PUBLIC ACCESS

Public access to the National Mall begins at 10:00 a.m., with all visitors required to enter via an Event Entrance point. (See below). The U.S. Capitol grounds open at 3:00 p.m. for visitors wanting to view A Capitol Fourth, with a security check required of all visitors. Once past the entrance points, visitors may occupy any available space on a first-come, first-served basis.

The Washington Monument will close at 5:00 p.m. on July 3rd, and remain closed until 9:00 a.m. on July 5th.  

NPS’ transportation concessioner, Tourmobile, will not operate on July 4th. Tourmobile will resume tour operations on July 5th. On July 4th, the World War II Memorial will close at 4:00 p.m.

The Smithsonian Metro Station will be closed all day, but will open from 10:30 p.m. to midnight. Metro stations near the National Mall and Memorial Parks, U.S. Capitol, and President’s Park that will remain open throughout the day include: Federal Triangle, Foggy Bottom, Metro Center, Gallery Place-Chinatown, Farragut North, Farragut West, Capitol South, L’Enfant Plaza, Union Station, Federal Center S.W., and Archives-Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter, Arlington National Cemetery, and the Pentagon. The NPS and its partner organizations strongly urge all visitors to use public transportation to and from all July 4th events and activities in all National Parks in Washington and to and from the U.S. Capitol.

ACCESS POINTS

National Mall and Memorial Parks Access Points:

• West entrance, or George Washington Memorial Parkway side of Arlington Memorial Bridge;
• Parkway Drive, NW, at Lincoln Memorial Circle;
• Constitution Avenue and Henry Bacon Drive, NW;
• Constitution Avenue and 17th Street, NW;
• Constitution Avenue and 15th Streets, NW;
• Independence Avenue and 14th Street, SW;  
• West side of 14th Street, at Jefferson Drive, SW;
• Maine Avenue and Raoul Wallenberg Place, SW (i.e. formerly 15th Street);
• East Basin Drive, SW, just south of the Thomas Jefferson Memorial (visitors will not be able to access the National Mall from this access point);
• East Basin Drive, SW, at Inlet Bridge.  

George Washington Memorial Parkway Access Points: 

• U.S. Marine Corps War Memorial and Netherlands Carillon (no access to National Mall);
• Memorial Circle (access to National Mall via Arlington Memorial Bridge limited to pedestrians only);
• Columbia Island/Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove (no access to Potomac Riverfront or National Mall);
• Gravelly Point, north of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (no access to National Mall); 
• Washington Sailing Marina at Daingerfield Island (no access to National Mall).