I live in DC. Where should I visit next, Colorado or either Vermont/New

>>1161051
It doesn't matter, do one, then next time do the other. From DC, it's just not that big a deal.

That said, if you have something terminal and can only do one before you die, I'd say Colorado -- nothing against the NE, but it will be more similar to what you will have in VA mountains and stuff.

Colorado is lovely, especially if you're an outdoors man. I would recommend going to Vail, Aspen, Boulder,Breckenridge, and Denver (but be aware of what surrounds it). I would avoid Aurora though. You should have a fun time if you chose Colorado.

Sorry to jack your thread but I could use some local knowledge (first timer landing in October):

- is the metro system worth using or is it easier to jump in uber/taxi
-how long from a hotel near Union Station to Ronald Reagan airport
-where can I go in DC/nearby VA/MD to shoot guns ie a range
-your favourite place to have a beer / people watch (I am travelling alone) or meet women
-is going up the Washington Monument worth it?

Many thanks in advance.

>>1161051
Australian who just left the US, went to DC, hiked in Virginia, new Hampshire and Vermont.
New Hampshire is beautiful hiking, decent size hills with lots of great views and nice little towns, plenty of shorter ski runs in winter, you can try a few different mountains in one trip. Vermont is nice with rolling green hills. Although they're a bit smaller, has a very cute state capitol. Maine is similar to new Hampshire with more lakes.

I haven't been to Colorado before so that would be my choice. Arid high mountains isn't something I've experienced and If you've got the money now I'd say do the one that costs the most.

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>>1161149
>- is the metro system worth using or is it easier to jump in uber/taxi

Not OP, but for what it is worth -- when I lived there it was pre-Uber, but I imagine that would be more convenient except around rush hour. I liked the DC metro, though.

>-how long from a hotel near Union Station to Ronald Reagan airport

What time of day, what day of the week? What method of transport?

>-where can I go in DC/nearby VA/MD to shoot guns ie a range

http://www.msar.com/ I liked them, but it has been some years. But Google is your friend there, you have several choices.

>-is going up the Washington Monument worth it?

Only if you want to say you have done it. If you do, take the elevator up and walk down, as there are some inscriptions and stuff on stones donated from various places that you can see inside. But other than a restricted view out a tiny window, not much to it. Use your time doing something else.

As an additional bit of advice, by October the worst of the summer heat/humidity should be abating, but if it is hot (or just for the experience) I'd recommend doing a round of the monuments and memorials at night -- they are atmospheric as all get out lit up at night.

Also, if you are a space/aviation fan, in addition to seeing the Air and Space Museum on the Mall, get out to the annex near Dulles, it is great.

>>1161149
>- is the metro system worth using or is it easier to jump in uber/taxi

Metro is fairly easy to use. The DC metro was voted number one in the country. Ride it.

>-how long from a hotel near Union Station to Ronald Reagan airport

This is weirdly phrased. Get a hotel anywhere you want and just take the metro the the airport. The airport has its own metro stop.

>-where can I go in DC/nearby VA/MD to shoot guns ie a range

You're gonna have to go to VA for that. Check out the NRA range in Fairfax, VA.

>-your favourite place to have a beer / people watch (I am travelling alone) or meet women

Go to DC for that. Dupont, Adams Morgan, Georgetown, etc.

>-is going up the Washington Monument worth it?

No. Go to the 930 club, museums, bars and clubs, etc.

>>1161243

>annex near Dulles

Excellent, I will look into it. Thus far I have a pretty solid itinerary for the 2.5d/3n I am in town, don't want to rush the whole time but being an aviation nerd Smithsonian A&S will be taking up the best part of a whole day - so your tip about seeing the monuments by night is really handy. I'm considering a Segway tour...

>>1161413

>NRA range

Cheers for the reco, I was looking at Maryland Small Arms range, nearby to Andrews AFB but also in the vicinity of the outlet mall, so 2 birds 1 stone sort of thing.

>930 club

Looks intredasting, any thoughts on Madam's Organ? (I'm a big electric blues fan)

>metro to airport

I'm staying at the Liaison Capital Hill, flight is at 10am. In order to allow for TSA bullshit I figure I leave around 730, and will take Uber. If the flight was later I'd take the metro...which I intend to use getting around.

Thanks again for the advice.

I'm from Maine and went to college in Denver. Kinda depends on what you want to do tho. Rockies beat the Greens or Adirondacks easy. But NE has coastline. Winter sports are a little cheaper in NE but the mountains are smaller. NE tourism is based around 'quaintness' ie farmhouse b&b, antique shops, handmade knickknacks while Denver has museums, pro sports, mining towns etc.

>>1161745

>Annex at Dulles

Holy fuck the Steven F Udvar-Hazy Centre has some crazy shit - the Enola Gay, SR71 Blackbird, Discovery shuttle, a Concorde to name a few...I'm gonna hire a car & cruise out there just to see it! Way better attractions than the one on the National Mall!!

