We had a Disney December, Bahamian Xmas, NYC NYE and then some!! COMPLETED!

[lffam]

We got ourselves ready to take our first walk around Washington DC, but first we stopped in to the reception to sort out the bed arrangements. I spoke to the same gentleman who checked us in. I had mentioned that I had been communicating with the Reservations manager, Mr Williams, and had arranged for 2 queen beds. He checked a couple of things on his systems and asked me to wait a moment and he left. In a minute or so another gentleman came over to see us, it was Mr Williams who I had been communicating with when I was arranging the booking back in September. He explained to us that our booking was for a Jr Suite and we were set to be moved into the larger Executive suite with 2 queen beds, when expectantly the guest who was occupying the Executive suite we were going to have extended their stay. This meant that we were then “bumped up” the upgrade list a couple of levels and given the Abraham Lincoln Suite that we had settled in. He knew that DS12 was traveling with us, so he arranged for an adjoining room to be added to our booking at no extra cost. This was the two rooms that I had seen on the IHG app reservation and also why I was asked upon check in that we had booked two rooms. I wasn’t sure how DS would go with and adjoining room and I looked at him and asked him if he was ok with that, to which he was nodding vigorously and smiling like a Cheshire cat. What a start to DC and we hadn’t left the hotel yet! We all thanked the reservations manager very much and he was most gracious and offered his personal assistance for anything we needed during our stay. We got some additional keys for the adjoining room and a bellman came back up with us to unlock the door which separated the rooms.

The second room was a regular, but very nice, hotel room, but served as a second bedroom to our already palatial suite. Here are some photos of this “second bedroom”

A nice view out DS window

We were all pinching ourselves a little. I was a little dumbstruck at our luck and very appreciative of what we had been given. While I knew we would still be out an about a lot, it was a luxurious setting to come back to and relax.

Here is the actual floor plan of the Abraham Lincoln suite that I found on the net.

Also here are two short video walk throughs of the suite. The first is before we knew about the adjoining room, the second after we had been down to reception and then back to have the adjoining rooms connected to the main suite.

So to say I was thanking my lucky stars that I moved us from the Hilton to here would be a massive understatement! Anyway after all that it was now time to tick a big item off my travel bucket list..seeing the White House for real!

 

[Aussie Wendy]

Thanks for all the info and your thoughts and contributions from the fam - I am sure info on the Edge will be useful as you don't often get an update from a peer's point of view. I thought your thoughts on castaway cay interesting as it seems to be similar to but more crowded than eg a Qld island holiday or Fiji or similar. My most special moments of a tropical holiday is a trip to Lindeman Island before it changed hands (probably now multiple times) way back in 1988. Brilliant food (buffet or a la carte adults only restaurant), sailing, paddle skiing, exploring the little island offshore - we had plans to build a house like Robinson Crusoe there, lazing in the sun. Still you have gone half way to persuading me a short Disney cruise might not be out of the question! I love the look of the Aquaduck and would love to try out the Detective Game - I'm just a big kid! Glad you all really enjoyed your first cruise. Now back to catch up on the rest of your story.

 

[lffam]

Thanks for all the info and your thoughts and contributions from the fam - I am sure info on the Edge will be useful as you don't often get an update from a peer's point of view. I thought your thoughts on castaway cay interesting as it seems to be similar to but more crowded than eg a Qld island holiday or Fiji or similar. My most special moments of a tropical holiday is a trip to Lindeman Island before it changed hands (probably now multiple times) way back in 1988. Brilliant food (buffet or a la carte adults only restaurant), sailing, paddle skiing, exploring the little island offshore - we had plans to build a house like Robinson Crusoe there, lazing in the sun. Still you have gone half way to persuading me a short Disney cruise might not be out of the question! I love the look of the Aquaduck and would love to try out the Detective Game - I'm just a big kid! Glad you all really enjoyed your first cruise. Now back to catch up on the rest of your story.

We have said we would like to go to one of the QLD islands, and we are not that far away from them , we have just not got ourselves organised enough to do so.

thanks for the comments on DS review of Edge. he will like that.

