There are plenty of good reasons to visit D.C. this year. An unopened museum, an over-hyped New York restaurant, and a cold monument to luxury retail aren’t any of them.

The New York Times released its annual ‘places to visit’ list today, and it is filled with the stunning visuals and seductive prose that inspire intense bouts of wanderlust each January. But this time, Washington made cut.

The good news: there isn’t a single mention of lobbyists, steakhouses, or the hackneyed “blocks from the White House.” The bad news: just about everything else.

At the 26th spot, freelance travel writer Ingrid K. Williams tells us that “developments raise the bar downtown”:

The National Mall, studded with landmarks and museums, will soon have one more jewel in its cultural crown: the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, scheduled to open late this year. Expect exhibits presenting a nuanced perspective of the African-American experience through cultural artifacts, artwork and personal-history stories. Adding to the appeal of downtown is nearby CityCenterDC, an ambitious 10-acre development project filled with apartments, condos, shops and restaurants, including Momofuku CCDC (the first United States location outside of New York of the celebrated restaurant brand), which opened there late last year.

To be fair, the National Museum of African American History and Culture would be an excellent reason to visit the District. But it isn’t slated to open until September at the earliest, so tourists will only be able to gaze upon the facade for the first nine months of year. And while the Smithsonian seems to have the build-out under control, no Washingtonian would bat an eye if it was added to our long list of delayed projects. Even if it does arrive on time, visiting during the first few weeks—when, I think, it’s safe to assume the building will be packed—isn’t the advice I would give any out-of-town friend who wanted to really enjoy the museum.

The best they could come up with for the rest of the nation’s capital is CityCenterDC, a shrine to high-end shopping that you can find in any major city, and the opening of a local outpost of, ahem, New York’s Momofuku and Milk Bar.

Washington Post critic Philip Kennicott once described the new development as a series of “immaculately designed glass boxes … defined by the ostentatious blankness of its surfaces, its panes of glass, its lack of anything that isn’t intentionally put there by the designers and architects.”

Is it possible that the only other new-ish reason to visit the District is the hulking and soulless CityCenterDC? Of course not. The District’s brewery and distillery scene is burgeoning, the newly reopened Renwick Gallery has proven itself with a blockbuster opening exhibition, new restaurants are giving a good name to the city’s culinary scene, Dupont Underground is finally opening to the public, the Folklife Festival has lived on and continues to evolve, the local artisan scene is growing, nearby Alexandria is gearing up its attractions with the release of Mercy Street, the National Building Museum has perfected the art of the high-profile summer exhibit, we’re working on being weird, and even Georgetown is evolving.

But on the other hand, telling the record-setting number of tourists that the best of Washington is in downtown might not be the worst idea we’ve ever heard.