>>1161051
>I live in DC. Where should I visit next, Colorado or either Vermont/New Hampshire/Maine?
Ehh, did you want to go stay in a B&B or grand ol' lady of a historic hotel in NH or move around daily in Colorado? There are two distinct seasons in NH 1) ski season and 2) summer lake and hiking fun (also affectionately known as black fly season). Renting someone's house or condo property that is only used in one or the other season and taking your car up there is a great way to go through and see all of the white and green mountains, one hike and waterfall at a time. Many ski lift mountains operate a nice summer concession of slides or other activities. Fall is especially gorgeous. Find out the predictions for "peak" and experience some of the most gorgeous birch trees in existence canopied over roads and in your hikes. I'd suggest North Conway as a midpoint New England experience, as kind of launching pad (about 2hr drive from Boston) to neighboring Maine and VT sights. you can quite easily climb the highest peak Mt. Washington by car and train. Good literary history in the region to enhance your travel mind's eye.

Colorado, well, hrm. It's kind a city in the midst of wide open spaces. I wouldn't say there isn't anything to do, but it's lighter on culture, and much more arid in comparison. The natives will be as odd as a person as someone from Oregon, politically, almost has some of the rebelliousness of a person in AK who wants to be left alone by the govt. You can spend about a 3-4 days in and around Denver, but I recommend the California Zephyr glass topped train that follows the Colorado River, and finish up in SLC, with a couple very different natural wonders there (great salt lake and natl parks). You might find the genealogy library worth a half day. I also recommend Fall or Summer.

>>1161149
>- is the metro system worth using or is it easier to jump in uber/taxi
Metro is great during "rush hour" mornings and afternoons. There is simply NO other city in the world that has clean and safe metro and buses with your all-incomes-riders wearing $3k suits like DC.
>-how long from a hotel near Union Station to Ronald Reagan airport
Use the trip planner on http://www.wmata.com/
Right in the Reagan terminal, you take an walkway to an escalator to the blue line metro, which connects to union station. I would expect a taxi from two distant points in DC is between $15-50, if I sum up all my rides that I've done in inclement weather door to door. Very efficient professional drivers and good experience overall though they are all foreigners with few years in the city. I'm not an uber fan for insurance reasons but this would be the city to use it.
>-where can I go in DC/nearby VA/MD to shoot guns ie a range
Dunno. VA has a serious no handgun rule on every billboard. military/ govt users who carry will have their own ranges. Sorry I can't be more help.
>-your favourite place to have a beer / people watch (I am travelling alone) or meet women
Have to keep in mind this is a college town, government town, and one of the very highest per capita education and income rates. Degenerate behavior when you can be reported on back at work lends a bit of discreetness and classy way of doing it all. Maybe get onto a meetup or other app centered thing and actually arrange a date. DC claims to have the highest amount of restaurants with al fresco dining so great people watching. Skip DC for VA/MD to be among people who live there but work in DC. DC has a 10% alcohol tax on tabs
>-is going up the Washington Monument worth it?
I haven't been in it since the earthquake damage. Like the statue of liberty, it's a grueling set of stairs or claustrophobic elevator ride to a view. I HIGHLY recommend the view on the top of the W down into the White House side yard.

>>1161745
>I'm staying at the Liaison Capital Hill, flight is at 10am. In order to allow for TSA bullshit I figure I leave around 730, and will take Uber. If the flight was later I'd take the metro
Err, I would assume rush hour starts at 6-7AM dude within the city, then going from central DC over a bridge and into Arlington. When you need to make a flight? Metro is going to be only thing that runs on exactly on schedule and experiences no hiccups. As comfy and small as DCA is, with the fastest TSA of any airport (hate dulles as the worst right ahead of OHare) in the day of 911, I do a full 2hrs if I need to make my flight fo sho. Plan to be at the inside ticket counter at 8am if you have checked luggage because they screen it with you standing there before they take it behind the scenes. Think of it like TSAx2. If only carryon, be at the concourse TSA just shy of hours ahead, and then just sit and drink a final bloody mary or mcdonalds coffee. It's rarely needed to have that much time, but if there's a threat going on randomly at that moment, it'll be needed not to miss your flight.

Before you say TSA states you only need 1 hour like its a customer guarantee rule, keep in mind that TSA is understaffed and its only a guideline that they can't give your seat away if you don't hear the announcement at your gate 25mins before boarding, and you'll be on a plane/terminal with some Senators, DIA and other "important" people who are targets all day every day and TSA will do what it takes to complete the job satisfactorily schedule be damned when advised of a threat. The good news is that if you do miss a flight, what a great airport to get back to your hotel and enjoy another day!

