I travel a lot for work these days, and I try to make the most out of my trips, even if I only have limited time. I feel such guilt if I travel to a city I've never been to and never leave the hotel room. I'm an explorer by nature and even if I only catch a small glimpse of where I am, I satisfy my wanderlust.
If you haven't been to our nations capital, you must. I have to be honest and tell you that my idea of a vacation is more on the beach & rum cocktail side, however, as I've gotten older I've learned to appreciate seeing other things besides crystal blue waters on pristine beaches (now I am craving a beach vacay!).
If you're traveling to Washington and feeling overwhelmed with the plethora of museums, monuments, and buildings to visit, you're not alone. When there is so much to see- and so little time, it can be difficult to map it all out and play tour guide. You know what I say? Leave it to the professionals. I personally prefer a more tailored and curated approach when it comes to travel. Large tour buses with tons of people all squeezing in and rushing on and off to get the best spot is not for me. I prefer a more personalized experience.
On my most recent trip to Washington I took a private tour with See DC Today and it was just perfect. From their website: "Our Private Tours are tailored to the experience you are interested in. Where we go is up to you. We can offer plenty of suggestions and popular itineraries. The sites we visit on our Private Tour are decided as a result of phone conversations and emails between you and your Tour Guide. The times and length of the tour will be customized to your need; the length of the tours are usually between 3 – 6 hours."
Our tour guide Steve & driver were fun & knowledgable (a winning combo if you ask me). Let's face it, history can be boring, but not with See DC Today! We visited memorials and buildings I never would have thought to go to. We saw the building where Jackie O went to college, and we visited the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial which was only dedicated in 2011, not that long ago. Of course we visited the popular memorials & monuments, like the Lincoln Memorial, The Washington Monument, The Vietnam Veterans Memorial and more. We got really interesting tidbits of information that only a truly passionate tour guide would know. Steve was patient with us and took his time. He also didn't rush us when we stopped to take photos.
I don't like cookie cutter tours, I want to really dive deep in when I'm visiting a city, and this was the perfect way to do it! See DC Today offers small group tours, private tours, day tours, night tours... they have something for everyone. The next time you're in DC, make sure to book a tour with Steve!
xo,
elena