Georgetown, Washington, DC

Includes: Glover Park

Originally built up as a shipping port due to its location on the banks of the Potomac River, present-day Georgetown is far more likely to be home to fashionistas than fish mongers.

With high-end shops, swanky lounges, lively sports bars, and a glut of restaurants with some of the most beautiful views of the river, Georgetown is where politicians, tourists, and current and former Georgetown University students all rub elbows.

When in town, Hollywood’s elite are frequently spotted sipping coffee or browsing high-end shops along the main drag of M Street, but the neighborhood itself already possesses some celebrity cred of its own: “The Exorcist” stairs featured in the classic 1973 movie of the same name are a popular attraction, both for movie buffs and thigh-busting workouts.

Several historic buildings – including the Old Stone House erected in 1765 – highlight the fact that this neighborhood is older than Washington, DC itself, but the businesses that now populate the cobblestone streets are anything but antiquated.

Crisp October nights don’t keep Georgetownians from fervently celebrating Halloween, while warm weather days all year bring the blue-blooded masses to the Georgetown Waterfront restaurants to drink and watch college crew teams or million dollar yachts glide across the Potomac.

Riding a mule-drawn boat down the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal is a signature tourist activity, and although much of the canal outside of Georgetown has been drained, anyone in need of more strenuous activity can grab a bike and hit the towpaths that rim the old canal route. Thanks to a series of interconnected trails, it’s possible to ride more than three hundred traffic-free miles all the way to Pittsburgh, PA.