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For Patients and Caregivers

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Contacts for Reservations  |  Key Information for Your Stay  |  General Guests FAQs

Contacts for Reservations

On behalf of our visitors, NIH Institute/Center staff handle all room reservations and requests, including questions about availability.

If you would like to know whether you are eligible to stay at the Safra Family Lodge during your visit to NIH, please contact your Institute/Center Contact. If you are not sure who your I/C contact is, ask anyone you are in contact with at NIH, and they can help you contact the right person.

Key Information for Your Stay

Campus Access  |  Directions  |  Check-In & Check-Out  |  Transportation  |  Food On and Off Campus  |  Amenities and Services

Edmond J. Safra Family Lodge

Campus Access

Address: 9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20894

Please view Welcome to Our Patient and Their Visitors for additional information about visiting the NIH Clinical Center.

Please view the NIH Visitor Map for more information about visiting the NIH campus.

Please view NIH Traffic for the latest traffic updates on campus.

Please visit the NIH Virtual Tour for a full interactive tour of the NIH campus.

Directions

Patients/visitors can access the NIH campus through the following gates. After the security checkpoints follow the signs for the family lodge/building 65. View the map of the campus.

Special Campus Entrance For Patients and Patient Visitors

West Drive Main Patient/Family Entrance (vehicles)
Open Daily 6 am-10 pm
GPS Location: 5300 West Cedar Lane

When the Patient Entrance is Closed

Commercial Vehicle Inspection Facility, CVIF-After Hours Patient/Family Entrance (vehicles and pedestrians)
Open Daily 10 pm - 6 am
GPS Location: 9100 Rockville Pike

Campus Entrance for Patients and Patient Visitors Arriving by Metro or Taxi/Uber (Monday – Friday 5 am to 10 pm)

NIH Gateway / Metro Entrance (pedestrians)
Open non-holiday weekdays 5 am – 10 pm

Our Address
The Edmond J. Safra Family Lodge, Building 65
65 Center Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892

More information about travel to campus is available at the Clinical Center's Access & Directions web page.

Check-In & Check-Out

On the day of arrival, check-in begins as early as 3 pm, and on the day of departure, check-out is required at 11 am. After checking out and during appointments, luggage can be stored in lockers located in the Transportation/Waiting Area at the main entrance of the Clinical Center/Building 10.

For more information on services and amenities available to NIH patients at the Clinical Center/Building 10, view the Clinical Center's Patient Services web page.

Transportation

The Family Lodge is within walking distance of the NIH Clinical Center. While you can walk to the Clinical Center, we also offer an express shuttle and a regular shuttle to help families get to and from the NIH Clinical Center and the Metro. The shuttle is wheelchair accessible and operates at the following times:

Children's Inn / Family Lodge shuttle hours of operations

Monday - Friday: 7 am – 11:55 pm ( From 7 am – 6 pm the shuttle is pager operated and from 6 pm – 11:55 pm the shuttle operates on set after hour schedule.)
Saturday and holidays: 7 am – 5 pm
Sunday: 9 am – 9 pm

For the After-Hour shuttle schedule, view the Bldg 10 After Hours shuttle schedule.

Hours EXPRESS Shuttle – directly from the Lodge

Monday – Friday: 6:30 am – 5:06 pm

View the Safra Family Lodge Express Shuttle schedule.

For all NIH shuttle schedules, visit the NIH Patient Services Transportation web page.

Food On and Off Campus

Off Campus

  1. There are various grocery stores within a 10-minute drive of the Lodge. Guests may leave campus to shop.
  2. Guests can schedule grocery delivery through providers like PeaPod.
  3. Guests can order delivery via apps like DoorDash and have it delivered to the nearest gate.
  4. The Lodge is a 10-minute drive from downtown Bethesda, which has great restaurants. For more information: Google “Bethesda, MD, Restaurants.”

On Campus

  1. Food trucks are available on campus from March-November. View an up-to-date schedule of food trucks.
  2. There are cafeterias on the NIH campus for hours. View a campus map.
  3. Several nearby restaurants offer on-campus delivery to the NIH. You can ask the front desk for the current restaurant menus or Google “Bethesda, MD Restaurants”.
Edmond J. Safra Family Lodge entrance sign

At the Lodge

  1. The Lodge serves a "grab and go" breakfast every morning, which includes fruits, bagels, muffins, cereal, yogurt, and a coffee/tea bar that guests can use at any time.
  2. As a result of our partnership with the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health (FNIH) and patients' friends at the NIH Clinical Center, we offer a monthly Sunday Supper.
  3. For majority of their meals our guests cook in the large shared kitchen while staying at the Lodge. The kitchen has communal refrigerators, ovens, microwaves, dishwashers, and "House" pantries stocked with non-perishable food for all guests to use.
  4. Thanks to our dedicated donors, we provide holiday meals throughout the year.
  5. Annual recipients of non-perishable donations through the FedsFeedFamilies Campaign.

Amenities and Services

Complimentary Services

  • Grab and go breakfast (Monday - Sunday, 5:30 am – 12 pm).
  • Lunch / Dinner house pantries provided donation (Monday - Sunday, 12 pm – 11 pm).
  • Telephone rooms for local and long-distance calls.
  • Washer and dryer (laundry detergent available upon request) (7 am - 9 pm).
  • Wireless internet access.
  • Daily housekeeping services like sanitizing, dusting, trash removal, replenishing supplies, and making beds (9 am - 3 pm).
  • House pantries filled with non-perishable items such as canned soup, pasta, rice, instant meals, cooking oil, and many others.
  • Shuttle Transportation on campus.

Communal Spaces

  • Fitness room equipped with an exercise bike, treadmill, and an elliptical trainer. (7 am - 9 pm).
  • Business Center with access to computers, printer, and fax machine.
  • Library with a robust collection of books for your enjoyment.
  • 1st floor Kitchen / Family room
  • 2nd floor Lounge
  • 3rd floor Entertainment Lounge with access to Foosball Table, 65”TV, DVD player, Xbox, and various donated puzzles and other card games.
  • The communal kitchen features multiple communal dining spaces, stoves, refrigerators, ovens, sinks and all the pots, pans, plates, and utensils you will need. It also features personal pantry space for guests to utilize.
  • Our English style garden offers beautiful scenery with patios and benches ideal for meditating, outdoor eating, or a morning walk.

Guestrooms

The Lodge features a total of 34 guestrooms, the bulk of which have two double beds and private bathroom. We have six accessible rooms, each with either a full and twin bed or one full bed. The accessible restrooms feature a walk-in shower, and shower chairs are provided upon request.

Each guest room includes the following items:

  • Travel size toiletries.
  • Linens (refreshed every eight days) and towels (refreshed daily).
  • Hairdryer.
  • Iron and Iron board.
  • Shower chair upon request.
  • Mini portable medicine refrigerator upon request.
  • DVD player and cable TV.
  • Small desk.
  • Telephone (Local calls ONLY for long-distance use communal telephone room).
  • Personal Safe.
  • A standing fan / heater, as needed.
  • Laundry basket.
  • Luggage cart.

General Guests FAQs