A Week in Washington – Part 1

For several years now, we've travelled with a group of friends to various locales in the Northeast – Montreal, New York City, Chicago, Québec City, Boston – sampling the food and drink, taking in a ball game, and touring cultural and historic attractions. This year it was the turn of the Washington, D.C. area.

We have stayed in downtown hotels, but that tends to be expensive in the major cities in the summertime. So, we're always on the lookout for a property that that can accommodate eight people. Vacation rental sites like VRBO.com have sometimes come through for us, but there is another alternative: the suburban "suites" hotel.

We chose the Homewood Suites by Hilton in Columbia, MD. Like the Summerfield Suites (a Hyatt chain) we stayed at in Waltham, MA last summer, this property is located in a suburban setting close to major highway access, business parks, and big box retail. It caters to long-stay business travellers and families looking for more space. Our suites each had two bedrooms with their own baths and shared a common kitchen and sitting area. Not only did we have a place to socialize, but splitting the cost of the suites saved us some money. Wireless internet, buffet breakfast, and parking were all included; there's even a complimentary buffet in the evening (Mon. – Thurs.) which is substantial enough to qualify as dinner. There was a pool and spa, and though the furnishings in our suite were dated (the hotel was undergoing renovations while we were there), everything was clean and in good working order.

Most "suites" hotels do not have two-bedroom units (there were only two on the Maryland side of D.C. that I could find, the other being a Summerfield Suites in Gaithersburg), and those that do, don't have many, so you might have to do some hunting and book early.

We stayed in Columbia because it was located roughly equidistant from Washington, Baltimore, and Annapolis. A few minutes' drive got us to the interstate, and in twenty minutes we were at the Greenbelt Metro (subway) station. From there, it took about twenty-five minutes to reach destinations in downtown Washington. The Metro is clean, safe, and reliable, and is comprised of 86 stations and over 170 km. of track in a hub and spoke pattern centred on downtown, radiating outward toward the suburbs beyond the Beltway. Expansion is underway which will take it to Dulles airport in the next few years.

Baltimore was even closer, with the trip to Camden Yards (home of the Orioles) and the nearby Baltimore Harbour taking about twenty minutes by car. The Maryland state capital, Annapolis, a small, well-preserved eighteenth century seaport and home to the United States Naval Academy, took about thirty-five minutes.

All in all, we found the Homewood Suites in Columbia a good fit for our needs. In Part 2, I'll describe some of the highlights of our visits to Washington, Baltimore, and Annapolis.