Things to do in Washington DC with kids
Written October 2026
The museums worth a morning, the zoo, the playgrounds between them, and somewhere to eat and sleep near each.
Washington DC is a good city for kids because most of what you'd come for is free and close together. So where do you start? Pick one of three bases per day. The Mall is the big Smithsonian museums in a row. Capitol Hill is a market, a postal museum and playgrounds. Northwest is the National Zoo, which is its own full day. Don't try to stack two of them.
The Mall is bigger than it looks on a map. The museums sit a long way apart, and a four-year-old covers it slower than you think. Two museums and one long break is a good day.
Each part of town gets somewhere to eat nearby. Staying over? There's a short list of hotels at the end, and a longer one on its own page.
How we picked
These are the places we'd send a friend with a four-year-old and a seven-year-old.
We left out the memorials as stops of their own (they're a lovely evening walk, but not a kid's destination), the museums that are really for teenagers and adults, and anything that only works if you're staying a week.
The National Mall
Three museums, a carousel and a glasshouse in one long strip of grass. Pick two for the day, and look at the map before you promise anyone a third.
National Air and Space Museum
The Mall
Why we picked it: The museum most kids ask for: real planes and spacecraft overhead and a wind tunnel to work in the How Things Fly gallery.
The one most kids ask for. Real planes and spacecraft hang overhead, and the How Things Fly gallery lets them work a wind tunnel and sit in a small plane, so it's the stop for a kid who wants to touch things.
It suits kids from about four up. Toddlers will like the planes overhead, then it's a lot of big rooms. The flight simulators and the planetarium are extras, so decide before you go whether your kid wants them.
- Wheelchair access
- Yes
National Museum of Natural History
The Mall
Why we picked it: The easiest big museum for a mixed-age group, with dinosaur skeletons, an ocean hall and an insect zoo, so every kid finds a room.
The easiest big museum to do with a mixed-age group. There are dinosaur skeletons in the Hall of Fossils, an ocean hall, and an insect zoo where kids can watch the bugs up close (and sometimes hold one). Every kid finds a room they want to stay in.
There's a butterfly pavilion with live butterflies flying loose, which is an extra. The Hope Diamond is on the second floor and takes thirty seconds, so don't plan around it. Go straight to the fossils first.
- Free entry
- Yes
- Restroom
- Yes
- Wheelchair access
- Yes
National Museum of American History
The Mall
Why we picked it: The under-sixes pick, for Wegmans Wonderplace: a play space for ages 0 to 6 with a nursing room and its own restrooms.
The pick for the under-sixes, because of Wegmans Wonderplace: a play space for ages 0 to 6, with a kid-sized replica of Julia Child's kitchen, a nursing room and its own restrooms. Volunteers keep the gate, so you can sit down for ten minutes.
Spark Lab, for ages 6 to 12, is the invention workshop, with hands-on challenges. The rest of the museum is for kids who read, so it's a strong choice for a seven-year-old and a short one for a toddler.
- Wheelchair access
- Yes
Smithsonian National Carousel
The Mall
Why we picked it: The five-minute reward between museums, with carved horses and an accessible chariot, sitting right in the gap.
Carved horses (plus a sea monster and a pig) and two chariots, one of them accessible for a rider who can't climb up. It sits in the gap between the museums, so it works as the reward in the middle of a museum morning.
It's a ride, and a ride is five minutes. Plan it as a break and not a destination.
- Free entry
- No
United States Botanic Garden Conservatory
Capitol end of the Mall
Why we picked it: The quiet hour after a loud museum: a glasshouse from jungle to desert with a plant passport to stamp, and warm in winter.
A glasshouse you can walk from jungle to desert in a few minutes. Kids like the big elephant-ear leaves and the cactus gallery, and there's a passport at a kiosk for hunting down plants and stamping them.
The Children's Garden outside, with water to pump and digging to do, is a spring-to-fall thing. It's a good, quiet hour after a loud museum, and warm in winter.
- Free entry
- Yes
- Changing table
- Yes
- Wheelchair access
- Yes
Capitol Hill and Union Station
Quieter than the Mall and more like a neighborhood. Eastern Market and the playground by the Metro are a few minutes apart, and the Postal Museum is next to Union Station.
National Postal Museum
Union Station
Why we picked it: The smallest Smithsonian here and one of the best for kids, with a stagecoach and mail to sort, done in about an hour.
The smallest Smithsonian on this page and one of the best for kids. There's a stagecoach and old mail trucks to look at, and you can sort mail and scan barcodes in the Systems at Work gallery. It has a changing table.
It suits ages four and up, and it's done in an hour or so, which makes it the easy add-on to a Union Station arrival or departure day.
- Free entry
- Yes
- Changing table
- Yes
Eastern Market
Capitol Hill
Why we picked it: The Capitol Hill outing where kids wander between stalls and pick something to eat.
A historic market hall with food stalls inside, and on weekends an outdoor market of produce and crafts around it. Kids wander between stalls and pick something to eat, which is the whole appeal.
It's loud and crowded at the weekend, and a big stroller is a hassle. Go early, then take the kids to the playground.
