travel tips for washington dc on a budget? traveling with small child (8) to see educational destinations.?

VERY limited budget but I want to be in a safe area with convenient access to landmarks. Thanks!

Check with a libary in the DC area. Often the libraries have discount tickets to the museums and such. I know our library here has discounts for the aquarium, children's museum and such. They can also direct t you to a safe place to stay. You can also check with the Chamber of Comerce. Since DC is not just about politics, it is also BIG on museums. Please be sure to go to the Smithsonian. It is at least 3 days worth of adventure!

Yes, I have some ideas.

The biggest expense in DC is lodging. Hotel rooms can run $300 a night or more. There are a couple of approaches you can take to this issue.

You can stay out in the suburbs. I don't advocate this, as it is not as convenient to landmarks, and especially with an eight year old it is nice to have a nearby hotel room to crash in for an afternoon nap, or just some time off. If you go the suburbs route, there are a number of less expensive hotels in Arlington - make sure you ask if they are near metro - how far from metro, whether they have shuttles to metro and which station. Rosslyn and Crystal City are two meto stations with some inexpensive motels nearby, almost always involving a significant walk, though.

Better yet, to stay in one of the rare inexpensive hotels downtown. The Red Roof Inn downtown is located in the Chinatown/Penn quarter area, only a few blocks from the mall (near the Capitol). You can usually get a room there for $120 a night or less. The Hotel Harrington is also downtown, near the Metro Center Station, and only a few blocks from the Natural History Museum and the Mall (closer to the Washington Monument end). Rooms here start right at $100.

If both of these are outside your budget, your best bet may be to stay at the Hostelling International Hostel. They start at less than $30 per person per night, and may have lower costs for kids. You can also get a family room for your family. We've traveled in the US and abroad with hostels and had a great time at a great price.

Dining affordably in DC is a little easier. There are large, inexpensive food courts in Union Station, the Post Office Pavilion and the Ronald Reagan Federal Building. The first is at the Union Station metro station, and the latter two are near Federal Triangle. These are just steps from the mall, too, and have a variety of foods that you and your child will enjoy. For dinner, check out the Chinatown area (near the Red Roof Inn) as well as Adams Morgan (take the Woodley Park Zoo exit on the red line and cross the river on the Duke Ellington Bridge. Keep walking till you get to 18th street, then check out the restaurants on 18th street. U-Street Cardozo/African American Civil War Memorial exit also has some restaurants - Ben's chili bowl is a bargain Washington institution. Try to avoid eating on the mall, at any of the museums, as these meals are overpriced.

For attractions, of course, you can spend weeks here and not exhaust the free attractions. The monuments and memorials are free. The Capitol, Library of Congress, Supreme Court and Archives are free. The Smithsonian is free. The Bureau of Engraving and Printing is free.

Some of the free or low cost sites that I think are of most interst to an 8 year old are:

The Zoo
The National Aquarium (off 15th street in the commerce building) (*NOT FREE - $5 admission)
The National Museum of Natural History
The National Archives
The Air and Space Museum (note that IMAX movies and Planetarium shows are NOT free)
The memorials along the mall.
The Postal Museum (near Union Station - great for kids!)
The National Archives (how can you not visit the declaration of Independence).
National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden.

More ideas on my web site, listed below.