City Cruises Washington DC: Buffet Dinner Cruise
Washington DC, USA
- 3 hours (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Admire the city skyline from a fresh perspective during a sunset cruise in Washington DC, which comes with an all-you-can-eat buffet. Board a luxury boat for a sightseeing cruise on the Potomac River with dinner and dancing while a DJ spins your favorite tunes. Pass by illuminated landmarks such as the Washington Monument and maximize your time in the capital by combining dinner and sightseeing.
- Dinner, dancing, and sightseeing cruise on the Potomac River
- Enjoy views of the Washington DC skyline and waterfront
- Escape the crowds on land and admire attractions from the water
- Dance party with live DJ to keep you entertained
What's Included
- Buffet Dinner
- DJ Entertainment
- Additional beverages (available for purchase)
- Gratuities
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- 580 Water St SW, Washington, DC 20024, USA
Boarding: Pier 4 The Wharf DC. Parking: City Cruises does not own or operate any parking lots in the area. Local parking is available at The Wharf Parking Garage. Please arrive at the meeting point early – boarding begins one hour prior to departure.
End point
This activity ends back at the meeting point.Itinerary
During this dinner buffet cruise, watch the sunset in Washington DC from one of the five decks on your luxury cruise boat. Be sure to bring your camera to capture not-to-be-missed views of DC landmarks while your captain journeys down the Potomac River.
Enjoy a relaxing evening of sightseeing, fine dining, and dancing. Fill your plate full of sumptuous dishes from the all-you-can-eat buffet and take a seat in the elegant dining room while the DJ entertains with dance tunes and comedy.
After dinner, spin your partner around the dance floor as the DJ plays your favorites. Or take a romantic stroll around the ship’s decks and soak up the illuminated DC landmarks, including the Washington Monument, the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, the Admiral’s Row colonial townhomes, and more.
For dinner, take your pick from a wide variety of buffet items, including salads, vegetables, pasta, fish, chicken, meat, and dessert.
Enjoy a relaxing evening of sightseeing, fine dining, and dancing. Fill your plate full of sumptuous dishes from the all-you-can-eat buffet and take a seat in the elegant dining room while the DJ entertains with dance tunes and comedy.
After dinner, spin your partner around the dance floor as the DJ plays your favorites. Or take a romantic stroll around the ship’s decks and soak up the illuminated DC landmarks, including the Washington Monument, the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, the Admiral’s Row colonial townhomes, and more.
For dinner, take your pick from a wide variety of buffet items, including salads, vegetables, pasta, fish, chicken, meat, and dessert.
1
City Experiences By Hornblower
2 hours • Admission Ticket Included
2
Potomac River
10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
3
Washington Monument
10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Most travelers can participate
- Boarding begins one hour prior to departure. Guests must arrive early, as late arrivals will likely miss the boat.
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 19 travelers
Supplied by
Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Featured review
Our server Dewayne was awesome and met every one of our needs. The music was great, the atmosphere was wonderful and it left a very memorable impression on my wife and I. We will definitely be back for another experience.
Reviews
3,6
based on 191 reviews
Sort by: Most recent
A bit chaotic at signing in, not very clear signage, but once on boat everything was fine. A good selection of food available.
Didn't see that many sights and no commentary pointing out monuments etc.
A pleasurable experience nonetheless.
I have taken a few dinner cruises such as this one, and this was no different than others, overall. The staff was mostly attentive and friendly. There was a mixup with my drink order (a simple vodka and juice) that took nearly an hour to fix, unfortunately, but most everything else went smoothly. The double decker DJs were awesome and played great music that was varied, so you could go to either level to get your groove on. The food was pretty standard with no highlights (dessert was dry, however), but was good enough for at least one go around. I wish I had the option of paying for a single plate, though, because I wasn't interested in going back to the buffet. In spite of these things, my friends and I enjoyed ourselves. The weather was great for us and the views were quite nice. We left nearly half an hour after the stated push-off time, so we did feel a little cheated on the back end, but thems the breaks, I suppose. Overall, I don't think it was worth over $200 per person, even considering the location.
Get there early. The boarding process was slow because there are several boats and your tickets doesn't tell you which boat you are on so you'll have to find someone and ask. Your purchase says from 7pm-10pm. We left late and returned at 9:20pm and was told thank you and had to leave the boat. The food and drinks was subpar. We all left hungry and ended up stopping for food on the way home. Now the atmosphere was good. The music and dj's did an excellent job and our waitress was okay. Has the food been better and we actually stayed out for the 3 hours like it said when we purchased it would have been better. Especially since most people book this for birthdays and anniversaries, which we were there celebrating both.
Bring a jacket, because if you are going with a woman who is wearing a dress she will be cold. Plan this according to weather.
This was a nice way to see the harbor side of DC, the historical fort and all the river. We had an evening thunderstorm which cut short the trip, but the breeze was nice on a hot day
Nice staff and travelers. Good food, nice view of the water and music you enjoy listening to and dancing too.
When I made the reservation I used your service at that time I couldn’t download the tickets because my browser( Safari) wouldn’t let me so I contacted your customer service department, the gentleman I spoke with was polite and patient he explained to me on what to do. I will definitely use your service again.
