When: September 22-25 (Full, waitlist)
When: September 25-28 (Full, waitlist)
Where: Washington DC
Trip Status: Both trips are full. Sign up to receive a text notification when spots come available.
Join us in Washington DC this fall and visit iconic landmarks such as the White House, US Capitol, Library of Congress, and the National Archives. We’ll also dive into history at Ford’s Theater, enjoy a moonlight tour of monuments and memorials, pay our respects at Arlington National Cemetery, explore the secret world of espionage at the International Spy Museum, and more!
This trip includes group tours and activities for ages 10 and up.
As always, government tours are not guaranteed due to factors beyond our control (government shutdown, security, or other factors), but we’ll have fun regardless.
NOTE for our September 22-25 trip: Our itinerary will begin with a mandatory orientation at 5:30 pm on Sunday, September 22 and end on Wednesday, September 25 around 5:00 pm.
NOTE for our September 25-28 trip: Our itinerary will begin with a mandatory orientation at 5:30 pm on Wednesday, September 25 and end on Saturday, September 28 around 5:00 pm.
Security Requirements
Due to security requirements for the White House tour, be prepared to provide social security numbers for everyone age 18 and older, date of birth, first and last name, country of birth, and current city/state of residence. The tour isn’t guaranteed, but you’ll need to provide your personal information if we do. You don’t have to provide this information if you don’t want to go on the tour.
Transportation
You’ll make your own travel arrangements to Washington DC. If you fly or take the train, there’s no need to rent a car once you arrive (unless you extend your stay to take day trips). The city is easily accessible via public transportation whether you travel by train or air.
We’ll walk and use the metro to tour DC.
Lodging
You can stay at our group hotel (around $470/night) or make your own plans. Group hotel details will be shared with travelers after the trip is confirmed.
If you want to arrange your own lodging, I recommend choosing somewhere centrally located. (Within a 10-minute walk to Freedom Plaza would be a good benchmark).
If you’re comfortable using public transportation (or using a taxi, Uber, Lyft, etc., to get to/from Freedom Plaza), lodging that is farther out will likely be less expensive.
Cost and What’s Included
The price is $339 per person and includes your registration fee, group tours and activities on our itinerary, and a pre-loaded metro card. It doesn’t include lodging, meals, and anything you do on your own.
Payment, Cancellation, and Refund Policy
Full payment is due upon registration and is payable through my online payment platform.
Your payment is refundable only if I have a family on my waiting list to replace yours by June 14, 2024, and a $100 per-person cancellation fee will be deducted from any refunds. Your spots aren’t transferable.
No replacements, roster changes, or refunds can be made after June 14, 2024, for any reason, so please register with this in mind. Your registration and payment acknowledge your understanding and agreement with my cancellation and refund policy.
This trip won’t be confirmed until we reach our minimum. If we don’t, you’ll get a full refund of payments made to me. Please wait to purchase non-refundable flights until I confirm the trip. I have no control over airline refund policies.
Your registration and payment acknowledge your understanding and agreement with my cancellation and refund policy.
Important Things to Know
- Please read all the information on this page and the FAQs below before emailing me with questions.
- You can stay at our group hotel or arrange your own lodging for this trip.
- White House, US Capitol, Library of Congress, National Archives and other government sites are not guaranteed and may be canceled at the last minute for security or other reasons.
- Full payment will be required when you submit your registration. Due to the popularity of this trip and limited capacity, I can’t hold spots.
- I’ll use a text messaging system throughout our trip. A cellphone with unlimited texting and a portable charger (to carry with you) is required.
- We’ll rely on public transportation while touring. It’s well worth the experience, but it requires patience if there are delays.
- You’ll walk a lot during this trip. If you have problems walking or standing for extended periods, please consider waiting until you’re more able. I don’t recommend this trip for people who require a wheelchair or scooter, or for senior citizens unless they’re very active and are accustomed to standing and walking for extended periods during the day. (Most seniors have difficulty with the amount of standing and walking on this trip, even if they’re active.)
- Start a walking program before our travel dates if you don’t ordinarily do much walking. Be sure to walk in the (comfortable, closed-toe) shoes you’ll be using for the trip – don’t buy new shoes without breaking them in thoroughly. Trust me on this.
- This trip is limited to ages 10 and up. (Younger siblings can’t join us for any portion of the trip.)
- Due to site and tour limitations, adding extra people without my prior approval is not allowed.
- Security in DC is extreme. Be prepared to be security-scanned every site we visit.
- No refunds unless I can replace your spots by June 14, 2024. No replacements, roster changes, or refunds can be made after June 14, 2024, for any reason. A $100 per-person cancellation fee is deducted from all refunds.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this trip still open? Are any spots left? Do you have a waitlist? Is it first come, first serve?
I’ll update this page when we run out of spots. I can’t answer “do you have spots left” questions because I receive registrations throughout the day. What’s available when I get your email may not be available five minutes later.
Waitlists are based on a lottery system (not first come, first serve). Notifications go to everyone who signed up, and everyone has an equal chance of getting spots, regardless of when they signed up.
When the cancellation period for a trip closes, the waitlist also closes since we can no longer replace spots.
To increase your chance of getting spots on my waitlist “lottery,” make sure to follow the instructions in the text you receive and provide the requested information.
Is the price per person?
The price is per person, adults and students.
Why don’t you allow younger children on this trip?
Based on our experiences during previous trips to Washington DC, younger children have a harder time handling the physical aspects of the trip and aren’t as interested in the history/government focus.
This is a lot of money to pay to someone I don’t know. Can you provide references?
I could provide references from families who’ve traveled with me since I began doing these trips in 2006, but the references could be faked.
Instead, read my About page to find out more about me, then do a search of “Carolina Homeschooler trips” and “Traveling Homeschooler trips.” If I’ve cheated anyone, it’ll be all over the internet.
My “Traveling Homeschoolers” name is newer, created in 2016 to differentiate between my local member trips, and trips that are open to everyone, so search both names.
You can also get a sense of who I am and what I do if you follow me on Facebook and read comments and feedback from my 40,000+ followers.
It’s too stressful to pay for one of my trips if you don’t trust me, so research before you register.
Do you think you’ll have enough families to confirm the trip?
I think I will – it’s a popular trip!
What’s our hotel? What’s our day-to-day itinerary? Will we have group visits and tours?
I’ll share hotel details after I confirm the trip, but our group hotel is optional. You can arrange your own hotel (or rental or timeshare or campground or whatever) after our trip is confirmed.
Our daily itinerary may change, so I’ll wait until closer to our travel dates to share that with travelers. We’ll have group visits and tours to the sites on our itinerary, if all of them are confirmed. (Government tours take longer to confirm and may be canceled at any time, for any reason.)
What time should we be there on our arrival date? What time will we be finished on our departure date?
I recommend arriving no later than 2:00 pm on our arrival date. We’ll have a mandatory orientation at around 5:00 pm and a tour afterward, so you’ll need time to get settled into your lodging and eat before we meet.
We have a full day planned for our last tour day, so don’t plan to leave until after 5:00 pm, or the next day. If you’d like to visit other sites in the area, I recommend adding a few days to the end of our trip.
Can we opt out of specific tours and activities?
You can opt out of any tour or group activity except for the mandatory orientation. No refunds will be issued for missed tours/activities.
Want to join us?
- Both trips are full. Sign up to receive a text notification when spots come available.
- If you don’t receive a confirmation within 5 days, please email me.
- And that’s it! Email me if you have any questions.