St Louis to Washington DC drive: Distance, time & best stops

The best road trip stops on the St Louis to Washington DC drive are Indianapolis, Columbus OH and Pittsburgh. By car, the distance from St Louis to Washington DC is 815 miles, with a 12h35m driving time.

Planning a St Louis to Washington DC road trip itinerary

The St Louis to Washington DC drive takes you from the Mississippi River in Missouri to the national capital.

St Louis is one of America’s great crossroads cities. The major landmark is the 630ft-tall Gateway Arch, which visitors can go to the top of. Other top attractions include the Cathedral Basilica of St Louis, the Missouri Botanical Garden and Busch Stadium.

Good St Louis experiences include highlight-packed trolley tours, true crime walking tours and small group tours that include going to the top of the St Louis Arch and a Mississippi River cruise.

For St Louis accommodation with personality, try the Last Hotel or the Pennywell.

Washington DC has an enormous range of tours, experiences and attractions available. You could happily spend weeks in the Smithsonian Museums alone. Top choices, however, include the nighttime monuments and memorials tour, small group guided visits to the Capitol and National Library of Congress and Lincoln assassination tours that visit Fords Theatre.

Memorable Washington DC accommodation options include the Willard, where Martin Luther King Jr wrote his I Have A Dream speech. There’s also the Watergate Hotel, a luxurious conversion of the offices from the Watergate scandal.

St Louis to Washington DC distance and driving time

By car, the St Louis to Washington DC is 815 miles. That makes for a driving time of around 12 hours and 35 minutes. The quickest route is mainly along the I-70.

The best stops to add to a St Louis to Washington DC road trip itinerary are Indianapolis, Columbus OH and Pittsburgh.

For more suggestions, check out the guides to the individual legs of the journey.

St Louis to Washington DC drive: Indianapolis, Indiana

The capital of Indiana marries big city energy with country charm.

Top attractions in Indianapolis include the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum and the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis.

Worthwhile Indianapolis experiences include a Fountain Square food tour and a walking tour around the city’s highlights.

Best stops between St Louis and Washington DC: Columbus, Ohio

In Columbus, a three day attractions pass covers most of the top sights. These include the Columbus Museum of Art, Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens and the National Veterans Memorial and Museum. For other Columbus experiences, try scavenger hunts, a town tour aboard the Trolley Pub and the Legoland Discovery Center.

St Louis to Washington DC road trip attractions: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Pittsburgh in western Pennsylvania is a monstrously underrated city, with a series of stellar attractions. Get great views from the top of the Duquesne Incline, enjoy the globally-themed rooms at the unmissable Cathedral of Learning and become immersed in pop art at the Warhol Museum.

You can explore Pittsburgh with a hop-on, hop-off bus pass. Pittsburgh experiences include bike tours full of stories, guided whiskey-themed walks and craft beer sampling on a multi-brewery tour.

For Pittsburgh hotels with great reviews, try the Italian villa-style Priory Hotel or the often good value Drury Plaza Hotel Pittsburgh Downtown.

The Washington Monument in Washington DC.
The Washington Monument in Washington DC. Photo by Andy He/ Unsplash.

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