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    Gmel Driving Academy

    5.0 (5 reviews)
    Closed 7:00 am - 8:00 pm

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    1 year ago

    Gilbert, Just so you know, I passed the driving test. You are an excellent instructor- Thank you again!

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    7 years ago

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    4 years ago

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    6 years ago

    Great experience driving with Gilbert. He's very dedicated, professional and I passed my test smoothly thanks to all his hard work.

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    DC Star Driving School - Need to learn how to park? Please book online at www.dcstardrivingschool.com

    DC Star Driving School

    4.7(27 reviews)
    1.0 miBrightwood

    Excellent driving instructors. Took my roads test and passed the first time!…read more Seriously, Mr. Ish and Mr. Teddy are very patient and definitely want you to pass. I had wanted to book extra hours behind the wheel before I scheduled my roads test, but Mr. Ish really pushed me to take it sooner because he felt I was ready. Very glad he did.

    I just passed my DC driving test, and its all thanks to the wonderful instruction from this school!…read moreI would recommend them highly to anyone, especially folks like me who are learning as adults. Before my lessons with Mr. Ish, the only driving experience I had as a 36 year old was some parking lot practice, and a one hour lesson with a different school (which I didn't think was very helpful so I didn't continue). I took 5 lessons of 2 hours each (10 hours total) with him and found him to be an incredibly patient and supportive instructor. I had a lot of anxiety going into the whole process, and his calm presence always put me at ease and made me more confident. When I would make a mistake like making too wide of a turn into a streeet, he would point it out but also ask me why I did it that way. It felt like he really wanted to get to the root of the issue to help fix it. In the case of turning too wide, we realized that I was misjudging the distance of my car from the parked cars on the street. This thoughtful approach really helped diagnose and correct issues as they came up and it was so satisfying to visibly see myself improve. His approach to teaching parallel parking was super clear, and I was able to confidently parallel park during the test, and have now also done it in relatively tight spots on DC streets! He also recommended doing a last lesson right before the test in the Deanwood neighborhood (where the DMV test takes place). This was great advice, and Mr. Teddy accommodated me for a pre-test lesson on short notice. I used the school's car for the test, which was helpful since I was familiar with it. The day of the test there was a really long wait at the DMV and Mr. Teddy waited with me patiently and was also really supportive. All the communication and reminders from the school about lesson times, locations were timely and clear, Mr. Ish was always on time for picking me up, and it was just a seamless experience end to end.

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    DC Star Driving School - All of our training vehicles are the very latest model, equipped with a dual brakes and all the modern safety features to ensure safety.

    All of our training vehicles are the very latest model, equipped with a dual brakes and all the modern safety features to ensure safety.

    DC Star Driving School - Our classroom for Driving Education. Visit us at 7603 Georgia Avenue NW, Suite 204 Washington, DC, 20012

    Our classroom for Driving Education. Visit us at 7603 Georgia Avenue NW, Suite 204 Washington, DC, 20012

    DC Star Driving School - At DC Star Driving School, we believe it is our mission to teach Driver Education in a competent, efficient and safe way.

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    At DC Star Driving School, we believe it is our mission to teach Driver Education in a competent, efficient and safe way.

    Fenwick's Driving School - Gilbert Fenwick
Owner/Instructor

    Fenwick's Driving School

    4.6(9 reviews)
    2.9 miBloomingdale

    I was looking for a place to take classes and build confidence, so I reached out for more…read moreinformation. I'm deaf, so communication and accessibility were important to me, and I wanted to make sure we were aligned before committing. I initially emailed but didn't hear back. After waiting a few more days, I emailed again and still received no response. I then tried calling through relay, but relay reported no ringing. Texting ended up being the only effective way to communicate, which worked best for me. Daisy responded via text, and after some back and forth, we agreed on a date and time. Due to a storm, the class was postponed to the following week. We agreed on a new date and time, but after that agreement, I realized it conflicted with my updated schedule from another commitment. I reached out via text to ask if we could move it to a later time, and Daisy agreed. A few days later, my schedule changed again, so I politely asked if it might be possible to push the time back once more, while also stating that I understood if it couldn't be changed. After that message, I never heard back and was left on read. On the day of the class, I texted to confirm that I was still attending at the agreed time and was again left on read. When I arrived at the location, I waited for a while and tried texting, only to realize my message did not go through as delivered. I asked a friend to call the number, and Daisy texted my friend asking her to text instead. My friend explained that I was already at the location waiting. Daisy read the message and never responded to either of us. While I understand that requesting schedule changes may have been inconvenient, completely failing to communicate, not showing up, and ultimately blocking me is extremely unprofessional. I chose this place because of the positive reviews, but unfortunately, I cannot share the same experience. This is why I am leaving a one-star review.

