Wishing We Were There! With travel on hold and all of us at home it’s a great time to start dreaming of where we will go when we can travel again. Here are some future adventures for your consideration when planning your wish-list. We hope to see you early in 2021.
Lewis and Clark
Experience the incredible story of the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1803-1806. Join Daytripping on this historic celebration of the journey. Retrace the most interesting portion of their trip through Montana, Idaho, Washington and Oregon, where much of the land they explored remains unchanged. Highlights include: Fort Benton Montana; The Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center; a boat ride through the “Gates of the Mountains”; Sacajawea Interpretive Center and birthplace; Nez Perce National Historic Park; Fort Clatsop; and some of the most scenic drives in the country.
Colonial America
Understand the meaning of freedom and America’s story… travel back to meet the men and women who shaped this great country. Start in Boston and work our way to Annapolis. In between, encounter patriots like John Adams and Benjamin Franklin. See Lexington & Concord, the Freedom Trail, Philadelphia Independence Hall private tour by night, the Liberty Bell and the brand-new Museum of the American Revolution
Williamsburg and the Virginia Presidents
Eight Presidents were born in Virginia, giving credence to the State’s nickname as the “Mother of Presidents! Seven of these Old Dominion natives were among the first twelve holders of the nation’s highest office. Immerse yourself in the wonders of this beautiful state, exploring presidential homes, visiting national landmarks and enjoying traditional colonial food. Our time spent in these extraordinary places enable us to better know these men and their First Ladies.
On the Presidential Trail
While serving in office, President Franklin D. Roosevelt inventoried the vast quantities of papers and other materials he and his staff had accumulated. Up to that time, many Presidential papers and records had been lost, destroyed, sold for profit, or ruined by poor storage conditions. Advised by a number of noted historians and scholars, he established a public repository to preserve the evidence of the Presidency for future generations. Immerse yourself in American History as we travel through America’s North East. Sites include James Buchanan Wheatland, Eisenhower Home in Gettysburg, PA , Grover Cleveland birthplace, Historical Sites of New York City, Teddy Roosevelt’s home in Oyster Bay, FDR and Val Kill in Hyde Park, Martin Van Buren’s Kinderhook, Franklin Pierce, Calvin Coolidge, John Adams and his son John Quincy Adams home, and the JFK home and Library.
At Home with Lincoln & the Midwest Presidents
Bring slices of American history to life, one president at a time as we visit presidential libraries, homes and museums from Nashville to Chicago. Begin with Presidents 7 & 11 – tour James Polk Museum and 1816 home in the heart of charming downtown Columbia. TN and Andres Jackson’s Hermitage – historic plantation, home and tomb outside Nashville. Travel to Louisville for President Lincoln’s birthplace then on to St Louis for his boyhood home. While in St Louis we’ll visit the Dred Scott Courthouse where, in 1857 it was determined that “no negro was or could ever be an American citizen”, stroll through George Washington Carver Gardens, see the brilliantly updated Gateway Arch and President Ulysses S Grant National Historical Site featuring the 200 year old White Haven Estate – the home where Ulysses and Julia Grant fell in love. Spend two nights in Springfield, IL and explore the legacy of Abraham Lincoln “To this place, and the kindness of these people, I owe everything.” Springfield is where Lincoln began his political career – walk in his footsteps, from the home he shared with Mary Todd Lincoln for 17 years to the Old State Capitol where he served in the House of Representatives and gave his famous “House Divided” speech and where his body was brought to lie in state before being taken to his final resting place in Oak Ridge Cemetery. Following our path of presidents, we continue on to West Branch, Iowa to visit President Herbert Hoover National Historic Site and the simple two room cottage where he was born. Hoover’s Quaker parents and grandparents came by covered wagon and helped settle this town and their principles of honesty, hard work, simplicity and generosity guided Hoover throughout his life of service to the nation and the world. Before Chicago we stop in Dixon, Il to visit the boyhood home of President Ronald Reagan – the site of his earliest childhood memories and a place he recalled with great fondness “ All of us have a place we go back to. Dixon is that place for me. There was the life that shaped my mind and body for all the years to come” Ronald Reagan. Our final slice of American presidential history in Chicago – where will we tour the Barack Obama Presidential Center when open.
