Day-by-day programme of this 10-day itinerary across New York and the Northeast.
Day 1 — Arrival in Washington
You land in Washington, the federal capital. After the flight, a first evening walk on the National Mall, the great green avenue of monuments, with the lit-up Lincoln Memorial mirrored in the reflecting pool. Remember the ESTA, mandatory to enter the USA.
- ✈️ Washington — Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD)
- 📍 Lincoln Memorial, Washington — The neoclassical temple with the colossal statue of Abraham Lincoln, from whose steps Martin Luther King delivered the 'I have a dream' speech. In the evening, lit and mirrored in the long pool towards the Washington Monument, it's one of the most solemn sights in America. You head back to the hotel: tomorrow you walk the whole National Mall.
- 🏨 Hyatt Place Washington DC/National Mall — Downtown, Washington, DC
Day 2 — Washington: the National Mall
A full day along the National Mall: from the White House to the Capitol, with the free and superb Smithsonian museums in between (starting with Air and Space). Lots of walking, but it's the 'lesson in America' that opens the trip.
- 📍 The White House — The residence of the President of the United States, admired from the railings on Pennsylvania Avenue or from the Ellipse at the back. The interior tour is very hard for foreign tourists; most settle for the photo from outside, which is exciting all the same. From here you walk down to the Mall, where the Smithsonian museums line up.
- 📍 Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum — The most famous of the Smithsonian museums lining the Mall, with space capsules, the Apollo 11 module and the Wright brothers' first planes. Like all Smithsonians, entry is free: pick one or two (Natural History and American Art are just as good). Then you carry on east on foot, to the Capitol dome that closes the avenue.
- 📍 United States Capitol — The seat of Congress, with the great white dome that closes the Mall to the east: the symbol of American democracy. You can visit inside on a free tour (bookable online) or admire it from the lawns, perhaps at sunset looking back towards the Washington Monument. You sleep in Washington: tomorrow a train north, to Philadelphia.
Day 3 — From Washington to Philadelphia
A last morning in Washington, then a fast train north to Philadelphia, the city where the Declaration of Independence was signed. An evening in the old town, perhaps with a cheesesteak, the city's signature sandwich. You sleep in Philadelphia.
- ✈️ Washington → Philadelphia — 30th Street Station, Philadelphia, PA
- 🍽️ Reading Terminal Market, Philadelphia — Philadelphia's historic indoor market, perfect for the first dinner: stalls of every cuisine, Amish sweets and above all the cheesesteak, the sandwich of sliced beef and melted cheese that is the city's signature dish. Lively and informal. You sleep downtown, a few blocks away: tomorrow the historic district and then the train to New York.
- 🏨 Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott Philadelphia Downtown/Center City — Center City, Philadelphia, PA
Day 4 — Philadelphia and arrival in New York
Morning in Philadelphia's historic district, between Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell, where the United States was born. In the afternoon the last train to New York: the arrival in Manhattan, the skyline rising from the window, is a moment to remember. You sleep in New York.
- 📍 Independence Hall, Philadelphia — The brick building where the Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776 and where the American Constitution was born. Visited on a free, timed tour; opposite, in its glass pavilion, is the Liberty Bell with its famous crack. At midday you head back to 30th Street Station for the train to New York.
- ✈️ Philadelphia → New York — Penn Station, New York, NY
- 🏨 Hilton Garden Inn New York/Times Square Central — Midtown Manhattan, New York, NY
Day 5 — New York: Midtown and Central Park
First day in the Big Apple, among the Midtown skyscrapers: Times Square, the climb to an observation deck for the overview and a walk in Central Park, the great green lung. A lot on foot, with a few subway hops.
- 📍 Top of the Rock, New York — The Rockefeller Center observation deck, preferred by many because it frames the Empire State Building on one side and Central Park on the other. Go up with a timed ticket; alternatively, the Empire State or the newer Summit One Vanderbilt. A dizzying view. Back down, a few blocks on foot separate you from the bright chaos of Times Square.
- 📍 Times Square, New York — The most famous crossroads in the world, an explosion of giant glowing screens and crowds at every hour. Chaotic and iconic, it must be seen at least once; around it, the Broadway theatre district, where it's worth catching a musical in the evening. From here you walk up Sixth Avenue to the entrance of Central Park.
