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ofiuco t1_iqrroed wrote

Weather: it's going to be chilly most likely and rain is a possibility. Should be nice weather though. Mid October is when the leaves change color and are at their most spectacular, which is also a good activity. The National Arboretum is a good place to see fall colors or you can go farther afield and check out the countryside like Shenandoah NP (about two hours away)

There will be a lot of fall activities around the area, like pumpkin or apple picking, spooky Halloween things, festivals and markets, though they may be farther afield in VA or MD versus in the District.

for a 5 year old, the Smithsonian Zoo, the Museum of Natural History, and the Air and Space Museum are good for kids. You MAY need a timed ticket, check the Smithsonian website to see. It's a good idea to grab one in advance if you can. I'd start looking right now. Some other faves of mine: National Botanical Garden, Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens, Library of Congress, National Portrait Gallery

Food: you will be able to find many things that fit the bill, if it needs to be halal I'd check something like Yelp or TripAdvisor first. My favorite local specialties include Korean (especially KBBQ and Korean fried chicken), Ethiopian food, Central/South American food like Pupusas and Peruvian chicken (really quite a lot of Peruvian around in general), and seafood. Maryland Blue Crab is the stereotypical thing to eat in this area.

Baltimore is like 1.5 hr away and driving to Baltimore is not an enjoyable experience imo. I feel like there is enough to do in DC as it is.

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JadeSinnParach OP t1_iqrs3l5 wrote

Thank you so much! This is super helpful! I’ll definitely check the tickets. But I thought they were free? The museums, that is. But I’ll check the tickets in any case. The food recommendations are super helpful! Thanks!

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fictionaldingus13 t1_iqrsqbj wrote

Museums by Smithsonian are free. Timed tickets for them are just to get your spot for entry. They limit how many people can enter. No fee to get them tho

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ofiuco t1_iqrszx8 wrote

What they said! Not all the museums are requiring tickets either, and which are or aren't is kind of whimsical, which is why you should check ahead of time. The ones that don't you can just walk in.

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random_generation t1_iqrugxg wrote

If you want to go to Air and Space in DC, which you absolutely should, get your tickets now. The museum has been closed since March, and reopens Oct. 14 with several brand new exhibitions. There are still tickets available, but I think they’ll go super fast once people realize it’s open again.

Tickets here: https://www.etix.com/ticket/e/1029945/timed-entry-washington-the-smithsonian-national-air-and-space-museum-general-public

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msitty1 t1_iqrtexg wrote

Pretty much all of the Smithsonians are free (not sure about the zoo), but a few require free timed tickets because they’re very busy and try to space out the crowds.

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ofiuco t1_iqrttoe wrote

Yeah, the Zoo is free. They've just gone back and forth about timed tickets or tickets for certain parts (pandas). Parking there is not free.

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