101 Best Sights in Washington, D.C., USA

America's most famous house was designed in 1792 by Irish architect James Hoban. It was known officially as the Executive Mansion until 1902, when President Theodore Roosevelt renamed it the White House, long its informal name. The house has undergone many structural changes: Andrew Jackson installed running water; James Garfield put in the first elevator; Harry Truman had the entire structure gutted and restored, adding a second-story porch to the south portico; and Richard Nixon installed a one-lane bowling alley in 1969.

To see the White House you need to contact your U.S. representative or senator (or embassy if you aren't a U.S. citizen). Requests can be made up to three months in advance (especially for spring, summer, or December tour requests) and no less than 21 days in advance. You'll be asked for the names, birth dates, and Social Security numbers of everyone in your group. On the morning of your tour, call the White House Visitors Office information line for any updates; tours are subject to last-minute cancellations. Arrive 15 minutes early. Your group will be asked to line up in alphabetical order. Everyone 18 years and older must present government-issued photo ID, and no purses, backpacks, or bags are allowed on the tour (and no storage lockers are provided so leave them in your hotel room). There are no public restrooms, and you're allowed to take photos only with a smartphone or small compact camera. The security process will probably last as long as the tour itself, 20–25 minutes.

The self-guided tour includes rooms on the ground floor (including the White House Family Theater), but the State Floor has the highlights. The East Room is the largest room in the White House, the site of ceremonies and press conferences; this is also where Theodore Roosevelt's children roller-skated and one of Abraham Lincoln's sons harnessed a pet goat to a chair and went for a ride. The portrait of George Washington that Dolley Madison saved from torch-carrying British soldiers in 1814 hangs in the room, and the White House Christmas tree stands here every winter. The only president to get married in the White House, Grover Cleveland, was wed in the Blue Room. Esther, the second daughter of President Cleveland and First Lady Frances, holds the distinction of being the only child born in the White House. The Red Room, decorated in early-19th-century American Empire style, has been a favorite of first ladies. Mary Todd Lincoln had her coffee and read the morning paper here. In 1961, First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy undertook an extensive restoration of the White House to preserve and showcase the historical and architectural significance of the home and its contents. The East Garden, which now bears her name, honors her contributions. Michelle Obama installed a vegetable-and-herb garden to promote healthy eating, as well as an apiary and pollinator garden for bees and other insects.

Your tour of the White House will be enhanced by visiting the White House Visitor Center at 1450 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, featuring displays, photos, and a 30-minute video about the White House.

You don't have to be a Democrat to enjoy this historic building, which became the headquarters for the Women's National Democratic Club in 1927. The exquisitely decorated mansion, built in the 1890s and designed by D.C. architect Harvey Page for opera singer Sarah Adams Whittemore, has housed senators and cabinet members over the years. Now it's best known for its library, where Eleanor Roosevelt did her radio broadcasts, and its full-length portraits of first ladies, painted in a whimsical style by folk artist April Newhouse.

Stop at Q Street between 31st and 32nd Streets, and look through the trees to the north, to the top of a sloping lawn, to see the neoclassical Tudor Place, designed by Capitol architect Dr. William Thornton for one of Martha Washington's granddaughters. Completed in 1816, the house remained in the family for six generations, hosting countless politicians, dignitaries, and military leaders. On the house tour, you can see the most extensive collection of George and Martha Washington items on public display outside Mount Vernon, Francis Scott Key's law desk, and spurs belonging to soldiers executed for serving as spies during the Civil War. You can only visit the house by guided tour (given hourly; the last tour at 3 pm), but before and afterward, until 4 pm, you can wander freely with a map through the formal garden full of roses and boxwoods, many of which are more than a century old. Admission to the garden grounds is free, but reserved tickets are required.

The outside of the building is plain, but inside, a wealth of art, contained in two separate collections, reflects the department's work. The Office of the Secretary Art Collection, featuring heroic oil paintings of dam construction, gold panning, and cattle drives, is found throughout the building's hallways, offices, and meeting rooms. The Department of the Interior Museum Collection outlines the work of the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Geological Survey, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the National Park Service, and other department branches. On Tuesday and Thursday at 2 pm, you can view 26 photographic murals by Ansel Adams and more than 40 dramatic murals painted by Maynard Dixon, John Steuart Curry, and other artists. Reservations are required for the Murals Tour; call at least two weeks in advance. The Indian Craft Shop across the hall from the museum sells Native American pottery, dolls, carvings, jewelry, baskets, and books.