One thing I forgot to mention was the quality and variety of the food on the cruise. I was really impressed with it all. The quality of the food and the service was really top notch. I was kind of expecting a pretty average buffets, but Cabanas had such great variety and always great tasting food. The sit down table service dinners were also top quality.

We certainly did enjoy our first cruise, I don't know when we would go again, but I suspect it will happen!

 

[Travel Mum]

Holey Moley what an incredible suite set up you got !!!

 

[Zosha]

Wow that suite is incredible!! How amazing!

 

[PrincessMummyDownUnder]

Thanks so much for your posts! I really enjoy how detailed and descriptive they are, and you are certainly helping to build my excitement for our upcoming December trip and January Disney cruise.

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

Wow! That's the most amazing upgrade. Good for you! I hope you had a wonderful time visiting D.C. I went there once but my visit was way too short. I'd love to go again. I'm absolutely loving your trip report.

 

[lffam]

Holey Moley what an incredible suite set up you got !!!

Wow that suite is incredible!! How amazing!

Yes it was far beyond any upgrade I could have imagined would come true in reality! There were still one or two surprises to come so stay tuned!

 

[lffam]

Thanks so much for your posts! I really enjoy how detailed and descriptive they are, and you are certainly helping to build my excitement for our upcoming December trip and January Disney cruise.

I am so glad you are enjoying it. It's really hard for me to stop planning our next trip when I am reliving all the wonderful memories that we experienced. When I am recounting experiences there are often gaps in my recollection so I talk to DW & DS about them and it normally spins a really good reminiscing conversation about the experiences which is just wonderful.

You must be getting very excited for your trip. it will be here before you know it! Do you have a Pre-trip, planing thread, I'd love to have read of it?

 

[lffam]

Wow! That's the most amazing upgrade. Good for you! I hope you had a wonderful time visiting D.C. I went there once but my visit was way too short. I'd love to go again. I'm absolutely loving your trip report.

Thanks @Grumpy's Wife I am so pleased you are enjoying the report. The upgrade was truly amazing, we certainly got spoilt!

We, especially me, enjoyed DC so much. I won't give to much away before I get into the report itself, other than saying we will definitely be going back. There was so much we did not see. We had three days there and I could personally easily spend a week there, especially If we got that suite again lol ! I've been going through our DC photos and there are ALOT of them! so trying to choose the best ones to share.

 

[Travel Mum]

There were still one or two surprises to come so stay tuned!

You know very well that I'm well tuned in

We will only have 4 nights/3 days in Washington DC so I've very keen to hear what you did!

 

[lffam]

First look at Washington DC

After all that, it was now time to make our way out into DC and start seeing some of the sights. To explain the excitement that I was feeling, If you can imagine your anticipation of reading all about WDW, reading other people’s trip reports, seeing the photos they have shared before you had experienced it yourself. And when that time came for you to walk into WDW and down Main Street for the first time, this is how I was feeling upon being some close to seeing these DC monuments for the first time ever.

This map will give you some perspective of where the hotel (where the “red X” is mid right on map) was compared to the White House and the National Christmas Tree, which was actually our first stop.

It was actually a very overcast day, by now it was about 3:15pm. Orlando & Washington DC were on the same time zones. As I had mentioned when we came out it was really quite cold around 5 degrees C.

It was a Saturday and also Boxing Day, so the streets seemed to not be overly crowded with cars or pople. We made our way towards the White House.

First sight of the Washington Monument, which according the President Josiah Bartlett from the West Wing ( US TV Show) you can lay down flat in the National Cathedral. I’m not sure if that’s actually true, but seemed like a good anecdote to tell as I loved the West Wing and still do!

Our first stop was actually at the General William Tecumseh Sherman Monument. General Sherman was was an American soldier, businessman, educator and author who served as a General in the Union Army during the American Civil War.

When was started to approach the next area, which was the National Christmas Tree, there was an obvious increase in both people and security.

I was a little surpised with how low and how close the planes were flying to be honest.

Approaching the National Christmas Tree. Thank goodness it’s not called the National “Happy Holidays” Tree.

“A Brief Story of the National Christmas Tree”

There were smaller trees around the outside representing each of the States. We would be in this state in a few days from now.

A short video of around the Tree.

