Courtesy of On Screen Tours

Living in our Nation’s Capital means living in one of the most traveled to destinations in the country. We put up with tourists during Cherry Blossom season, spring, summer, full, and sometimes winter. As a result we have a strong market here for all kinds of tour companies, everything from double decker buses to segway people movers.

However earlier this month I got to go on a tour that is a bit different that your average tour company. On Location Tours, known for putting on tours of television and film location tours in New York City, has recently launched a new tour company that focuses on showing off DC locales that have been used in some of your favorite movies and TV shows. The tour makes sense since our city’s famous places are often filmed- it’s not too surprising to see a shoot on The National Mall or an explosion in Georgetown.

It all starts at Union Station (where all the tours usually start) where I went to meet the “local actor” that leads all of their tours. I was pleasantly surprised to see that not only was the tour guide a local actor but also my friend David Vargas who I recently worked with on Cat On A Hot Tin Roof. Vargas did a great job interacting with the group and providing all the facts in an entertaining and enjoyable way. Having a working actor giving the tour also provided an insider look at how films are made;  David answered lots of questions fro the group about working as an actor on the set.

At first the tour took us to all usual tourist attractions: The Capitol, The Lincoln Memorial, and other sites along The National Mall. However what made it interesting, and frankly what I think is the greatest asset to the tour, are the movie clips that were shown in the bus throughout the tour. It made it really interesting to see a location and then instantly see it as depicted on the screen. What also impressed me during the tour was just the sheer number of films have actually been filmed in this city. On Location Tours did some great research and I was pleasantly surprised to learn about and visit locations from True Lies and Wedding Crashers.

Tours run every Saturday morning at 10 AM and lasts for 2.5 hours. While you may think that a guided tour maybe a touristy thing to do, the group I was in was actually full of locals who really enjoyed learning more about the area they work, live, and play in. If you are a fan of the movies, it’s definitely a different way to experience Washington DC.

On Location Tours
http://www.screentours.com
info@screentours.com