Private Washington DC Tour in an Authentic 1931 Buick

Along the way, step out for guided stops and photo opportunities at some of D.C.’s most famous sights, including the Washington Monument, Thomas Jefferson Memorial, Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, and White House.

Unlike crowded buses and standard sightseeing vehicles, this is a private Washington DC tour in a genuine 1931 Buick—not a modern vintage-style replica. Enjoy personalized attention from your guide, a relaxed sightseeing experience, and incredible opportunities to photograph both the monuments and this remarkable historic automobile.

Tour Details

1. Departure Point: 333 G St NW

Your tour starts at 333 G St NW. You’ll meet your guide, run through a short safety briefing, and take your first photos with the Buick before climbing aboard.

2. Capitol Hill — 10-minute stop

We begin at the seat of American legislative power. Your guide explains how the Capitol grew from Thornton’s original 1793 design into the domed landmark it is today, and what actually happens inside when Congress is in session.

3. National Gallery of Art — drive-by

We roll past the National Gallery, home to the only Leonardo da Vinci painting in the Americas. Your guide points out the contrast between Pope’s neoclassical West Building and Pei’s angular East Building next door.

4. Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History — drive-by

Next comes the museum that holds the Hope Diamond, a 46-metre-long whale hall, and more specimens than any other natural history collection on earth. Free to enter, if you want to come back on your own time.

5. National Museum of African American History and Culture — drive-by

We pass the newest museum on the Mall, whose bronze-clad corona was inspired by a Yoruba crown. Your guide covers both the century-long campaign to get it built and what waits inside, from the slave ship artefacts below ground to the culture galleries at the top.

6. Washington Monument — 10-minute stop

Time to step out. The obelisk changes colour a third of the way up, a visible scar from the funding collapse that halted construction for more than twenty years. Your guide explains what happened, and the open lawn gives you a clear shot of the Buick with the monument behind it.

7. Thomas Jefferson Memorial — 15-minute stop

Set on the southern rim of the Tidal Basin, the Jefferson Memorial borrows its dome from the Pantheon and its proportions from Jefferson’s own architectural taste. We stop long enough to walk the colonnade, read the inscriptions, and take in the view back across the water.

8. Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial — drive-by

Four outdoor rooms, one for each of FDR’s terms, tell the story of the Depression and the Second World War through granite, bronze, and running water. Your guide explains how to read the sequence as we pass.

9. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial — 15-minute stop

We stop at the Stone of Hope, where Dr. King’s figure emerges from a split boulder. Your guide walks you through the symbolism drawn directly from the 1963 speech delivered a few hundred metres from here, and through the inscription wall that surrounds it.

10. Lincoln Memorial — 20-minute stop

The longest stop of the tour, and for good reason. Climb the steps to Daniel Chester French’s seated Lincoln, find the marker where Dr. King stood to deliver “I Have a Dream,” and look east down the Reflecting Pool toward the Washington Monument and the Capitol beyond it.

11. Vietnam Veterans Memorial — 5-minute stop

A short walk from the Lincoln steps, Maya Lin’s black granite wall carries more than 58,000 names, ordered by the date each life was lost rather than alphabetically. Your guide explains why that choice mattered, and how to find a specific name if you’re looking for one.

12. Korean War Veterans Memorial — drive-by

Nineteen stainless steel soldiers move through a field of juniper toward an unseen objective, doubled to thirty-eight by their reflection in the polished granite wall beside them. The inscription reads: Freedom Is Not Free.

13. Albert Einstein Memorial — drive-by

A four-metre bronze Einstein sits with a paper listing three of his equations, on a plaza mapping more than 2,700 stars as they stood the day the statue was dedicated. One of the most affectionately treated statues in the city.

14. The White House — 10-minute stop

We finish the sightseeing at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Your guide shares the stories behind the residence, from the 1814 fire to the way daily life actually works inside a working office and family home. Please note: this stop may be shortened or skipped if the Secret Service closes the area during a presidential arrival or departure.

15. Return to 333 G St NW

We loop back to the starting point for drop-off, plus one last round of photographs with your guide and the Buick.