As part of booking roundtrip flights which depart from US airports, Orbitz is pleased to offer airline tickets on TAP - Air Portugal, which operates a daily non-stop flight from Amsterdam, Netherlands (AMS) to Washington (IAD) regularly scheduled to depart at 12:20pm and arrive at 2:53pm. Usually a Boeing 777 is flown for this route. The average travel time from Amsterdam, Netherlands to Washington, DC is 8 hours and 33 minutes.*

* Some flights must connect with international service on this airline.

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Regularly Scheduled Flights to Washington (IAD) from Amsterdam, Netherlands (AMS)
				Daily Non-Stops		Select Non-Stop		Earliest Flight		Last Flight
	TAP - Air Portugal			1		-		12:20pm		12:20pm
	KLM Royal Dutch Airlines			1		-		1:20pm		1:20pm
	Lufthansa			1		-		12:20pm		12:20pm
	LOT - Polish Airlines			1		-		12:20pm		12:20pm
	Northwest Airlines			1		-		1:20pm		1:20pm
	SAS			1		-		12:20pm		12:20pm
	United Airlines			1		-		12:20pm		12:20pm
	US Airways			1		-		12:20pm		12:20pm

During your Washington vacation, don't miss these great establishments and attractions:

Washington National Cathedral
Pierre L'Enfant's 1791 plan for the capital city included "a great church for national purposes," but possibly because of early America's fear of mingling church and state, more than a century elapsed before the foundation for Washington National Cathedral was laid. Its actual name is the Cathedral Church of St. Peter and St. Paul. The church is Episcopal, but it has no local congregation and seeks to serve the entire nation as a house of prayer for all people. It has been the setting for every kind of religious observance, from Jewish to Serbian Orthodox.A church of this magnitude -- it's the sixth largest cathedral in the world, and the second largest in the U.S. -- took a long time to build. Its principal (but not original) architect, Philip Hubert Frohman, worked on the project from 1921 until his death in 1972. The foundation stone was laid in 1907 using the mallet with which George Washington set the Capitol cornerstone. Construction was interrupted by both world wars and by periods of financial difficulty. The cathedral was completed with the placement of the final stone on the west front towers on September 29, 1990, 83 years (to the day) after it was begun.English Gothic in style (with several distinctly 20th-century innovations, such as a stained-glass window commemorating the flight of Apollo 11 and containing a piece of moon rock), the cathedral is built in the shape of a cross, complete with flying buttresses and 110 gargoyles. It is, along with the Capitol and the Washington Monument, one of the dominant structures on the Washington skyline. Its 57-acre landscaped grounds have two lovely gardens (the lawn is ideal for picnicking), four schools, a greenhouse, and two gift shops.Over the years the cathedral has seen much history. Services to celebrate the end of World Wars I and II were held here. It was the scene of President Wilson's funeral (he and his wife are buried here), as well as President Eisenhower's. Helen Keller and her companion, Anne Sullivan, were buried in the cathedral at her request. And during the Iranian crisis, a round-the-clock prayer vigil was held in the Holy Spirit Chapel throughout the hostages' captivity. When they were released, the hostages came to a service here. President Bush's National Prayer and Remembrance service on September 14, 2001, following the cataclysm of September 11, was held here.The best way to explore the cathedral is to take a 30- to 45-minute guided tour; they leave continually from the west end of the nave. You can also walk through on your own, using a self-guiding brochure available in several languages. Call about group and special-interest tours, both of which require reservations and fees (tel. 202/537-5700). Allow additional time to tour the grounds or "close" and to visit the Observation Gallery, where 70 windows provide panoramic views. Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon tours are followed by a high tea in the Observation Gallery for $22 per person; reservations required. Call tel. 202/537-8993.The cathedral hosts numerous events: organ recitals; choir performances; an annual flower mart; calligraphy workshops; jazz, folk, and classical concerts; and the playing of the 53-bell carillon. Check the cathedral's website for schedules.

