Was curious if anyone might have some feedback on where to stay or even places to avoid. Any suggestions would be very much appreciated!

Tyson's -- and if you really want to be low key then Fairfax or Chantilly.

Is something wrong with Fairfax or Chantilly ?

Before I'll give my suggestions, I have a question for you. Are you able to respond via PM? If so, I'll PM you with thorough details of the locales that I'm intimately familiar with in this area. I'm a military cat, so trust & believe it will be thorough.  

As a former Navy Sailor... I too, like to be thorough. I can respond via PM. Feel free to drop me a line here (PM) or email me.  

Thank you for your input! I'll be honest now... Tyson's is out. I can't stand being in a place where I have to drive to get everywhere else.  

I appreciate it, friend! You're the best. We are on the same wavelength with Dupont!

....my advice as a local to someone touring is do half your time in DC or suburb close to DC and then the other half in a suburb further out.

You are the real MVP! If anyone knows anything about touring locations it's you! Thank you!

with a couple of days in Dupont Circle and a couple of days in a NOVA location like Tysons Corner.  It's because many guys don't like to go into the city because they don't do Metro & hate the traffic & parking issues with Dupont Circle.  But s a Dupont Circle makes you more accessible to visiting guys, conventions, etc.  And if you don't like Tysons because it isn't a tiny bit walkable, take a look at Crystal City in Arlington, quite a few hotels, right next to National Airport, walkable restaurants & a fair amount of reasonably priced parking options, and its own Metro station.

We hate going into the city.  Even if it is metro accessible.  Tyson's, Chantilly, and Fairfax are all great.  Almost all of the ladies seem to go to Tyson's.  Chantilly not so much.  Stay away from Springfield.

who are in the city regularly ride Metro all the time & dislike driving out to Tysons or worse yet Dulles.  For them, Dupont, downtown & Crystal City are more comfortable.  I have probably used Metro to get to 75% of my appts. over the last 4-5 years.  And as I pointed out, convention guys don't want to pay a cab fare all the way out to Tysons if they're staying near the Convention Center!  

Thank you, lovely! I'm keeping it in mind.

Thank you so much for your thoughtful response! I'm definitely taking your opinions into account. My biggest thing is living in Dallas, everything sprawls outward. I enjoy being in a city where I don't have to worry about driving and I can just explore on my own two feet.  

Again, thank you. It's starting to sound like I'll split my time. Now it's just a matter of where.