Air and Space Museum

Friday, September 5, 2025

Phenomenal is the perfect word to describe the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum! This iconic destination boasts the world’s largest and most significant collection of aviation and space artifacts. It ranks as the 4th most visited museum in the U.S. and 11th globally. The museum requires a free timed entry pass, and we’ve reserved tickets for 11:00 am on Friday, September 5.

When we arrived at the bus stop on Friday morning to head to the museum, the couple from Grove City was already there, waiting for the bus to Arlington. Another couple showed up, and after introducing ourselves, we found out they were from the Austin, Texas area and had just arrived at the campgrounds. They seemed a bit nervous about taking the Metro for the first time and, upon hearing our destination, asked if they could join us and we guided them to the Museum before parting ways for the day.

The Museum is situated on the National Mall, close to the Capitol Building. With some time to spare before our passes became valid, we snapped a few photos of the Capitol before heading into the Museum.

The Air and Space Museum, founded in 1946, focuses on the history of human flight and space exploration. Its collection includes the Wright Brothers’ 1903 Flyer, Charles Lindbergh’s Spirit of St. Louis, John Glenn’s Friendship 7 spacecraft, and even a lunar rock sample that visitors can touch.

We explored so many amazing exhibits, diving into the history of early flight, the Moon Race from our childhood, and air warfare that started with WWI. Unfortunately, the museum is currently undergoing renovations, so the WWII exhibits weren’t available until 2026.

We spent five hours there, immersed in amazing insights, inventive creativity, and sheer wonder, leaving with a deep admiration for the incredible feats humanity can accomplish. If we can imagine it, together we can achieve it.