Once used to store currency, this is one of the most impressive Greek Revival buildings in the United States. Robert Mills, the architect responsible for the Washington Monument and the Smithsonian American Art Museum, designed the colonnade on 15th Street. After the death of President Lincoln, the Andrew Johnson Suite was used as the executive office while Mrs. Lincoln moved out of the White House. One of the highlights is the Cash Room. Initially opened in 1869, it served as a bank, providing essential services to the public and supplying local banks with coins and currency. Renovated in 1985, visitors can tour the historic room. Tours of the Treasury Building are available only to U.S. citizens or legal residents, and you must make the reservation in advance through your congressional office.

The history of the U.S. Navy, from the Revolution to the present, is chronicled here, with exhibits ranging from the fully rigged foremast of the USS Constitution (better known as Old Ironsides) to a U.S. Navy Corsair fighter plane hanging from the ceiling. All around are models of fighting ships, a real Vietnam-era Swift boat, working periscopes, and displays on famous naval battles along with portraits of the sailors who fought in them. In front of the museum is a collection of guns, cannons, and missiles. The Navy Art Collection, including many works by Navy artists, is also housed in the museum. Explore the Cold War Gallery in Building 70 with exhibits that explore the Navy's response to the threat of Soviet military power and communist ideology.

All visitors to the museum must have a valid photo ID and report to the Visitor Control Center (VCC) at the Washington Navy Yard's primary access gate at 11th and O Streets. The VCC is only open weekdays until 3:30 pm. If you're planning to visit the museum on the weekend, you must be pre-vetted. A Base Access Pass Registration must be filled out seven days before your visit. Call 202/433–3018 for access-related questions.

Although Pierre L'Enfant included a Navy Memorial in his plans for Washington, D.C., the memorial did not come to life until 1987. The main attraction here is a 100-foot-diameter granite map of the world, known as the Granite Sea. Fountains, benches, and six ship masts surround the map. The Lone Sailor, a 7-foot-tall statue, stands on the map in the Pacific Ocean between the United States and Japan. The Naval Heritage Center, next to the memorial in the Market Square East Building, displays videos and exhibits of uniforms, medals, and other aspects of navy life. If you've served in the navy, you can enter your service record into the log. Bronze relief panels on the Pennsylvania Avenue side of the memorial depict 26 scenes commemorating events in the nation's naval history and honoring naval communities.

Between the Potomac and the Tidal Basin, this park is known for its flowering cherry trees, which bloom for two weeks in late March or early April. It also includes a slew of memorials, including those honoring Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Thomas Jefferson, and George Mason, as well as the World War II, Korean War, and Vietnam War Veterans memorials. It's a nice place to play ball, picnic, or just relax while admiring the water views.

The White House Visitor Center is a fantastic way to get an orientation before visiting the White House and an excellent alternative for those who could not get tickets. Displays, artifacts, photos, videos, and interactive exhibits recount the life and times of America's most famous house, providing behind-the-scenes insight into the workings of the White House. Afterward, go for a walk around the grounds of the President's park for the iconic views of the White House.

President Wilson and his second wife, Edith Bolling Wilson, retired in 1921 to this Georgian Revival house designed by Washington architect Waddy B. Wood. It was on this quiet street that Wilson lived out the last few years of his life. It is the only presidential museum in the nation’s capital. Wilson died in 1924—Edith survived him by 37 years—and bequeathed the house and its contents to the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Tours of the home can be general or themed or even virtual, and they provide a wonderful glimpse into the lives of this couple and the dignitaries who visited them here. Items on display include his cane collection, a Gobelin tapestry, a mosaic from Pope Benedict XV, the pen used by Wilson to sign the declaration that launched the United States into World War I, and the shell casing from the first shot fired by U.S. forces in the war. The house also contains memorabilia related to the history of the short-lived but influential League of Nations, including the colorful flag Wilson hoped would be adopted by that organization.

In late 2014, Congress re-designated this quiet, sunken garden to honor General John J. "Black Jack" Pershing, the first—a century ago—to hold the title General of the Armies. An official unit of the National Park System, the memorial currently includes engravings on the stone walls recounting pivotal campaigns from World War I, when Pershing commanded the American Expeditionary Force and conducted other military exploits. Steps and small tables surround a fountain and duck pond, making for a pleasant midday respite. The park had a $46-million renovation of the memorial in 2021.