The sparkling-new 300-acre National Harbor community development is transforming the Potomac on both sides of the river by lifting metro D.C. out of its staid government demeanor, and meeting attendees can easily access it all via Venetian-style water taxis.
The site’s centerpiece is the recently opened, $865 million Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, home to the hip Pose Ultra Lounge and the largest combined hotel and convention center on the East Coast. Pose shares billing with the Gaylord’s climate-controlled glass atrium filled with indoor gardens, winding pathways and a meandering indoor river. A 20,000-foot spa, four restaurants, retail stops, a marina, and river views of D.C. and Old Town Alexandria, Va., round out the Gaylord’s ample amenities.
Coming in elsewhere along National Harbor’s leafy waterside promenades are five more hotels, along with shops, condominiums and its Fleet Street lineup of nightclubs and entertainment venues. About three dozen restaurants, including Dolce Enoteca e Ristorante and Ketchup—developed by Los Angeles restaurateurs—are arriving soon.
Twenty-minute water taxi rides connect all that’s new at National Harbor with the history along Old Town Alexandria’s waterfront and districts. Affectionately known as George Washington’s hometown, Old Town Alexandria oozes Colonial and Civil War-era history, but in between, contemporary culinary stops, boutiques and galleries give visitors a fresh take.
North and south of the National Harbor-Alexandria Potomac crossing are other reasons to hail water taxis and dinner boats.
Narrated sunset, evening and moonlight water voyages to Georgetown from National Harbor take riders past D.C.’s iconic bridges, landmarks and monuments such as the Capitol, Lincoln and Washington memorials, and the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts into historic Georgetown, where upscale shops, clubs and pubs are plentiful. Stopovers are allowed with roundtrip tickets, so there’s time to enjoy the district before returning.
Water taxi travelers to Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens get a particularly pleasing sense of arrival at the first President’s beloved home from either Alexandria or National Harbor.
Instead of being the “national disgrace” President Lyndon Johnson labeled it 40 years ago, the Potomac River has returned as D.C.’s front door, and a fun way to get around the region, sans traffic congestion on land.
For More Info
Potomac Water Taxis www.potomacriverboatco
Potomac Dinner Cruises www.dandydinnerboat.com
National Harbor www.nationalharbor.com
Gaylord National Resort www.gaylordhotels.com
Alexandria, Va. www.visitalexandriava.com
