Understand
Glover Park is the section of the Upper Northwest closest to downtownâjust north of Georgetown, and has the bulk of the area's nightlife, which serves as a slightly older and less raucous complement to its collegiate neighbor to the south. Woodley Park has a strip with restaurants and bars and is also home to the big sights: the National Zoo and the National Cathedral.
Cleveland Park most notably, but also Van Ness and Tenleytown to the north along Wisconsin and Connecticut Ave have popular commercial strips with restaurants, bars, and small stores. And in the west of Tenleytown, you'll find big American University.
Further north is Friendship Heights, technically part of Chevy Chase, nationally famous for its wealthy and powerful residents, and locally famous for its high-end retailers on Wisconsin Ave, which spill north across the city border into Maryland.
Little known to travelers, and even most area residents, are the Palisades in the extreme west of the city, where you'll find some of the city's most expensive homes, the C&O Canal trail along the Potomac River, and a handful of fantastic, upscale restaurants.
