I started watching The West Wing on May 28th & as with many probably very few TWW fans, I became obsessed, watched 154 episodes in one month, and subsequently booked a flight to Washington DC.

I got a lot of messages from people on Insta saying they didn’t realise there was so much to do in DC; they were surprised I got so much done in just 5 days, they were fascinated by US History & Politics etc, so I thought I’d put down the details of my trip in writing for easy reference.

Flights:
I booked a direct flight with Aer Lingus and it cost €297 return. I had a €200 voucher, so it actually only cost me €97 which is phenom for a trans-atlantic flight.
I booked the Saver fare for the first time, which is Aer Lingus’ cheapest fare offering. It allows you to take a 10kg carry on plus a handbag/backpack, but no check-in bag. This means you gotta get real savvy with your liquids. You still get access to in-flight entertainment and food/free soft drinks on the plane, but you don’t get a blanket, headphones, or seat selection.

In reality, every seat gets a blanket and headphones, so the only real downsides are the baggage limitations and seat assignment. However, since this was a very spur of the moment trip I wanted to try be as thrifty as poss, so I took the plunge. I got assigned aisle seats on the way over (19D) and way back (38D), and on the way back there was nobody seated next to me, so it definitely worked out for the best in my situ.

Flight to Hotel:
Aer Lingus lands you in Washington Dulles airport, which is actually about 40 mins outside DC. There’s no direct bus or train that I could find that will bring you straight to downtown, but you can get the 5A Bus and switch to the Metro at Rosslyn Station which will get you there in an hour. I fully intended to do this in line with my thrifty plans, but then I saw a sign for Uber and that all fell by the wayside. I Uber Pooled instead, which is where you share an Uber with other people. Instead of it costing me $70 it cost me around $35, which still wasn’t ideal but SURE LOOK DC BABY.

Accomodation:
This was a tricky one, firstly because I’m a boujee bitch who in no way is able to slum it, even when on a budget, and secondly because everywhere in DC is super pricey.

I booked a number of hotels through booking.com at first, and then researched them further – mostly focussed on the location.

I ended up settling on Hyatt Place Washington/White House, because it seemed fairly central. It’s located downtown, 2 blocks from the White House, 20 minutes from the Washington Monument, and 15 minutes from Dupont/Logan Circle(good for night life).

The hotel cost me €594 for 4 nights, which wouldn’t be so bad if you were sharing but unfortch I was staying alone – I was meeting a friend there but she booked her room separately because she was staying just 2 nights and the hotel wouldn’t let me upgrade my room to a double.

It was a pretty nice hotel, good amenities, stunning shower, a mini gym, rooftop bar, room had a couch and mini fridge etc. The area it was in was pretty safe, and it was across the road from CVS, Starbucks and Chipotle – the 3 key stores needed for survival.

Itinerary:
Hello in case you haven’t met me before – I adore a good itinerary. Adore. Could not vacay without one. Usually they’re a bit more detailed but since this was only 4 nights…

This also helps you prevent over-packing because you can see exactly what activities you have every day and plan your outfits around that!

All green items are free activities, red are paid activities, yellow are restaurants/food plans, and purple are drinks.

As you can see, a TONNE of activities in DC are free, and I didn’t even get to do all of them 😦

Capitol Building Tour: FREE

The Capitol Building is effectively the US House of Parliament; it’s where the House and the Senate sit. House Representatives are elected every 2 years, and there are 435 total, assigned to states based on population size. Senators are elected every 6 years, and there are 2 for each state, regardless of population size, with 100 Senators total.

The Capitol Building was built during the US Civil War (1861-65) under Abraham Lincoln, and you can tour the main building for free. I booked the tour through my congresswoman Karen Bass, International visitors can register for the tour there and then on the day, in the Visitor Centre. The tour lasts 45 mins and you get to see the Capitol Rotunda, which is the centrepoint of DC, sits below the Dome. When a President or former President dies, as part of the state funeral ceremony their casket is placed in the centre of the Capitol Rotunda and open for visitors to pay their respects. George H.W. Bush was the last person to be laid in state.

