For Fall Break 2025 we wanted to take the kids to DC to visit the major historical sites and museums. We of course couldn’t predict that there would be a government shutdown during our trip when we were booking our Air BnB and flights months in advance. Ultimately we decided there was enough to do in DC that we should keep everything as scheduled and make the best of it and we were so glad we did! We didn’t overbook ourselves and had a wonderful time as a family.
I wanted to share our itinerary in case others are trying to find things to do during a shutdown in DC in the future. And of course I have thoughts on restaurants. I do want to give a big nod to Sarah Stewart Holland at By Plane or By Page (https://stewartholland.substack.com). She travels with her three boys and husband frequently and has the very best itineraries with great restaurant recommendations. I bought her itinerary before this trip and it was a great starting point for recommendations.
Day 1
Fly to Baltimore/Washington International
Pick up rental car
Lunch: We grabbed a quick lunch at Peter’s Inn (https://www.petersinn.com) which was near our hotel and right downtown. Andrew and I shared the crab cake plate and it was delicious.
A surprise find was the four Historic Ships of Baltimore (https://historicships.org). You buy a single ticket and can visit all four of these ships over your trip (you don’t have to do it in a single day). They are set up like museums with lots of items to read and learn about. Each ship takes about 30 minutes to get through so it isn’t a big time commitment. We wound up doing two ships our first day and two the second and the kids really enjoyed them.
Check in to Hotel: Baltimore Marriott Waterfront
Dinner: We met longtime friends at LP Steamers (https://www.locustpointsteamers.com) for some crabs. I had been here before with the same friends and wanted our son, Bear, to have the experience. He loved it! We crushed 18 crabs as a table. The hush puppies are worth a try too.
Day 2
Walk to Brunch: Miss Shirley’s Inner Harbor (https://www.missshirleys.com). This was a great spot for local fare and classic favorites. They are known for their pancakes and everything else we had was great as well.
Walk to National Aquarium (https://aqua.org). Our kids love aquariums so we’ve been to quite a few and I would say the National Aquarium is definitely a top notch aquarium that is worth a visit. I really enjoyed the special jellyfish exhibit. Bear really liked how many sharks you could see and Ladybug stood at the touch and feel exhibit for a very long time. Beast commented several times how interesting the building was because they made sure you had multiple perspectives for several exhibits (from above, the side, and below. Buy your timed entry tickets before you visit and well in advance. Pro tip: Grab a cocktail for your visit! I lost sight of Beast for a minute and he had snuck off to the Harbor View Room on the top floor to get me a cocktail to sip on while we walked around. There were a handful of people doing the same thing and a boat load of people looking at me jealously.
After the aquarium we saw a couple more of the Historic Ships. We then stumbled upon a golf simulator bar and restaurant and since it was raining we hung out there for an hour or so (https://fiveirongolf.com) where I would say the golf was better than any of the things we ordered to snack and sip on. Then we walked back to our hotel to get cleaned up for dinner.
Walk to Dinner: Charleston (https://charlestonrestaurant.com). This was an amazing experience! Charleston offers design-your-own tasting menus where you can choose 3 to 6 courses and then dessert. We did the 3 course option for each of us with Beast and I adding the wine pairings. Our least adventurous eater had a salad, spaghetti, and steak options and then the rest of us had a wide variety of seafood, pasta, and meat options. My duck was incredible and the wine pairings were perfect and well worth the additional cost. Our kids ate everything on their plates and we were all sharing tastes of everything so I would say the 3 courses plus dessert was perfect for us. Reservations are definitely recommended. Pro tip: If taking kids, pull up the menu ahead of time so they have more time to make their selections.
Day 3
Walk to Breakfast: Kneads Bakeshop (https://www.kneadsbakeshop.com). Beast found this option and we all loved every item we ordered. Highly recommend the quiche and an espresso martini.
Drive to DC (~2 hours)
Visit Arlington National Cemetery (https://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/#/) which was open despite the shutdown. You can pay for tours but we chose to walk instead since it was such a nice day. We also avoided crowds this way. We visited the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier during the changing of the guard ceremony at the top of the hour which is worthwhile to time your visit around. The kids had lots of questions about what they were seeing and Ladybug especially was really moved by the sheer amount of burial sites you can see from various vantage points along our walk. It led to lots of good discussions throughout the day. Pro tip: If you know where a family member is buried, you can cross the barriers and go directly to that grave. We visited my uncle and I felt the need to ask for permission to cross the barriers since I wasn’t seeing anyone else doing it. The lovely individual working security told me it wasn’t a problem as long as I knew where to go. I had done a search of their website before going and had a print out with directions but there is also a search help site available in the Visitor Center.
Drive to International Spy Museum (https://www.spymuseum.org). I was very, very glad that I had purchased time entry tickets well in advance. This museum has seen a boom in visitors since it is not government funded and was open during the shutdown. People were sitting at the entrance trying to get tickets from 3rd party sites when we arrived because the tickets had already sold out for the day. You cannot enter early or late as they start you through the experience exactly at your ticket time. The parking garage was directly under this building and somewhat hard to find (you do a lot of U-turns and going down level after level before you even enter the garage. Keep doing the U-turns when directed to and you will eventually get there!