    Thank you, Fenwick -- I passed my driving test!…read more Fenwick did an excellent job guiding me through each stage of the road test. He is calm, patient, and very encouraging, even when I made mistakes or forgot certain steps. His supportive approach really helped build my confidence. I highly recommend Fenwick Driving School to anyone preparing for their road test.

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    Fenwick's Driving School

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    CAS Driving School

    CAS Driving School

    3.8(55 reviews)
    4.0 miH Street Corridor/Atlas District/Near Northeast

    They are a busy school and sometimes can't make their appointments. Their scheduling team in the…read moreoffice is a pleasure to work with.

    I had a highly unsatisfactory experience with Charles Smith from CAS Driving School. His behavior…read moreand teaching methods raised significant concerns regarding safety and professionalism. Unfortunately, Charles cannot be trusted driving his own car, let alone teaching others how to drive. He is rude and yells often. Charles might have been a good instructor back in his prime, but he is now too old to be teaching others how to drive effectively and safely. In sum, Charles as a driver is a potential hazard for pedestrians, cyclists, and other drivers. As you can see from reading other reviews, Charles is often late to appointments and spends most of it on his phone instead. My last appointment with Charles was a 2-hour driving instruction appointment to be conducted in the area where the DMV conducts road tests. For at least half that time Charles was either texting others, making/taking phone calls, or handling payroll for his employees on the phone. Charles wears these in-ear headphones and sometimes takes the left one off, so you cannot quite tell whether he is speaking to you or on the phone chatting with someone else. At an intersection where I had a red light, Charles yelled, "GO!". I proceeded to hit the gas and almost got into an accident. Turns out he had just received a phone call and was saying "Go!" to the person on the other end of the line. Charles cannot be trusted to teach you how to drive properly. Charles's instructions were often contradictory, and his lack of attention made it challenging to learn effectively. His frequent phone usage during lessons felt disrespectful and unprofessional, leaving me to figure out many aspects of driving on my own. In conclusion, based on my experience, I cannot recommend Charles Smith as a driving instructor. His inattentiveness and lack of proper guidance made the learning process frustrating and unsafe. I will be looking elsewhere for proper instruction.

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    CAS Driving School - Third party road test with the CAS driving school and guess who was the instructor? Charles Smith himself. And  HE IS THE BEST

    Third party road test with the CAS driving school and guess who was the instructor? Charles Smith himself. And HE IS THE BEST

    CAS Driving School

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    Habesha Spring Driving School

    Habesha Spring Driving School

    2.2(5 reviews)
    4.9 mi

    My son took an extra practice two hour driving session with Maurice and had an extremely positive…read moreexperience. Maurice was very patient and helped my son get over his driving phobias. He had my son driving on the beltway back from College Park at the end of the session (something I could never do on my own with him). I highly recommend behind the wheel sessions with Maurice.

    Google reviews were great, reviews here were poor, I went with Google's. Big mistake…read more Purchased a single driving lesson for "extra practice" for my teenage daughter. Called the office to explain exactly the driving skills we wanted the instructor to focus on and asked them to note that with the instructor. We arrived early at the Bethesda office. Office was closed with a sign saying their instructors will meet you there if you have a scheduled lesson. When the lesson time came and went, I called the first posted phone number, which was out of service. Not a good sign. The second number was answered, and we were then contacted by the instructor who had parked on the street outside -- the first of multiple communication issues. The instructor had no idea why we had scheduled a lesson. Compared to "the competition" in our area (the one with ex-cops, which we previously used), the instructor was unfriendly and unwelcoming --- not a good thing with a new, un-confident driver. After the lesson, my daughter told me that the instructor hardly gave her feedback while she was driving, gave her turn and other directions at the last second, and told her to slow down instead of speeding up to be closer to highway speed when she was merging onto the highway. When she first entered the car, the instructor was playing loud talk-radio. When my daughter asked if he could turn it off (at least she had the sense not to be playing talk-radio during a driving lesson); he turned it down, not off, until she asked again. I don't expect miracles from a driving school, but we know from experience that Habesha's service and professionalism was far below the competition.

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    Habesha Spring Driving School - Where I took the test with HABESHA SPRING DRIVING SCHOOL

    Where I took the test with HABESHA SPRING DRIVING SCHOOL

    Habesha Spring Driving School
    Habesha Spring Driving School - I love the way they prepare you the driving test

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    I love the way they prepare you the driving test

    Gmel Driving Academy - driving_schools - Updated May 2026

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