The absolute highlight was walking past the Speaker of the House’s Office (Nancy Pelosi) mere DAYS after she announced an impeachment inquiry against Trump. Beautiful. Magnificent. Stunning. Breathtaking.

Nothing could prepare me for it.

Newseum: $25 for 2 day pass

When the USA ratified the constitution in 1791 they were the first country in the world to protect the rights of the press in their constitution. This musuem is all about the first amendment, which is freedom of religion, speech, press and the right to assembly.

There are 6 floors, and they vary in themes, from a 9/11 gallery, an FBI exhibit, memorial to journalists who died while covering a story, censorship and a VR experience. My fave was the 6th floor because it had the front pages of newspapers every year back to the 1800s, covering events like Ferguson, 9/11, Clinton’s Impeachment, Watergate and even Titanic.

It also had THE DOOR from the Watergate scandal. The actual door. I was bawling. As well as this it had really interesting exhibits on fake news/the role of social/the emergence of BuzzFeed, Vox, Breitbert and all of the “new” media.

National Archives: FREE

This was probably my favourite thing I saw in DC, but I know for a fact 97% of my mates would have no interest so it’s probably not for everyone. The Archives hold a lot of the original documents from the founding of the Union, and I studied US History in college so this was a huge appeal for me.

On the ground floor there’s an exhibition on the emergence of democracy; how the constitution was interpreted by various groups including women & their right to vote, and an original Magna Carta from 1297.

When you go upstairs to the Rotunda you can view the following documents, which I’mma explain because I got confused between them a bit so I’mma assume you do too.

Declaration of Independence (1776): This is the one that declared US independence from British colonists in 1776, in the middle of the American Revolutionary War. It’s the document that states “All men are created equal” and says that every person has the right to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”.

The US Constitution (1788): This is the document that outlines the foundation of US law, and establishes 3 branches of government – the executive (president), legislative (congress) and judicial (court system). It’s the doc that starts with “We The People…” This document is particularly relevant right now because Article 1, Section 2, Clause 5 outlines that the House of Representatives have the sole power of impeachment. I’m just a little bit obsessed with the fact that a document written in 1788 is what is protecting the American people from Trump today…

Bill of Rights (1791): This is effectively the first 10 amendments to the US Constitution. Some of the founding fathers believed that the Constitution didn’t protect the rights of its citizens, so they proposed 12 amendments, 10 of which were passed. This document protects the right to free speech (1st Amendment – see Newseum above!), the right to bear arms (2nd Amendment) and the right to a fair trial (5th amendment).

Also – The National Archives Gift Shop was without a doubt the best one I visited in DC, followed closely by the American History musuem.

Lincoln Assassination Tour: FREE (but tip as needed)

We booked this via DC Free Tours by Foot and I adored it!! Our tour guide was really animated and funny and basically made the whole assassination really interesting. You don’t go into any buildings or anything, just walk around to key spots around the city that have a story behind them. I didn’t think I’d like this that much but it was actually one of the best things we did, and if I had more time I would have booked in for their White House Scandals Tour or their Georgetown Ghosts Tour.

You do have to book in advance and although it’s free, I do recommending bringing some cash so you can tip your guide at the end. This is a really good activity to do if you’re a solo traveller as you form part of a group, can have the chats with other people and it gives you the chance to walk around the city and get to know it without worrying about being alone/getting lost.

Georgetown: FREE

Georgetown is a really old historic part of DC, and it’s honestly stunning. It’s super leafy and tree-lined and every street feels like you’re in A Few Good Men. There’s loads of cute bars and restaurants, and it’s got lots of student vibes because it’s home to Georgetown Uni. In terms of places to go, head to Martin’s Tavern, where JFK proposed to Jackie; Georgetown Cupcake which apparently do gorge cupcakes but I couldn’t handle the queue; and Made In DC has loads of cute DC themed souvenirs created by local artists. I got an Impeach badge and a Capitol Building print there.

