Washington DC Legend Tours

Dr. Yohannes Zeleke was the best tour guide ever. He was on time, very knowledgeable about DC and more than friendly with everyone. A traffic jam caused by an event at the Italian embassy made our tour run longer than expected, but Johannes cheerfully made all the prescribed stops and was more than happy to keep everyone entertained and informed during the delay. Dr. Zeleke is clearly brilliant and I am thrilled to have spent a few hours with him and hearing his narrative about the DC area.

Yohannes was a wonderful guide — extremely knowledgable about the DC area and just a very nice person to converse with. He was very quick to get back to us when we called & emailed and set us up a day tour. He picked us up at our hotel and also customized our tour a bit since it was just four of us so we were able to see everything we wanted on our list. It was our first time in DC and he made it a very special visit. I would highly recommend him to anyone looking for a quality and down to earth guide for the DC area.
Tony & Lisa from Jersey

Nice thing about this tour is he will pick up and drop off at your hotel. We did the night tour where Johannes brought us to all the must see spots. DC is lovely at night – a night tour is a must do when you are in town. This was a decent tour, while he drives you to the different sites he provides a historical narrative; however, Johannes has an accent which didn’t affect my enjoyment, but was hard for my younger children to understand clearly. He seemed to need a lot of confirmation that what he was saying was understood which left my kids feeling on the spot at times. I had done a DC tour before and had paid for this one for my family. Johannes did not exit the bus with us or offer up explanation or history at the sites once we arrived, so had to fill in the information from what I had remembered from my tour last year. This and his instructions on where to find him after we were done viewing a site were confusing and I got lost in the dark a couple times.

I found out about this tour through Groupon. BEFORE I purchased the Groupon, I called to make sure he had availability for the tour/​time I wanted to fit into my vacation schedule (you should ALWAYS call the merchant prior to purchasing a Groupon for an event/​booking based good). Johannes answered my call and told me that he wasn’t handling the Groupon offer anymore, but would give me a good deal on the tour, which he did. It was $ 35/​person for the DC at Night Tour which was 4 hours long (a very low price compared to other tours in DC). Anyway, after our call he told me to email him to confirm with my details and where I was staying so he could pick me up and I was all set! He also called me the morning of the tour to confirm our pickup location and time.
He was right on time for my 6:30 tour — we picked up a few other guests from local spots and started the tour at 7PM. The tour bus was spacious and comfortable with large windows and he was a safe driver. He used a bluetooth intercom to guide us around the monuments and memorials, and gave us fun facts and tidbits along the way. We stopped at all the spots for a 10 – 15 minute photo op. He joined us at the stops and offered to take photos and gave us additional details about what we were seeing. Otherwise you could just do your own thing and get back to the bus when you were done. There was an older gentleman in a wheelchair on our tour and Johannes had no problem assisting him and pushing him around the stops.
He was willing to answer any questions, asked if there was anything in particular we wanted to see (we wanted to see Georgetown so he took us through there) and had a lot of fun doing the tour. It didn’t feel like some canned docent leading you around with a script they’ve read a billion times.
I would most certainly recommend this tour to anyone visiting the DC area! The ONLY thing I wish he had was an easier way to book the tours (like an online booking system so I could see the dates/​time available).
A solid 5 stars from me!

To say that I enjoyed my tour is an understatement. I’m so glad that the other tours were booked and this tour was found for us. This tour is a secret that shouldn’t be kept. Who else can say that they received a tour from a professor, world traveler, archeologist all in one. I am so please to have met such a knowledgeable person and to have had the best tour experience I have ever had. Please book this tour. You will not be disappointed and will learn more then you ever expected. Thanks a lot

Our first visit to Washington DC and due to the cold winter we needed something warm and personal. Yohannes was both. My wife, son, and I purchased the all-​day tour and it was just the 3 of us. He took us to every site I imagined and more. I got some great photos which I will post here. There is a bit of walking involved which I expected and you have to try to stay on schedule, but Yohannes was flexible with us. He seemed very knowledgeable about our nation’s history, although is accent was occasionally difficult for me to understand he was interesting and willing to repeat if I asked him to. I booked online and he gave us the «internet special» as promised, but we were so pleased we tipped him well on top of that.