- Free entry
- Yes
Eastern Market Metro Park Playground
Capitol Hill
Why we picked it: A small playground by the Metro for letting kids run after the market, and a half-hour stop rather than a morning.
A small playground next to the Metro and a short walk from the market, for ages from preschool up. It's where you go to let the kids run after the market, and it suits a half-hour stop and not a morning.
- Ages
- Ages 5 and up
Northwest DC and Georgetown
The zoo is on Connecticut Avenue, a Metro ride up from the Mall, and it takes a day of its own. Georgetown is south of it, on the river.
Smithsonian's National Zoo
Woodley Park
Why we picked it: The best single kids' day in the city: giant pandas and a Kids' Farm with cows, donkeys, rabbits and alpacas.
Giant pandas, which you can see for free (how to book is on the listing), and a Kids' Farm with cows, donkeys, rabbits and alpacas, plus a pizza garden. It's the best single kids' day in the city.
The zoo is built on a hillside, so the walk down from the Connecticut Avenue entrance is easy and the walk back up is a slog for tired legs and stroller pushers. Start at the top and work your way down. It has changing tables and stroller rentals.
- Changing table
- Yes
- Wheelchair access
- Yes
Georgetown Waterfront Park
Georgetown
Why we picked it: The gentle afternoon for kids who've done enough museums, with riverside paths, a labyrinth to trace and water play.
Wide paths along the river, a labyrinth set into the ground that kids can trace, and water play. It's free and the paths are good for a stroller or a scooter.
Georgetown has no Metro station. The closest are Foggy Bottom and Rosslyn, and from either it's a bus or a walk. Treat it as a gentle afternoon for kids who've done enough museums, and not as a reason to cross the city.
- Free entry
- Yes
- Wheelchair access
- Yes
Further out, and worth a car
These three are outside the center, in the east and northeast of the city. They're all easiest by car or a ride share, and they reward a family with a bit of time.
Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens
Northeast DC
Why we picked it: Boardwalks over water lily ponds where kids can look straight down into the water, plus a Junior Ranger program.
Forty-four ponds of water lilies and lotus, with boardwalks that go out over the water so kids can look straight down into it. The lotus blooms are a summer thing. The visitor center runs a Junior Ranger program.
It's free, quiet, and best for ages three and up who like water and frogs. It's also not close to anything else, so plan a morning here and nothing after.
- Free entry
- Yes
United States National Arboretum
Northeast DC
Why we picked it: Wide green grounds to burn off energy after a few days of museums, with a bonsai museum and the old Capitol Columns.
Wide green grounds where kids can run, the old Capitol Columns standing in a field, and a bonsai museum where you look at tiny trees up close. It's free.
The grounds are big, with roads winding through them, so you need a car or a plan. It suits a family who needs space to burn off energy after a few days of museums.
- Free entry
- Yes
- Restroom
- Yes
Anacostia Park Pirate Ship Playground
Southeast DC
Why we picked it: A real local playground with a pirate-ship climber by the river, for kids who've been in museums all week.
A pirate-ship climber by the river, for preschool and school-age kids, with restrooms and picnic tables close by. It's a real local playground and not a tourist stop, and kids who've been in museums all week will love it.
It's well away from the Mall, so go by car. Another structure in the park is closed, so head for this one.
- Restroom
- Yes
- Picnic tables
- Yes
- Wheelchair access
- Yes
- Ages
- Ages 5 and up
Where to eat nearby
Somewhere to eat near the places above, none of them fancy.
Ted's Bulletin
Barracks Row, Capitol Hill
Why we picked it: A retro diner with breakfast all day, housemade toaster pastries and a toy box, a few blocks from Eastern Market.
A diner with breakfast all day and a kids' menu, a few blocks from Eastern Market. The housemade toaster pastries and the milkshakes are what kids order, and there's a toy box and coloring to keep them busy. It's loud and full of families, which helps.
It's the easy meal before or after the market and the playground.
- Kids' menu
- Yes
Jaleo
Penn Quarter
Why we picked it: Spanish tapas to share, high chairs and glass-top tables with foosball underneath, a short walk from Natural History.
Spanish tapas, so everyone at the table picks something and shares. It's a good match for a kid who won't commit to one dish, and some tables have foosball under the glass top to pass the time.
It's a short walk from Natural History.
Lebanese Taverna
Woodley Park
Why we picked it: Mezze to share, a coloring menu and a patio across from the Woodley Park Metro, the lunch or early dinner for a zoo day.
Mezze to share, a kids' menu with plenty of vegetarian options and a coloring menu, with a patio on Connecticut Avenue across from the Woodley Park Metro. The staff are used to families.
It's the lunch or early dinner for a zoo day.
- Kids' menu
- Yes
Where to stay
Stay near the part of town you'll be in most. These four cover the Mall, Capitol Hill, downtown and the zoo, and there's a longer list of Washington DC hotels for kids on its own page.
Residence Inn Washington DC National Mall
Southwest, near the Mall
Why we picked it: The Mall base: all suites, four blocks from Air and Space, a Metro station one block away and a heated indoor pool.
