Green Jello

Hey guys. I'm headed to Washington D.C. in the Spring. I get insane deals with Marriott because a family member works there, but all of the close (to the Mall) hotels are blocked for employees then. My choices are:

Residence Inn Potomac Mills Woodbridge in Woodbridge, VA (21 miles from city)

or

Fairfield Inn & Suites Germantown Gaithersburg in Germantown, MD (23 miles from city)

Which would be better?

Also, would you recommend renting a car, or is the metro system a good way to go? We'll just be doing all the typical D.C. tourist sites.

Thanks.

mosquitobite

I went last May.

I would recommend a hotel as close to the Metro as you can get.

We rented a car, but only because we flew into Baltimore since it was a lot cheaper. We used the car to drive to the metro station. It would have been pretty much worthless had we been walking distance to it.

And fair warning: start walking now if you're not already. Build up some muscle and endurance. There's a LOT of ground to cover and it's all worth it!

I was done by about 3 or 4pm everyday - COMPLETELY exhausted

mosquitobite

I stayed at Extended Stay in Springfield and would recommend it highly BTW.

Red Dog

Frankly, I wouldn't stay at either of those places, no matter how good a deal you get. It is worth the money to stay at place that is within walking distance to the Metro. I recommend Crystal City.

Duran

Woodbridge? Germantown? You'll spend most of your time stuck in traffic trying to get to DC. Stay closer. Arlington or Crystal City are not bad.

jfoobar

Yup, Germantown is still a decent drive to the last Metro station on the red line. I don't know about Woodbridge.

If your objective is to do the touristy thing downtown, spend more and stay closer.

Red Dog

Woodbridge is even worse. Woodbridge to Franconia/Springfield is a longer distance than Germantown to Shady Grove. Like I said, either one (particularly if planning on making the trek on Friday or any weekday) just isn't worth the aggravation.

Green Jello

Good to know. I thought those would be too far outside the city.

4KRG

Good advice here, do not stay at either if you want to go downtown. Find something closer and near metro. Woodbridge is out of the question, Germantown is only a little better.

20+ miles out of DC is too far unless you want to travel in at 11:00am and be back at the hotel before 2:30pm Or travel in at 6:00am and be back at the hotel around 8:30pm or later. Traffic here is a killer.

Red Dog

Jello - if you can get deals at Marriotts, there are 2 nice Marriotts in the Crystal City area of Arlington. Right adjacent to the Metro too. Crystal City to the Mall is a 5-minute Metro ride.

JasonF

I agree with everyone else who has indicated that you are staying waaaaaaaay outside of D.C. However, if you've got your heart set on doing this on the cheap, you ought to call the hotels to see if they have shuttles to the Metro, and, if so, how often and how early and late they run.

orangerory

Another vote for: DON'T STAY AT EITHER ONE OF THOSE PLACES!

Sheesh - those are wayyyyyy out in the boonies. Get on priceline or hotwire, I'm sure you can find a decent deal at a hotel in the District. Otherwise, stay in Arlington: Rosslyn is closest to DC and you can walk into Georgetown, Crystal City is ok but rather drab, Clarendon, Courthouse, and Ballston are also on the metro line.

Green Jello

Yeah, there are Marriotts all over the city. Last time I was there, we stayed at the J.W. Marriott on Pennsylvania Ave. The problem is, they only have a certain number of rooms available at the employee rate and they are all taken except for those two I listed. I'm not set on saving money, but they were $35 a night instead of $450 at the J.W. Marriott, so it's a major difference. I think I'll just have to look at other hotels.

So, what are the best deals close to the Mall, or Metro station?

Green Jello

Also, what is the best airport to fly in to if you are renting a car?

Red Dog

I wouldn't know - I never stay in hotels since I live here.

Like I said, search the Crystal City area. I think that is your best bet, particularly if you are flying into Reagan National. Courthouse/Clarendon/Ballston (where I live) were mentioned but there really aren't many hotels in this corridor. Rosslyn was mentioned - you have to be careful with Rosslyn - there are some real sketchy parts that are considered part of Rosslyn (and not that close of a walk to the Metro) - for example, the south side of Arlington Blvd/Rt.50.

You can also try Maryland: Bethesda, Chevy Chase, and Silver Spring but I am not as familiar with what hotels are there.

RoyalTea

if i catch you standing on the left side of the metro escalators, I'll kick your ass.

Red Dog

Like I said, if you stay in Crystal City, you won't need a car at all. Crystal City is right next to Reagan National. Reagan National also has its own Metro stop.

Red Dog

And if you wear an FBI or CIA hat, that goes double.

wendersfan

Have you tried to Priceline a room? My wife (who does all our travel arrangements) invariably gets great deals that way.

mosquitobite

It was a lot cheaper for us to fly into Baltimore, but it's about an hour and a half drive if I remember correctly.

Reagan would definitely be the EASIEST.

I think my rate on the Extended Stay in Springfield was pretty darn cheap. If I remember right it was around $60 a night. That's with a kitchen too.

Green Jello

Is Regan National what was formerlly called Dulles?

Red Dog

No. Dulles is Dulles.

Green Jello

This one?

http://www.extendedstayamerica.com/m...sp?HotelID=858

It's $90 a night and appears to be about the same distance and the two Marriots I asked about. The price is fine, but is it really closer?

Green Jello

Is Regan fairly new then? I haven't been to the city in 17 years.

Red Dog

No. Reagan National was formerly known as National. You know - it is the one right next to the Potomac.