Arlington Local Guide

Communities

Old Stone House

Arlington is a collection of eight small communities connected by the DC metrorail system.

Ballston

has gained a reputation as one of the hip neighborhoods for young professionals with a number of parks and open spaces alongside tall, modern apartment buildings and condominium complexes. The neighborhood has a decidedly urban feel while still offering single-family homes near schools and parks. Ballston offers a selection of restaurants and bars, a mall with movie theater and has an active community.

Clarendon

One of the older neighborhoods in Arlington, Clarendon has regained some old charm while developing into an area of luxury apartments and unique retail stores. The community’s wide selection of ethnic restaurants attracts people from all over the DC area and trendy bars keep them in Clarendon after dark. Newer townhouses and apartments give way to tree lined streets full of single family homes and a small town feel just minutes from active nightlife.

Courthouse

The Centerpiece of the Courthouse neighborhood is the Arlington County Courthouse. It is the county seat of Arlington County and most buildings in the neighborhood are dedicated to administration. High rise apartment buildings are located here and the rent tends to be high. The pedestrian friendly plaza offers restaurants, coffee shops, bookstores and plenty of open space. A farmer’s market takes place on Saturday mornings. Courthouse features one of the first garden-style apartments complexes built in the United States. Colonial Village is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Crystal City

Probably the most convenient place to live in Arlington is the community of Crystal City. An underground shopping and dining complex connected by corridors contains supermarkets, post office, banks and doctors offices. The metro system and the underground can access everywhere residents need to go. The neighborhoods are made up of high rise apartment buildings and residents enjoy a path to the greenway along the Potomac River.

Shirlington

Made up mostly of middle-class residential neighborhoods, Shirlington has everything any small town offers from a wide selection of restaurants and shopping to theaters, parks and a variety of housing options. The community has a Dog Park, brewhouse, and beautiful landscaping. The community is home to one of the region’s most popular dining establishments, The Carlyle Grand Café. Shirlington does not sit along the metrorail route so commuters use the metrobuses to move around Arlington and into DC.

Virginia Square

Perhaps the quietest community in Arlington is Virginia Square. The Arlington County Library is located here and residents enjoy picnicking in Quincy Park, one of four beautiful green spaces complete with ballfields, playgrounds, and bike trails. Homes date from the 1940’s and have large lawns. Garden apartments and high-rise apartment buildings share this community with the Arlington campus of George Mason University and the Arlington Arts Center.

Rosslyn

An important business and tourist section of Arlington, Rosslyn is the closest metrorail stop to Washington DC. The major hotel chains are here and the tallest buildings in Arlington offer a view across the Potomac to the Washington Monument. The Rosslyn Spectrum Theater hosts Broadway productions, an annual jazzfest and acts as conference center by day. Historically not a residential area, Rosslyn is developing condominium complexes and becoming known for exciting nightlife.

Westover

The Westover community is truly a family friendly village of small shops, delightful café’s and restaurants and a very pedestrian population. Beautiful old homes and duplexes line the streets and neighbors know each other by name. Virginia’s oldest junior high school, Swanson Middle School sits on expansive grounds that are surrounded by residential streets of old Victorian homes.