Family Things to Do in DC: 8 Picks by Age

1. National Zoo: all ages, free with a pass

The National Zoo suits every age, from babies to teens, and it costs nothing to enter. The zoo's visit page says admission is free but entry passes are required for all guests, including infants. Reserve them online before you go. That makes the zoo and the Air and Space Museum the two free, kid-friendly attractions with a pass, and the Mall is free with no pass at all.

Free sights fill most family days, so keep the paid signature tours of Washington DC for the days when you want a guide.

The grounds open at 8 a.m. and close at 4 p.m., and the last entry is at 3 p.m. The animal buildings are open from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The zoo is at 3001 Connecticut Ave. NW. Its Asia Trail lists giant pandas and sloth bears.

Parts of the zoo were under renovation on 25 October 2026, including the Africa Trail. Check the visit page for closed exhibits before you pick a day.

Pro Tip Book the zoo passes and the Air and Space passes in the same evening, because each reserves its own timed slots.

2. National Air and Space Museum: ages 5 and up, free with a pass

The National Air and Space Museum suits children from about age 5, and it is free with a timed-entry pass. The museum's visit page says passes are required for all visitors, regardless of age. You can reserve up to nine passes at once.

Doors open 10 am to 5:30 pm, and the only closure is December 25. You find it at 650 Jefferson Drive SW, and all visitors enter through the doors on Jefferson Drive. The page says passes do not limit how long you stay.

You can see the 1903 Wright Flyer and the Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia. Children who like planes and rockets will want an hour or two here. Many families spend a morning.

Two galleries on the museum's page were closed on 25 October 2026 while new exhibits were built.

3. Natural History and the other Smithsonian museums: ages 5 and up

The National Museum of Natural History is the next museum to try with children who love animals, and you can read more in our guide to the national museum of natural history museums washington dc and its neighbours. The museum's own website blocked our check on 25 October 2026. We did not confirm its hours or any pass rules, so look them up before you go.

Plan for two or three hours in a museum with children under 10, and no more than one museum a day. For children under ten, the best-confirmed choices are the zoo, which takes every age, and Air and Space for ages 5 and up, because we could read their pages and could not read Natural History's. No official page ranks the Smithsonian museums by age, so this order is our advice. Little ones lose interest after the first hour. Leave the second museum for the next day.

4. The National Mall and the Washington Monument: ages 8 and up

The National Mall suits children who can walk a mile or more, and it is open 24 hours a day. The National Park Service says the early evening and morning are quiet times to visit. Its page lists activities such as paddle boats, bike tours and night walks with a park ranger. For letting off steam, the Mall is a long green strip from the Capitol to the Potomac, and the Park Service counts over 1,000 acres of green space in the parks. Let the kids run on the grass between memorials, then ride the paddle boats.

The walk between the memorials is long. No Metro station stands at the Lincoln Memorial. The Park Service lists Foggy Bottom-GWU as the closest, about 0.8 miles away. Read about the sights in our guide to the National Mall and monuments.

The Washington Monument has a view from the top. Visitors need a timed-entry ticket to ride the elevator, says the monument's plan-your-visit page. Advance tickets are online at Recreation.gov, usually 30 days ahead, and a limited number of same-day tickets are handed out on site from 8:45 every morning. Arrive at the screening area 15 minutes before your time.

5. Old Town Trolley: a seated way between the sights, all ages

A hop-on hop-off trolley is the easiest way to move a tired family between the sights, and it suits every age. See the hop-on hop-off page for Old Town Trolley and DC Duck Tours. Kids rest on the seats and hop off only at the stops they want.

The Old Town Trolley city tour is from €49 per person, with a 4.2 rating from 735 reviews, and it shows free cancellation. The listing is run by Historic Tours of America. It meets at 50 Massachusetts Ave NE. The ticket gives you unlimited on and off at about 25 popular stops, with a live English-speaking guide. You can choose a 1-day or 2-day ticket. Tips are not included, and the listing's summary does not show child prices or a group size, so check the age bands at checkout.

The Metro costs less if you ride only a few times. WMATA's fare page says up to two children age 4 and younger ride free with each fare-paying adult. Children age 5 and older pay the regular fare. Every Metro station has an elevator, says WMATA's accessibility page, so pushchairs can reach all platforms. WMATA's elevator page lists the live status of each lift, and says to ask the station manager for shuttle service if yours is out of order. Our guide to public transport Washington DC explains the cards and the day pass.

