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A Guided Walking Tour through Historic Old Town Alexandria

Recommended by 99% of travelers
Badge of Excellence
Alexandria, USA
High interest
Booked 2 times today.
  • 1 hour 30 minutes (approx.)
  • Mobile ticket
  • Offered in: English

Why travelers loved this

5.0
·
· Carrie_K ·
Sep 2026
Jeff was our guide and he was great. We were a little late and he was very understanding about that. He was also very knowledgeable, had a great sense of humor, gave interesting facts, allowed questions, and took us to very interesting, historic places. We thoroughly enjoyed it and we would definitely book again!
· jane_s ·
Sep 2026
Friendly, knowledgeable guides…..a very good walking tour with a small group of interesting people. Plus a great suggestion for an early dinner!

Overview

Learn all about the storied past of this historic area of Alexandria from an engaging guide who’s passionate about making your trip to the city a memorable one—from Gadsby's Tavern Museum to the cobblestone streets of Captain’s Row. You’ll hear well-researched stories, explore local landmarks like Historic Christ Episcopal Church, and get familiar with Old Town as a local leads the way.
  • Walk the streets of Old Town with a resident guide who knows their stuff
  • Hear historic tales of Alexandria while you see the sights
  • Visit Historic Christ Episcopal Church, where George Washington worshipped
  • Walk around for 1.5 hours at an easy pace

What's Included

  • A local historian and Old Town resident is the guide

    Meeting and Pickup

    Meeting point

    • 221 King St, Alexandria, VA 22314, USA

      Meet at the Visitors Center in the heart of Old Town.

    End point

    • Captains Row Old Town Alexandria
      198-112 S Lee St, Alexandria, VA 22314, USA

      We end at the iconic cobblestone street on Captain's Row.

    Itinerary

    1

    Alexandria Visitors Center

    10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

    2

    Carlyle House

    10 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

    3

    Gadsby's Tavern Museum

    5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

    4

    Hollensbury Spite House

    5 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

    5

    Historic Christ Episcopal Church

    10 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

    Athenaeum (Pass By)

    6

    Captain's Row

    5 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

    Additional Info

    • Confirmation will be received at time of booking
    • Wheelchair accessible
    • Stroller accessible
    • Service animals allowed
    • Near public transportation
    • Most travelers can participate
    • This tour/activity will have a maximum of 30 travelers

    Cancellation Policy

    You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

    Traveler Photos

    Gallery picture 1 (from a traveler's review)
    Gallery picture 2 (from a traveler's review)
    Gallery picture 3 (from a traveler's review)
    Gallery picture 4 (from a traveler's review)
    Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

    Reviews

    5.0
    based on 294 reviews
    Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
    Sort by: Most insightful

    A great tour with an...

    Michelle_B, Oct 2026
    A great tour with an awesome tour guide. Jeff is both knowledgeable and personable. I learned a few fun facts along the way.

    Response from Host, Oct 2026

    Thank you, Michelle. So glad to hear that you enjoyed your tour with Jeff. He is a terrific guide, and I am glad you had the chance to tour with him!

    Five *******’s

    jane_s, Sep 2026
    Friendly, knowledgeable guides…..a very good walking tour with a small group of interesting people. Plus a great suggestion for an early dinner!

    Response from Host, Sep 2026

    Thank you, Jane. Glad to hear your enjoyed your tour with us in Alexandria. Thank you for the excellent review. Please come back again soon!

    Alexandria

    Daniel_S, Sep 2026
    Eileen was very knowledgeable personable and made sure that when she had a story to telll she made sure there was shade so that we wouldn’t get too warm and just made the tour a great experience

    Response from Host, Sep 2026

    Thank you for the kind review. I am glad to see that you enjoyed your tour with Eileen and she took care of you all! Thank you for taking a tour with Alexandria History Tours!

    Great time!

    Carrie_K, Sep 2026
    Jeff was our guide and he was great. We were a little late and he was very understanding about that. He was also very knowledgeable, had a great sense of humor, gave interesting facts, allowed questions, and took us to very interesting, historic places. We thoroughly enjoyed it and we would definitely book again!

