Washington, D.C.

Ford's Theatre

This is where John Wilkes Booth shot President Abraham Lincoln in 1865, and he was taken across the street to the Petersen House where he died. Ford's Theatre is not only a historic site, but remains a working theater, with regular performances. Theater here is usually the most traditional of the downtown venues, offering dramatic work that is "as eloquent, intelligent and respectful of humanity as Mr. Lincoln." The truly coveted tickets are for the annual Christmas Eve performance of A Christmas Carol. The daily tours take you through the theater and the onsite museum, and also spill across the street to the Petersen House, where Lincoln died.

Tours: 9AM-5PM daily·Shows: $40-55, tours: free

John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, commonly known as the Kennedy Center, is a cultural center located on the eastern bank of the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. It is considered the national cultural center of the United States, serving as a "living memorial" to John F. Kennedy. The center opened on September 8, 1971, and hosts many genres of performance art, spanning theater, ballet, modern dance, classical music, jazz, pop, psychedelic, and folk music. The Kennedy Center is the residence of the National Symphony Orchestra.

Nationals Park

Nationals Park opened in 2008, and is home of the Washington Nationals baseball team, The Nats. The Nationals, though, have history beyond its 2005 revival — D.C.'s first baseball franchise from 1891-99 bore the same (interchangeably with the Washington Senators), as did its two other successors throughout the 20th century. None were very successful though. The first disbanded after nine years with a 0.366 win percentage; the second and third eventually left the city to become the Minnesota Twins and the Texas Rangers. After the Montreal Expos moved to the city, they followed in the D.C. tradition, and performed progressively worse with each passing year. In 2010, when the team finally started turning itself around, and acquired bona fide superstars in pitcher Stephen Strasburg, followed by outfielder Bryce Harper and pitcher Max Scherzer. The stadium is big, with comfy seats, an enormous scoreboard, and great concessions by venerable D.C. food establishments such as Five Guys, Ben's Chili Bowl, Dogfish Head, and Flying Dog Brewery.

$20-250

Capital One Arena

The 18,277-seat arena is home to both the Washington Wizards of the NBA and the National Hockey League's Washington Capitals. The Georgetown Hoyas college basketball team also plays games here, as do the WNBA's Washington Mystics. It also hosts major concerts, WWE wrestling, and various other events throughout the year. Tickets are sold through Ticketmaster or at the box office.

Folger Shakespeare Library

A library, performance venue, and a museum all rolled into one. The library is the single most impressive feature—it houses the largest collection of the Bard's works in the world—although the library itself is geared towards researchers, not travelers. The Shakespearean performances here are top-notch, and occasionally outshine the bigger Shakespeare Theatre Company in the East End (although the performances here can be more uneven). There are also frequent lectures, musical performances, etc., which can be a good excuse to visit. The small museum has a replica of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, and an Elizabethan garden in the back, and is nice to visit combined with a performance.

Mon-Sat 10AM-5PM, Sun noon-5PM·Plays: $20-50 (occasional student discounts) · Wi-Fi

RFK Stadium

Opened in 1961 as the home of the Washington Redskins, this stadium has suffered wear and tear and is no longer in use. However, small annual festivals and events are held in its parking lot, including the Shamrockfest Irish music festival every March and the DC World Reggae Festival every August. Plans are in the works to demolish the stadium.

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Establishment think tank with focus on foreign policy security issues.

Brookings Institution

Large, established center-left think tank with a broad focus.

D.A.R. Constitution Hall

D.A.R. Constitution Hall is a smaller venue which hosts theatrical and musical performances, although the acoustics are known to be subpar. It is also home to the Daughters of the American Revolution Museum, which displays fine arts, ceramics, quilts, and other items, and period rooms. Special events held at Constitution Hall have included filming of the popular game shows, Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune. Architect John Russell Pope designed the building, which was completed in 1929 and is designated a National Historic Site. It was built to house the annual D.A.R. convention, and was home to the National Symphony Orchestra prior to the opening of the Kennedy Center.

Mon-Fri 9AM-4PM, Sat 9AM-5PM·Free

Atlas Performing Arts Center

First opened in 1938, the Atlas Theatre was an old movie palace that was transformed into an arts center and performance venue in 2004 via an extensive $22 million renovation. Performances run throughout the whole year, and vary from drama to musical to cabaret to dance. The building also houses a public art gallery.

Art gallery: Tue-Sun noon-6PM

Ice Rink @ National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden

A relaxing place just outside the National Gallery of Art to enjoy the fresh air, listen to music, and enjoy the surroundings, including a view of the National Archives building. Take a break from skating to enjoy hot cocoa or a meal at the Pavilion Café, next to the skating rink. Note that the sculpture garden itself closes M-Sa 5PM, Su 6PM, and access after that time is restricted to the ice rink only.

