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Old 08-02-2012, 09:25 AM
 
Location: BX
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I have time to spend an afternoon and dinner in either Arlington or Old Alexandria. I dont have time to see both while I'm on my visit to DC. Can someone please tell me which would be better for restaurants, bars, stores, and generally more interesting to see?

Thanks
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Old 08-02-2012, 09:29 AM
 
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Without a doubt, Old Town. Arlington is a hip place to live for 20-somethings, but not really known as a tourist destination.
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Old 08-02-2012, 10:10 AM
 
Location: New-Dentist Colony
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How old are you? And what do you like to do? What kind of stores?
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Old 08-02-2012, 10:12 AM
 
Location: Northern Virginia
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Old Town, for sure. Much more pleasant to walk around, and lots of touristy little shops and restaurants. There are guided walking tours, historical residences, and the waterfront is beautiful.
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Old 08-02-2012, 11:08 AM
 
Location: Chapel Hill, NC, formerly NoVA and Phila
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Defintitely Old Town Alexandria! It's a very nice town to walk around in, grab a meal and people watch!
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Old 08-02-2012, 11:17 AM
 
Location: BX
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Is King Street the only main attraction of old Alexandria or are theyre other blocks?
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Old 08-02-2012, 11:55 AM
 
Location: among the clustered spires
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Old Town Alexandria is roughly 1.5 miles N-S and a mile E-W. It's relatively Metro-accessible, there's shuttles that go up and down Route 7.

Orange Line Arlington is full of hip bars and hip 20somethings.
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Old 08-02-2012, 12:20 PM
 
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Old Town if you are older. Arlington if you are younger
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Old 08-02-2012, 02:29 PM
 
Location: BX
340 posts, read 1,186,422 times
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we are in our 20's and like drinking and restaurants. im thinking maybe old town for afternoon dinner then over to arlington for night time. can you tell me the best streets to visit in arlington?
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Old 08-02-2012, 02:45 PM
 
Location: Northern Virginia
4,489 posts, read 10,953,888 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JeRrYcRaCk View Post
we are in our 20's and like drinking and restaurants. im thinking maybe old town for afternoon dinner then over to arlington for night time. can you tell me the best streets to visit in arlington?
Seriously, there is nothing of interest in Arlington that can't be found in another city. There are a bunch of bars, some restaurants, but it's really just tons of apartments and businesses. Wilson/Clarendon Blvds are the main strip through the city, but I don't know why you'd need to go.

How long do you realistically have? In Old Town I would think you could fill an evening quite nicely. Ideas:

Take a harbor cruise: Washington DC Boat Tours from Potomac River Boat, Charter a Boat or Take a Tour
Do a guided walking tour (their specialty is the ghost tour): Alexandria Colonial Tours Welcome
See Christ's Church (where George Washington went): Historic Christ Church: Home
Climb to the top of the Masonic Temple for a panoramic view: Welcome to the George Washington Masonic Memorial
Tour the Carlyle House: Carlyle House Historic Park - Main Page
Eat dinner at Gadsby's Tavern for a unique feel: Welcome to Gadsby's Tavern Restaurant :::::

Or heck, pick any of the zillions of tasty restaurants down there. There are some really fun bars for afterwards too. My husband and I are in our late 20's and enjoy the following places:

Union Street Public House: Union Street Public House
Virtue Feed & Grain: Virtue Feed & Grain (upstairs in the back there are porch swings and a pool table and views of the water)
Pat Troy's: Pat Troy's Ireland's Own Restaurant and Pub of Old Town, Alexandria, Virginia (though to be fair we like this one because they let us bring our dog on the patio )

I just don't know what Arlington has to offer that Old Town doesn't have. It's a mecca for young recent college grads, because they can walk from their apartments to the bars to the metro to DC for more bars. Don't get me wrong, there are good restaurants there too, but I don't think they'd be worth cutting your time short in Old Town to try to get there.
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