For the Air and Space Enthusiast
If you are looking for a vacation idea and are an air and space
enthusiast, look no further. The National Air and Space Museum,
Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center near Washington Dulles International
Airport is the place for you.
I am fortunate enough to live in the Washington, DC area, so I
can take advantage of all the available free attractions
offered. Today (2/19/2006) I wend on a field trip to the
National Air and Space Museum, Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. This
center is full of historical aircraft and spacecraft enough to
fill a modern building the size of 3 to 4 football fields.
The center has two I-Max theaters, one space walk simulator and
two flight simulators in which I enjoyed immensely.
But the attractions I enjoyed most was the he Enola Gay, the
B-29 bomber used in the atomic mission that destroyed Hiroshima,
the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird and of course the Space Shuttle,
Enterprise.
If you love aviation like I do, I highly recommend you taking
your next vacation to Washington, DC to visit this center and
the downtown space museum as well.
Important Information:
Location: Located in Chantilly, Va., off Route 28 north of Route
50, near Washington Dulles International Airport. The distance
between the two museum sites is 28 miles. You can find a map and
directions to the Center on Yahoo! Maps and you can try using
the following coordinates at Mapquest: Latitude: 38.9111;
Longitude: -77.4425 (select zoom level 8 for best results, no
directions provided).
Hours: Open 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. daily. Closed Dec. 25.
Admission Charge: There is no admission charge but there is a
$12 fee to park at the Udvar-Hazy Center and there are neither
rail stations nor bus stops nearby. There is also no shuttle
service at this time from Dulles to the Udvar-Hazy Center.
Local Accommodations: There are several hotels, shopping centers
and car rentals near the Dulles International Airport.
Miscellaneous: You may take stills and video for private use in
the center. There is a restaurant in the center. The museum's
Web site home page address is www.nasm.si.edu. The tour office
phone number is (202) 633-2563.
Your tax dollars help fund the two museums, so take advantage of
being in the area and visit the original Air and Space museum
down town. It is 28 miles from the Udvar-Hazy Center and will
enhance your experience. Have fun.