    Response from Host, Sep 2026

    Thank you! I am glad to hear you enjoyed your tour with Jeff. He is a fantastic guide, and I am glad to know that he provided an outstanding experience. Please come back again!

    takes you to the streets...

    gailrodgers, Sep 2026
    takes you to the streets and places you wont find just wandering on your own. Friendly and informative!!

    Response from Host, Sep 2026

    Thank you! So glad you enjoyed your tour and time with us in Old Town Alexandria!

    Perfect DC Combo tour

    Rick_M, Sep 2026
    Evelyn guided through 3 museums masterfully hitting highlights and nuggets. I would have been oblivious to many key facts and objects. Do yourself and family a favor! (And you can go back on your own and dive deeper!)

    Response from Host, Sep 2026

    Thank you for leaving the review!

    Great tour

    Nancy_N, Aug 2026
    Definitely worth taking this tour. Our guide was very informative & pointed out many facts that we didn’t know about.

    Response from Host, Aug 2026

    Thank you for the kind words! It's great to hear that you learned a lot and had fun with us on your tour of Old Town Alexandria! We appreciate the excellent feedback!

    Wayne is both fun and...

    Scott_P, Jul 2026
    Wayne is both fun and interesting. We learned so many new things about the city history, George Washington, and others. Highly recommended.

    Response from Host, Jul 2026

    Thank you, Scott. I am glad to hear you enjoyed your tour with Wayne. He is one of our fantastic guides at Alexandria History Tours and it is wonderful that you had a great experience with him. Please come back again!

    Downtown history

    Lorraine_S, Jul 2026
    Very interesting tour with a lot of history. Our tour guide was Jeff was so knowledgeable and showed us so many early pictures of buildings. The church had to be my favorite place. Just loved it!!

    Response from Host, Jul 2026

    I am glad to hear you had a great tour with Jeff. He has a lot of passion for history and loves to share it. It is wonderful to read about your positive experience on the tour!

    Fabulous tour of Old Town Alexandria!

    Jennifer_C, Jun 2026
    Our tour of Alexandria was charming, fun, and fascinating. Jeff was an excellent tour guide, keeping us in the shade, taking us through nearly-tangible historic events as we walked the same streets as Revolutionary patriots, the Founding Fathers, and Civil War soldiers. Old Town contains layers and layers of human experience; Jeff brought it to life with historic photos, fun trivia, terrific stories, and a stroll along the lovely streets of the city.

    Response from Host, Jun 2026

    I am really glad to hear you had fun on your tour with Jeff. Jeff does a great job keeping the tours fun and informative and it is awesome to hear that this experience lived up to expectations. Thank you for taking the time to leave a review. I hope you will come back again in the future!

    Viewing Old Town Alexandria in a new light♥️

    Jeanne_D, Jun 2026
    How lovely & knowledgeable our tour guide was❣️Being a Virginian, I thought I knew the historical facts about the area. Nevertheless, this local guide brought history to life with her accounts. Showing us visuals along the route added to our understanding of what a significant part the splendid Old Town Alexandria area played in history.

    Response from Host, Jun 2026

    This is wonderful to read. I am glad you found so much value in the tour as a Virginian. Eileen is a fantastic guide. It's wonderful to know that you enjoyed her tour and overall presentation. Thank you for leaving the review. I hope you will come back again for a future tour in Alexandria!

    Old Town Alexandria Historical Tour was fantastic - our tour guide was so kind, personable and knowledgeable!

    Emily_S, Jun 2026
    We started at a location that was easy to find - the visitor center - and the walking was pretty easy, so good for all ability levels! Our tour guide was wonderful - she really knew her US and Old Town history - from before the first European settlers arrive through Revolutionary and Civil Wars and to current day!

    Response from Host, Jun 2026

    Thank you! I am glad the experience was easy and that your guide, Eileen, was great. She is truly a wealth of knowledge! I am glad you had the chance to take a tour with her. Thank you for taking the time to leave this wonderful review. Please come back and see us again!

    Enthusiastic Tour in Alexandria

    Sherryl_M, Jun 2026
    We had a wonderful time with our guide and in town. Our guide was Tim who was very informative and enthusiastic about the history here. I appreciate all the photos he shared from past centuries, which gave a better idea of life during that time.

