For its small size, the nation’s capital is jam-packed with attractions: world-class museums, a plethora of historical sites, top-notch theaters and art galleries and a first-hand look at America’s three branches of government. And, for those who want to take it all in, an expanding network of bicycling and walking facilities connects it all.
There are already 400 miles of trail throughout the capital region, more than 70 miles of on-road bike lane in the city and a handful of bike share options. In 2016, Washington, D.C., even earned bragging rights as one of the top 10 most bicycle-friendly U.S. cities as ranked by Bicycling.com. But it gets better: The Capital Trails Coalition, led by the Washington Area Bicyclist Association, RTC and the National Park Service, envisions adding 285 more miles of interconnected multiuse trails that will encircle D.C. in a bike/ped beltway and extend outward into neighboring Maryland and Virginia.
Enjoying the city by stroll or roll, travelers will find plenty of things to do without stepping foot indoors. Iconic landmarks, including the National Mall, the Lincoln Memorial and Reflecting Pool, the Washington Monument and the Thomas Jefferson Memorial on the banks of the Tidal Basin, as well as Rock Creek Park—the city’s expansive natural oasis—can all be explored by trail. The Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial, the FDR Memorial and our country’s war memorials are all contemplative places to be experienced at a walker’s thoughtful gait.
Popular routes for biking include the Mount Vernon Trail, which links D.C. to George Washington’s historical estate, the C&O Canal Towpath dotted with old canal features and spanning nearly 185 miles, and Virginia’s picturesque W&OD Trail, which has a proud place in the Rail-Trail Hall of Fame.
Whether it’s just an overnight, or you’re planning to spend several days exploring the area, D.C. is truly a unique and important place that every citizen and visitor to America should see. Its growing and increasingly connected trail system just makes doing so even easier and more fun.
Capital Crescent Trail
A glimpse of the Jefferson Memorial behind cherry blossoms.
United States Capitol
At the Lincoln Memorial
A bridge on the Capital Crescent
D.C. is a tourist town, so the best time to visit is during the off-peak season. The summer is a busy time, as well as the spring, especially during the National Cherry Blossom Festival. Crowds tend to be down in the fall and winter (with the exception of winter break in December); you’ll definitely want a warm coat, but there’s generally little snow.
Metro’s subway and bus system makes it easy to get around D.C. and its suburbs. Trains run along six lines—Red, Blue, Orange, Yellow, Green and Silver—and you can easily transfer between them. To ride Metro, purchase a refillable SmarTrip card at any Metro station or at wmata.com. Bicycles are permitted onboard, except during weekday rush hours.
Capital Bikeshare offers more than 400 stations across D.C., Virginia and Maryland. The bikes are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and can be picked up and returned at any station in the system. Dockless bikeshare systems in the area include: Mobike, LimeBike, Spin, Ofo and Jump. These GPS-tracked bikes can be left nearly anywhere; they’re locked and unlocked using a smartphone app.
Washington, D.C. is serviced by three major airports. The closest is Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), which is on Metro’s Yellow and Blue Lines for a short ride into downtown. Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) and Baltimore–Washington International Airport (BWI) are both about 30 miles from the DC core.
In addition to being the nation’s center of government, D.C. is also a hotspot for history and culture. The Smithsonian’s 19 museums (si.edu/museums) and the National Zoo have no admission fee. And there are many other museum standouts, which do charge admission, including the International Spy Museum and the Phillips Collection. Some museums require timed entry passes, so be sure to visit their websites beforehand for details.
Check out these helpful websites for planning your travel in Washington, DC.
Georgetown's picturesque park along the Potomac River offers fun features like a labyrinth, fountain rain gardens and pollinator gardens.
Georgetown's picturesque park along the Potomac River offers fun features like a labyrinth, fountain rain gardens and pollinator gardens.
Built in the early 1800s by a miller, this house is the oldest structure on the C&O Canal.
Take a tour through this museum to learn how our paper currency is made.
