Top 10 Reasons to Walk America’s Capitol

Walking tours are the ideal way to see the sights of many cities for first time visitors.  These tours provide a quick overview of the interesting sights and provide a familiar reference of the city’s layout setting the stage for further exploration on one’s own.  But some highly visited tourist areas are much better suited for this activity than others.  Washington DC is one of those special locations.  Here’s why.

1. The area has one exciting theme – the heart of the America. This strong patriotic theme dominates the experience of touring Washington DC. The city’s grand architecture, monuments and streetscapes all combine for a spectacular walking tour experience.

2. Washington DC is basically flat. Except for the rise forming Capitol Hill, most of the key Washington areas are basically flat.   This is ideal for allowing people of all ages and physical conditions to explore the entire tour route.

3. Closeness of interesting sites. There are many sites of interest within a very short walking distance in Washington.  The SelfTour Audio Adventures App walking tour of Washington DC leads the listener on the most popular route from the White House, down Pennsylvania Avenue to the Capitol and back walking down the Mall to the Washington Monument and to the White House. Key sites along this tour include the  Old Post Office, Ford’s Theater, FBI Headquarters, the National Archives, Supreme Court, Botanical Gardens, Air and Space Museum, Washington Monument,  WWII Memorial and the new Museum of African American History and Culture.

4. Many different options for taking a break. Along the tour route are both quick food and quality restaurants, including the oldest and most famous restaurant the Ebbitt Grill.  Plenty of food and beverage carts along the tour present and opportunity to grab a snack and sit on the lawns taking in breathtaking vistas in many directions.

5. The area is safe. Many different security entities, both local and federal, patrol the area full time keeping it a safe area, as much as it can be these days.

6. Close in hotels. The area of the tours incudes many leading name hotels including the expensive and controversial Trump Hotel at the Old Post Office.

7. End where you began. The cleverness of our tour designers of the SelfTour Audio Adventures App for Washington DC is making the tour a complete circle.  This means a stranger to the city doesn’t end up someplace far from where you started and have to find your way back.  The SelfTour App even invites the user to join the tour at any location and yet get the complete tour.  For example, if a person’s hotel is close to any one of the locations on the tour they just start there and eliminate the need to walk a centrally located starting point.

8. A Wow factor. In the case of Washington DC there are several wow attractions along the tour route.  For example those on the SelfTour Audio Adventure App tour visit the National Archives and view the actual Declaration of Independence with the original signatures of the brave founders of America. This is a Wow!  And only on the SelfTour Washington DC App can one experience the emotions of standing in the World War II Memorial looking at the thousands of gold stars, each representing 100 Americans killed in battle, while listening as a lone bugler plays “Taps”.  That experience is definitely an emotional Wow!

9. Long temperate periods. Washington DC can be very hot in the summer and very cold in the winter but the city does have long periods of very temperate climate, making these periods ideal for a walking tour. A popular time to tour Washington is cherry blossom season in the Spring.

10. A learning experience. There can be no better learning experience for visitors of all ages than a tour of America’s Capitol city.