Smithsonian Museum of Natural History — Things to See in DC
Smithsonian Museum of Natural History: Places to tour in Washington DC
The Smithsonian Museum of Natural History is the most visited museum in Washington DC. Smithsonian opening hours are from 10:00 AM to 5:30 PM most days. Open 7 days a week, 364 days a year. Closed on Christmas. Always free of charge. Handicapped accessible entrances are now available on both sides of the museum — from Constitution Avenue and from Madison Drive. There are some handicapped parking spaces on the Madison Drive side of the museum, but there is no nearby street parking on Constitution Avenue.
A visit to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History is part of the itinerary on our Featured Tours.
The National Mall entrance is on Madison Drive. Nearest metro stations are Smithsonian or Federal Triangle metro stations on the Orange and Blue lines, or Navy Memorial/Archives metro on the Yellow and Green lines. Inexpensive street parking is available on the National Mall along Madison and Jefferson Drives, but is quite limited. Handicapped parking spots are available near the Madison Drive entrance. The nearest commercial parking garage is the underground parking at the Ronald Reagan Building. North of Pennsylvania Avenue, there are commercial parking garages on every numbered street.
On-street parking on the National Mall is no longer free of charge. Three hour parking is available at $2 per hour. Parking meters only accept credit cards.
A great place to see more information and current temporary exhibits can be found at the official Smithsonian Natural History museum website.
There is a restaurant and gift shop inside the museum as well as a food kiosk on the National Mall outside of the museum. On the Constitution Avenue side, there are hot dog and souvenir trucks, but they must leave after 4:00 PM because of rush hour. There are several restaurants nearby along Pennsylvania Avenue and E Street. The Sculpture Garden of the National Gallery of Art has a cafe and is right next door to the museum. The Natural History Museum also has occasional special exhibits that you have to pay for. Some of the major exhibits include: 1) the Hall of Fossils — dinosaur and extinct mammals; 2) the Hall of Mammals; 3) a gemstone exhibit, which includes the Hope Diamond, the largest diamond in the world; 4) The Hall of Human Origins, with exhibits on evolution and primitive man; 5) Ocean Hall. There are many, many more interesting exhibits. You can spend hours here, but you can also just wander in for 15 minutes and see the main hall with its giant African Elephant and the Hall of Mammals. You will not be disappointed.