- 📍 Central Park, New York — The great rectangular park that breaks up Manhattan: lawns, ponds, bridges and glimpses of skyscrapers beyond the trees. You explore on foot or by bike, between Bethesda Terrace, the Strawberry Fields dedicated to John Lennon and the boating lake. A green breath in the heart of the city. You head back to the hotel: tomorrow you go down to the southern tip of the island.
Day 6 — New York: Lower Manhattan
A day at the southern tip of the island: the ferry to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, the 9/11 memorial with its two great pools, and the walk across Brooklyn Bridge at sunset, towards the lit-up skyline.
- 📍 Statue of Liberty — The symbol of New York and of all America, a gift from France, on Liberty Island. The ferry from Battery Park also stops at Ellis Island, the island where millions of migrants landed, today a very moving immigration museum. Book the ticket and pedestal/crown access ahead. Back at Battery Park, a few minutes on foot lead to Ground Zero.
- 📍 9/11 Memorial — Where the Twin Towers stood, two huge square pools sunk into the ground with water falling into the void and the victims' names inscribed on the edges. Beside it rises the new One World Trade Center. A silent, powerful place; the museum below is intense. From here you walk towards the nearby Brooklyn Bridge for sunset.
- 📍 Brooklyn Bridge — The historic suspension bridge linking Manhattan to Brooklyn, with its wooden walkway between Gothic arches and steel cables. Cross it on foot towards Brooklyn at sunset and stop in Dumbo for the postcard view of the lit-up skyscrapers. You head back by subway: tomorrow a more relaxed New York, between parks and museums.
Day 7 — New York: museums and neighbourhoods
A freer third New York day: the High Line, the elevated park on disused tracks, the lively neighbourhoods of Chelsea, Greenwich Village and SoHo, and your pick of a great museum like the MoMA or the Met. The New York to live at a slower pace.
- 📍 High Line, New York — An old elevated railway turned into a long linear garden suspended above the West Side streets, among flowers, benches and views of the buildings and the Hudson River. It emerges by Hudson Yards and the Chelsea district, full of art galleries. In the afternoon you head back up towards Midtown for a great museum.
- 📍 MoMA, New York — The Museum of Modern Art, one of the world's greatest modern-art collections: Van Gogh's 'Starry Night', Picasso, Monet, Warhol and much more over several floors. Alternatively the vast Met, on the other side of Central Park. A timed ticket is recommended. You sleep one last night in New York: tomorrow a train to Boston.
Day 8 — From New York to Boston
A last New York morning, then a train north-east to Boston, the most European of American cities. An evening among the red bricks of the centre, perhaps with a seafood dinner: lobster and clam chowder are at home here. You sleep in Boston.
- ✈️ New York → Boston — South Station, Boston, MA
- 📍 Faneuil Hall, Boston — The historic market in the heart of Boston, among street-food stalls, venues and street performers, beside Quincy Market. A first taste of the old city, also the start of the Freedom Trail: a good place for dinner the first evening. You sleep in the centre: tomorrow you walk the history of the Revolution on foot.
- 🏨 Club Quarters Hotel Faneuil Hall, Boston — Downtown, Boston, MA
Day 9 — Boston: the Freedom Trail and Harvard
A day on foot through American history: the Freedom Trail, the red line linking the sites of the Revolution, then a hop to Cambridge for Harvard University. The ideal finale of a trip that has retraced the birth of the United States.
- 🎯 Freedom Trail, Boston — A red line painted on the pavement links, for four kilometres, sixteen sites of the American Revolution, from Boston Common to the museum-ship USS Constitution. You follow it on foot alone or on tours led by costumed guides. The history of the USA under your soles. At the end you take the 'T' subway to Cambridge, for Harvard.
- 📍 Harvard University, Cambridge — The oldest and most famous university in the United States, just across the river in Cambridge: Harvard Yard with its brick buildings, the John Harvard statue and the campus atmosphere of the movies. Visited on free student-led tours; around it, bookshops and cafés. You head back to Boston for the last evening: tomorrow the flight home closes the corridor.
Day 10 — Departure from Boston
Last hours in Boston, perhaps a walk along the harbour or through elegant Beacon Hill, then to the airport for the flight home. The Northeast corridor closes after crossing four cities and two centuries of history.
- ✈️ Boston — Boston Logan International Airport (BOS)
