Six hours possibly in Washington D.C.&NYC

[afigg]

I don't know how far away The Newseum is from Union Station, but it was one of my favorite places to visit. It's a paid admission museum, but it is worth a visit.

The OP is looking for suggestions for a 5 to 6 hour layover. Which is likely to be shorter because the odds are the LD train will get in late. With such a short window, really doesn't make much sense to visit paid attractions when there are so many free ones. Many within closer walking distance than the Newseum (which is about 0.9 miles from DC union Station walking distance according to Google Maps).

I would keep it simple - walk to Capitol Hill and Library of Congress (free) or pick a (free) museum to visit or sightsee a couple of monuments.

 

[Manny T]

Totally recommend Googlemaps for this -- https://www.google.com/maps/search/museums/@38.8947357,-77.0124941,16z/data=!4m8!2m7!3m6!1smuseums!2sUnion+Station,+50+Massachusetts+Ave+NE,+Washington,+DC+20002!3s0x89b7b8218de7eadb:0x75f678f11f04348f!4m2!1d-77.00621!2d38.8975273

Btw it shows e.g. the National Portrait Gallery is exactly 1 mile, 20 minute walk from Union Station. Ford's Theater is a couple of blocks beyond that, National Gallery and Newseum are closer, etc.

Frankly pretty much all the major attractions are doable in 6 hours--you just have to pick ONE and chart your course to and fro, remembering always, as others have said, it is not likely you will have anywhere near 6 hours.

 

[Railroad Bill]

The public transportation comes frequently enough that "missing it" isn't an issue. Circulator busses are every 10 minutes. Metro trains are single digit headways for the most part.

It's about 2 miles to the Washington monument, which is the closest. The circulator bus will take you right there.

Everything you seek is right here: http://nationalmall.dccirculator.com

This new Circulator Bus is a great idea. We have ridden Circulators on other routes but this Mall bus is a good alternative to the Hop On buses and using your Smartrip Card for two hour transfers is especially favorable.

 

[benjibear]

I did the Holacast museum in about 4 hours. I could have taken longer but you get tired reading everything. I think, like most museums, you are never going to get everything out of the first visit.

The Newseum is OK. I thought it was a little pricey. Also, it seamed larger and more grand then what was actually there to see. Very spread out.

Walking the mall takes along time. Things are spread apart and you could easily take about 3 hours to walk to all the sites and not even spending time to look at the monuments. This is the reason I decided to rent a bicycle and was able to do in in much less time.

 

[Gingee]

Okay Maybe we should send for a map.

 

[afigg]

Okay Maybe we should send for a map.

Or download one. Here is a National Park Service visitors map of the National Mall as a 1 page PDF file. The map is rather busy because it covers from Library of Congress on the east end all the way to Arlington Cemetery on the western end, But still useful for getting an overview of where all of the national museum and monuments are. Union Station is on the upper right on the map.

 

[OlympianHiawatha]

If this is your first time through Washington Union, allow at least an hour to explore the station itself; it is beyond amazing. It doubles as a nice shopping mall with a wide variety of eating places mixed in (if you are coming in on the Cap, skip that early Brunch right after Breakfast). And if you enjoy train watching, head to the upper deck of the adjacent Car Park which offers an excellent view of the tracks to the north. When I went up there about a year ago, no one bothered me for watching and taking pics.

 

[Gingee]

Thanks for the map. I did print it out but man those words are little. LOL

We did explore the mall inside union station very quickly last year. The train ran late so we quickly walked out the front, walked down the street and took a picture of the capitol (from the side) and went back.

Then did some quick souvenir shopping in there.

 

[Rule G]

Also in DC and walking distance from Union Station are The National Archives, the SPY Museum, and The National Building Museum.

For a great and cheap lunch, hit up one of the street corner hot dog vendors for a couple of Half -smokes with chili! mmmmm

 

[SarahZ]

I found DC's Metro system extremely easy to use. Many landmarks are located within a block or two of the Metro stops.

During my six-hour layover, I was able to see the Washington Monument, the Supreme Court, the Capitol Building, the Library of Congress (i.e. Mecca), and the Shakespeare Library.

Even with that, I still had a couple of hours to explore Union Station and have lunch. Had the weather been nicer, I would have gone to the Lincoln Memorial and White House.

 

[benjibear]

I found DC's Metro system extremely easy to use. Many landmarks are located within a block or two of the Metro stops.

During my six-hour layover, I was able to see the Washington Monument, the Supreme Court, the Capitol Building, the Library of Congress (i.e. Mecca), and the Shakespeare Library.

Even with that, I still had a couple of hours to explore Union Station and have lunch. Had the weather been nicer, I would have gone to the Lincoln Memorial and White House.

Dc's Metro is the easiest transit system to navigate.

 

[ehbowen]

Got kids? The International Spy Museum is not far and 4-5 hours is just about right to see and do it all. You can walk through the main exhibits (and "playact" a "cover identity" for the "guards"), or you can purchase an extra ticket for "Operation Spy" which sends you on a simulated espionage mission where you get a chance to disable alarms and cameras and crack safes to extract information. Be advised that it is one of the few museums in Washington which does charge admission, but the price is reasonable IMHO. My (then) 12 year old nephew and 9 year old niece loved it.

 

[Gingee]

We looked at the Spy Museum. Would adults like it or is it just a tourist trap?

 

[Ryan]

Eh. My wife enjoyed it. I thought it was ok, but would have rather gone to Air and Space or American or Natural history.

 

[afigg]

We looked at the Spy Museum. Would adults like it or is it just a tourist trap?

I've been in there. Its ok, but dang pricey at $22 per adult. No plans to go back. Meanwhile the Smithsonian American Art Museum and National Portrait Gallery is right across the street from the Spy Museum with 3 floors of exhibits and its FREE. Much better bargain for a short layover in DC. Same goes for the National Gallery of Art, Library of Congress, the many Smithsonian museum buildings, and the other free sites.

 

[ehbowen]

We looked at the Spy Museum. Would adults like it or is it just a tourist trap?

Well, I enjoyed it and thought it was worth the price of admission. The kids absolutely loved it and still talk about it. But then I'm a big fan of Tom Clancy novels.