    Response from Host, Jun 2026

    Thank you, Sherryl! I am really glad to hear that. This review is very nice and means a lot. We had a great day and wonderful group. I enjoyed everyone's enthusiasm and interest. Please come back!

    Old Alexandria walking tour

    Lisa_B, May 2026
    John was our tour guide and he did a great job. He was very personable. He provided a lot of historical information that made the tour informative and enjoyable. He even took the extra step to show us to the restaurant we were planning to eat all m. Overall a great experience

    Response from Host, May 2026

    Thank you, Lisa. So glad you enjoyed your tour with John. Thank you for the nice review. John is a great guide, and I am so glad he went above and beyond to provide a wonderful experience. Please come back and see us again!

    This tour is a MUST!

    Laurie_M, May 2026
    Our tour guide was AMAZING.. very knowledgeable & engaging, passionate about history and his beloved town of Alexandria!

    Response from Host, May 2026

    Hi Laurie, this is awesome to hear. I am glad you found the tour amazing and enjoyed as much as you did. Thank you for this wonderful feedback. I have shared this with Keith, who was your guide. He is very appreciative. Please come back again to see us on a future tour!

    Alexandria walking tour

    Yvonne_M, May 2026
    Really enjoyed the tour. I learned a lot about Alexandria's history. It was not a lot of walking, in fact, we had a woman in a wheelchair and she did fine. I could have spent more time.

    Response from Host, May 2026

    Thank you so much! We are glad you enjoyed your tour and felt like you could have stayed longer. Please come back again and see us on a future tour. Many thanks for the kind words!!

    Great perspective on the...

    J_C, May 2026
    Great perspective on the founding of Alexandria and the key role played by George Washington in Alexandria's early beginnings. Also, important role Alexandria played as Civil War hospital center for the North.

    Response from Host, May 2026

    Thank you! I am really glad you enjoyed the tour and learned a lot about Alexandria's connections to George Washington and its Civil War connections as a center of medicine. Please come back again!

    It was informative and...

    William_O, May 2026
    It was informative and interesting. Our tour guide Jeff was very well prepared and easy to follow. He gave great details on the people, the history and the architecture. Low key and easy to walk.

    Response from Host, May 2026

    Thank you, William. It's great to hear that you enjoyed your tour with Jeff in Alexandria! We appreciate you taking the time to leave this excellent review and recommend the tour to other people!

    Great walking tour of Old Town Alexandria!!

    Ellen_W, May 2026
    Jeff was great, gave us so much interesting information about Alexandria in its younger days 😀 don’t hesitate, just book the tour!!

    Response from Host, May 2026

    Thank you, Ellen! So glad you enjoyed your tour with Jeff. He is a great guide! We appreciate you recommending the tour!

    Our tour guide Jeff...

    Karen_D, Apr 2026
    Our tour guide Jeff Dietrich was fantastic. Very knowledgeable and easy going. My family and I learned a great deal about beautiful Alexandria. This tour made our trip that much more memorable. As we continued our time there my kids recalled many details which reassured me that it was a good decision, my kids are 10 and 12.

    Response from Host, Apr 2026

    Thank you, Karen. So glad to hear you enjoyed your tour with Jeff. I am glad we could make the tour work and it was nice to meet you prior to the tour. It is wonderful to read that your kids remembered a lot of information from the tour. Thank you for the great review!

    Amazing walking tour...

    Nasim_A, Apr 2026
    Amazing walking tour covering all the local history. Our guide Wayne was very knowledgeable and funny. He made the tour very entertaining. It was truly a fun experience.

    Response from Host, Apr 2026

    Thank you, Nasim. So glad you enjoyed the experience in Old Town Alexandria. Thank you for taking a tour with Alexandria History Tours. Wayne is a fantastic guide and I am glad he made your afternoon special and fun!

    Do not miss this tour! Great guide, great tour.

