Washington D.C. is surprisingly great if you’re on a budget.
It’s not great when it comes to the cost of hotels, which led to our latest road trip mistake. When it comes to things to do though, it’s excellent.
The nation’s capital is full of monuments, memorials, museums, gardens and more, all of which are free to visit. Seeing as we’re on a tight budget for our 50 state road trip, we took advantage of a lot of them during our recent stay there.
If you’re planning a trip to the capital, here’s a list of 25 free things to do in Washington D.C. I’ve only included attractions that we actually visited during our most recent trip or on previous trips, although it feels like we’ve still barely scratched the surface of all the free attractions that D.C. has to offer.
1) Washington Monument
The Washington Monument reopened to visitors in September 2019, so our visit came at the perfect time as it meant Shae and I were able to go to the top.
Tickets to go up in the monument are free, although there’s a $1 fee per ticket if you reserve them online rather than get them at the ticket office on-site. Check out this post for more about how to get tickets even when it looks like it’s sold out, as well as this post for more about 14 fun facts we learned during our visit to the Washington Monument.
2) Lincoln Memorial
The Lincoln Memorial is one of D.C.’s most iconic attractions, appearing in numerous movies and being the site of Dr Martin Luther King Jr’s ‘I Have A Dream’ speech.
Inside the memorial is a large statue of Abraham Lincoln. On the walls to Lincoln’s left and right are inscriptions of The Gettysburg Address and his Second Inaugural Address.
3) Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool
Between the Lincoln Memorial and Washington Monument is the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, the location where Forrest and Jenny were reunited in Forrest Gump.
4) World War II Memorial
At the opposite end of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool is the World War II Memorial. It’s a beautiful memorial featuring granite columns that represent every US state and territory at the time of World War II, as well as a wall with 4,048 gold stars. Each gold star represents 100 Americans that died during the war.
5) Vietnam Veterans Memorial
Either side of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool are a couple more war memorials. On the north side is the Vietnam Veterans Memorial which features a wall listing the names of more than 58,000 American’s who died in the war.
The memorial is also home to a couple of statues – The Three Soldiers and the Vietnam Women’s Memorial.
6) Korean War Veterans Memorial
On the opposite side of the Reflecting Pool to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial is the Korean War Veterans Memorial.
In addition to the stainless steel statues, there’s a haunting reflective wall.
7) Martin Luther King, Jr Memorial
A short walk from the Korean War Veterans Memorial takes you to the Martin Luther King, Jr Memorial which was dedicated in 2011. Its official address is 1964 Independence Avenue, SW which is a reference to when the Civil Rights Act of 1964 became law.
The design of the memorial is based on one of his quotes:
Out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope.
When entering the memorial, you walk through two large stones representing the mountain of despair.
Out of the mountain has been carved a stone of hope – Dr Martin Luther King, Jr. The legs of his statue are unfinished, representing his life being ended early.
8) Tidal Basin
The Martin Luther King, Jr Memorial is right next to the Tidal Basin. This is a lovely walk, although it was pretty chilly the day we walked it in November.
9) Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial
If you take the south route around the Tidal Basin from the Martin Luther King, Jr Memorial, you’ll come upon the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial. This is an expansive memorial that features waterfalls, inscriptions on walls and scenes from the Great Depression.
There’s also a bronze sculpture of the former president with his dog Fala.
10) George Mason Memorial
The walk around the Tidal Basin will then take you to the George Mason Memorial. Mason was one of the Founding Fathers who wrote the Virginia Declaration of Rights which went on to inspire the United States Bill of Rights.
11) Jefferson Memorial
Continuing around the Tidal Basin, you’ll soon come to the Jefferson Memorial. Despite visiting Washington D.C. several times before, I think this was the first time we’d ever made it to this memorial. At the time of our visit, the memorial was undergoing construction with repairs being made to the roof, although it was still possible to visit the memorial.
The memorial is also home to some exhibits featuring information about the third US president.
12) United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
On the northeast side of the Tidal Basin is the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Shae and I had visited something like 10-15 years ago, so we were keen to visit again as it had been so long.
One of the exhibits I found most striking was this Dr Seuss cartoon which was published in 1941 but which still sadly resonates today.
13) White House
The White House seems to have beefed up security since we last visited with my parents a few years ago. Back then, you could walk up to the railings, but there’s now an additional security perimeter.