This moving museum is memorial to the Holocaust.
Situated in the D.C.'s Rock Creek Park, the 163-acre zoo is home to 1,500 animals.
Situated in the D.C.'s Rock Creek Park, the 163-acre zoo is home to 1,500 animals.
This Federal-style building (circa 1800) helps educate the public about life in the city during the countries early years.
This elegant home belonged to descendants of George Washington.
This former home of Marjorie Merriweather Post, whose parents founded the Post cereal empire, serves as a museum, showcasing extensive collections of Russian and French art. Its grounds also feature...
Established in 1820 and one of the oldest botanic gardens in the country, this is a worthwhile attraction located on the east end of the National Mall.
If you're in D.C. to ride trails, you can't get much closer than The Georgetown House, a boutique hotel located on the C&O Canal Towpath.
Decorated with an early 1960s vibe, this hotel is tucked between two busy shopping and dining meccas just outside D.C.: Pentagon City and Crystal City. To head into D.C., you're only a few blocks from...
This moderately priced hotel is located in D.C.'s Penn Quarter, across the street from the city¿s Chinatown and just a few blocks from the Metro and the National Mall.
Located in Virginia's Historic Old Town, this hotel offers a good value if you don¿t mind being outside of D.C. proper. This quaint hotel is only blocks from the popular Mount Vernon Trail and the...
Located in the trendy Dupont Circle area, this hotel has an artistic sensibility and is only about a half mile from the Rock Creek Park Trail.
This Georgetown offers finger-lickin' good barbecue from different regions of the U.S.
Craving wood-fired pizzas, authentic Italian cuisine and a bottle of wine? Look no farther than this well-loved restaurant decorated with colorful contemporary art and located less than a block from...
Serving delicious Italian food in Georgetown for more than three decades, this is a go-to place for a hearty meal after a ride on the nearby C&O Canal Towpath.
This Italian restaurant can be found just 3 blocks north of the National Mall.
This Italian restaurant can be found just 3 blocks north of the National Mall.
This D.C. classic, founded in 1856 and located near the White House, serves upscale American food.
This four-star Indian restaurant is located in D.C.'s PennQuarter.
Located inside the National Museum of the American Indian, this cafe features Native foods from the Western Hemisphere, including the Northern Woodlands, South America, the Northwest Coast, Meso...
Located inside the National Museum of the American Indian, this cafe features Native foods from the Western Hemisphere, including the Northern Woodlands, South America, the Northwest Coast, Meso America and the Great Plains.
Housed inside the National Museum of African American History and Culture, this cafe serves authentic African-American cuisine from different regions of the country, including the Agricultural South,...
Housed inside the National Museum of African American History and Culture, this cafe serves authentic African-American cuisine from different regions of the country, including the Agricultural South, Creole Coast, North States and the Western Range.
Come here for fresh, high-quality Japanese cuisine in D.C.'s Georgetown neighborhood.
Located on the C&O Canal Towpath, Fletcher's Boathouse offers plentiful options for enjoying the outdoors with rentals of bikes, kayaks, canoes, rowboats and paddleboards.
Located just a few blocks from the National Mall, this outfitter provides bike rentals and guided bike tours.
With four D.C. locations, including one less than 2 blocks from the National Mall, this bike shop is a good bet for arranging your bike rental. They also offer guided tours by bike or Segway.
With four D.C. locations, including one less than 2 blocks from the National Mall, this bike shop is a good bet for arranging your bike rental. They also offer guided tours by bike or Segway.
Located at the corner of 33rd and M Street in Georgetown right near the C&O Canal. Has rentals of all kinds and also has trail-a-bikes, baby seats, and trailers.
Located at the corner of 33rd and M Street in Georgetown right near the C&O Canal. Has rentals of all kinds and also has trail-a-bikes, baby seats, and trailers.
Overview Winding along its namesake river, from Maryland into southeast D.C., the Anacostia River Trail (also known as the Anacostia Riverwalk...
