NOVA neighborhood profile
Moving to Cameron Station
38.81°N · 77.13°W
Cameron Station fits people who want a quiet, walkable planned community with parks and a pool, at an Alexandria address without Old Town prices. If that description does not sound like you, one of the 4 nearby neighborhoods below is probably a better read.
The 60-second read
Rent
About $2,200/mo (1BR), approximate; most stock is townhomes and condos
Metro
Private shuttle to Van Dorn Street (Blue Line); about 35 to 40 min to downtown
By car
About 25 to 35 min to DC via I-395, longer in weekday rush
What Cameron Station is actually like
Cameron Station is a 100-acre planned community in Alexandria’s West End, just off Duke Street on the site of a former U.S. Army base. Construction started in 1999, and the whole place was designed to feel like an American small town from the 1700s and 1800s: brick townhomes and condos on tidy streets, about 975 townhouses, 762 condominiums, and a handful of detached houses, home to more than 5,000 people. The heart of it is the Cameron Club, with adult and kids’ pools, a fitness center, and meeting rooms, and the edges are all parkland: Ben Brenman Park with its pond and dog run, Armistead Boothe Park, and the Cameron Station Linear Park, stitched together with walking and jogging trails. There is no Metro station inside the community, but a private resident shuttle runs weekday rush hours to the Van Dorn Street stop on the Blue Line. You get a calm, green, walkable village at an Alexandria address, without paying Old Town waterfront prices, and I-395 is a mile away when you do need the car.
Worth knowing before you commit
London Curry House, right on the Cameron Station town square along Cameron Station Boulevard, is the family-run independent the neighborhood leans on, an Indian kitchen where the butter chicken and fresh naan are the standby order. Grab a coffee at the Caboose shop on the same square first.
Local independent worth the drive: London Curry House, on the Cameron Station town square (Cameron Station Boulevard), Alexandria 22304. Family-run independent Indian kitchen and the community’s on-site sit-down option; butter chicken and fresh naan are the standbys. Caboose coffee shop sits on the same square. (Researched 2026-06-29; verify exact star/review counts before quoting in print.)
Cameron Station vs the 3 closest NOVA neighborhoods
Compare rent, Metro access, and car commute side-by-side.
| Neighborhood |
Rent |
Metro |
By car |
| Cameron Station (this page) |
About $2,200/mo (1BR), approximate; most stock is townhomes and condos |
Private shuttle to Van Dorn Street (Blue Line); about 35 to 40 min to downtown |
About 25 to 35 min to DC via I-395, longer in weekday rush |
| Alexandria — West End |
$1,700/mo (1BR) |
no Metro, DASH bus to King Street Metro (15 min) |
30 min to DC off-peak |
| Kingstowne |
Apartments average about $2,344/mo; most buyers land in townhomes, with condos at the lower end (approx) |
Between Van Dorn Street and Franconia-Springfield on the Blue Line; roughly 35 to 45 min to DC |
About 25 to 40 min to DC via I-95/395 or the Beltway, longer in weekday rush |
| Eisenhower (Alexandria) |
about $2,634/mo (RentCafe neighborhood average, all unit sizes, July 2026, approximate) |
Yellow Line at Eisenhower Ave, about 25 min downtown |
20 min to DC off-peak via I-395, 45+ in rush |
Mistakes people make moving to Cameron Station
- Underestimating rush-hour math. Off-peak commute times posted on rental sites are often the ONLY times most tenants will experience. Add 30 to 60 percent to any drive that crosses I-495, I-66, or the American Legion Bridge between 7 and 9:30 AM eastbound or 4 to 7 PM westbound.
- Treating “close to Metro” as walkable. Half a mile in DC is walkable. Half a mile in most of NOVA means crossing a stroad with no sidewalk and a parking lot. Check Google Street View before touring anywhere that markets itself as Metro-adjacent.
- Ignoring HOA and condo fees. NOVA condo fees frequently run $400 to $800 per month on top of the mortgage. Get the resale package early, read the reserve study, and price the full monthly nut before falling in love with a unit.
- Assuming the school pyramid is stable. Fairfax, Loudoun, and Arlington counties redistrict every few years. If school assignment is a factor, verify current boundaries directly with FCPS, LCPS, or APS admissions rather than trusting the address on Zillow.
Frequently asked questions about Cameron Station
Is Cameron Station a good place to live?
Cameron Station works well for people who want a quiet, walkable planned community with parks and a pool, at an Alexandria address without Old Town prices. The tradeoffs are covered in detail below, but the short version is: Cameron Station is a 100-acre planned community in Alexandria’s West End, just off Duke Street on the site of a former U.
What is the average rent in Cameron Station?
About $2,200/mo (1BR), approximate; most stock is townhomes and condos
Does Cameron Station have a Metro station?
Private shuttle to Van Dorn Street (Blue Line); about 35 to 40 min to downtown
How long is the commute from Cameron Station to Washington DC?
About 25 to 35 min to DC via I-395, longer in weekday rush
What are the closest neighborhoods to Cameron Station?
The three closest tracked NOVA neighborhoods are Alexandria — West End (0.5 miles), Kingstowne (3.1 miles), Eisenhower (Alexandria) (3.2 miles).
Where should I eat if I visit Cameron Station?
London Curry House, on the Cameron Station town square (Cameron Station Boulevard), Alexandria 22304. Family-run independent Indian kitchen and the community’s on-site sit-down option; butter chicken and fresh naan are the standbys. Caboose coffee shop sits on the same square. (Researched 2026-06-29; verify exact star/review counts before quoting in print.)
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