2401 Foxhall Rd NW
Little known even to locals is this private house-museum with an impressive collection of paintings by the impressionist and early modern masters. The house itself was designed by modernist architects Philip Johnson and Richard Foster. The ride out to the museum will take you through some of the country’s wealthiest neighborhoods.
4155 Linnean Avenue NW
Hillwood Estate is a hidden gem of magnificent proportions. Merriweather Post Hillwood, a prominent businesswoman and heiress to the Post Cereal fortune, built her home next to Rock Creek Park. The estate was to be an extraordinarily stately and luxurious site for entertaining guests, housing for her impressive art collections, and was built with the intention of leaving it behind for the world to enjoy. The mansion contains many French and Russian decorative arts, much of which she obtained from the USSR, whose government at the time under Stalin was then auctioning off a good portion of its cultural heritage to finance its war efforts. Second in grandeur only to the art collection itself are the French and Japanese-style gardens.
3001 Wisconsin Ave NW
A Gothic mammoth and the world’s sixth largest cathedral, the National Cathedral is a huge attraction that draws in many visitors. Cut over a period of 83 years, the cathedral is made up of 150,000 tons of stone. Tours are a must if you really want to see the cathedral, as towers and the crypt are off limits without a guide during the busy season. The organ demonstrations are also spectacular. Check the website for events, as there is often children’s programming as well as major concerts.