The House Where Lincoln Died (the Petersen House)
After he was mortally wounded at Ford's Theatre, the doctors attending Lincoln had him carried out into the street, where boarder Henry Safford, standing in the open doorway of his rooming house, gestured for them to bring the president inside. So Lincoln died in the home of William Petersen, a German-born tailor. Now furnished with period pieces, the dark, narrow town house looks much as it did on that fateful April night. It takes about 5 minutes to troop through the building. You'll see the front parlor where an anguished Mary Todd Lincoln spent the night with her son, Robert. In the back parlor, Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton held a cabinet meeting and questioned witnesses. From this room, Stanton announced at 7:22am on April 15, 1865, "Now he belongs to the ages." Lincoln died, lying diagonally because he was so tall, on a bed the size of the one you see here. (The Chicago Historical Society owns the actual bed and other items from the room.) In 1896, the government bought the house for $30,000 and it is now maintained by the National Park Service.

International Spy Museum
After several visits to the Spy Museum, my 12-year-old and I like to test each other's powers of observation. We'll be standing in a store or other public place and look around for signs of "hostile surveillance, security systems, and unexpected risk or unlucky breaks." We're putting into practice some tips we picked up at the museum, in a section called "Tricks of the Trade," where interactive monitors teach you what to look for, when it comes to suspicious activity. This tradecraft area is the first you come to in the museum, after you've seen the 5-minute briefing film, and it's easy to spend a lot of time here. In addition to the surveillance games, the section displays trick equipment (such as a shoe transmitter used by Soviets as a listening device and a single-shot pistol disguised as a lipstick tube) and runs film in which spies talk about bugging devices and locks and picks. You can watch a video that shows individuals being made up for disguise, from start to finish, and you can crawl on your belly through ductwork in the ceiling overhead. (The conversations you hear are taped, not floating up from the room of tourists below.)Try to pace yourself, though, because there's still so much to see, and you can easily reach your limit before you get through the 68,000-square-foot museum. The next section covers the history of spying ("the second oldest profession") and tells about famous spymasters over time, from Moses; to Sun Tzu, the Chinese general, who wrote The Art of War in 400 B.C.; to George Washington, whose Revolutionary War letter of 1777 setting up a network of spies in New York, is on view. Learn about the use of codes and code-breaking in spying, with one room of the museum devoted to the Enigma cipher machine used by the Germans (whose "unbreakable" codes the Allied cryptanalysts succeeded in deciphering) in World War II. An actual Enigma machine is displayed, and interactive monitors allow you to simulate the experience of using an Enigma machine, while learning more about its invention and inventor.Much more follows: artifacts from all over (this is the largest collection of international espionage artifacts ever put on public display); a re-created tunnel beneath the divided city of Berlin during the Cold War; the intelligence-gathering stories of those behind enemy lines and of those involved in planning D-Day in World War II; an exhibit on escape and evasion techniques in wartime; the tales of spies of recent times, told by the CIA and FBI agents involved in identifying them; and a mockup of an intelligence agency's 21st century operations center. You exit the museum directly to its gift shop, which leads to the Spy City Café.While you may look with suspicion on everyone around you when you leave the museum, you can trust that what you've just learned at the museum is authoritative: The Spy Museum's executive director was with the CIA for 36 years and his advisory board includes two former CIA directors, two former CIA disguise chiefs, and a retired KGB general.The International Spy Museum has been immensely popular ever since its mid-2002 opening, which often translates into long lines for admission. Consider ordering advance tickets for next-day or future date tours through Ticketmaster (tel. 202/432-SEAT), which you can pick up at the Will Call desk inside the museum. You can also purchase advance tickets, including those for tours later in the day, at the box office.

Make your reservations for discount hotel rooms in the Washington area, including:

The Hotel George
The Hotel George is one of Washington's hippest places to stay. With its facade of stainless steel, limestone, and glass; a lobby done in a sleek white, splashed with red, blue, and black furnishings; posters throughout the hotel depicting a modern-day George Washington, sans wig; and clientele tending toward celebs (everyone from Enrique Iglesias to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger), the George is in every way a capital establishment. The oversize guest rooms sport a minimalist look, all creamy white and modern. Fluffy vanilla-colored comforters rest on oversize beds; slabs of granite top the desks and bathroom counters; and nature sounds (of the ocean, forest, and wind) emanate from the stereo CD/clock radios. A speaker in the spacious, mirrored, marble bathroom broadcasts TV sounds from the other room; other amenities include cordless phones, umbrellas, and spa robes. All rooms have free high-speed Internet access; eighth-floor rooms also have fax machines, at no extra cost. The hotel has three one-bedroom suites.Contributing to the hotel's hipness is the presence of its restaurant, Bistro Bis, which serves (duh) French bistro food to hungry lobbyists and those they are lobbying. See chapter 6 for a full review.Facilities: Restaurant (French bistro); small 24-hr. fitness center with steam rooms; cigar-friendly billiards room; 24-hr. concierge; business services; room service (7am-11pm); same-day laundry/dry cleaning; VCR rentals; 4 rooms for those w/limited mobility.