My boyfriend and I did an afternoon tour with Yohannes. He is a historian who makes DC and its colorful history truly come alive. We were very impressed with his knowledge and understanding of the city and he does a personal tour (it was just the 2 of us) for just $ 50. I would definitely use his services again and recommend him to friends!

Hands down, this is the best tour to see DC at night. Dr. Yohannes is one of those rare people that can make any topic interesting, since he knows so much about everything. The tour starts off with the various embassies, and quickly starts exploring the often untold history of DC. It’s very Da Vinci Code/​Raiders of the Lost Ark, without all the mysticism. The monuments at night are pretty imposing. Combined with the good Doctor’s little known facts, it makes for one of the best tourist experiences I’ve ever had. Highest recommendation!

This guy is amazing!!! We went with 3 other friends and had a most delightful nite.
Very knowledgeable about the area and a wonderful person. I would go again and again.
You will absolutely love him!

We found this tour on the Living Social site; so, we gave it a go! The tour guide was extremely informative & took us to many iconic sites in Washington D.C. that we were able to explore. Overall, we had a wonderful experience. My only advice is to opt for the day tour, to get better photographs!

I had bought a Groupon for this tour — for 2 people for a night or day tour. I gave three different dates of when our guests were in town and would like a daytime tour. He was unable to give a daytime tour on any of those dates, because he needs at least 4 people to schedule a tour. I ended up getting a refund from Groupon.

An amazing tour with a very engaging and knowledgeable guide. Dr Zeleke let us spend time at any location we chose and we were able to see much of the DC area in our morning tour. It is the best tour I have every had in any city, small, personal, and informative. We will be sure to book another tour when we return and tell everyone we know that is traveling to DC to spend time with this interesting man to see the city.

The tour was excellent. Participated in the 4 hour evening tour. Dr. Zeleke is very knowledgeable and provided interesting commentary throughout. I would have preferred a daytime tour where more time could have been spent at each location, but for a 4 hour tour I feel I received an ample taste of Washington DC. Dr. Zeleke was very open to answering a multitude of questions, and was able to keep the tour interesting for everyone (youngest on the tour was 8). Would highly recommend this tour company. Would love to bring my family back and have a private tour arranged.

I purchased a groupon for this tour for four people, I started contacting them a week prior. After 2 days my 3 emails got a reply saying the Thursday evening was booked.
I called on the phone to make a reservation and was told there was indeed room on the Thursday evening tour. I gave all my details and when I mentioned we had a prepaid groupon I was told «you should have said that first. call you back» and click I am hung up on. I call back wondering how they would call me back without my phone number and I was told I had to send an email to get them to make me a reservation/​I called back again and was hung up on. I emailed and got nothing.
If they did not want people to buy groupons for their tours they should not have taken our money. I have since been refunded by groupon and still no reply from retailer.
Bad
real bad
my 2 cents

Did a night tour of DC with Yohannes. Great tour, lots of historical interesting information. He has a speaker system in his Van so everone can hear as we drive around. We also made stops at many of the major monuments. He has a true wealth of history and information about DC. Very interesting fellow and excellent tour guide, funny as well.

Let me start off by saying this review is based on customer service. I repeat this is not based on the tour as I have not taken it. I read the reviews and thought this would be the perfect outing for my family. They are coming up from Richmond to see me and have never been to DC. I spotted a Groupon deal and had the mind to call the business before I purchased, as I had 7 people to account for.
«Hello?» No, «Jerusalem DC Tour» or hell, even «(insert name) speaking.» I had to ask if I was calling JDC Tour (which is a big pet peeve of mind, when I’m calling a BUSINESS). Anyhoo, I’m in the right place but he says I’m on a tour, call you back. Then why answer? He doesn’t call back, so I call again after work and once again, «Hello?»
With all that I said, that’s not even my main gripe. He was just RUDE. I was trying to explain to him I saw the Groupon and asked him about the tour. I got three words out before he cut me off and talked over me! At the end he told me in a round about way he couldn’t accommodate 7 people in his van – that’s cool, I get that. Talking over me and cutting me off mid-​sentence when all I wanted was to find out information isn’t cool.

