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Monday 8am - 8pm Tuesday 8am - 8pm Wednesday 8am - 8pm Thursday 8am - 8pm Friday 8am - 8pm Saturday 8am - 8pm Sunday 8am - 8pm

DC Design Tours

Name: DC Design Tours
Address: Washington D.C., DC, 20008, US
Telephone: +12025257315
Price range: $$

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DC Design Tours offers historical and architectural walking and driving tours of Washington DC.

Come experience an insider’s look at the design of the District, on and off the National Mall. Explore some of Washington's most prominent architectural marvels and best kept secrets, while hearing about the conflicts, controversies, and personalities involved in the development of our Capital City. From Neo-Classical to Brutalist, learn the history behind the brick and mortar through one of our architecture focused walking tours!

10/22/2026

Our founder, Carolyn Muraskin, joins the hosts of Civics 101 Podcast for a conversation about the decisions, debates, and design choices that shaped the National Mall we know today.

🎧 Listen to the episode at the link in our story!

10/16/2026

🍂 Fall is one of the best times to explore DC on foot!

Join DC Design Tours this season to discover the stories behind the city’s architecture, history, and neighborhoods. From iconic landmarks to hidden gems, there’s always something new to uncover in the nation’s capital.

10/13/2026

For this special Texas feature, we’re exploring Fair Park in Dallas, home of the annual State Fair of Texas and one of the country’s most remarkable collections of Art Deco architecture.

Much of the complex was transformed for the 1936 Texas Centennial Exposition, celebrating 100 years of Texas independence. Architect Paul Philippe Cret helped shape the exposition’s grand architectural vision, including the iconic Esplanade, with its monumental buildings, geometric ornamentation, sculptures, and murals.

10/09/2026

In the early 1900s, U Street emerged as the heart of DC’s “Black Broadway,” its growth fueled in part by segregation, which concentrated Black businesses, entertainment, and institutions along the corridor. The result was a community that developed and sustained itself, with places to live, work, worship, shop, and socialize all within the neighborhood.

Architects including William Sidney Pittman, Albert Cassell, and John Lankford helped shape the neighborhood, designing buildings that supported Black economic and cultural life. Desegregation and the 1968 riots brought major changes to the corridor, but much of its historic architecture remains.

Join us this Saturday at 2 PM for U Street: Building Black Broadway, exploring the architecture, history, and cultural legacy of a community that built a world of its own.

U Street Main Street

10/07/2026

This is the Potomac Atrium—a soaring, 120-foot-high gathering space designed to connect visitors with the natural world.

The National Museum of the American Indian was shaped through consultation with Native communities from across the Western Hemisphere. Its flowing curves, natural materials, and abundant daylight reflect a design centered on the relationship between people, land, and sky.

Look up and you’ll spot one of the atrium’s most striking features: a south-facing prism window that catches the sunlight and casts changing colors across the interior. The building is also aligned with the cardinal directions, with its main entrance facing east toward the rising sun.

Even the name Potomac connects the space to its surroundings. The name can be traced to an Algonquian phrase meaning “where the goods are brought in,” a reference to the region’s long history as a place of trade and exchange.

National Museum of the American Indian

10/02/2026

Union Station’s East Hall and Presidential Suite, originally known as the State Reception Room, was designed by architect Daniel Burnham and features Pompeian-inspired motifs, elaborate plasterwork, and ornamental details.

The suite has witnessed more than a century of history. In 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt welcomed King George VI and Queen Elizabeth here during the first visit to the United States by a reigning British monarch. During World War II, the room served members of the armed forces, and in 1951, President Harry Truman turned the space over to the USO.

Today, the former Presidential Suite has been converted into retail and private event space, but its architecture still offers a glimpse into an era when presidents traveled the country by rail.

Discover more hidden stories on our Capitol Hill: Pillars of Power walking tour—a deep dive into the architecture, intrigue, and symbolism at the heart of American government.

October 10 @ 1 PM
October 24 @ 1 PM
November 7 @ 1 PM
November 21 @ 1 PM

Capitol Hill BID UnionStationDC

09/24/2026

The U.S. Capitol’s iconic dome wasn’t always so iconic. 🏛️

The Capitol we recognize today is the result of decades of redesign, destruction, and rebuilding.

In 1793, Dr. William Thornton’s winning design for a new Congress building included a classically inspired symmentrical building topped by a low dome, flanked by separate wings for the House and Senate. Construction began that year using sandstone ferried down the Potomac from Virginia.

Then came 1814.

British troops set the Capitol ablaze during the War of 1812, but a sudden rainstorm helped prevent its complete destruction. Reconstruction began the following year, and over the next several decades, new wings were added to accommodate a growing Congress. By the 1850s, the expanded Capitol had a problem: the original copper-covered wooden dome suddenly looked way too small.

Architect Thomas U. Walter and engineer Montgomery C. Meigs designed the monumental replacement we know today: a fireproof cast-iron dome. More than 8.9 million pounds of iron were lifted into place using steam-powered derricks. In 1863, the 19.5-foot-tall Statue of Freedom was raised to the top, completing the silhouette that has defined the Capitol ever since.

Want to take a deeper look? Capitol Hill: Pillars of Power explores the architecture, intrigue, and symbolism at the heart of American government.

🏛️ Every other Saturday at 1 PM

Capitol Hill BID

09/23/2026

🏛️ The 5 best museums in Washington, DC for architecture nerds on (or slightly off) the National Mall!

Sure, you could visit a museum for what’s inside—but in DC, some of the buildings are just as interesting as the collections.

Which one is your favorite? And what DC building should we add to the list next? 👀

09/22/2026

🌲 Only five Rock Creek Park History Hikes left this year!

Established in 1890, Rock Creek Park was the country’s third National Park and the first created within a major city. From Indigenous homelands and 19th-century mills to forgotten ruins and the rustic bridges and stonework of the Olmsted Brothers, the landscape tells a story centuries in the making.

On Rock Creek Park: Urban Oasis, we’ll explore how nature, industry, and preservation shaped the park—and how its distinctive “parkitecture” helped influence National Parks across the country.

🍂 Only five dates left in 2026:
September 27 • 1 PM
October 12 • 10 AM
October 25 • 1 PM
November 9 • 10 AM
November 22 • 1 PM

Rock Creek Park

09/17/2026

Opened in 1907, Daniel Burnham’s monumental Beaux-Arts station was designed as a grand gateway to Washington. By the mid-20th century, however, changing travel habits and years of deferred maintenance sent the once-grand station into decline.

A major restoration brought Union Station back to life in 1988, and today, it remains both a working transportation hub and one of Washington’s great architectural landmarks.

Want to know more about the history behind DC’s architecture? Explore the city with DC Design Tours on one of our walking tours.

Address

Washington D.C., DC
20008

Opening Hours

Monday	8am - 8pm
Tuesday	8am - 8pm
Wednesday	8am - 8pm
Thursday	8am - 8pm
Friday	8am - 8pm
Saturday	8am - 8pm
Sunday	8am - 8pm

Telephone

+12025257315

Website

http://www.dcdesigntours.com/

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