The Mall base. It's an all-suite hotel, the Air and Space Museum is four blocks away and a Metro station is one. There's a heated indoor pool, which is the thing you'll want after a museum day.
- Suites
- Yes
- Pool
- Yes, indoor, heated
Capitol Hill Hotel
Capitol Hill
Why we picked it: The Capitol Hill base, with kitchenette suites, on-site laundry and cribs, which makes a long stay with a toddler easier.
The base for the Capitol Hill day. The suites have a kitchenette and a fridge, there's a self-service laundry on site, and it has cribs, which makes a long stay with a toddler much easier.
- Cribs
- Yes
- Suites
- Yes
- Fridge
- Yes
- Kitchenette
- Yes
- Free breakfast
- No
- Laundry
- Yes
Embassy Suites Washington DC Convention Center
Downtown
Why we picked it: Connecting rooms, an indoor pool and a cooked breakfast, the combination a family of five tends to need.
An all-suite hotel with connecting rooms, an indoor pool and a cooked breakfast included, which is the combination a family of five tends to need. It's downtown, so the Mall is a Metro ride or a long walk, and not a short one.
- Connecting rooms
- Yes
- Pool
- Yes, indoor
- Free breakfast
- Yes
Omni Shoreham Hotel
Woodley Park
Why we picked it: The closest hotel here to the zoo, on large garden grounds with a seasonal outdoor pool.
A big historic hotel on large garden grounds, with a seasonal outdoor pool. It's the closest hotel here to the zoo, so stay here if the zoo is the plan. The Mall is a Metro ride away.
- Pool
- Yes
Put a day together
Mall day: Natural History when it opens, the carousel, a break on the grass, then Air and Space after lunch, and Jaleo for dinner. Little-kid Mall day: Wonderplace at American History in the morning, the Botanic Garden after, and nothing else. Zoo day: the farm and the pandas first, the hill back up last, and Lebanese Taverna to finish. Capitol Hill day: Eastern Market, the playground, and the Postal Museum if it rains.
Washington DC in the rain or the heat
The Mall museums are your weather plan. Natural History and American History hold a family for a whole morning, the Postal Museum is the small one, and the Botanic Garden is warm in winter. The zoo, the gardens and the playgrounds are for the days you can be outside.
Getting around without a car
You don't need one for the main trip. The Metro covers the Mall, Capitol Hill, Union Station and the zoo (Woodley Park), and the museums are a short walk from Metro stops. Georgetown has no Metro station: Foggy Bottom and Rosslyn are the closest, or use a bus or a ride share. Kenilworth, the Arboretum and the Anacostia playground are easiest by car, and they're the ones to skip if you don't have one.
Questions
What is free to do in Washington DC with kids?
Natural History, the Postal Museum, the Botanic Garden, Eastern Market, Georgetown Waterfront Park, Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens and the National Arboretum are free. The National Zoo is free too, and how to book is on the listing.
Which Washington DC museum is best for toddlers?
American History, because of Wegmans Wonderplace, a play space for ages 0 to 6 with a nursing room. After that, the Postal Museum is small enough for a short attention span, and the Botanic Garden is a calm hour.
What can you do in Washington DC with kids when it rains?
Natural History for dinosaurs and the insect zoo, Air and Space for the planes and the How Things Fly gallery, American History for Wonderplace and Spark Lab, and the Postal Museum if you want something short. They're all indoors, and Natural History is free to enter.
Is the National Zoo worth it with kids?
Yes, it's the best single day in the city for kids. There are giant pandas and a Kids' Farm. The zoo is on a hillside, so start at the top and walk down, and expect the walk back up to be the tiring part.
Do you need a car in Washington DC with kids?
No, for the Mall, Capitol Hill, Union Station and the zoo, which are all on the Metro. A car helps for Kenilworth, the Arboretum and the Anacostia playground, and you can skip those if you don't have one.
Where should you stay in Washington DC with kids?
The Residence Inn for the Mall, with a heated indoor pool. Capitol Hill Hotel for a kitchenette and laundry. Embassy Suites Convention Center for connecting rooms and a pool. The Omni Shoreham if the zoo is the plan. The longer list of Washington DC hotels for kids has pools, suites and kitchens.
Photos
Smithsonian National Museum of American History: Kevin Burkett from Philadelphia, Pa., USA (CC BY-SA 2.0) · Smithsonian National Carousel: Gnupratchett (CC0) · United States Botanic Garden Conservatory: yeowatzup (CC BY 2.0) · Smithsonian National Postal Museum: Antony-22 (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Eastern Market - Indoor Food and Weekend Outdoor Market: AgnosticPreachersKid (CC BY-SA 3.0) · Georgetown Waterfront Park: AgnosticPreachersKid (CC BY-SA 3.0) · Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens: Environmental Protection Agency. Office of the Administrator. Office of Public Affairs. Office of Multimedia. (10/15/201 (Public domain) · United States National Arboretum: APK (CC BY-SA 3.0) · Omni Shoreham Hotel: Jürgen Matern (CC BY-SA 3.0)
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