<p>We are planning to attend AU’s Freshman Preview Day on August 2nd. Where should we stay? We will probably also visit Georgetown while we are there. My understanding is that the metro isn’t very accessible from either campus, so we will probably take cabs. Is it cheaper to stay near American? Should we try to split the distance between the two? Really have <em>NO</em> sense of the area, best way to get around at all. </p>
<p>All advice is appreciated!</p>
<p>There is an Embassy about one stop away on the Metro (Friendship Heights) or a Hilton Garden Inn in Bethesda (two stops). Lots of hotels in DC as well (DuPont Circle is not far on the Metro). AU is easy to access with the shuttle that runs from Tenley to campus. Georgetown is not as easy with public transport I don’t think.</p>
<p>We have stayed at the Holiday Inn in Georgetown…it used to have a free shuttle to American, you can call to check if it still available.</p>
<p>More recently we preferred to stay at the Embassy Suites in Chevy Chase…the metro is right in the building. It isn’t that far of a walk from the metro to campus (less than a mile) and it is a very pretty walk. In addition, there is almost always an AU shuttle bus (free) parked right at the Metro station ( look right behind the adjacent Whole Foods).</p>
<p>What is the metro station that is nearest to AU? How many stops away is Chevy Chase? So the Embassy at Friendship Heights is a different Embassy from Chevy Chase, right?</p>
<p>No, the Embassy Suites Chevy Chase Pavilion (my favorite hotel) is AT the Friendship Heights Metro station–just one hotel. As noted above, you can exit the Metro under the hotel and head right in without going outside. It’s just one Metro stop from Tenleytown/AU, and when you exit the Metro there, you just walk to the corner and wait for the AU shuttle bus to stop and take you the five-minute ride to the campus (they come frequently; I’ve never waited more than 6 or 7 minutes). You can also take the 15 minute walk from the Metro to the campus if you’re so inclined. In addition, there is a bus that goes from right in front of the hotel building to the edge of campus–I forget the number, but the excellent Metro website offers itineraries, and the very cool “Next Bus” app lets you know exactly when the bus will be at your stop, in real time. A cab between that hotel and the campus will run you about $10 before tip, but it can be very hard to find a cab on the AU end. The Embassy Suites hotel includes a very nice full breakfast and manager’s cocktail hour in the rate, so it’s a better deal than it looks at first blush. (Can you tell I’ve stayed there a lot???)</p>
<p>AU has such a good location! For when you want to get off campus, it’s only one metro stop to all the shopping and restaurants at Friendship Heights/Chevy Chase; just a couple of metro stops in the other direction, you are at DuPont, another very cool neighborhood.</p>
<p>The shuttle between campus and the metro runs all the time that the metro is open, and if you prefer the walk, it’s very safe. You will pass by a huge embassy complex (I can’t remember what country?), the Department of Homeland Security (and lots of internships there), and NBC (more internships there).</p>
<p>My son and his friends make a game of trying to spot all of the camoflaged security cameras.(yes, look up in the trees). His freshman year, he and some friends tried to climb on each other’s shoulders to look over the wall into the embassy compound: thirty second later they were surrounded by squad cars. I figure nothing too bad can happen when so many eyes are watching, although of course you still need to use good judgment.</p>
<p>One other thing to note-the dates you will be at AU there will be very few students on campus. I think even the summer semester is over at that time, so almost everyone (students and a lot of faculty) will not be on campus, and that might make you think that the campus is dead, when most times it is bustling.</p>
<p>Courtyard by Marriott in Chevy Chase is very nice - across the street from Embassy Suites and probably less money. We got our best rate by calling them rather than using the web.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the advice! We actually stayed at the Embassy Suites when we came to DC as tourists six or so years ago! Good to know that there is a shuttle between Tenley and the school. </p>
<p>I have a good friend who spends a lot of time in DC, and he discouraged our taking cabs. He said it was a bad (expensive) habit to get into and that ds would get much more of a sense of what it would like to live and go to school in DC if we used public transportation.
Given that there is no metro stop at Georgetown, what would be the best way to get there if we stayed at the Embassy Suites at the Chevy Chase Pavilion?</p>
<p>I will let my ds know that the campus may appear dead and that it usually isn’t that way!</p>
<p>Thanks, again.</p>
<p>Hoggirl, to get to Georgetown Univ., you can take the 31, 32, or 36 bus from Friendship Heights (where the Embassy Suites is). Get off the bus at Wisconsin Ave & Dumbarton Street, and then walk .47 miles west to the University. You can find this info by using the trip planner at [Metro</a> - Home page](<a href=“http://www.wmata.com%5DMetro”>http://www.wmata.com)</p>
<p>To get from the Embassy Suites to AU more directly (instead of taking the Metro for one stop and then the AU shuttle bus), you can just take the N2 or N4 bus directly from Friendship Heights to AU.</p>
<p>Thanks for the bus info LR4150! When one lives in an area with little to no public transportation, it’s all a bit intimidating!</p>
<p>Students seem to master DC public transportation in no time at all.</p>
<p>boysx3- I’m sure ds could master it easily, but I am just an old, mom. :)</p>
<p>Enjoy the trip!</p>