We took a whirlwind tour of the monuments on a bus tour as part of a choir trip we took to Washington D.C. Though enjoyable, I would have preferred to see them at a more leisurely pace. (Visions of the movie European Vacation flashed through my mind a few times on the tour!) We had plans to go on our own in early morning later that week, but we got sick and were unable to do so.
Pros and Cons of When
So when to visit the monuments? It depends on what you want. Our tour was around 8 am, so it wasn’t too crowded, but we were on a tight schedule. If you do not mind early mornings, I would suggest going at 6:30 am in the summer to see the sunrise over the monuments. All of the monuments I will discuss on this post are open 24 hours a day 365 days a year. Many tour companies give night tours, but again, you will be rushed. We tried to go on our own at night in April a few years ago, and it was way too crowded with tour buses. So if you want to be by yourself, early morning is best.
If you want to talk to park rangers or see the visitor centers, then you need to go between 9:30 am and 10 pm. Go to this calendar to see specific talks or events that will take place while you are there.
Location
As you can see, you can walk to all of these monuments. I would probably do a combination of driving/public transportation and walking. I also would probably break this up into two different mornings. I would park at the Thomas Jefferson Memorial and enjoy the FDR and MLK memorial. Then I would park at the Lincoln Memorial and visit the Korean War, WWII, and Vietnam Memorials.
Thomas Jefferson Memorial
Built in 1943, this marble and stone monument looks like something out of ancient Rome. Jefferson’s nineteen foot statue faces the White House. Quotes from the Declaration of Independence and his letters are engraved on the walls.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt Monument.
First of all, be careful that you have the right monument. This is the monument on West Potomac, not the Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial Stone.
Four outside rooms reflect each of his terms in office. For example, they have someone listening to FDR’s fireside chats and people standing in a bread line.
Beautiful water features with engraved quotations throughout the memorial reflect parts of FDR’s philosophy.
The monument also features his wife Eleanor in one area. Part of the memorial also has his dog, Fala, sitting next to him.
Walking to the MLK Memorial
You can then take a beautiful walk along the Tidal Basin to the MLK Memorial. The path is lined with cherry blossom trees, many of which create an obstacle on the path, so watch your head!
You enter the monument by the giant statue of MLK in front of the Mountain of Despair.
Surrounding the monument are walls with inscriptions. Maya Angelou was just one of the historians who chose the fourteen quotations from his sermons, speeches, and other writings.
Again, you could take several hours to visit these three memorials and then walk back to where you parked or take a bus from the MLK memorial to the next one. You could also choose to keep walking to the next memorials. However, if you choose to go early in the morning, you could visit these three and then go to a Smithsonian museum or some other attraction you wish to visit in the afternoon. Then, start the next section the next day.
Lincoln Memorial
Our group gave a concert at the on the steps below the monument, so I didn’t get much of a chance to really reflect on this wonderful monument to our 16th president. As I mentioned earlier, I would probably park here/start here and tour the war memorials that are a short walk from this memorial.
Korean War Memorial
The Pool of Remembrance and the Mural wall are impressive, but the most haunting part of this memorial are the soldier sculptures in the Field of Service. A friend of mine remarked how the looks of fear and pain on their faces affect her more than any other of the war memorials.
World War II Memorial
We also gave a concert here. You can see the Lincoln Memorial in the back, which faces straight across the Reflecting Pool toward the Lincoln Memorial.
Fifty-six granite columns surround the center fountain, which symbolizes unity between the District of Columbia, the forty-eight states, and the seven federal territories. Two arches symbolize victory in the Pacific and the Atlantic. On the Freedom Wall, 4,048 stars, each star representing one hundred Americans, honors the lives lost during the war.
Vietnam Memorial
I knew about the long wall, having seen the half size replica of it at Teague Park in Longview Texas. I like this picture with the Washington Memorial reflected in the names.
However, what I found even more moving were the sculptures in the area. Frederick Hart sculpted “The Three Soldiers,” three young soldiers gazing at the wall and remembering their fallen comrades. One of the soldiers resembled a young man in our choir group, which made the sculpture hit home for me.
Glenna Goodacre created the sculpture for the Vietnam Women’s Memorial section. The three women surround a dying soldier. One woman holds the soldier, another one beseeches heaven, and another stares at his helmet, overwhelmed by the suffering in the war.
Washington Memorial
We did not visit this memorial, but you could walk to it easily from the World War II Memorial. However, this monument dominates the skyline, so we were content with enjoying the monument from various viewpoints.
If you are interested in riding to the top of the Washington Monument, then check out the information here.