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The Great Compromise

A little of everything, from a city born of compromise

Quick Details

  • Duration: approx. 6 hours with a 30-minute break
  • Flexible itinerary available—just ask!

About the Great Compromise Tour

DC is a city born out of compromise, and that’s what we’re bringing to you with our super efficient, time-saving The Great Compromise tour.

The Great Comprise tour launches at the Foggy Bottom metro station with our “From Swamp to Swank” walking tour route. As we walk through Foggy Bottom, by the George Washington University campus, the State Department, and the famous Kennedy Center, you’ll learn some of the neighborhood’s lesser-known history. For example, you’ll understand how beer shaped Foggy Bottom and the city, and what caused this dirty and industrial spot to transform Cinderella-style into the neighborhood with some of the priciest real estate in the city. Oh, and we’ll be sure to explain exactly what happened with “that whole Watergate thing.”

Once we arrive on the National Mall, we will knock out the memorials one after another. We’ll start with the Lincoln Memorial, and if you’ve only seen it on TV and in pictures, the sheer size will astound you. Next is the Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial, an emotional reminder of a tumultuous time in our history, and a seemingly simple wall that became the subject of intense controversy. The World War II Memorial is next on the list, and is the “beauty queen” of the memorials. Then we’ll make a quick stop at the base of the Washington Monument, including a hilarious explanation for why it took so long to build and wound up being two different colors.

We’ll take a quick break for lunch, and then it’s museum time! You’ll see two museums in-depth. Which museums? Up to you! You can choose from the Smithsonian American History, Natural History, and Air and Space museums. The American History Museum boasts the Star-Spangled Banner, the First Ladies Inaugural gowns, as well as fun odds and ends like Dorothy’s ruby slippers from the Wizard of Oz and Kermit the Frog. The Natural History Museum is a treat for any fans of nature, science, or even jewelry- it has the Hope Diamond and the National Gem Collection, a Megalodon jaw, a giant squid carcass, and the famous Australopithecus fossil, Lucy. The Air and Space Museum is the most visited museum in the world, and contains the real Wright flyer, Charles Lindbergh’s Spirit of St. Louis, Amelia Earhart’s Vega 5B, as well as lots of huge missiles and artifacts from U.S. space missions.

At the end of The Great Compromise, you’ll feel like you accomplished a week’s worth of DC in a single day. And you’ll be right! So if you’re looking to be efficient with your time, and you don’t want to have to pick just one type of your, book The Great Compromise and get everything you want all in one day.