Subway in Washington DC?

Question

R the subway trains in Washington DC as good as newyork subway ? Does the subway in DC cover all the sighseeing attractions ?

R there any unlimited ride passes like the unlimited ride metro cards in NY ?

Answer 1

Here is the Subway website: www.wmata.com.
It has a map and can answer some general fare questions.
The subway in DC is much smaller than the subway in NY. BUT, it is well organized for tourists, and you can get nearly everywhere you would want to go. If you are familiar with the NYC subway you will have no problem navigating the lines, etc.
DC is also a very walkable city, so check sometimes to see if it will be easier to walk from another stop instead of bothering to switch lines or only go a few stops.
The Smithsonian stop drops you off in the middle of Mall, near all the museums and monuments.

Answer 2

It's not as large as NY, but then neither is Washington DC. It is a lot cleaner.

You can get to all the tourist destinations either directly with the Metro or walk for 10 minutes. DC is very small.

You can get a day pass. You have to go to Metro Center station.

The only place there is no Metro is Georgetown. You can get there by bus or a very quick cab ride from Dupont CIrcle.

Remember:
-stand on the right, walk on the left
-let people off before you get on
-DC citizens are not help desks, but the station managers are very friendly
-the doors are not like elevator doors, if someone blocks them they do not open back up and IT HURTS!

Answer 3

The Metro (subway) in Washington is much better than New York because they have rules and they make sure they are followed such as no eating, drinking, music etc. The Metro is very clean. Most of the attractions are going to be on the Mall area where the Smithsonians are and all the monuments which wouldn't require you to be Metro hopping. They are all together. The Metro is quite extensive covering Maryland, D.C., and Virginia.

Answer 4

I think they are as good - they are more comfortable (more places to sit down) and cleaner in my opinion. They are not as extensive as in New York, however.

The Metro goes to virtually all sightseeing attractions, including the Monuments and Memorials downtown, the Smithsonian Institution, Arlington Cemetery, and many more places. There are a few attractions it does not get to, but there are other ways to get there.

For example, it does not go to Georgetown, the oldest neighborhood in DC and one of the favorites for late night hanging out. While I prefer Adams Morgan for hanging out, you can take the Metro to Foggy Bottom, then walk west on M street, or you can pick up the new Connector Bus for an extra $1 and go to Georgetown that way.

Another person suggested that Mt. Vernon was a problem, but you can take the subway to Huntington on the yellow line, then get a bus (Fairfax Connector 151/152) to the Mansion to see it.

The National Cathedral is another that is not really close to Metro, but it also has a bus, the Pennsylvania Avenue Line 30, 32, 34, 35, 36 that you can take to get there.

The Metro has good information on their site as to how to get around. Our podcast page (below) also tells for each sight how to get there on public transport, including where to walk when you leave the station.

There are a number of unlimted passes on Metro. Depends on how long you are going to be here. The daily pass, which someone suggested, costs $6.50 and is only good from 9:30 AM on the operating day until closing. If you are here for a week, check out the 7-day short trip pass at $22 and the 7-day fast pass for $32.50. The first one is good for trips up to $2.20, which will cover you pretty well if you are here and staying inside the city or just outside it. Plus if you take a longer trip you can just pay the difference when you exit. The more expensive one is good system-wide.

Note that this does not include bus travel. You can save on bus travel by using transfers - get the transfer before you get on a train - at your beginning station.

Answer 5

Yes, DC's subway is good, and it's the best way to see DC as a tourist--driving isn't as bad as NYC, but you do want to know the roads before attempting it and parking costs a lot.

The unlimited daily passes here start after 9:30--if you were trying to get an early start, you'd need a regular farecard. There are several stops on the Mall (Archives, Smithsonian, Le Enfant), where you find the Smithsonian and most of the monuments. Anything that you'd want to see that isn't right there is a short cab ride away (unless you want to see Mt. Vernon--you may want one of the tour busses on the mall to take you there, unless your hotel is in Virginia close to Mt. Vernon).

http://www.wmata.com/ is the website for the Metro.

Answer 6

Below is a very good way to compare the world's subways, including the Metro in Washington, DC

Answer 7

The metro is great! The site: www.wmata.com allows you to plot your trip days in advance and it gives you wonderful directions. Also, try the Circulator bus which leaves from Union States. One route goes around the Mall (for about a dollar) and another goes out to Georgetown, which doesn't have a metro stop.

Just walk on the left, stand on the right, on the Metro. And, we may not be in the South, but we're still polite so let EVERYONE off before you get on!

Also, I found that compared to NYC cabs are decently priced for fairly long trips, but the Metro is usually the best way to get around. Enjoy!

Answer 8

Because it is smaller, the DC Metro is easier to navigate than the New York subway. It goes near most attractions, but stations are fairly far apart, so you may have to walk a ways from a station to the attraction itself. Also realize that the fare structure is different than in New York. In Washington fares are based on distance, so if you are coming in from the suburbs the trip can be fairly expensive.

Answer 9

DC's metro is definitely designed for the big tourist areas. Its not nearly as complex or large i.e. gets you everywhere in the city (with express lines multilevel subway stations and underground walking tunnels like NYC) but its great for about 95 % of the places a tourist would want to see. Red or blue lines I think have the most tourist detinations- Union station smithsonian capital south, pentagon city etc.

Answer 10

The subway in DC is about 100 times cleaner than in NY. As a New Yorker, I think the DC subways are like riding in a luxury car.