Spouses and guests of participants who will not be attending the presentations at the Masonic Memorial may join the optional Companion Tours on Monday and Tuesday. The price of the Companion Tours package is $110 total, and is separate from the Companion registration fee.
For both tours, remember that the weather will likely be hot and muggy. Wear comfortable shoes and be prepared for walking some distances.
Monday, 1 August, 10:00 a.m.—5:00p.m.
After the Congress opening ceremonies and taking the group photograph, Companions will board a bus at either the Masonic Memorial or the Embassy Suites for a guided tour of significant Washington-area attractions. The tour will stop for lunch (which is not included in the tour price) and will return to the Embassy Suites at approximately 5:00 p.m.
The list is still under development, but will likely include some of the following:
- Arlington National Cemetery (including the gravesite of President John F. Kennedy);
- Iwo Jima Memorial and Netherlands Carillon;
- The sights of Georgetown and Embassy Row in Washington, D.C. (driving);
- Union Station (lunch at food court);
- U.S. Botanical Gardens (driving);
- The United States Capitol, Library of Congress & Supreme Court (driving);
- The Washington Monument (tour and take an elevator to the top);
- The National Mall (driving);
- Presidential Memorials (Jefferson, Lincoln, & Franklin D. Roosevelt, Thomas Jefferson);
Tuesday, 2 August, 10:00 a.m.—5:00p.m.
Companions will take a 90-minute guided cruise down the Potomac River to the historic Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens, home of President George Washington.
Companions will spend four hours there, eating lunch at the Food Court or Mount Vernon Inn Restaurant (not included in the tour price), and returning by boat in the afternoon. The boat departs from the dock at Cameron & Union Streets, Old Town Alexandria (at the foot of King Street) at 10:30 a.m. Allow 30 minutes to walk from the Embassy Suites to the dock. The boat returns at 5:30 p.m. You can bring no food or drink aboard the boat, and only water to Mount Vernon.
Wednesday, 3 August
On Wednesday, 3 August, the all-Congress tour will take all registrants, including companions, to the National Museum of American History, and provide for extra time to visit other Smithsonian Institution museums and tour the National Mall.
Check here for more details as this program is finalized.