Still, we were able to get a good photo op with an apt t-shirt Shae got after visiting Bridge Day in West Virginia this year.
14) Zero Milestone
Outside of the White House is a monolith known as the Zero Milestone. The original plan for this mile marker was that all road distances in the US would be measured from it. That plan didn’t come to fruition, so it’s only roads in Washington D.C. where distances are measured from it.
15) The Extra Mile – Points of Light Volunteer Pathway
Also outside the White House is the start of The Extra Mile – Points of Light Volunteer Pathway. This is a mile-long route featuring 34 bronze medallions honoring volunteers.
16) Smithsonian Institution
I’m including the Smithsonian Institution as just one entity, but in reality it’s a collection of 19 museums, galleries and the zoo. It includes the National Museum of National History, the National Air & Space Museum and the new National Museum of African American History and Culture. Check out this post from when we visited a few Smithsonian locations a couple of years ago.
If you’re planning on visiting any Smithsonian museums or galleries, I recommend starting at the Smithsonian Castle.
That’s because inside you’ll find touchscreen trip planners. You can look up exhibits at all of the different Smithsonian locations and have it plan a route for you to see all the different exhibits. You can even have it email the plan to you so that you have access to it on your phone.
17) Smithsonian Gardens
In addition to the museums and galleries, the Smithsonian also runs some gardens throughout the city. These feature exhibits and art, such as this mushroom sculpture, outside some of their museums.
18) National Mall
If you find yourself visiting any of the major Smithsonian museums, the Washington Monument or White House, there’s a good chance you’ll find yourself walking along the National Mall at some point.
Depending on how you measure it, The National Mall is as long as 1.9 miles.
19) United States Capitol
The United States Capitol is an imposing building on the far eastern side of the National Mall and offers free tours.
20) Supreme Court
The Supreme Court is located behind the United States Capitol building. Although it doesn’t offer guided tours, you can take a self-guided tour around the public sections of the building.
21) National Archives
The National Archives is home to the Constitution, Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, the English Magna Carta and more.
Due to the light sensitivity of the documents – and presumably their experience with Nicholas Cage in National Treasure – photos aren’t allowed inside. So here’s a photo of us with Shae’s parents outside when we visited a couple of years ago.
22) Smithsonian National Zoo
I mentioned the Smithsonian National Zoo in the Smithsonian Institution section, but seeing as most people think of museums and galleries when thinking of the Smithsonian, I figured their zoo deserved a separate mention.
It’s a nice zoo considering admission is always free, but be aware that parking costs $25.
23) United States National Arboretum
On the eastern side of Washington D.C. is the United States National Arboretum. Covering almost 450 acres, it’s full of gardens, the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum and the National Capitol Columns which once helped support the United States Capitol.
24) Albert Einstein Memorial
Washington D.C. is full of monuments and memorials, with most of them being of significant political figures in the history of the United States. One of the exceptions is the Albert Einstein Memorial; this was unveiled in 1979, but I hadn’t realized it was there until we stopped there during a Segway tour on our most recent visit.
25) Murals
Once you venture out of the very center of D.C., you can find some great murals. We went for lunch at Ben’s Chili Bowl and we saw loads of great murals on U St NW.
Bonus
I mentioned at the beginning of the post that I’d add a bonus at the end. That’s because I felt like it deserved a mention, but strictly speaking it’s not in Washington D.C. and it’s part of one of the attractions listed above.
What am I referring to? The Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. This is an annex of the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum and is located at Washington Dulles International Airport in Chantilly, VA.
Admission is free for all guests; there’s a charge for parking on-site, but if you visit after 4pm then parking is free. The museum closes at 5:30pm, so you have 1.5 hours to explore when doing that. This isn’t very much time as there’s so much to see, so I’d recommend either paying for parking or visiting after 4pm on at least two separate days.
There’s more than 150 aircraft and more than 150 other aviation and space artifacts including the Enola Gay, a Concorde, the Space Shuttle Discovery and more. Even if you’re not an aviation or space enthusiast, it’s a fascinating place to visit.
Your Suggestions
Those are 25 free things to do in Washington D.C. that we’ve enjoyed doing there, but I’m sure there are a lot more hidden (and not-so-hidden) gems that aren’t on our list.
What free attractions would you recommend on a visit to D.C.? Let us know in the comments below.
[…] D.C. is full of free museums and other activities that cost you nothing to visit (see our list of 25 free things to do in Washington D.C. for […]