Parking in DC on a Saturday morning? (Arlington, Jefferson: coupon, hotels)

[DrRuthie]

So I will be visiting DC and have a scheduled White House tour on a Saturday around mid-morning. I know public transportation is strongly recommended but due to other issues, it is best for us to drive into DC and park. I'm even willing to pay to park for the day and taxi over to the White House. I'd like to get ideas on where we could park and walk (or hike) it over the House.

I'll be staying in the Arlington area, so I could even park at a metro lot and ride in? I'm not familiar with taking metro or public transportation so I need as much info as possible (i.e. do I take cash if I'm taking a bus to the metro station? VRE vs. Metro, etc etc...)

Does anyone have any suggestions?

[bmwguydc]

In the immediate vicinity of the White House, parking is limited. On Saturday mornings, you have the problem of some office building garages that are not open on streets to the west of the White House. I would eliminate the hope for street parking, unless you were to park along Constitution Avenue and walk to the White House. To the east, The W and the Willard Hotels both have parking, with the W being across the street from the Treasury building. The JW Marriott also has parking. The closest parking to where you would want to be would be the Hay-Adams hotel, across Lafayette Square. The hotels are valet park facilities that range from $30-$40 or so +tip.

The Metro to Farragut West on the Orange Line would put you within two blocks of the White House, just north of Lafayette Square. If you are staying along the Orange Line, it would be an easy trip. You would need to purchase a fare card from the vending machines at the station prior to entering Metro.

It looks like the best bargain in terms of parking would be the garage at 1625 I Street, NW, which would cost $8. The garage across the street would be $11. Both rates were found at http://washingtondc.bestparking.com/. One note about some garages is that you need to print out the rate summary, and/or make a reservation, as there are some parking facilities that will require the coupon for the special rate. 1625 I is the same neighborhood where the Metro would take you, so the only closer option is going to be one of the hotels.

[spencgr]

I have a similar request - I need to be at the Lincoln Memorial Saturday afternoon. Where is the closest place to park? While I will look for street parking, where is the closest garage which is open on weekends? I cannot take any form of public transportation because I will have two dogs with me (and they are not service dogs).

thanks in advance for any help.

[terrence81]

The only metro station in Arlington that I know of with free weekend parking is the Crystal City metro which has underground parking.

[matsmom]

Although it is not free, every time we have visited DC we have parked at Union Station and then took the metro that got us closest to our destination.

[sullyguy]

Google (or its competitive equivalent) is your friend w.r.t. questions like this.

parking washington dc - Google Maps

[bmwguydc]

Originally Posted by spencgr

I have a similar request - I need to be at the Lincoln Memorial Saturday afternoon. Where is the closest place to park? While I will look for street parking, where is the closest garage which is open on weekends? I cannot take any form of public transportation because I will have two dogs with me (and they are not service dogs).

thanks in advance for any help.

I would say that street parking is the best bet when dealing with the Lincoln Memorial. Constitution Avenue is one such area, but can be packed. I tend to like to park on Ohio Drive, from the Erricson Memorial to the FDR, but sometimes that is busy too. You can continue along Ohio Drive to the parking lots that are closer to the Jefferson if you don't mind a pleasant walk back along the river to the Lincoln Memorial. And, if you have more than one person, you could drop off someone with the dogs nearer the Lincoln Memorial, so they would not have as long a walk from parking.

Parking garages are few in that area, and would be to the north of Constitution, around Foggy Bottom, because of the State Department, Institute of Peace, and then GW. The problem in this area is similar to the OP, with the White House, because the office building garages are closed on weekends. GW may have some parking that's open, however, off Virginia, but you'd practically be at The Kennedy Center before parking there. You may find street parking before reaching a garage there, but my best advice would be to arrive a bit early and try to find something nearer the memorials. Usually, it's not too much of a problem, though the walk from the further out lots can take a while to get back to the Lincoln.

[cry_havoc]

DC is expensive to park in. You are going to shell at least $20 a day. I believe, but am not positive, that you can park for free at meters on the weekend, but you might have trouble finding a spot.

Also, driving in DC sucks.

[spencgr]

BMW - Thanks! I'll try and get down there early. I hope nothing big is going on this weekend!

[HokieFan]

Originally Posted by terrence81

The only metro station in Arlington that I know of with free weekend parking is the Crystal City metro which has underground parking.

All Metro (station) operated parking is free on weekends and federal holidays.