About Us

The company was organized in 1981, but in reality the seeds of the business were
planted in the 1970s, and not with a tour organization but with a great swinging big band:
the Bill Dayton 18-piece Orchestra.
The Bill Dayton Big Band was founded by Bill and Phyllis Dayton, along with
their musical director, Professor Robert "Bob" Zellner of the Gettysburg College
in Gettysburg, PA. It was a popular band with great musicians and a solid swing
beat that made a lot of dancers throughout the United States happy for 25 years.
Phyllis and their daughter Sandra, were the vocalists, while Bill played
sax and clarinet and led the band. Their son, Craig, composed, arranged, and
orchestrated many of their musical numbers.

WHAT DOES ALL OF THIS HAVE TO DO WITH TOURS?

During the 1970's, and actually throughout the life of the band, Bill and Phyllis
would organize tours and ocean cruises for the band. For example, in the late 1970's,
the band toured the mid-West and the West, via bus, taking with them many of their most
dedicated "fans". They even organized a tour on the great Mississippi Queen Riverboat
with the smaller combo and would return to the Mississippi Queen on many other occasions
with other tour groups that they would host.

This natural progression of organizing and hosting tours for the band and then
organizing and hosting tours for the general public took root, when, in 1981, Bill and
Phyllis created the Dayton's Tour Hosts Company. In the early years of the business,
not only would Bill and Phyllis manage the business, Phyllis would host the tours, while
Bill drove the bus. Both Bill and Phyllis worked closely as a team until the death of
Bill on September 12, 1997.

After Bill's death, Phyllis decided to focus exclusively on running the tour that she
created and developed and has become the "flag ship" of the Dayton's Tour Hosts
for over 25 years: The Washington DC Tour.

The Dayton's Tour Hosts tour of Washington DC has been applauded by many.
The company is proud of the tour, proud of the quality of service that the
team has given to the travelers over the years, and grateful to the more
than 70 entities throughout the United States that partner with the company
each year to make The Washington DC Tour a reality.

But, above all, the company is grateful to the customers who, for over 25 years,
have placed their trust in Dayton's to provide an enjoyable and memorable tour
of the nation's capital. It is the desire of Dayton's Tour Hosts to always be
worthy of that trust.

Brand new for our 2007 season, Dayton Tours has expanded and become a full-sevice Travel Agency, willing to give all your travel needs the attention we have become so famous for offering.

We look forward to being a part of all your travel needs beyond Gettysburg and Washington to ALL parts of the world.

Happy and Safe Travels!!

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Over the past 20 years, our DC tour has become a very popular tour. Many people from around the world have enjoyed traveling with us, and many have returned to enjoy our tour again and again, just like this happy couple....

"We have truly enjoyed every one of our FOURTEEN tours, and as a result, we have made many friends from throughout the USA. After fourteen years of our annual vacations to Gettysburg, PA, we still look forward to our Dayton's Tour to Washington, DC. The tour guides are superbly knowledgeable. The drivers are completely familiar of all areas and we always feel safe and secure. We STRONGLY RECOMMEND family outings with Dayton's Tour Hosts because of the fine educational quality of information provided during the tour."

Mr. & Mrs. FRH - Jefferson, OH