Though it’s a city filled with memorials and monuments to the past, the country’s capital is very much alive and bubbling with excitement to explore—and it's much more than a mere history lesson.
But the majesty of the National Mall never gets old, no matter how many school trips you’ve taken there. There’s no better time to see it than after dark, when the Lincoln Memorial and Washington Monument are lit up against the night sky. It’s the perfect walk after a day exploring the neighboring Smithsonian locations, like the National Portrait Gallery, Museum of African American History and Culture, or the Air and Space Museum.
As for food, grab a bit at the iconic Ben’s Chili Bowl, a Burmese dinner at Thamee or—if you simply can't decide—head to the food stall-filled Union Market for a taste of all this elegant city has to offer.
Thanks to creative arts institutions, quirky boutique hotels, and more than 2,000 restaurants, the capital’s approval ratings are soaring higher than ever.
Here are a few of our favorite books to read, movies to watch, and music to listen to about the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C.
