Our Trip to American Girl Place Washington, D.C.

Today myself, my three daughters, my husband, my mom, and my little sister took a day trip to American Girl Place Washington, D.C. (Tyson's Corner.)  The picture above is the best shot I could get of all the girls in front of the store without blocking the entrance.  Below are some pictures from our day.

Lianna, Abbi, Molly & Gwen waiting to go into the store.

Abbi in the MyAG section.

Abbi posing with the McKenna life size cut out.

Molly with the McKenna life size cut out...She was doing all these poses before I took my camera out but then she would not pose for the camera. =)

Lianna posing with the life size McKenna.

Gwenie with her new Rebecca doll.  She had been asking for her since Christmas so it was a BIG deal!

The display with the "Delicious Dinner Set."  I REALLY wanted to buy the set (not the table and chairs since I can make my own) but sadly my girls were not all that interested.  ;)

The "Baking Accessories Set" on the "Baking Table" is another really cute set!

Part of the McKenna display.

Another Part of the McKenna display...still not completely sold on her but we did buy my her for my sister, Molly, who is a cheerleader/gymnast.

I love that there is a wheelchair available for purchase.

Doll Storage Cabinet.  While I think this is a really good quality cabinet and I love all the stars and the little bins, I could not justify the over $300 price tag.  My girls really like it, especially Lianna, so it will be something to look for in a more affordable version.

The salon chair and vanity.

The Bubble Bathtub and shower sets.  I almost bought the shower set, however I decided to see it I could make my girls a shower first to go with the bathtub I made them.

My sister Molly with Kirsten and my daughters Lianna-with Kanani and Abbi-with Mia in the personal shopping area while we were checking out.

Gwenie in the personal shopping area.

Gwenie in the personal shopping area pointing to McKenna.

A "sneak peek" at our AG "loot."

 My Thoughts:

 Overall, our day at American Girl Place Washington, D.C. was a fun experience.  My girls and my sister definitely enjoyed their time in the store.  I was also glad we had the chance to bring my sister and my mom along to join in.

I do, however, have a few critiques.  The store is just not quite organized in a way that makes sense for the flow of traffic and shopping.  The main issue with this being in the "Doll Salon Area."  Basically as soon as you walk into the store you are met with the line up of people waiting for the salon or trying to maneuver through the crowed displays near the salon.  Once in line for the salon, I noticed the lack of knowledge the person taking our salon order had of the dolls themselves as well as a overall lack of good customer service in that area.  Now, that is not to say that there were not any employees that gave good customer service.  It was just an overall feel brought on by disorganization and a few of the employees' attitudes.

Also, in the historical area, the items for the different dolls were all over the place.  Some of the  dolls' had multiple displays, which were very nice to look at, but instead of being grouped together, they were spread out in a very haphazard manner.  We had a very difficult time finding items, such as accessories for some of the dolls, because the items were not grouped together with the dolls.  Eventually, a personal shopper approached us and helped us find the items we were looking for.

Now, I will say that I have only ever been to one other American Girl Place which was in New York.  It is much larger and may have lead me to have some what higher expectations that someone who has not shopped at AG Place New York.  We had an amazing time at AG New York with a great personal shopper, wonderful girls at the hair salon, and just an overall more organized feel for the items the store carries.

I definitely do not want to offend anyone who works, shops or loves AG Place Washington, D.C. (Tyson's Corner.)  The store in still very clean, bright, and has some nice employees.  The employees at the salon that did my daughter Lianna's Kanani doll's hair and my sister Molly's Kirsten doll's hair were both very friendly, personable, and knowledgeable about the dolls.  The personal shopper that helped us was also very friendly.

If we were traveling in the area again, we would definitely make a quick stop just to visit.  I would still recommend the store to people looking for a quick day trip to an AG Store in our general area (quick being a 3-4 hour trip.)  However, I think my family will either make our plans for next year to go back to AG Place New York or try to visit the store in Atlanta.


Please feel free to leave me any comments, questions, or your opinions of the AG stores.