East coast state of mind in the United States
Nick McCarthy tackles America’s historic Eastern seaboard by train.
When my wife suggested a holiday on the east coast I had visions of sorry seaside towns, Alan Partridge and Delia Smith.
Luckily, our 14-night eastern adventure was on the other side of the Atlantic and featured whale watching, in Cape Cod, lobster eating in Boston and cocktail sipping in New York City.
We decided to tackle the near 500-mile distance between Washington and Boston (stopping at New York) with Amtrak trains.
It takes seven hours to get from the capital to Boston and then it’s just another hour in a hire car to reach the breathtaking seaside resorts of Cape Cod.
We arrived in the capital after picking up cheap flights from Heathrow.
Washington is a fantastic city and unlike other expensive capitals, almost all of the major attractions are completely free.
World famous museums and monuments appear on every corner and there is a surprising amount of open green space.
During our four day stay we went to the top of the Washington monument for stunning views of the entire city.
Thankfully, the obelisk’s lift is not powered by steam these days and it only takes a few minutes to get to the top.
We also crossed the Potomac River to visit Arlington cemetery, where JFK is buried and we had a fantastic free tour inside Capitol Hill.
We spent an hour in the National Gallery and another couple at the excellent Air and Space section of the enormous Smithsonian museum, which is home to the original Wright brothers plane, the Apollo 11 command module and featured in Night at the Museum 2.
The recently refurbished Dupont Hotel was a great base from which to explore and the luxurious rooms were a real haven from the hustle, bustle and heat of the city. It was literally one minute from the nearest underground station, but if you felt more energetic it was just a one-mile stroll directly down to the White House.
