Kids' Pick - Best DC Museums

No visit to Washington D.C. is complete without visiting the Smithsonian museums and memorials. My husband and I have both visited DC several times, yet wanted to wait until our kids were a little older for them to visit, so they can really appreciate and understand what they were seeing. At the time of the trip, the kids were 7 and 9. I'm glad we did hold off, because I feel they really enjoyed the city and learned a great deal more about the US. So here are my kids' pick of best museums and memorials in DC...

1. Museum of Natural History

They loved this museum (that's why they picked it as their #1). It was all about the earth's past and had many fossils and prehistoric artifacts that they found fascinating.

There are many kid-friendly exhibits and artifacts. From the moment you walk through the doors, you are greeted by a giant elephant. The atrium surrounding it leads you to the many "wings" to explore.

The sections range from dinosaurs, mammals, ocean life, the arctic world, to butterflies and gemstones (like the Hope Diamond). There is so much to learn and explore here that we could have stayed at least 3-4 hours (if the kids had it their way, we would have).

2. National Air and Space Museum

This is a great DC museum for kids. There was a lot to do here too! The main lobby of this museum is filled with space capsules, rockets, and vintage planes overhead. There were a few planes, like this old Pan Am plane, that guests were allowed to enter (they found the pilot's cockpit to be pretty cool).

Sure enough, they soon found a flight simulator and did this an innumerable amount of times. They crashed repeatedly and did not give up until they each had a successful landing on the aircraft carrier (perseverance right?).

I would probably say their favorite exhibit was a kids' interactive exploratory activity about flight where they learned about speed, velocity, gravity, sound and many other scientific terms. This section is a must do for any kid!

3. National Museum of the American Indian

I was very excited to go to this museum because I had never been. The kids really enjoyed themselves here too. We headed straight for the kids area, and they had a unique activity where kids were given a passport (notice my daughter's hand below). They had to complete different activities and would get their passport stamped for completion. The first section explained how an Inuit child would learn to sled at an early age and how much balance is required for this.

They enjoyed learning about how American Indians used the land and animals for their resources, and found these exhibits educational and very entertaining. I enjoyed the visual aspect of this museum. These areas were very bright, open and nicely themed too. I did not get that much time to explore other areas of this museum, as we had a Capitol tour to catch.

4. Museum of American History

This is personally my favorite DC museum (being a history teacher and all), so I was their tour guide through this museum. I honestly thought they would like the Presidential section, First Lady dresses and the Star Spangled Banner exhibits more...but nope. They stumbled upon an innovation kids area and spent a good 45 minutes playing and creating! Sadly for me, this was the highlight of the museum for them. My hope is the next time we visit, when they are a little older, they will appreciate more of the artifacts.

5. Memorials

We did a whirlwind tour of the monuments and memorials, and these were our kids' picks for "best memorials in DC".

- Lincoln Memorial

They had already learned about the importance of Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War years and this was the one memorial they were excited to see. I'm glad, because it's my favorite! They rated this one the best memorial in DC.

- Arlington Cemetery

We had to do some teaching here... We explained the significance of the Changing of the Guard Ceremony, taught about John F. Kennedy and reminded them that each gravestone was a symbol of someone's sacrifice for this country. It was a highlight for sure!

- WWII Memorial

Another teaching spot... Since there are two sides (Atlantic and Pacific) they asked to take a picture with their home state.

Overall, I am very pleased we waited until the kids were a little older to take them to visit our nation's capital. I felt they understood the history of our country a lot more and came out a little more cultured than they arrived!

Among the places we visited that did not make the "kids pick list":

The National Archives

The Capitol Building

The Supreme Court

Where to Stay in Washington DC

We stayed in the Grand Hyatt Washington, which was very convenient due to the metro access from the lobby (there was no need to rent a car). It was just too easy! We arrived at Reagan National, hopped on a metro and it took us to the lobby of our hotel. We are a budget travel family, but since we had just applied for a Hyatt credit card we had 2 free nights and were able to stay here for free! Read my post if you would like to learn how to get free hotel stays like this. To check out the Grand Hyatt's rates click here or the picture below.

Other Things to See Near Washington DC

Day Trips from DC using Public Transportation

Mount Vernon

Baltimore's Inner Harbor

Colonial Williamsburg

Best Time to Visit Washington DC?

Springtime is the most beautiful time to visit DC. The cherry blossoms are in full effect and if you time you trip with peak bloom, your pictures will have a little extra color. Check out: Best Spots to See Cherry Blossoms - However, this is also high tourist time (along with the summer). If you are looking for a quiet time to visit Washington DC, you may want to consider the winter months.

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