The waterfront at Georgetown was absolutely hopping of a Sunday afternoon and had loads of gorge bars, and you can take a water taxi from the Georgetown waterfront back up to central DC (or at least as close as possible to it!) You can also do a tour by boat, or go kayaking on the Potomoc River, but we didn’t get a chance to do either of those 😦

Monuments by Moonlight: $45

This tour was top of my bucket list, as SO many people have told me you have to see the monuments after dark. There are a couple of companies that do this, but we went with DC Trolley Tours because they had the best reviews. The tour lasted 2.5 hours, and cost $45, making it the most expensive thing we did in DC. However it was totally worth it – we were taken around on a trolley bus which had no windows, and given basically a full tour of DC. If you’re thinking of doing a Big Bus Tour as well as this I don’t think there’s really any need. You get a whole tour of the city plus commentary with this.

There are 3 stops, at the FDR/MLK Memorial, the Lincoln/Vietnam Vets/Korean War Memorial, and the Iwo Jima Memorial. FDR was disappointing, MLK was amazing, and Lincoln was INCREDIBLE. The Vietnam Vets was super sad, I didn’t make it to the Korean War one (too obsessed with Lincoln) and the Iwo Jima was pretty epic too.

My one criticism is that there was only a half an hour at each of the stops and while that seems like loads it REALLY wasn’t. I could have spent hours at Lincoln. (I ended up going back during the day a few days later, but it was 100% better at night).

National Museum of African American History and Culture: FREE

This is one of the newest Smithsonians in DC, and it’s one of the busiest museums. During peak seasons you can’t enter same-day, you have to book tickets in advance. However, since we went in September on a Monday, we were ok to just queue up that morning. It’s located right next to the Washington Monument, so probably best to fit these two things next to each other in your itinerary.

You start the tour in the basement back in the 1400’s and then each floor you ascend covers significant milestones in the fight for African American emancipation. From the Civil War to Jim Crow, to the Freedom Riders and Black Panthers, all the way through to Obama’s election and Black Lives Matter. It was a really emotional journey, I of course was bawling, but we didn’t spend to get as much time here as we would have liked. You could legit spend half a day in here.

Library of Congress Tour: FREE

A tour of the Library of Congress can be booked through the same process as the Capitol Building tour, and it’s probably best you do them one after another. Again it lasts around 45 minutes, and finishes with a visit to the LOC Reading Room which is featured in All The President’s Men. NGL – this was the main reason I wanted to do the tour.

Again, on the theme of impeachment, it was so emosh to know that I was in the same room that Carl Bernstein & Bob Woodford first began investigating the conspiracy that would eventually result in Nixon’s impeachment & resignation!!! So obsessed.

The rest of the tour was not really my jam – the tour guide was making up random facts like there was no tomorrow and none of them really seemed plausible. You do get to see an original Gutenberg Bible though, and hearing about the history of the printing press was amazing, again given the context of freedom of the press etc. There was also an exhibition on the Women’s Suffrage movement and Thomas Jeffersons original library, but due to a bomb scare we had to leave before we could fully explore these!

This is probably one of the only things in DC that I wouldn’t do again..

White House Visitor Centre: FREE

Getting a tour of the White House these days is pretty tough. You need to request it 4 months in advance from your representative or senator. I did not do this. Firstly because I booked the trip less than 4 months before I flew, and secondly because I didn’t want my first time seeing the inside of the White House to be during a Trump admin.

However, I did go to the White House Visitor Centre, and it was one of the many places in DC that I bawled. It was very bipartisan, and there was hardly any mention of Trump which I adored.

It was fascinating to learn about how the WH has changed over the years, both architecturally and within each administration. Obviously since I adored The West Wing it was a dream come true, and there were even a few pictures of Dan Pfeiffer (of Pod Save America and Obama admin fame) as part of the modern day West Wing exhibition.

The Gift Shop is fab, and they have White House Christmas ornaments for every year dedicated to a different President.

National Museum of American History: FREE

This is another of many Smithsonian museums around DC, and is probably the best for kids/if you’re not really into boring Declarations of Independence. It’s super interactive and there are loads of fun things to do, but I am not one of these fun people.

