Washington DC Travel Guide

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Travel is one of my VERY favorite things to cover here on the blog and last weekend I flew up to Washington DC for a girl’s getaway with one of my best friends Lindsay from Sell Eat Love. The last time I went to DC was with my parents when I was like 10 so this was a completely different experience and we had so much fun in the city! Today I’ll be covering our weekend including where we stayed, what we ate, and what we did during our time there!

Where we stayed

Lindsay & I checked I to the Kimpton Mason & Rook Hotel for our girls weekend. The location could not have been better- it’s located in downtown D.C. on the 14th Street Corridor near Logan Circle. It is surrounded by some residential buildings so it definitely had more of a neighborhood feel and was walkable to tons of cute restaurants and shops. This hotel has a mid-century modern vibe with lots of hardwoods and velvet accents throughout. The library in the lobby is the perfect place to cozy up with a glass of wine (they offer happy hour from 5-6 pm each day)!

Our room had comfy beds and plenty of space to get ready. My favorite part may have been the marble bathroom- super spacious and love that it had a separate water closet. The striped floor was so unique!

While we didn’t eat there, Mason & Rook has an adjoining restaurant called Radiator which was bustling each night we were there. They also have the cutest rooftop space which includes a bar, pool and market lights. It’s the perfect place to grab a cocktail before heading out on the town.

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What we ate

ALL PURPOSE
After dropping our bags off at our hotel, we set out to explore and ended up at the cutest pizza place, All Purpose. It’s located in the Shaw neighborhood has a very cozy, rustic feel and was some of the best pizza we’ve ever had! Oh, and get the crispy cauliflower appetizer- it was to die for!

SEQUOIA
This was an unexpected dinner but one of our blog friends Victoria told us about an influencer media dinner that was happening at Sequoia so of course we couldn’t pass it up! It’s located on the Georgetown waterfront and has some of THE most beautiful outdoor space and delicious food. If you’re looking for fine American dining with equally stunning ambiance, I highly recommend this spot.

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LE DIPLOMATE
This one was highly recommended to us by several people and for good reason! It’s the cutest little French brasserie that was located just a few blocks from our hotel, the Parisian decor was on point. We went for brunch and grabbed a window seat- can’t recommend their bread or eggs enough!

TED’S BULLETIN
This was a spur of the moment recommendation from one of Lindsay’s followers so we popped in for an afternoon pick me up. You must absolutely go for the pop tarts!! They were the perfect snack and I had the cutest chai tea latte as well.

RASIKA
This Indian restaurant was a recommendation from a local DC influencer we met at dinner the first night. I had only had Indian food one time prior to this restaurant and it was several years ago so I was excited to try it again. Let me say I was blown away by the dishes at Rasika. Everyone said to start out with the Tikka Masala so we split that along with their Palak Chaat which was a spinach yogurt dish. It was super dark in there so I unfortunately didn’t get any photos, but trust me on this one!

IRON GATE
This was another recommendation by a local and is located in the cutest ivy-covered outdoor patio that offers Mediterranean fare. I ordered the Cesar salad which had some unique toppings and would highly recommend. I will warm you though, we went for a late lunch and were eaten up by mosquitoes so you might want to bring bug spray or sit inside!

What we did

WHITE HOUSE
Since our hotel was pretty close to the White House we made that our first stop. Had to get that classic tourist photo! We wanted to do an inside tour but didn’t plan accordingly- you have to get tickets from your state representative and have to request them several weeks to months in advance!

SEGWAY TOUR
One of my friends recommended doing a segway tour and we thought what better way to explore the city? We booked with Capital Segway Tours and had THE best time, I had no idea they were so much fun to ride! We went by the White House, Capital building and all around the National Mall. We were given headsets so we could pick up some history facts along the way.

SMITHSONIAN NATIONAL AIR & SPACE MUSEUM
This was the most recommended museum along with the Museum of American History. We went through some of the exhibits but I’ll be honest, I’m not a big museum-goer and it was just okay. I think I remember this being much cooler when I was 7. The great thing about DC though is that all of the museums are free to the public!

TRUMP INTERNATIONAL HOTEL/OLD POST OFFICE
Let me first say that this has nothing to do with political views, but we wanted to check out the new Trump International Hotel because it was the original post office in the city where Benjamin Franklin was the first postmaster! In the late 80s it was a food court where many school field trips would frequent and just a few years ago was converted into a hotel. The lobby is so grand and beautiful, super swanky and the drinks are pricey but I definitely think it’s worth a visit!

On our segway tour, our guide told us that visitors can go in the clock tower on the top of the old post office to get a 360 degree view of the city! It’s free every day from 9am-4pm and is actually considered a national park. Lindsey & I we’re so excited to learn about this and feel like it’s a bit of a hidden gem!

While the temps were nice, it was super cloudy our entire trip up until a few hours before heading to the airport. Go figure! We spent the last bit exploring Dupont Circle and got one sunny photo!! Overall we had a blast exploring our nation’s capital and couldn’t have asked for a better girls weekend. If you have any other specific questions, just leave them in the comments below!

This post was written in partnership with Kimpton Mason & Rook.  As always, all opinions are my own.