Address of garage with validated (20% off) parking: L’Enfant Plaza Garage: 420 10th Street SW Washington, DC 20024
I was really impressed with this museum and the level of interaction each topic/exhibit had. They advertise it should take 2 hours to get through but our kids took 2 and a half hours and honestly probably could have spent 3 hours. Bear is big into spy novels so he especially enjoyed the experience. After seeing the Aston Martin James Bond used in Goldfinger, we decided to start watching the Bond movies in order, which became a fun way to wind down at night during the trip.
After the museum we ran by a grocery store on the way to our AirBnB. We stayed in the Capitol Hill area which was a short drive in to the city for attractions but had lots of restaurants and coffee shops within walking distance.
Walk to Dinner: Paraiso (https://paraisotaqueria.com). We made a reservation here not realizing it was perfect timing for Taco Tuesday (and their $14 for 3 tacos deal). We tried a variety of tacos, ceviches, and a tuna tostada that Bear wolfed down. The margaritas were great and the tacos were so good we ordered another 3 to try even more types.
We finished the night by watching Dr. No at our place.
Day 4
Breakfast: At place
Go to National Mall (https://www.nps.gov/nama/index.htm). We parked at the Ronald Regan building (https://rrbitc.com/parking/) which was a great location for walking to the mall and around the White House. We visited almost every monument on the mall with the kids walking almost 7 miles this day! We took lots of water and snack breaks to keep them going with the plan being a late lunch they were looking forward to.
Walk to Late Lunch/Happy Hour: Old Ebbitt Grill (https://www.ebbitt.com). Reservations are a must. We chose a 3 pm reservation to give us plenty of time to walk around the mall and to get Happy Hour pricing on oysters and seafood towers since Bear is not a cheap date when he is eating seafood. Everything was over the top wonderful including the service. It was fun to see and hear the bar fill up with folks working in the government as well.
After a leisurely lunch, we drove around for a bit before heading back to our place for a low key night. With all the walking, the kids were very excited to have an easy night watching movies and eating pizza.
Beast and I ordered online and then walked to pick up pizza at Della Barba (https://dellabarbapizza.com) which was just a 5 minute walk from our place. They tied the box up with string and added checkered napkins on top which was a cute touch. The thick crust style was delicious and filling, both appreciated by all of us after walking all day.
We watched From Russia With Love and Goldfinger before crashing for the night.
Day 5
Breakfast: At place
This was the day we had to revamp entirely because everything I had tickets for wound up being canceled due to the shutdown. I had coordinated with a Senate office for a tour of the Capitol and had tickets to Live at the Library of Congress. It all wound up working out though because there is really so much to do and see in DC.
We drove to the Georgetown area and walked around the campus, including the bookstore and rec center. Beast bought a hat at the campus bookstore and it was fun to show the kids another example of a college campus. Bear loved that the rec center had a golf simulator.
For a quick lunch we stopped by Billy Hicks (https://billyhicks.com) where the kids shared probably the biggest and best Bavarian pretzel they have ever ordered (and they order these frequently)!
Next, we were on to the Planet Word museum (https://planetwordmuseum.org). Time entry tickets were strongly recommended here although they were a bit more flexible with your assigned time. Here you learned about how the English language developed and how it can be used in song, ads, etc. Ladybug sang karaoke with us which if not a core memory for her, it certainly was for Beast and me!
We were fortunate enough to have plans with friends for the evening. We met my college friend, Marisa, and her family at Rock Creek Nature Center and Planetarium (https://www.nps.gov/rocr/planyourvisit/planetarium.htm). We were there after hours so we didn’t go in the exhibit (but I heard from Marisa’s kids that Skippy the turtle is a must see) but we used the outdoor picnic tables for dinner and drinks while the kids ran wild in the woods for a little bit.
Back at our place we watched a final Bond movie of the trip (Thunderball) and Ladybug and I had our girly time with face masks and eye masks.
Day 6
Breakfast: At place
Drive to Annapolis (40 minutes)
We drove around the US Naval Academy and walked around the shops at the City Dock area just off the water.
Many of the restaurants picked on this trip were selected because I knew other people in my family would enjoy them but my lunch pick for our last day was for me: The Choptank (https://thechoptankrestaurant.com/annapolis/). We sat on the rooftop deck in the sunshine and it was divine! Oysters, lobster rolls and rosé were thoroughly enjoyed and I probably could have sat there for a few more hours people and boat-watching.
Fly back home
———————
While we had to pivot quite a bit and we did not get to see all the things we had planned on (especially the Capitol, Library of Congress, and Smithsonians!) it was still a really great trip. I remember someone telling me about this stage (tween kids) being a sweet spot for travel when our kids were much younger. I can absolutely feel that now as they are so easy and fun to travel with. And at least still want to be around us a little bit! It absolutely makes me want to fully appreciate this time that we have and soak it up.
Happy Travels!
Other options I was told about as options to go to in the case of a government shutdown but that I can’t personally vouch for:
Colonial Williamsburg
Ford’s Theatre
NatGeo Museum
Mount Vernon
Planet Word
Museum of the Bible
Kreeger Museum
Rubell Museum
Served With Love (in Colorado) 