I went to this museum for one reason and one reason only: to cry at the original Star Spangled Banner.

The Star Spangled Banner is the American Flag that inspired the song that would become American’s National Anthem. Francis Key Scott wrote the song during the war of 1812 at Fort McHenry, when he saw the flag flying through the perilous fight. I’m bawling just writing this. They have the ACTUAL flag in this museum, and I was violently excited to see it.

It was absolutely 100 times more incredible than I ever expected. It’s housed in a giant glass case in a dark room, and I sat on a bench and just cried while looking at it for close to 45 minutes.

Again, this isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but it was honestly so, SO amazing to me.

There are some other things I enjoyed in this museum, there was an INSANE exhibition on the history of American democracy which obviously I bawled at, and it had actual campaign material from every general election since 1900. Adored.

Washington Monument: FREE

The Washington Monument is at the centre of the National Mall, and honestly every time I turned a corner in DC and caught a glimpse of it it took my breathe away. Especially at night.

It has been closed to the public since an earthquake hit in 2011, but it reopened for visitors about 2 weeks before I arrived. You get an elevator up to the very top and can look out across all of DC, with gorge views of the White House, Capitol Building and the Lincoln Memorial. However, they weren’t doing pre-bookings for tickets, you had to queue up and then were assigned a time throughout the day. I tried doing this on my last day, but the tickets were all distributed by 10.30am. I was a bit devo, but it just means now I have to go back 🙂 Even if you don’t plan on going up to the top, it’s still worth getting up close to the Monument, it’s pretty epic.

Bureau of Engraving & Printing: FREE

The biggest waste of time. So boring. The tour guide was super rude. It was interesting to see how the dollar is made but you basically just stand in a corridor looking at machines printing stuff for 30 minutes.

Arlington Cemetery: $15

If you’ve ever watched Scandal, House of Cards, TWW, or any movie/tv show based around US military or DC, you will recognise Arlington Cemetery. It’s not technically in DC, it’s in Virginia, which is just across the Potomac River. I caught the Trolley Tour Bus (same company as the Monuments at Moonlight tour) from the Lincoln Memorial, which brought us right to the cemetery for no extra charge.

Arlington is the burial place for the US Military, starting from the time of the Civil War. There are over 420k people buried there. Burial rights are reserved for US Military, Vets, and their Widows, however US Presidents also entitled to be buried there even if they haven’t served in the military, since they were effectively Commander-In-Chief.

The tour is pretty interesting, you get brought around on a trolley and have opportunities to get off & explore at 6 different sites, including JFK’s grave and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. I only had about 90 minutes so I didn’t get to explore too much, you’d probably need at least 3 hours to do this properly.

Also – fun fact!! At the end of the 20 Hours in America episode of TWW, Josh, Toby and Donna get out of their taxi at the bridge at Arlington cemetery so they can walk back to the White House. I loved this shot of the Women in Military memorial in the background and then the switchover to the Lincoln Memorial in the distance as they walked across the bridge. Very emosh.

Things I Wish I Had Done:

Even though I managed to fit in a lot over a 4 night trip, there were still a few things I wish I had time to do:

• Tour of the Pentagon
• DC Free Tours by Foot – White House Scandals
• National Cathedral
• Congress in Session
• Supreme Court in Session
• Air & Space Museum
• Natural History Museum (dinosaurs etc)
• Jefferson Memorial – this was under construction so I didn’t want to see it when it wasn’t at its best.
• Kayak on the Potomoc
• Lincoln Memorial again, but at 4am
• Capital Wheel – basically like the London Eye on the waterfront. I adore a ferris wheel.
• Mount Vernon – this is where George Washington lived. You can spend a whole day here it looks incred, it’s about an hour outside DC.
• Gettysburg – location of Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg address. A few people recommended I go here but I didn’t get time, again it’s about an hour outside of DC.
• Fort McHenry – the birthplace of the Star Spangled Banner and one of the military forts during the war of 1812!!

I’ve added the highlights of my trip to my Instagram Story so feel free to go check it out, I’m @gilleechi.