>>1162825
>Holy fuck the Steven F Udvar-Hazy Centre has some crazy shit - the Enola Gay, SR71 Blackbird, Discovery shuttle, a Concorde to name a few...I'm gonna hire a car & cruise out there just to see it! Way better attractions than the one on the National Mall!!
They're both good! The national mall location tends to be more like a smithsonian museums with its child-friend interactive displays, imax theatre, space for with massive crowds and tours doing their walk-through displays with a traffic flow, with various things all thrown about at once everywhere you look. There's a good focus on NASA and space things. Udvar is like a set of giant airplane hangars (really exactly what it is), with signs in front of the craft and you corralled to the perimeter. It's really an enhancement to the other museum but not a full replacement or one better, if that makes any sense. Plus all the museums on the national mall are free, so put on your best sneakers and exercise friendly clothing, do walk briskly, gravite to your favorite displays and then hit up the next building.

>>1162837

>trip planner

Should be handy for during the day. I'm not such a lazy ass I hail a cab to go 500m, it's more for night time & getting home when I am half cut.

>10% tax on tabs

Far out, that's harsh! Add in tip too and you're looking at 25-30% extra! Might have to curb my intake. What's the view on public consumption?

>>1162844

Thanks heaps, I have never encountered TSA, so knowing this could mean not missing my flight. I was planning on hiring a car the day before, parking in the city overnight (secure garage) and driving myself to the airport, I'd plan on leaving at 7am for a 1030am departure, and if I am early, like you say, relax and enjoy a drink & watch the planes take off.

>>1162845

Figured the Nat. Mall one was a more "experience" driven focus. Personally I am all about the artefacts, so getting close to something like the Enola Gay just blows my mind. If I get enough time I will swing by Smithsonian but DESU I am more curious seeing architecture and wandering through Arlington Cemetery and paying my respects.

>>1161051

Are you trying to get all 50 states like I am? I need to get Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont as well to get that least three states on the east coast. I would recommend those anyway, plus maybe a trip up to Canadaland since you'll be so close.

>>1161149
>where can I go in DC/nearby VA/MD to shoot guns ie a range

Do you need to rent guns? If so, go to Silver Eagle Group in Dulles. NRE range doesn't rent guns, but Silver Eagle does. I believe they even had full auto for rent as well.

>>1162844
>Err, I would assume rush hour starts at 6-7AM dude within the city, then going from central DC over a bridge and into Arlington

No, no it doesn't. Rush hour starts around 5AM going into the city and city gets backed up very quickly.

>>1162882
>Should be handy for during the day. I'm not such a lazy ass I hail a cab to go 500m, it's more for night time & getting home when I am half cut.
Look up a few taxi service phone numbers, add them to your phone. I wouldn't hail a taxi, but rather call for one. This is important when a whole load of people are all leaving a concert or club at the same time. Every taxi service runs by dispatch and appointment both, so feel free to arrange one ahead of time as well. I used red top taxi when I lived in arlington and alexandria, all the time. Some buildings have a dedicated taxi phone you pick up and ask for a dispatcher to get ya, and you'll hear 10 minutes tops most of the time, if you've called the best company for your area of the city. You'll be in a different area than where I lived, so try uber, but also ask your hotel who they prefer for their neighborhood. D/l the metro app on your phone too, and download a pdf maps ahead of time to use offline, as its nice to watch your route underground when on the train if you aren't seated next to a map and internet isn't on.

Where ya from? What kind of gap of culture are you hoping to experience in DC? It can be a nice place for a foodie to fill in unusual stuff not available in their home city, whether vietnamese or ethiopian, cajun or southern, or steaks or hipster bartender creations, establishments that do nothing but cake pops or moules frites (Granville) or speakeasy type bars channeling the past with homemade bitters.

>DC
Favorite overall exhibit:
gems in natural history museum, rows and rows of rocks in a natural state that simply wouldn't exist at todays market market anymore

Favorite museum:
newseum or spy museum, hard to say

Favorite burger:
Ray's Hellburger

Favorite weeknight people watching event:
Trivia with the CIA behavioral, law students, and other intelligence smarties @ Clarendon Grill

Favorite sunset:
Sequoia in Georgetown, especially if some rowing on the Potomac. Pick up some goodies before or after at Dean and Deluca's. Glance over at those Exorcist movie stairs as you come over that key bridge, or walk up them!

>>1162891

Fuck. Maybe I will take the car back the night before & just use the metro to get to DCA. I am staying just near Union Station at the Liaison DC.

>>1162909

>culture gap

Aussie, caucasian, 32, edumacated, wel travelled.

No doubt in my mind I will be fine, it's just knowing the places to go in order to leverage the best experiences possible:

Given this is the furtherest south I'm heading on this trip (Newark-DC-Buffalo-NYC) I really want to get into some good southern food, of which several suggestions were made earlier. Besides that & checking out the monuments I plan to get sozzled with a few locals, trade stories, maybe hear some live music. Will be there for a Saturday & Sunday night so hopefully see the best of DC nightlife.