Kalorama Guest House
This San Francisco-style B&B has two locations: in Adams-Morgan, where a Victorian town house at 1854 Mintwood Place NW is the main dwelling, with two other houses on the same street providing additional lodging; and in nearby Woodley Park (tel. 202/328-0860; fax 202/328-8730), where two houses on Cathedral Avenue NW offer a total of 19 guest rooms (see "Woodley Park," later in this chapter for more information about this location).The cozy common areas and homey guest rooms are furnished with finds from antique stores, flea markets, and auctions. The Mintwood Place town house has a breakfast room with plant-filled windows. There's a garden behind the house with umbrella tables.Rooms in all the houses generally offer either double or queen-size beds, but the Mintwood Place town house offers larger units in a greater variety of configurations: There's an efficiency apartment with a kitchen, telephone, and TV; one small two-room apartment with a kitchen, cable TV, and telephone; and four suites (two two-bedroom and two "executive" suites, in which the living room and bedroom are together).All locations serve a complimentary breakfast of juice, coffee, fruit, bagels, croissants, and English muffins. They also give guests access to laundry and ironing facilities, a refrigerator, a seldom-used TV, and a phone (local calls are free; incoming calls are answered around the clock, so people can leave messages for you). It's customary for the innkeepers to put out sherry daily, adding lemonade and cookies in summer, and tea and cookies in winter. Magazines, games, and current newspapers are available. All of the houses are nonsmoking. At both locations, your fellow guests are likely to be Europeans, tourists, and business people.The Mintwood Place location is near Metro stations, restaurants, nightspots, and shops. The Cathedral Avenue houses, which are even closer to the Woodley Park-Zoo Metro, offer proximity to Rock Creek Park and the National Zoo.

Four Seasons Hotel
A renovation started in August 2004 is winding up in early 2005, bringing big changes to this Four Seasons, including the gutting of all of the guest rooms in the hotel's main building. In the end, guest rooms will be fewer, but much larger and feature the design of world-famous interior designer Pierre Yves Rochon, who renovated the landmark Four Seasons Georges V Hotel in Paris. The new decor will include custom designed furniture and color schemes of either celadon or purple.The hotel's lobby and lower levels, which hold the restaurant, conference room, spa and exercise center, will stay open throughout the renovation, as will the hotel's auxiliary building of 25 rooms and 35 suites. Certain Four Seasons features always hold true: The hotel continues to attract the rich, the famous, and the powerful, people used to being catered to. Staff members are trained to know the names, preferences, and even allergies of guests, and repeat clientele rely on this discreet attention.The hotel sits at the mouth of Georgetown, backing up against Rock Creek Park and the C&O Canal. The auxiliary building's guest rooms offer state-of-the-art business amenities (each is soundproof and has an office equipped with a fax machine, at least three telephones with two-line speakers, portable telephones, and headsets for private TV listening). Three of the suites have kitchenettes. Original avant-garde artwork from the personal collection of owner William Louis-Dreyfus (yes, Julia's dad) hangs in every room and public space. Transmitters installed throughout the hotel allow you wireless connection to the Internet on your laptop, wherever you go in the hotel. The Four Seasons is always devising new ways to pamper its guests; in 2003 the hotel initiated its "On the Road to Room Service," which allows guests who have been picked up by the hotel's car service, to place a room service order from the limo, and have the meal delivered to their guest room moments after they arrive.Facilities: Formal restaurant (regional American); lounge (for afternoon tea, and cocktails); extensive state-of-the-art fitness club and spa with personal trainers, lap pool, Vichy shower, hydrotherapy, and synchronized massage (2 people work on you at the same time); bike rentals; children's program (various goodies provided, but no organized activities); 24-hr. concierge; complimentary sedan service weekdays within the District; business center; salon; 24-hr. room service; in-room massage; babysitting; same-day laundry/dry cleaning; 7 rooms for those w/limited mobility, some of which have roll-in showers.