You want to go where?

Just a warning to visitors to Washington - If the government shutdown does come to pass, Smithsonian museums as well as Federal Monuments and memorials will be closed as well. The National Park Service staff already have barricades ready to close off the Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, etc.

Impact on other agencies can be found here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv...rtment-impact/.

Edited to add a list of attractions which are believed to be open during the shutdown (mostly based on the Washington Post). I still advise that you call as some of these are quite small venues and may have limited hours or require reservations. This list will continue to be edited as new information comes in.

Madame Tussaud’s
Kreeger Museum
Hillwood Estate
German American Heritage Museum
Dumbarton House
Spy Museum
Newseum
Crime Museum
Corcoran Gallery
National Cathedral
National Shrine
National Museum of Women in the Arts
Sixth and I Historic Synagogue
The Philips Collection
Arlington Cemetery
President Lincolns Cottage at the Soldier’s Home
Mount Vernon
Folger Shakespeare Library
National Building Museum
Tudor Place
National Geographic Museum
National Museum of Health and Medicine
DAR Museum
Exhibits in the Ronald Reagan Building
Ford's Theatre - Walking tours only, performances suspended.
African American Civil War Museum
National Firearms Museum
Ratner Museum (Bethesda)
Morven Park (Leesburg)
Oatlands (Leesburg)
Heurich House
DAR Museum

Also check: http://dchousemuseums.org/ for a listing of house/building museums in the DC area. While some are federal (and therefore closed), many are not. (Thanks, paytonc)

djp98374

There is a previous thread n the potential shutdown and furloughs last year that touches on this.

djp98374

In DC not everything is run by the fed govt. Spy Museum, Holocaust, and Newseum are private.

Some particular national monuments can stay open if they are not funded through appropriated federal funds or they have secondary funding that will keep them open, though with some reduction of hours or staff.

Over the summer during the sequestration/furloughs where many national parks curtailed operations and cut programs a few national parks ( grand Teton ) had full operations because they received funds through charities. Other example are joint state/federal govt operations, or memorials for presidents or famous figures who get funding through non federal sources ( states, charity, family estates).

Monuments and memorials on military bases may stay fully operational because their funding comes from non appropriated funds.


State/Other programs that get federal funding may not be affected starting October but could be affected starting in January because their federal funds they get are designed to cover a calendar year period ( not federal fiscal year) so they are fully funded through December. Some School/Colege programs could have been paid out in FY13 money that covered through the current school year, while others will be affected because they were designed to be paid out with FY14 money.

paytonc

Word out there is that "closing national parks" may extend to closing trails and/or roads through said parks.

You want to go where?

My information comes from the Washington Post and personal observation. The barricade fences are already staged in preparation for the shutdown. However, as djp98374 points out, there are private museums in Washington. The Kennedy Center will remain open as it is a revenue producing entity and would cost more to close than to keep it open. Most of the other privately funded memorials/parks to which djp98374 are not in Washington, but in other parts of the country.

The key thing is not to assume that your planned activities will go on as expected. Make the telephone call first to find out if the museum, monument, park, or event which you planned to attend is open/taking place as scheduled. Washington can still be a good place to visit, even with a fed shutdown, but if you have your heart set on going to Air and Space, better to find out earlier than later.

amanuensis

The National Building Museum has announced that it will be open as usual. http://www.nbm.org/about-us/press-ro...vent-of-a.html

You want to go where?

Sorry, but the Holocaust Museum is closed - check their website. I am going to update my first post with a list of attractions which are open, based on the Washington Post.

amanuensis

I just confirmed with a telephone call to the organization that the National Museum of Health and Medicine is still open as usual:

http://www.medicalmuseum.mil/

amanuensis

The Ronald Reagan Building (aka International Trade Center) is open. http://www.itcdc.com/Visitor-Informa...tractions.aspx And I would love to have tickets for the Capital Steps performances this weekend! (They perform in the Reagan Building Auditorium.)

amanuensis

The DAR Museum is also open as usual. http://www.dar.org/museum/

You want to go where?

Thanks, amanuensis. I am updating the list in my first post based on what you are discovering.

GodAtum

if this was my 1st visit to DC, I cannot do anything. Was hoping to visit Congress and Congress library

You want to go where?

Hence the reason for my starting this thread. I wanted people to be clear as to what they would and would not be able to do when they came to Washington. Many people who can reschedule their trips may prefer to do so.

Those who cannot reschedule should at least know what the alternatives are that are open, even if they are, by and large, second best.

The Capitol is effectively closed to tourists (unless you know a congress member who is willing to show you around).

The Library of Congress is closed.

mhnadel

Performances at Fords' Theatre are suspended, but their walking tours continue to operate.

You want to go where?

Closures which some may not have been expecting -

C&O canal towpath
Capital Crescent trail
Boathouses on the Potomac built on Federal land (I wondered why I saw so few rowers this morning)