It's not just laid back and quiet. It's a party on the river with a decent meal. That's the one improvement is a little better meats.
the person checking us in was rude because I asked her if the AC was going to be better. she asked why I a would ask that. well we stood in the hot sun and then had to stand in line inside the boat and everyone was hot and fanning including get people already seated. when we were seated upstairs it was cool so I suspect teh AC s=was not tuned on early engouh to have the boat cooled before seating began. the other person seems to have trouble e understanding my s wife who speaks clearly she had to ask three times how to spell our name an dbtothc h=t it up badly and could not find th reservation E D S A L L is th espelling even when we sat dE as in Edward D as in David w she had trouble and gave us a very dirty look like we wer at fault. we do not have an accent.
the food was good . the trip was ok but I expected a better view of Washington DC. I I di not realize you could not get close beach of the bridges. we went up and down the same small section of the river three times. Could d we have gone south as well?
drink was out of Saoogy dollar spiced rim and I was the first to order a drink so you Abdul have what the menu shows.
This is a cruise circling just around Anacostia Harbor, you never get to the Potomac. The service was chaotic and arbitrary. They gave away our table and then refused to give us a table with a view saying it was for "show." Layer, someone else was sitting there. Just tell us the truth! It took over an hour to get a drink.
Mediocre at best. Food Ok. No salad dressing for salad . We asked for butter for rolls about 6 times along with table next to us and we never got it. Asked waitress for coke refill 2x . Never came. Finally went to bar to get it ourselves. They had no problem tracking us down for tip though. Cruise cut short due to some lightning in the area. Not really worth the almost $300.
The ride was smooth, the food was good with plenty of choices.
There was some tripping hazards that was not clearly marked. I can understand alcoholic beverages was an extra charge but sodas & other non-alcoholic drinks also was an extra charge.
The food was good and the music was great but the sites were lackluster. Instead of turning north on the Potomac and looking at all the monuments and buildings they turn south and there's nothing to see there. Very disappointing
The boarding process is TERRIBLE. There are no sings to tell you which ship is loading from where. Multiple staff milling around with no direction. Some people told that their QR code issued by email will not allow you to board; must stand in line for ticket. Boarding was Late after being instructed to show up 1-hr early. Closest parking $38 for 3 hours. The only thing that was decent was the views although the route along the city was to the Wilson Bridge and not towards Georgetown which is a little more scenic. Food mediocre at best. Expected more for what we paid. Don’t waste your money!
It was a nice experience for my guests. I bought this tour as a gift to family members and they enjoyed it very well. They enjoyed the food, DJ and view of DC.
Wonderful experience. Food was delicious, DJ was amazing, staff and service were spectacular. Definitely going again!
Food was delicious!!!! Music was a little loud for conversation. Thought we were going to see more than what we saw otherwise nice.
It was a wonderful experience, the food, atmosphere, staff, and DJ. This is a must do in Washington, DC
I went for my birthday and I a great time. The food was good. The staff was friendly. The atmosphere was elegant. I truly had a good experience.
The event was ok food was average the veggies were a little over done the salad was very soggy. Steak was not tender over done. The servers were good.
It would have been nice to keep the buffet a little longer with burners to keep them warm. The salad keep the dressing separate! Music was good.
This cruise ran out of all food except for salad within 20 minutes of serving. I was highly disappointed. They replenished some dishes but there were a couple dishes I wanted to try that wasn't available. The meat was barely warm. This event was poorly organized and I wish for a partial refund.
My family enjoyed it. Food was good and waitress service was nice. People were enjoying dance floor.
Dinner was great. Very entertaining.. ran out of the best desserts. They need Pepsi products as options.
The food was not great. The staff were good. For us this was a waste of money. I will probably not book another dinner cruise. Also paid extra for soda. It was not included.
Response from Host, Dec 2025
Thank you for your feedback. We’re pleased you found our staff to be good, though we’re sorry the food and overall experience didn’t meet your expectations. Your comments are appreciated and help us improve.
Nice vessel, signage could be better to locate the entry point. Unfortunately due to weather our trip didn't sail as expected as such we ere served a nice meal by a friendly staff. Little or no communication on status of the boat ever leaving the dock which was disappointing. Subsequently we asked company for a refund and were provided a fair partial refund for the trip with little hassle and prompt attention to our request and claim, as such I would us this company again.
Tables are assigned so there is no need come super early to get a seat. Food was tasty. Views were very nice.
The staff was amazing and the music was perfect. I was not impressed with the food, but the 5 star rating is necessary.
Good food, Nice atmosphere, Nice Boat ride and dinner for the cost! Will recommend! Huuby & I traveled to Washington for our 21st anniversary. Good trip!
We were not able to attend because the 20 minutes it was supposed to take to get to the pier was 60 minutes and we missed the cruise. Viator did nothing to help, no credits, no refund even though we were not able to attend due to unforeseen circumstances. They should at least provide a credit for another cruise since we literally did not attend. Very disappointing.
The boat had engine trouble and never left the dock.
They did not cancel and the band kept on playing. It was far from a romantic dinner cruise. It was a party boat. Loud dance music
I requested to leave the boat and get assurances of a full refund.
A manager came back with a response from the captain. "we are cruising" No money back.
We took this cruise for the promised night time views
of DC.
The manager with an attitude took my phone number and said we will seen can do.
I am still trying to get over how we treated.
From US$122,36
per personup to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
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City Cruises Washington DC: Buffet Dinner Cruise
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