Jerusalem DC tour was fabulous!!! Yohannes did a private tour for our family of 10 that included the young and young at heart and it was superb. He is clearly a historian and provided us with a depth of knowledge of the rich history of Washington DC. He customized the tour based upon our needs which allowed us to spend more time at our favorite attractions.
The four hour tour was perfect and we didn’t feel rushed. Don’t waste your money with the hopper bus companies. I wish we had more time in DC to go on his other tours including DC at night!!! The van was perfect for us and he provided us with lots of water to handle the DC humidity.
Best tour in DC!!!

We took a personal 4 hour tour and it was money well spent to say the least. Our guide, Yohannes, was knowledgable and deeply interested in showing us Washington DC, both the usual sites as well as some lessor known ones.
I really feel it is money well spend to take a personal tour. We saw the Lincoln Cottage, National Cathedral, Georgetown, Arlington, the Pentagon, the Pentagon Memorial, the Air Force Memorial, as well as the normal sites. We liked it enough we are trying to see if we have time to take another one before we leave and we definitely will take another one when we come back.
We are here inaugural weekend, so he was especially adept in getting us around and showing us the sights in an order, we realized later, that avoided most of the crowds.
Best of all, we would never have thought of seeing some of the sites and some of these became our favorites sights, although my favorite is still the Lincoln Cottage, for personal reasons.
Don’t waste your money on a bus tour. Call and get a private tour. While we did four hours, even a two hour tour would get you the basics and it wouldn’t be much more than a bus tour for 2 to 4 people.
I only wish they would provide some guidance on tipping.

we took this tour as there was a groupon deal. I read the reviews and took a chance. I have to say i dont repent my decision. First of all the Guide (Yohanes) was really helpful as we have two other family members who were running late, he waited for 10 minutes for them and finally we all made it to the tour. Generally the tour buses/​companies don’t wait for more then 1 – 2 minutes. The van is pretty good and seat ~8−10 people comfortably. One thing i have to mention is that he is very knowledgeable and takes keen interest in telling you the details/​history of DC just not dropping you off the shuttle bus. If you forgot to bring you own water, he will have some reserve so that you dont end up thirsty. Couple of places where you wont see the hop on /​off buses wouldn’t go you will be able to see if in this tour like the historic Georgetown. These are the places where we stepped down and got the oppurtunity of photos:
1)U.S. Capitol = NO (from van)
2) White House = Barely 5 min, (due to rush hour traffic)
3)Lincoln Memorial = ~15 min,
4) Vietnam Memorial, Korean War Memorial = No (from van)
5) FDR Memorial = Yes (~10 min)
6) Iwo Jima Memorial = Yes (~10 min)
7) Airforce Memorial = Yes (~15min)
8)Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial = Yes (~10min)
9)National Cathedral = 5 min for photos from outside
It would have been good if we could have got more time near the white house but due to the rush hour we hardly got any time to take the photo graph, same happened with the Korean War memorial.
This is what i recommend, if you are ok skipping some of the photo stops and interested in learning the history you wont get disappointed by this tour. Guided tour is really good.
If you want to spend more time on every place with photos etc, i will recommend hop on/​off bus, just make sure that you start your tour in the morning but you wont get the luxury of detailed history of the DC monuments :)
Enjoy.

«Can you show me the cherry trees?» I asked Dr. Yohannes Zeleke at the start of our tour into the heart of Washington, D.C. My plane was leaving back to Los Angeles that afternoon; I had this final morning after my conference to see the town. Dr. Zeleke, archeologist, dug into the past of Washington D.C. as he escorted me first to all the city’s monuments I hadn’t seen and then finally to the glorious cherry trees that line the Tidal Basin. A breeze stirred the trees; the pink petals swirled around us like snow.
Dr. Zeleke sketched out United States history in a frame that I had never seen before. His commentary was fascinating! I recommend his personalized tours not only for seeing the sights but for understanding the story of our country in a new way. His tours are history revealed!