Nov–March: Mon-Thu 10AM-7PM, Fri-Sat 10AM-9PM, Sun 11AM-7PM·$8.50 adults, $7.50 children, students, and seniors; $3 skate rental

National Theatre

First opened in 1835, many Presidents have come to see performances, with many famous performers back in is heyday. National Theatre is now the city's most likely host for Broadway shows and musicals, and other big-name visiting acts.

$50-200

Lincoln Theatre

Native Washingtonians Duke Ellington and Pearl Bailey performed in the Lincoln Theatre. The theatre also hosted shows by Louis Armstrong, Cab Calloway, Lionel Hampton, Ella Fitzgerald, Billy Eckstine, Billie Holliday and Sarah Vaughn.

Georgetown Waterfront Park

A 10-acre National Park that traces the path of the Potomac River from the Key Bridge to the Washington Harbor Complex. The park itself features an interactive fountain, water steps, lawns to relax upon, and walking/cycling paths. There are also scenic river overlooks and a labyrinth to explore.

Warner Theatre

The Warner Theatre is a gorgeous old building. A former 1920s movie palace, having long languished in disrepair, was finally reopened in 1992 following extensive restoration. The Warner Theatre hosts Broadway shows, concerts, dance, and stand-up, etc.

$35-75

Howard Theatre

A historic theater, opened in 1910 and extensively renovated in 2012 after decades of vandalism, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.

GALA Hispanic Theatre at Tivoli Theatre

GALA stands for Grupo de Artistas Latino Americanas. The Tivoli Theatre was the grandest of D.C.'s early 20th-century movie palaces, built in ornate Italianate Renaissance style for a whopping one million dollars in 1921. Today the theatre is mixed use, with the important use being the small stage for GALA. Most of GALA's performances are in Spanish, with English subtitles, and range from classical Spanish drama to contemporary Latino theater. They also put on frequent non-dramatic performances of dance, music, etc.

Shows usually Thu-Sat 8PM, Sun 3PM

The Anthem

Versatile 6000-person venue with bars, featuring rock concerts and other performances.

Wheelchair accessible

Book Hill Park

A park on what used to be a reservoir, the hilltop is now a great place to get a view of Georgetown University.

Arena Stage

A highly acclaimed not-for-profit theater devoted to modern and contemporary American theater, with an emphasis on politically engaging, intense, and often edgy drama. A major renovation was completed in 2010.

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Nonpartisan foreign policy think tank.

Shakespeare Theatre Company

D.C. can't get enough Shakespeare, to the extent that the Shakespeare Theatre Company had to open a second, enormous performance venue in 2007 at the Sidney Harman Hall. Both venues are great, the Lansburgh being a long-time favorite and a smaller, intimate space, and the Harman Hall being big, flashy, and state-of-the-art. The performances here of Shakespeare, often set in present times, as well as other classics from Aeschylus to Marlowe, are almost always universally-acclaimed and top-notch. If you want to see theater in D.C., this is a great place to start. If you are in D.C. in the early fall, enter the online lottery for "Free for All" tickets.

$45-100; $10 tickets usually available for the 35-and-under crowd, standing room only, on the day of the performance

Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company

This is the top theater company downtown for seeing new plays. Drama here is edgy, takes real risks, and is almost always memorable.

$25-50

Sixth & I Synagogue

One of the oldest synagogues in DC, it was renovated in 2004 to become both a religious and entertainment venue. It hosts big-name theatrical and musical performances.

Walter E. Washington Convention Center

Hosts events throughout the year, including shows geared towards the public, as well as trade shows and conferences. The popular Washington Auto Show and the Washington Travel Show take place annually in late January and the National Book Festival occurs every September.

American Enterprise Institute

Conservative think tank, especially on economic issues.

GWU Lisner Auditorium

The Lisner Auditorium at George Washington University hosts various events including concerts and dance performances.

Otakon

One of the largest and longest-running anime conventions in the United States. Even if you are not into anime, you'll get to see throngs of Japanese cartoon-inspired costumed attendees (cosplayers) take over the Convention Center during the convention. You need to buy an admission badge to enter the convention, but you can just stand on the street and ogle the costumes for free. The best times for this are Thursday evening (a long line often forms for picking up badges) and Saturday, the day when the most people are in costume.

Three-day weekend in Jul or Aug (varies)·$75-105 depending on date of registration

Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park

The Georgetown portion of the 184.5-mile Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park stretches through the heart of the historic industrial center of Georgetown, just south of M St. Restored and renovated buildings line the path, offering a wonderful walk through history. In addition, one can take a mule-pulled barge ride through some of the still-working locks. The path runs northwest along the edge of the city, and eventually all the way to Cumberland, Maryland. The route is very popular with bikers, joggers, and anyone out for a stroll in a pretty setting. If you follow the route east past the end of the canal and head under the highway underpass, you can connect up with the paved waterfront jogging/bike path which runs by the Kennedy Center and then the monuments on the National Mall.

Washington Improv Theater

WIT

Hosts hilarious paid improv shows throughout the year, plus the pay-what-you-want "Harold Night" improv shows every Tuesday night.