Could anyone who has been to Washington,DC help me?

[cleblanc]

We will be in Washington,DC on a Wednsday, May 2 on our way home from Disney. I was thinking of visiting Mount vernon Estates from 8:30am-10:30am then heading over to Washington,DC from 11:00am-1:30am. Does this give us enough time to sight see in the MountVernon estates and sight see some of Washington DC and get out of there before rush hour traffic. Also, whattime does rush hour traffic start in the afternoon? We are trying to get home to CT that night. Thank you for your help

[Boojum]

There are lots of Spring Trips from various schools going on right now, and you may not be able to get through Mt. Vernon in two hours if there is a large tour group there with you. Plus, once you get to D.C., there is lots of walking to get from place to place. You might go into information overload, trying to decide what to see. Also, security is pretty tight now. You don't go anywhere without going through checks and having your purses/fannypacks/whatever screened. This can slow the touring process down a good bit.

You might want to do a little more research, decide on one thing to see, and concentrate on that. Mt. Vernon is excellent, by the way--they've just added some interactive features that are fantastic! You could easily spend 3 or 4 hours there alone!

Traffic is never good in D.C.--I'd say the afternoon rush starts around 4:00 on weekdays. Earlier on Fridays, because people have a tendency to leave work earlier.

[Katarch]

Mount Vernon is great but I don't think you'll be able to do it in 2 hours - unless you really race through it!
I think in the short amount of time you have, I would do either Mt. Vernon or DC but not both.

[pshokie]

Focus on one, not both. Traffic is horrible here. And unfortunately, both locations you have selected do not help your cause. Based on this and your other post, I am assuming you are refering to Interstate 81 as "route 81". If that is the case, it is a good 60 miles from the beltway (I-495) to I-81 travelling on I-66 West, which is the only practical way to get there without using I-95 North.

It may be easier to go 1-95 North up through Delware and then find a jump off point in south/mid jersey. But I rarley drive north of Baltimore, so I am by no means an expert.

Another bummer is the construction. There are two massive construction projects on the beltway south of DC: The Springfield Interchange (I-495, I-395, I-95, & Spfld), and the Wilson Bridge I-495, 1-95 North crossing the Potomac). The Bridge currently being completely replaced with a brand new bridge.

I have no idea what traffic patterns are currently like, because I avoid those areas completely. So google it and check.

But to see Mt. Vernon, you will have to deal with either one or both of these projects.

But I would still say it is easier to get in and out of Mt Vernon at the time of day you are refering to: 9:00am to 1:00pm.

And you can definitely spend hours there.

Best of luck!

[GusNJacque]

I also think it would be wise to pick between the two. It would be VERY hard for you to cover both of these in the course of one day.

It would take you more than a half an hour to get from MT Vernon into the city.

You are coming right at the height of school tours/etc.

I work in the House and I don't even THINK about trying to get my lunch until 1:30-2:00. You can't even move in there this time of year.

Rush hour begins more like 3:00. All the industry people/labor/service professionals all come in early and get off earlier.

If I can help with anything else. Please ask.

[lauralemm]

think about driving a different route and going up the Eastern Shore of VA (rte 13) and doing something along that way-- Chincoteague is lovely and peaceful that time of year.