area any advice is welcome! Thanks! Oh yeah, our trip is going to be either late june or early july, summer traffic makes it a little better, right?

I did that commute from Landmark to the heart of Tysons took about 35 min. I guess you would add 10-15 min for coming outta of Old town.

[hello2]

Can anyone tell me about the drive to and from Tysons Corner and Old Town Alexandria? How bad of a drive should it be during rush hour times in the summer and are there any tolls? Also, are there any shops around T.C. other than the mall? Antique shops or boutiques, or even historical sites in the vicinity? Daughter will be in day camp, I'm trying to find out how possible it will be to stay in old town Alexandria and commute to T.C. I also will need to find ways to amuse myself while she's at camp. Old town looks so wonderful I would love to wander that area during the day but from the sounds of the traffic, it almost sounds like I should plan to stay in the Tysons area to explore the day away. This is our first visit to Va, so not familiar with the area. Also, plan to visit D.C. on a saturday or sunday, is there much open on weekends? Thanx so much, any help is greatly appreciated!

[VEIK]

Tysons Corner is huge office area, There are two malls, Tysons and Tysons Galleria.
You could spend a whole day there, between two malls.
THere is no metro in Tysons, but some metro stations sort of nearby.
Metro buses do serve Tysons Corner area.

I don't think there is anything historical in the surrounding area.
Instead I would head over to Georgetown part of DC for a day.

With no traffic, its about ~20 minute ride from Tysons.
Walk around there, shop, eat.

On the weekends, in DC, museums are open.
Fewer fast food establishments are open in the business district, as offices are closed.