    Patricia_C, Apr 2026
    It was a great tour! Tim , the owner of Alexandria tours, gave us our tour. He is very knowledgeable and made the history of Alexandria come alive for us throughout the entire tour. He was also very friendly and offered to take photos of us to help us capture the memories. Thanks again, Tim. Job very well done! The Collins family

    Response from Host, Apr 2026

    Thank you to the Collins family! I loved having you all on the tour. Thank you so much for the kind words and nice review. I hope you all will come back again soon and that all went well with your trip back to Louisiana!

    Great history tour

    Marie_B, Mar 2026
    The tour was very informative and Alexandria is such a beautiful walkable city. Jeff was our tour guide and he was fantastic! He went beyond our time allotted just to make sure we got all the history of the city. I would recommend this to everyone that wants to know the history of Alexandria.

    Response from Host, Apr 2026

    Thank you, Marie. So glad to hear that you enjoyed your tour with Jeff. I am glad he went above and beyond to make sure you all had a wonderful experience in Old Town Alexandria. Thank you for recommending Alexandria History Tours!! We hope you will come back again!

    Stellar Historic Tour & Guide

    Nancy_R, Jan 2026
    Tim is an excellent docent: knowledgeable and obviously passionate and enthusiastic about that knowledge and the rich history of Alexandria and our Founding Fathers. He gave us so much insight and many fun facts backed up with visuals and “front row” experiences. He impressed me especially with his ability to answer questions this long-time history lover and resident asked. I was also impressed that his company offered tours when most others do not during the winter, off-peak season. HIGHLY recommend visitors put this on their to-do list!

    Response from Host, Jan 2026

    Thank you, Nancy. It was great to give you the tour and I loved the questions. I am glad you and your family had a great time! I hope you will come back and have more questions! Thank you again!!

    Outstanding Tour Experience

    Sara_C, Dec 2025
    This tour of Old Town, Alexandria is outstanding. Not only are you provided with the ultra-rich history of the area; but our tour guide, Wayne Kehoe, provided us with a wealth of anecdotes, that helped to explain many colloquialisms that we use in our modern language.. He made our tour both interesting and fun. We highly recommend this company and this tour.

    Response from Host, Dec 2025

    Thank you, Sara. So glad you enjoyed your tour of Old Town Alexandria. Wayne is a terrific guide, I really appreciate you taking the time to recommend Alexandria History Tours and tell everyone about your great experience with us. Thank you!!

    The tour guide was...

    Thomas_D, Nov 2025
    The tour guide was terrific providing great information. Her knowledge was fantastic. Loved the tour.

    Response from Host, Nov 2025

    Thank you! That is great to hear and we appreciate you choosing to take a tour with Alexandria History Tours. We hope you will come back again!

    Great tour of Old Town

    pjoslyngreenwald, Nov 2025
    Wayne was an excellent tour guide. He was able to share a wealth of information in an interesting way.

    Response from Host, Nov 2025

    Thank you! I am really glad to hear about your wonderful experience with Wayne and Alexandria History Tours!

    Lots of detail about...

    Lisa_W, Oct 2025
    Lots of detail about older sites in Alexandria. Worth the time for the money. Tour guide knowledgeable

    Response from Host, Oct 2025

    Thank you! I am glad you found great value in the tours that we offer and that your guide was knowledgeable on the details of Alexandria. I appreciate you taking the time to recommend Alexandria History Tours!

    Excellent tour

    Brenda_E, Oct 2025
    Our guide was excellent. He showed a deep knowledge of Alexandria history, pointed out many interesting details, answered/anticipated every question.

    Response from Host, Oct 2025

    Thank you so much, Brenda. I am really glad to hear you enjoyed your tour with me and Alexandria History Tours! Hope you had a nice meal at the Chart House too! Come back from Haymarket and see us again soon! Thank you.

    History!

    Thomas_M, Oct 2025
    Lots of history in Alexandria, and the guide dies a great job getting though lots of it, and many other stories.

    Response from Host, Oct 2025

    So glad that you enjoyed your history tour with us in Alexandria. Thank you for the review! We appreciate you taking the time to provide the recommendation to others. Thank you!
    Member Pricing
    From

    $28.50

    per person
    Was $30.00(-5%)

    up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)

    Book ahead!
    On average, this is booked 16 days in advance.

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