Good things to do in Washington, DC for one day

One day in DC is absolutely enough to hit the highlights. Walk the National Mall for free, see the Lincoln Memorial, grab a timed ticket to ride the Washington Monument elevator, pick one Smithsonian museum, and end with a half-smoke at Ben's Chili Bowl on U Street. No car required.

Start on the National Mall, early

The public may visit the sites of National Mall and Memorial Parks 24 hours per day. That means an early morning walk is the best version of this trip. The crowds are thin before 9 a.m., the light is good for photos, and the majority of the Mall's memorials, including the Lincoln Memorial, the National World War II Memorial, and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, are open 24 hours.

Start at the Lincoln Memorial on the western end, walk east along the Reflecting Pool to the World War II Memorial, then continue toward the Washington Monument at the center of the Mall. The whole walk is about 1.5 miles. Flat. Easy. Free.

The Washington Monument: book ahead or arrive at 8:45 a.m.

There are two ways to get tickets: reserve them online, with a $1 reservation fee per ticket, or pick up free same-day tickets at the Washington Monument Lodge while supplies last. The Washington Monument Lodge, located along 15th Street between Madison and Jefferson drives, opens at 8:45 a.m. for distribution of free, same-day, timed tickets on a first-come, first-served basis.

If you want to guarantee a spot, advance reservation tickets can be reserved online through recreation.gov up to 30 days in advance, and a convenience fee of $1 USD will be charged for each ticket. In the spring, summer, and fall, tickets routinely sell out immediately after being released. Plan accordingly.

Pick one Smithsonian museum, just one

There are 19 Smithsonian museums and the National Zoo, and admission to the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, DC, is free for all museums and the National Zoo. That's wonderful, and also a trap. Trying to do three in a day means doing none of them properly.

The National Mall is home to free museums including the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, National Museum of American History, and the National Museum of the American Indian. Admission is always free, though select Smithsonian sites, such as the National Air and Space Museum and the National Museum of African American History and Culture, require free timed-entry passes.

A few specifics to help you choose:

• National Museum of Natural History (1000 Madison Drive NW): open 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. daily, except December 25. Walk in, no pass needed.
• National Museum of American History (14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW): Same hours. The biggest draw is the Treasure Room, with the original Star-Spangled Banner, Abraham Lincoln's top hat, and Dorothy's ruby slippers.
• Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden (7th Street and Independence Avenue SW): features international modern and contemporary art, with no admission charged. The Sculpture Garden on the National Mall contains more than 60 large-scale works from Auguste Rodin, Alexander Calder, Henry Moore, and others.
• National Gallery of Art (Constitution Avenue NW): this national art museum holds over 141,000 works of western art, spanning from the middle ages through today. It's completely free to visit. Open Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Getting around: Metro and the Circulator

On weekdays, Metro trains start around 5 a.m. and run until midnight, while on Fridays and Saturdays service extends to 2 a.m. To ride, you need a SmarTrip card, a reusable, rechargeable smartcard accepted on all rail and bus services.

One important note: the DC Metro is great for getting you around the city, but it can't get you around the National Mall. For that, use the DC Circulator. For just $1 you can jump on these bright red buses every ten minutes for a quick ride through Capitol Hill all the way to Nationals Ballpark or Anacostia.

One Metro tip worth knowing: avoid using the Smithsonian Station during high tourist season, as this station is often crowded due to museum visitors. The Federal Triangle or L'Enfant Plaza stations are both short walks to the same museums and far less chaotic.

Afternoon: Capitol Hill on foot

After lunch, the Capitol Hill neighborhood rewards a slow walk. The U.S. Capitol sits at the top of the hill, and a free tour of the building is available through the Capitol Visitor Center. The Capitol Visitor Center is open from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Tours are free; reserve them at visitthecapitol.gov.

Along the way, stop by the U.S. Supreme Court, the Library of Congress, the Folger Shakespeare Library, Eastern Market and its outdoor farmers market, Barracks Row, and the Marine Barracks. The neighborhood is serviced by Blue, Orange, and Silver Metro lines, including Capitol South, Eastern Market, and Potomac Avenue stops.

Evening: U Street and Ben's Chili Bowl

Take the Green Line to U Street/Cardozo. The U Street institution Ben's Chili Bowl has been slinging snappy half-smokes, burgers, and fries slathered in their signature chili since 1958. The address is 1213 U Street NW.

Ben's Chili Bowl was founded on August 22, 1958, by Ben Ali, a Trinidadian-born immigrant of Indian descent who had studied dentistry at nearby Howard University, and his fiancée, Virginia Rollins. Through the years they've served civil rights leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. and Kwame Ture, U.S. presidents including George W. Bush and Barack Obama, and jazz legends like Ella Fitzgerald, Duke Ellington, and Miles Davis.

In 2004, Ben's received James Beard Award recognition. Order the half-smoke. That's the one.

Sources

• National Park Service: National Mall and Memorial Parks Hours
• National Park Service: Washington Monument Fees & Passes
• Smithsonian Institution: Museums and Zoo
• DC Circulator
• Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA)
• Ben's Chili Bowl: Our Story
• Recreation.gov: Washington Monument Reservations