Key Takeaway Children age 4 and younger ride the Metro free, up to two per paying adult, and children from age 5 pay the full fare.

6. A Potomac River cruise: ages 3 and up, 45 minutes to 1 hour

A short Potomac cruise is the best seated break in a family day, and it suits children who tire of walking. The Potomac River sightseeing cruise lasts 45 minutes and is from €27 per person, with a 4.2 rating from 214 reviews. It runs from Georgetown's Washington Harbour and shows free cancellation.

Capitol River Cruises runs it, and it meets at 3050 Water St NW. The group can be up to 60 people. It includes two toilets and a bar that sells snacks and drinks, which are not included in the price. It lists wheelchair users as not suited to the tour. Both cruise listings show free cancellation and name their operator, but the ratings are GetYourGuide's, not ours, so read the recent reviews. The trolley listing gives no group size.

On weekends there is a longer option. The weekend cruise lasts 1 hour and is from €22 per person, but it has only 18 reviews and a 4.2 rating. Boomerang Boat Tours runs it from 3050 K St NW, with up to 100 people. See our page on Potomac River cruises for more boats.

Things to Do in Washington DC's count of GetYourGuide listings in October 2026 found 85 of 207 bookable DC-area experiences last two hours or less, from €14.

7. Arlington National Cemetery tram: ages 8 and up

Arlington National Cemetery suits older children who can stay quiet, and the tram saves their legs on the hills. The cemetery's tours page says tram tours leave every 20 minutes from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily. The tour is live-narrated and hop on and hop off, with six stops.

The Arlington ticket and tram tour is from €19 per person, with a 4.6 rating from 612 reviews. Historic Tours of America runs it, and it shows free cancellation. It meets at the Welcome Center, 1 Memorial Ave. Its page describes a 45-minute loop with stops at the Kennedy graveside, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and Arlington House. That is fewer stops than the cemetery's own page lists, so check what your ticket covers. We found no price for the cemetery's own tram, so we cannot say whether the ticket beats doing it yourself; if your children walk well, the tram matters less.

At the Welcome Center, bags go through a metal detector, says the Arlington listing. This is a place of mourning. Skip it with very young children who cannot be quiet.

8. International Spy Museum: ages 10 and up, for teens

The International Spy Museum is the best indoor pick for teens, and it is a paid ticket. The museum's visit page says guests can try an Undercover Mission, with digital challenges where you crack codes and find hidden drop sites. It also links a Top Secret Family Guide.

Find it at 700 L'Enfant Plaza SW. Hours in fall and winter run from 10 am to 6 pm on weekdays, 9 am to 7 pm on Saturdays and 9 am to 6 pm on Sundays. The last ticket is sold one hour before closing. The museum recommends advance timed tickets.

For a teen day beyond museums, ride the Arlington tram from 8:30 a.m., eat lunch, then reach the Spy Museum for the afternoon, and finish with an evening walk on the lit Mall, which is open 24 hours. That order is our suggestion, not an official plan. The price shows only when you choose a date, so we do not list one. Our page on ghost tours has an evening option for teens who like spooky stories.

How to choose family things to do in DC by age

Choose by the youngest child, and add one seated break for every long walk. The table puts the picks side by side.

The paid rides are the wrong choice on a day when your kids still have energy. A free walk on the Mall does the same job and costs nothing. Our guide to free things to do in DC lists more no-cost days.

Where to stay in Washington, DC with a family

Stay where you can cook a little or eat breakfast for free, and where a Metro stop is close. Our guide to DC neighborhoods and the where to stay page compare the areas.

Capitol Hill Hotel is a suite hotel at 200 C Street SE, a few blocks from the Capitol, with kitchenettes. Booking.com rates it 8.6 from 1,690 reviews.

Across the river in Crystal City, Residence Inn Arlington Capital View is a suite hotel with a free shuttle to Crystal City Metro. Hampton Inn & Suites Arlington Crystal City DCA is about 2,500 feet from that station, with a free shuttle and free hot breakfast, according to its Booking.com page.

Kids remember the animals and the airplanes, not the number of stops.