Forget D.C., Head to Dulles
Written: Dec 12 '06
|
Product Rating:
|
|
|
Pros: Awesome, Amazing Artifacts
Cons: Can be busy
The Bottom Line: Even for people who are not aviation fans, they will find something of interest here.
|
|
|
| toiletoctopus's Full Review: National Air & Space Museum |
The Smithsonian Institution has two locations for its Air and Space Museum. The smaller original part is located on the National Mall in Washington D.C., which is accessible from the Metro.(Don't bother traveling by car, as a parking spot is impossible to find) The newest location of this museum is right next to Dulles International Airport in Chantilly, VA. If you are in the Metropolitan Area, I strongly suggest going to the Virginia location, which is called the Steven Udvar Hazy Center.
Mr. Udvar, delivered $66 million dollars of his money to establish this museum, so he deserves to have his name on the building. The staff is very picky about pronouncing his name properly, which is "OODVAR". There must be some kind of secret checks to guarantee that the staff does this right, because they did seem a bit paranoid when I kept saying it wrong. Mr. Udvar built his financial wealth upon his company, which leases aircraft to a large group of airline companies. In addition to running the company, he is himself a licensed pilot, and his passion for aviation led him to donate this amount of money to the museum.
The Udvar Hazy Center is open from 10 am-5:30 pm daily, and it is directly off of Rt.28. Be sure to get here early, and preferably on a weekday, because Rt.28 can be the "mother of all parking lots." Upon entering the grounds, you will be expected to pay a extortion based ransom of $12 for parking, or you will be shot on the spot. Usually I would complain about such a rate, but this place is well worth this fee, since there is no "actual admission." There is plenty of parking here, so you most likely won't have to endure any adventures of "Northern Virginia Hospitality."
Upon entering the building, you will have to a security check, which will involve dropping a lot of garments. As soon as you get past this checkpoint, you will see the SR-71 Blackbird in front of you. I could not believe the amount of excitement this brought, as its something you'll have to see to believe. Its just an awesome plane, and it is high on the testosterone factor. From its appearance, its obvious that it could travel at over mach 3 and at high altitudes. This is probably my favorite aircraft in the whole museum, and even Ms.Toiletoctopus, who's not into planes, had to admit that it is incredible.
To the right of this plane is the fighter jet area, and I think this is a great place to spend a lot of time. I never quite realized how big the F-4 Phantom was. It has a neat paint job on it, and I like how the F-14 has Felix the Cat carrying a bomb on it. That's just cool, and I love the Cowboy type of imagery. There is also a A-6 Intruder, and the brand new X-35 Joint Strike Fighter to drool over. The older post WWII model F-86 is nothing short of eye candy. The stainless steel appearance reminds me of a chromed out classic car, and even though it is old, I'd love to fly in one. There are also a couple of Russian Migs on display, which remind me of a 1979 AMC Gremlin.
Would you like to go to Uranus? There is a Space Display, that is just truly amazing. Here the Space Shuttle Enterprise sans Spock, is displayed in all of its glory. It is amazing to see the space shuttle up close, and it is a lot bigger than I thought it was. If you look at the tail, you can see the tiles that NASA removed, for its investigation involving the loss of the Columbia. There are plenty of cool spacesuits in display cases, as well as a lot of different satellites and space craft. Next to the space display are some missiles, which left me with an impression of the damage they could cause if launched. Don't take your little ones here, as it was a bit unnerving to look at the gigantic old army missile.
I liked the commercial jet plane area a lot. It was neat to see the old prototype for the 707. I never had the opportunity to fly on one of them, but I wish I could get the chance. Its a beautiful aircraft, and those four engines look like they could do some serious lifting. The Air France Concorde is a sight to behold. This plane used to fly to Dulles, and it was unbelievably loud when arriving or departing. Thankfully, the flights were always done in the afternoon. There is a neat old propeller Pan Am Airways plane, and the Enola Gay is displayed here. I cannot explain it, but it had a very profound emotional effect when I saw it. Its just so creepy to think that you are looking at the plane, that killed hundreds of thousands of people to end WWII.
Other Stuff
Do you like flight simulators? Be sure to try this after eating lunch, as the Fighter Jet one will throw you around for quite a ride. For $7, you can choose the fighter jet, or to experience what it is like to visit the International Space Station. These enclosed rides are not good for people who don't like being in tight spaces, but I had a lot of fun in the fighter jet one. You really do bounce around a lot, and it goes pretty fast as well. The Space one might be good for folks who want a calmer ride, or for children who like wearing those fashionable 3D glasses.
There is a IMAX theater here, as it is a bit pricey. I think I paid around $10 a ticket, to see the Fighter Jet movie. It was worth it, as there's something unreal about the IMAX sound and visual experience. It is very loud, so if you have sensitive hearing issues, do not go into this theater. This is a neat look at what it takes to be a fighter pilot, and the cinemotography is just amazing. Its as if you are really in the cockpit, so you might get a bit dizzy in here. They have a couple of other features, involving space and balloon travel. Sometimes they show regular films on here, for a truly different experience from a conventional theater.
Do you like heights, or having a great view? Go up in the Engen Observation Tower. You can see all of Northern Virginia from up here, all the way out to the Blue Ridge Mountains. The elevator goes up every five minutes, and the view of the airport is decent. You can watch airplanes take off and land from here, although most of the big planes use a runway to the Northwest of the Observation Booth. There is plenty of room, and since it is all glass, there are few obstructions. It can get very busy, so be sure to see this first, to guarantee that you won't be spending a good part of the day in line.
Food
This is such a gourmet offering from the museum. Next to the overpriced gift shop, is a McDonalds and McCafe. Here you can get a delicious Mocha drink from the Golden Arches, or get a Filet O' Fish for $7. I wish they had more choices for food, but the dining area is of decent size, and this McDonalds actually cooks the food properly. I guess that's what you get ,for paying a couple of extra bucks over their usual prices. There are plenty of employees during busy periods, and I've never had to experience ridiculous lines at this location. It works for a quick bite while touring this facility.
D.C. Location
I'm not even going to go there anymore, since I'm not a huge fan of the District of Columbia. The mall location is always crowded, and having to ride on the metro is not my idea of a good time. There are some neat exhibits here, but they pale in quality compared to what's at the Udvar Hazy location. My favorite display here is the A-4 Skyhawk, and the Saturn Rocket. If you are a true history buff, you'll enjoy seeing the Spirit of St. Louis and Chuck Yeager's X-1. This has a bit more of interactive exhibits, so young kids will probably like this one a little more.
Final Thoughts
I fully recommend a visit here. At each location, but especially the Udvar Hazy Center, you can easily burn 5 hours of time without being bored. There's just so much to see, and even people that don't have a passion for aviation, will find something that they like. There is a shuttle bus between the two locations, and I would suggest visiting during a weekday to avoid large crowds.(Preferably off peak season as well) Since aviation has such a large place in history, this is a "Must See" type of establishment. The Smithsonian deserves a job well done here, and my thanks go to Mr. Udvar also. This place earns the coveted Toiletoctopus Seal of Approval, which means its a wonderful place to take the family.
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Families
Best Time to Travel Here: Dec - Feb
|
|
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.