Holiday Road Trip: Day One


Washington, DC:  For our final road trip of 2022, we had originally planned on hitting up the Smokies for the holidays.  However a last minute change in plans rerouted us to our nation's capital and a holiday trip to Washington DC for a week of exploring the city and its museums and memorials as well as a few day trips to the surrounding areas.

We hit the road under the cover of darkness, leaving the house a little past midnight.  We had a 14+ hour road trip in front of us and figured might as well get started while everyone is still sleeping.  I preplanned our route to ensure there was plenty of places to refuel and get food since we are travelling on Christmas Day.  So northbound we went, headed to DC.

The decision to leave early was a good one.  Traffic was very light on the first stage of the trip, in fact when we reached I-10 in North Florida we only encountered one truck from US-301 to I-95!  We headed into Georgia and attempted to stop at Huddle House for breakfast.  Despite confirming on their website they were open at 6:00, they never opened.  So we headed a few exits north to Waffle House and they were opened so we grabbed a quick breakfast before continuing our journey.  

When get got into South Carolina, it was time for another new road trip tradition, a stop at Buc-Ees.   If you have never been to one yet, I highly recommend it!  It has instantly become a road trip staple.  You can get just about anything you need for your travels at this gas stop.  Food, snacks, souvenirs and of course just about anything you can think off with your favorite beaver.  To top it off, they have the cleanest restrooms you will come across on your travels.

After loading down on snacks and drinks and headed back north bound.  As we reached the South Carolina/North Carolina border, we crossed over into new territory for our road trips.  As a family were have never been north of Bennettsville.  We passed by South of the Border, downtown Richmond, King Dominion and more during our trek into DC.

As we got into the DC metro area, we headed to our hotel to check in.  Our stay is with the Crystal Gateway Marriott, on the Arlington side of the Potomac River near Reagan National Airport.  We had a suite for the week and we settled in to our eighth floor suite featuring a airport view, well sort of.  Our bedroom window faces the airport and you can catch a glimpse of departing aircraft playing peek-a-boo with the city skyline.  

After we unpacked the car, we headed downstair to the hotel's restaurant for dinner. 15th & Eads is located in the lobby of the hotel and features breakfast, lunch and dinner as well as a limited menu room service.  Dinner was delicious and reasonably priced for a hotel meal in a big city.

Once dinner was over, we hit the streets for a nighttime tour of some of the monuments in the National Mall.  It's been a while since I have been to DC and have never driven it so you get pretty much guess when you added the darkness of the night, I had no clue where I was going.  But we did manage to stop and get some nighttime photos of the capital and the Washington Monument.  After missing my turn to the Lincoln Memorial and ending up on the Memorial Bridge headed across the Potomac, I decided to return to the the hotel.

I will try the nighttime photography again later this week. It was in the low 20's and dropping so I gave up.  There weather is trending warmer as the week goes along so I will try again later this week and walk instead of drive and hopefully it will go better.

Tomorrow we have reservations for the US Holocaust Museum and the National Air and Space Museum.  From there we will explore as much as we can squeeze into the day. 

Be sure to check back later for more photos and stories from our Holiday Road Trip.


Location: Washington, DC, USA

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