Metro stops in this area are Eastern Market or Capital South (Orange or Blue Line), and Judiciary Square or Union Station (Red Line).

Centered on 18th Street and Columbia Road (NW), Adams Morgan is a slightly off-the-beaten-track neighborhood that features a wealth of ethnic restaurants, cafes, nightclubs, bookstores, and the National Zoo. The Kalorama district (kalorama is a Greek word for “beautiful view”) runs from Adams Morgan to North Dupont Circle and showcases beautiful homes and apartment buildings. To get to Adams Morgan and Kalorama, take the Metro to Woodley Park Zoo (Red Line), or walk up from Dupont Circle.

You just might find yourself returning to Dupont Circle over and over again, even though it is a relatively small part of the city. It has wonderful restaurants of all varieties, bookstores, art galleries, movie theaters, and a thriving nightlife. The Circle is also the center of the District's gay nightlife, with several gay bars within walking distance of one another. Tourist sites in this area include the Heurich and Woodrow Wilson Houses, the Textile Museum, and the Phillips Collection. The Metro stop is Dupont Circle (Red Line).

This neighborhood was the industrial area of the city in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. In the summertime, the area was marshy and infested with mosquitoes, which is how it got its name. Before it got that nickname, it had been known as Funkstown, named after Jacob Funk, the owner of a particularly nasty local factory. Of course, Foggy Bottom has since been drained and spiffed up.

Foggy Bottom lies just southwest of the downtown tourist district and northwest of Georgetown. Tourist sites in this neighborhood include the U.S. State Department, The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and the luxurious (and notorious) Watergate complex. The closest Metro stops are Foggy Bottom and Farragut North (Orange or Blue Line).

Georgetown is one of the oldest Colonial townships in the country and has some of the oldest homes in the city. One of its prime tourist sites is the Old Stone House, which was built before the Revolutionary War.

Georgetown was already an independent town when Washington D.C. was in the process of being designed. While it is now part of the city, Georgetown does keep its distance from the heart of downtown by being nearly inaccessible without a car and by having some of the highest-priced homes in the region.

Georgetown is a bit easier to get to since the recent inauguration of the D.C. Circulator. The bus connects Union Station, Georgetown, and many other places in between. Definitely worth visiting, it's one of the most charming parts of the city; many visitors enjoy strolling about to see its historic homes, such as Dumbarton Oaks. Because Georgetown is home to Georgetown University, it is packed with interesting, youth-oriented shops, as well as many restaurants and pubs and a co-op of art galleries. It is also one of the city's nightlife centers, especially on weekends. To reach Georgetown, you can take the Metro to the Foggy Bottom (Orange or Blue Line) stop, but it's a long walk. A cab ride from downtown may be a better option — the fare should be less than $10 — and Georgetown is always full of cabs.

This is the residential neighborhood bordering the Washington National Cathedral. There are a number of good restaurants and movie theaters in this area. The former mansions and now embassies that make up Embassy Row (a must-see walk or drive) are located between Glover Park and Woodley Park.

In the midst of Embassy Row lies the Naval Observatory, where the nation's master clocks are set. Next door to the Observatory is the vice president's mansion, which is so far off the road that it can hardly be seen from the street. Across from the British Embassy, you'll find an idyllic park featuring a statue of the Persian poet Kahlil Gibran.

The nearest Metro station is Tenleytown (Red Line), but it's a tenminute walk to the National Cathedral, so take a bus transfer when you exit the train station and you can hop on any bus for thirty-five cents.

This is a beautiful residential neighborhood that grew up around Martin Van Buren's and Grover Cleveland's summer homes. It borders the Adams Morgan neighborhood and starts at the National Zoo. There are a number of good restaurants in the area. Its largest landmark is the Washington Marriott Wardman Park, and it is also home to the Omni Shoreham, another large hotel. Cleveland Park or Woodley Park-Zoo (Red Line) are the closest Metro stops.

This stretch of the city between 12th and 16th Streets on U Street NW was once the center of African-American nightlife in the city (known as “Black Broadway”), where such luminaries as Duke Ellington and Cab Calloway performed when they were in town. It still retains its reputation for nightlife, with a number of jazz and rock nightclubs, and now features the Lincoln Theater, recently restored to its 1920s splendor, a cultural landmark for music, dance, theater, and cinema. Metro stops include U Street-Cardozo or Shaw-Howard University (Green Line).

Though not technically a D.C. neighborhood, Tyson's Corner is a shopping hotspot and a bargain-shopping mecca for tourists and residents alike. It is one of the largest U.S. retail centers outside New York City.

The name comes from two of the malls — Tyson's Corner Center and Tyson's Galleria — which together feature a total of eight major department stores, including Bloomingdale's and Nordstrom's, as well as more than 400 shops and restaurants. Tyson's Corner isn't on the Metro. If you have a car available, take Route 7.