The National Museum of Health and Medicine is easily accessible to tourists as well as residents of Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia, whether you arrive by car or air. Interstate 95 is the major north-south route that intersects about a 15-minute drive to the museum from the west.

The area is served by all the major airlines with each offering flights several times a day. Planes land at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and Washington Dulles International Airport, both only about a 35-minute drive from the museum. Baltimore-Washington International is a little farther. Major car rental agencies have outlets at the airports.

The museum is located five miles north of the White House in northwest Washington D.C. on the campus of Walter Reed Army Medical Center, which is bordered by Georgia Avenue, Aspen Street, 16th Street, Alaska Avenue, 14th Street, and Fern Street.

Although there are several gates around the campus, visitors to the museum may only enter the campus through the Georgia Avenue and Elder Street gate. If you drive onto the campus, your car may be stopped for a thorough inspection. Whether you drive or walk onto the campus you must present a valid motor vehicle driver's license or other picture I.D. card and tell the guard that the museum is the destination. Drivers will also be asked to present their vehicle's registration and insurance identification cards, which must be current in order to be given permission to enter. All adult passengers need to show a photo ID, but children in care of parents or guardians do not.

Directions:

From Maryland and the north:
Take I-95 south to the I-495 W exit, exit number 27/Silver Spring - Bethesda. Follow directions from the Capital Beltway below.

From Virginia and the south:
Take I-95 north to the I-395 N exit, exit number 170A, on the left toward Washington DC. Take the U.S. 1 N exit on the left. Turn right onto Thomas Circle NW, right onto M Street NW, right onto Massachusetts Avenue NW, right onto 15th Street NW, left onto U Street NW, and right onto 16th Street NW. Follow directions from downtown Washington, DC below.

From Frederick and Montgomery, Md. counties and the northwest:
Take I-270 south to the I-495 E exit. Follow directions from the Capital Beltway below.

From Annapolis, Md. and the east:
Take U.S. 50 W to the I-95/I-495 N exit, exit number 7B/Baltimore-Silver Spring. Follow directions from the Capital Beltway below.

From Manassas:
Take I-66 E toward Washington DC. Take the I-495 N exit toward Baltimore. Follow directions from the Capital Beltway below.

From the Capital Beltway:
Outer Loop:

Take I-495W to exit 31/Georgia Avenue - Wheaton. Turn left onto Georgia Avenue (Rt. 97) south and drive beyond the junction with East-West Highway (Rt. 410). Turn right onto Elder Street NW onto the Walter Reed Army Medical Center campus. Unless directed otherwise by the soldiers at the gate, turn right at the first stop sign and follow the winding road past the hospital/garage complexes onto Dahlia Street to the horseshoe-shaped drive at the museum's entrance on the right.

Inner Loop:
Take I-495E to exit 31 B/97 Georgia Avenue south Silver Spring. Bear right onto Georgia Avenue (Rt. 97) south and drive beyond the junction with East-West Highway (Rt. 410). Turn right onto Elder Street NW onto the Walter Reed Army Medical Center campus. Unless directed otherwise by the soldiers at the gate, turn right at the first stop sign and follow the winding road past the hospital/garage complexes onto Dahlia Street to the horseshoe-shaped drive at the museum's entrance on the right.

From downtown Washington, DC:
Take 16th Street northbound beyond the Carter Baron Amphitheater and the junction with Military Road. Turn right onto Aspen Street and left onto Georgia Avenue. Turn left onto Elder Street NW onto the Walter Reed Army Medical Center campus. Unless directed otherwise by the soldiers at the gate, turn right at the first stop sign and follow the winding road past the hospital/garage complexes onto Dahlia Street to the horseshoe-shaped drive at the museum's entrance on the right.