Presidential Library’s
If you love history and libraries, this is the trip for you! Travel from Texas, to Arkansas and Missouri – fill your historical cravings with facts, museums, libraries and more. Step into the minds and shoes of our former President’s and get to know them as family men and leaders. See all of the following sites – Johnson Library and Boyhood home, Bush Sr. Library, Bush Jr. Library, JRK assignation museum, Clinton’s Boyhood home and Library, Little Rock Central High Historic Site, Crystal Bridges, Truman Birthplace, Library and Home, Eisenhower Library and the WW I Museum.
Ford & the Ohio Presidents
Delve into history with this tour consisting of 9 Presidential Homes and the world-renowned Henry Ford’s Greenfield Village. We start in Indianapolis: weave through Ohio and Michigan ending in Chicago. Along the way, we will meet some characters you may not know much about. What you will gain from the experience is a greater understanding of what transpired in our country while these presidents were in office. At Greenfield Village, experience firsthand the sights, sounds and sensations of America’s fascinating formation, where over 80 acres brim with resourcefulness and ingenuity. Here, 300 years of American perseverance serve as a living reminder that anything is possible. Step foot in the lab where Thomas Edison had his lightbulb moment or the workshop where the Wright brothers taught us to reach for the sky. Presidents include William Henry Harrison, Ulysses Grant, Rutherford Hayes, James Garfield, Benjamin Harrison, William McKinley, William Taft, Warren Harding and Gerald Ford. The Obama Library will also be included upon its completion.
Civil Rights Trail
Journey through the deep South and the heart of the civil rights movement to discover a time when ordinary citizens stood up to an oppressive social regime. Hear powerful stories of struggle and be inspired by resilient heroes. Follow in the footsteps of the venerable Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, and his legendary marches, and hear the story of Rosa Parks and the Montgomery bus boycott. Visit the historic Birmingham church bombed by white supremacists. These catalysts solidified a brotherhood and ignited a movement that would define this pivotal moment in American history. Our tour will also take us to Tuskegee, Alabama and the Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site, Atlanta, Georgia, to tour the birthplace of Martin Luther King Jr., The Mississippi Civil Rights Museum and the National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee, where King was assassinated 50 years ago. Follow the path of history – now a National Historic Trail.
Music Road – The History of American Music
The heart and soul of American Music beats in the history of Nashville, Memphis and New Orleans. These are the towns where the inspiration for our uniquely American Music styles were born and where they grew to maturity. On this three-city tour that winds its way through 600 miles of the blues highway you’ll hear Country, Bluegrass, Blues, Rock n’ Roll, Soul, Dixieland Jazz, Cajun and Honky Tonk. Walk in the steps of legendary musicians that tell America’s story. Visit Graceland, Grand Ole Opry, Beale Street and the Preservation Jazz Hall in NOLA. Sample Southern Soul food favorites and harken to the sounds of America.
New England Authors
Literature in New England flowered during the 1800’s. It was the age of Hawthorne, Emerson, Twain, the Alcott’s and many others. Each became a Giant of American Literature. Many of their homes are left intact enough that they have been restored and turned into wonderful historic museums. Join us on an exciting New England literary tour that takes you to the homes and haunts of some of America’s most famous literati.
America’s Civil War
Relive American history as we travel in the footsteps of the Civil War. Journey through the Civil War’s “Most Hallowed Ground “as we tour civil war sites and battlefields from Bull Run to Gettysburg and Appomattox. Visit Pamplin Historical Park and the National Museum of the Civil War Soldier – where you’ll assume the identity of an actual Confederate or Union soldier.
Historic Trains of Colorado
Coloradoans rejoice when the aspen’s quaking leaves turn brittle and gold and September is the ideal time to witness this gilded spectacle. This tour combines 6 trains plus several natural treasures. Spend 2 nights in Colorado Springs, 1-night Alamosa, 1-night Durango, 2 nights Telluride, 1-night Vail and 1-night Boulder. Trains include Cripple Creek, lunch train at the Royal Gorge, the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic railroad, Durango Silverton Narrow Gauge, the Leadville Colorado and Southern Railroad and the Georgetown loop. Highlights include Garden of the Gods, Air Force Academy, a 4×4 adventure in Telluride and Rocky Mountain National Park.
Route 66
Immortalized in folklore, cinema and song, Route 66 remains the iconic symbol of the great American road trip, a journey of adventure, discovery and the freedom of the open road. Cruising “America’s Main Street,” from snow-cones and corndogs, to cowboys, country music and rock-n-roll – its classic Americana all the way, as you travel through the heartland on the world’s most famous road.