The bus ride was 4 hrs long each way. However, if you would like to see DC's key sites this is the tour for you. Our guide kept the banter flowing and we enjoyed his commentary. Definitely a day well spent!
Great tour, well worth doing. The tour guide Laura was really good and very informative. Even though the day is very full on it's not too tiring and you get back to nyc in time for a decent dinner, having seen the key sites of Washington. Would definitely recommend.
Take a Megabus 30 dollars return, or maybe a train, to Washington and explore your own tour. This tour puts you inside a massive bus with 40 other people for 3 times the price, with no flexibility and reduced mobility around the city eg. Arlington Memorial Bridge doesn't allow buses. We only got to the National Mall around 2pm and had less than 2hours to explore Lincoln Memorial, Washington Monument, 1 or 2 Smithsonian museums, Capitol. For comparison, this tour leaves at 6:30am, stops for driver change at Delaware Rest Area and arrives at Arlington Cemetery around 1pm. The Megabus leaves at 8:00am and arrives at Washington DC, Union Station around 12:15pm. Don't get me wrong, you'll always be rushing in a short day trip, but do the math.
I've done other tours, and they work really well in groups of up to 8 people, small van, flexible tour, which I mistakenly thought this tour was about, considering the price, it had to be.