The Old Post Office Tower is one of the best views in DC. The Washington Monument gets all the attention, but the Old Post Office Tower offers amazing views and is much less crowded!

How to Get to the TOP of the Old Post Office Tower in DC

The Old Post Office Tower was closed from 2014 to 2016 while the building was converted into the hotel that it is today. The federal government owns the building and leases it to the hotel. The terms of the lease stipulate that the tower is open to the public, not be part of the hotel, and is operated by the National Park Service. That means that you can go, even if you’re not a guest of the hotel, and it’s completely free!

How to Find the Old Post Office Tower Entrance

Unfortunately the entrance to the Old Post Office Tower is a little hard to find. If you’re standing on Pennsylvania Avenue, in order to get up to the tower you need to walk south on 12th St NW toward the back of the building. When you see the Starbucks, turn left and look for the door that says “Museum and Clock Tower” above it.

Go in through that door and turn immediately to your left. If you have a bag with you, there is a bag check, then you walk down a long hallway. The hallway has a lot of really cool information about the history of the Old Post Office building, so plan to spend a few minutes exploring. At the end of that hallway is the first elevator. 

A park ranger stationed at the elevator will help everyone inside. You will press 9 to go up to the 9th floor. Once you get up there, you will walk around another winding hallway in order to get to second elevator. Finally you will board that elevator and then go up to the observation deck on the 12th floor.

Enjoy the view!

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