Another view of the Washington Monument

DS is becoming quite the photographer

And then the White House.

My first thoughts of it were, you can't get anywhere near close to it! Streets are blocked, areas fenced off and people everywhere!

Snipers on watch

View of the White house from outside the South Lawn

 

[lffam]

First look Washington DC cont..

We then made our way around the very big block. On the way we stopped to buy a hot dog from a street vendor. He had a photo of himself serving President Barack Obama a hot dog! He said he serves him quite regularly. I must say it was a pretty good hot dog!

I know it might look like I photoshopped these photos to make it B&W with just some colour, but I haven’t, this is how they came out.

We got around to the North side of the White House. The President and the First family were not in DC, they were in Hawaii for the “Holidays”

North Portico White House

A passer-by told us this was Paul Revere.

360 North Portico White House, Lafyette Park

General Comte de Rochambeau

Some of the local wildlife in a tree in Lafyette Park

DS taking a photo for a couple in Lafayette Park

We were certainly missing our puppy by now

 

[lffam]

First look Washington DC cont again...

US Treasury Building

Taking a photo from the middle of the street

Washington Monument again

1600 Pennsylvania Ave is the Street Address of the White House.

1600 Pennsylvania Ave

It was starting to get a bit late and dark quite early, it was also quite cold. So we decided we would make our way back to the hotel. We tossed up a few ideas for dinner. We did try to get a reservation for The Hamilton and Old Ebbit Grill, but both were booked out. So in the end we decided we would just stay in and have room service.

We decided what we would each have and I called down and placed the order. About half an hour later there was a knock on one of the 4 entrances to the suite. It was room service of course, I let the gentleman in who was wheeling in a cart with an assortment of meals. I looked at some of the meals on the top and I said that I did not think this was what we had ordered. There was a plate of cheeses with crackers, a fruit platter and also a Penfolds bottle of red wine, none of which we ordered. The waiter said, oh yes Sir these are your meals, Mr Williams has sent you up some complimentary dishes and a bottle of Australian wine also. Again we were surprised and amazed at his generosity and our luck. The waiter then proceeded to set the table with a tablecoth and place settings for us to have our room service dinner. What a top off to an already incredible day!

Dinner setting

 

[Travel Mum]

What a great first day!

Did you have a walking plan for that day or did you just wing it?

 

[lffam]

What a great first day!

Did you have a walking plan for that day or did you just wing it?

No plan. The White House was our prime goal for that afternoon. We effectively just walked around the block, it was just a very big block!

We were probably out for maybe 2 hours maybe a touch more. Like I mentioned it did get dark quite early and being such an overcast day did not help that.

We had 2 more full days to cram in as much as we could

 

[lffam]

I got up a little earlier than the others and went and took some photos of the lobby and outside the hotel, before breakfast and staring our day. The hotel is very much a historic hotel. The lobby was decorated for Christmas. They had ornaments from the White House Historical Association. https://www.whitehousehistory.org/collections/white-house-2015-ornament which have an ornament for each year going back to I think 1981.

Some of the History of the hotel and Presidential Guests

A Gingerbread Lincoln Memorial

 

[disneyfab]

DS had built Edge up in his mind a lot and teh reality didnt quite match for him, but as he said in his review there were good parts to it which he enjoyed. If/when we go on the next one he will be ready for Vibe so that will be a different story!

My tween enjoyed Edge, but the teen LOVED Vibe. It was the highlight of the trip for him. We pretty much only saw him sleeping in in the morning, at dinner & coming in at night. He enjoyed Vibe & exploring with his friends. Even clued us in to the Deck 14 sitting area.

 

[viaggiamo]

loving this report still! Thanks lffam!!!
We are still not convinced on a cruise, even a Disney one, but love your photos of DC we so want to go back and I am looking forward to NYC and did you visit Boston?
We were considering another Winter trip next year, but the freezing temperatures put me off...we have only been to the coasts and deserts in the Winter previously.

 

[Aussie Wendy]

Wow to get such an upgrade. Very snazzy. Did you feel like royalty? Looked very cold there. In contrast we melted when we were in Washington which dampened our enthusiasm somewhat though we adored the museums.