hi there,
Some of the best areas in Washington DC are Dupont Circle, Downtown, Convention Center and Capitol Hill.
Some self-catering
accomodation I can suggest which are family oriented include:
- Washington Suites Alexandria
- Grand Hyatt Washington DC
These two choices, prices start from around $90 but do check before you book.
I can read you have a car but one thing I would
suggest it is to use the metro as much as you can to move around in DC because of traffic and parking.
Hope this helps
Vacationbuddy