The bustling D.C. metro area seems light-years away from the parklands bordering the Sligo Creek Trail in the Maryland suburbs northeast of the city....
Overview Hugging Arlington’s Potomac River waterfront, the Mount Vernon Trail links Gateway Park in Rosslyn with George Washington’s Mount...
Overview Located in the northwestern neighborhoods of Washington, D.C., Rock Creek Park serves as a lush natural oasis spanning more than 1,700...
Overview Following the Potomac River, the C&O Canal Towpath traverses the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park for 184.2 miles between...
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The Washington and Old Dominion Trail (W&OD), one of suburban Washington, D.C.’s most popular rail-trails, is a fantastic link between the state’s...
Detour Notice: As of September 2017, the Capital Crescent Trail east of downtown Bethesda was closed due to the construction of the Purple Line...
Overview Connecting Union Station, historic D.C. neighborhoods, and the bustling beltway town of Silver Spring, the Metropolitan Branch Trail...
At first glance, the bright lights of Broadway with traffic signals at every block may not seem like an ideal place for biking and walking, but New York City is full of surprises. Trails have been carved out for cyclists and pedestrians across all five boroughs, in parks, lining the riverfront, in nature preserves, on former elevated rail lines and alongside the beaches (yes, New York City has...
The doorways to San Francisco are always open. Visitors can arrive by car, public transit, ferry or bike. Its position at the waterfront, characteristic hills, compact streets and unique districts lead to the city being very congested, yet very walkable. The established trail network leading to and along key destinations such as the Golden Gate Bridge, Golden Gate Park and the Presidio sits...
Despite the hills, despite the rain, Seattle is a great city for walking and biking. And, thanks to the city’s infrastructure investments, it’s slowly getting better all the time. In 2016, Bicycling Magazine ranked Seattle the 5th best bike city in the U.S. WalkScore says Seattle is the 8th most walkable city in the country.
Despite the hills, despite the rain, Seattle is a great city for walking and biking. And, thanks to the city’s infrastructure investments, it’s slowly getting better all the time. In 2016, Bicycling Magazine ranked Seattle the 5th best bike city in the U.S. WalkScore says Seattle is the 8th most walkable city in the country.
The Magic City is a multicultural destination with water, water, everywhere. The greater Miami metropolitan area stretches from the Everglades, the famed River of Grass, in the west to the Atlantic Ocean in the east, so the city’s trails cover a variety of landscapes and settings. From protected natural areas and sandy beaches to historical neighborhoods and urban hot spots, there’s something for...
Whether you prefer pedaling among high-rise buildings of downtown, clocking fast miles on a paved veloway, exploring a gravel trail along the lake or cruising separated bike paths alongside creeks and streams, Austin’s trail system beckons. The city may be best known for its network of single-track mountain biking and off-road running trails along Barton Creek, but it’s quickly making strides with...
To really understand why Bicycling Magazine recently placed Chicago first on their list of the 50 best U.S. cities for cyclists, it takes a look beyond the 100 miles of new protected bike lanes Chicago has added since 2015, the nearly 600 bright blue Divvy Bike Share stations and, of course, the city’s iconic Lakefront Trail.
Water, most notably the Mississippi River, but also Minnehaha Creek and the Chain of Lakes, shaped the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, literally. The river, creeks and lakes provide the defining beauty and character of the landscape. They also attracted people, supported the industries the led to the growth of the cities and encourage the active lifestyle of today’s citizens.
Towering saguaros, 115-degree summer temperatures, Major League Baseball spring-training parks: They are all signature features of Phoenix, Arizona. A bit more under the radar, perhaps, is the well-established network of trails that crisscrosses the massive urban area.
Picture year-round mild weather, miles of multi-purpose trails, one-of-a-kind sights and a mountains-to-coast terrain with small hills, short hills, large hills and long hills—all interspersed with acres of level land. If you see a pattern here—best described “perfect”—you’ve captured San Diego County’s biking and hiking scene.
