Spies, Lies & Intelligence: The World of International Espionage

The Spy Museum and Cryptologic Museum are wonderful. The lecturers gave us insight (and stories) of recent history that are pertinent to today.

"Spy camp". That's what my wife called this, my first Road Scholar program without her. If you want to learn a lot about actual intelligence work, this is a great opportunity, with great lecturers and interesting field trips. Spoiler Alert: Real espionage is nothing like James Bond.

I am so glad I signed up for this program. It was my first time travelling solo and the participants were so welcoming! The subject matter has always interested me and the speakers were so knowledgeable and congenial. These experts blew me away! The pace of the program was just right, the Hyatt Place Hotel was in a great location. I only used the metro to get out to Arlington Cemetery, just walked everywhere. The facilitator, Gayle, did an outstanding job meeting the needs of each person. She is so good at escorting a group - I know! I used to do this for groups from my travel agency. She just rolled with the punches and made the little hiccups seem just fine. Many thanks to all! Kathy Bowen P.S. I am so confident I can travel solo that I am looking at my next trip!

**** Excellent trip. Leader was dynamic, friendly and flexible. Attendees were very approachable and pleasant.

Instead of questioning our country's agencies, I will now only praise the CIA, FBI, and NSA for their unrelenting, courageous work. Learn the real stories of what keeps our citizens and country safe.

Great subject matter combined with opportunities to see local attractions of interest.

The program far exceeded my expectations. I can't wait for my next trip with Road Scholar!

This program was exactly as described. I found it fascinating. If this subject matter interests you, highly recommend this program.

Enjoyed the trip. Ira seems like he's lived a life that makes him the ideal person to lead this group. All of the presenters were excellent and knowledgeable. The Hyatt was close to everything.

The Spies, Lies and Intelligence program was fantastic. I learned so much during this trip and came home with a big list of books and movies to watch to continue my education. The speakers were all extremely interesting and the museums we visited were fascinating. The activity level was easygoing and I never had any problems getting around. I highly recommend this program to anyone who thinks it sounds interesting. By the end of it, you'll be amazed at how much you've learned!

This is an excellent and fun program, with good instructors and fun outings. Outings included a trip to the NSA museum and a briefing by an active-duty NSA officer as well as an outing to the DC Spy Museum, a tour of DC and more. Instructors are Ex-Intelligence Officers, for the most part, with lots of knowledge and stories to tell. You will have fun and learn a lot.

I recommend Spies, Lies and Intelligence, The World of International Espionage. Former CIA operatives explain global covert operations, getting inside the minds of traitors, extolling heroes and heroines, invention of spy gadgets, and more in this fascinating program. R. Ressner

Excellent blend of expert speakers, fascinating field trips, stimulating museum exhibits, and city tours. A whole new world on spies, spy craft, gadgets, covert action, coding, cybersecurity, etc. opened for me. Wonderful learning adventure and memorable travel experience. Highly recommended.

The Spies, Lies and Intelligence was a fun and informative look into the history and current use of these things. We all have an idea of what is involved, either limited or full, but I think some of the information might not have been known before, at least for me and my sister (and we read lots of spy books) The information on Cyber Threats was MOST important to hear.

This program lives to everything that the promotional material promises. We could not be more pleased with the content, organization, or conduct of the experience.

This class is a wonderful combination of lectures and field trips about our country's intelligence community. I enjoyed every activity and learned more than I ever expected.

With all that goes on in the world around us, I think it's important to learn more than what we read or listen to about our interests. I have a much better understanding about foreign intelligence now, and can apply a more objective view of it when it's reported on for all to see or hear.

If you have any interest in the world of international espionage -- past, present, or future -- you will find this program both entertaining and informative. The program was first recommended to me almost a decade ago and has been on my Wish List for several years. I'm so glad I finally was able to experience it.

Excellent mix of museums, lectures, and sights. Great knowledgeable leader. Good book list.

Intense introduction to the "real" world of spies and why they are so necessary. Learned so much. Having ex-CIA presenters is right on the money!

This was my 20th Road Scholar program, and the first that did not fully meet my expectations. I see the 2023 version includes a visit to the National Law Enforcement Museum and a speaker about polygraph tests. Those additions would be much preferred to the two “filler” sessions we had that did not really relate to the themes of intelligence and espionage – a guided walk around Lafayette Park and an evening walk by three monuments. The speakers all had relevant backgrounds and expertise but only the first one allowed adequate time for questions and interaction. One in particular made a very inappropriate political comment which I found irresponsible and offensive (not about a US politician). It would have been stimulating to have had someone from the press or academia to raise concerns about ethical and privacy issues. A woman presenter would have been welcomed as well. Bob Wallace used a trivia quiz effectively. While mentioned, I did not feel we got a full look at Aldrich Ames or Robert Hansen. It was fun to hear about the devices developed to support spies like the Jack-in-the-Box, Randy the Rat and secret cameras. Traditional spy methods were balanced with information about today’s cyber intelligence gathering. Nicholas Dujmovic and Jon Wiant were particularly informative and revealed some weaknesses and problems in our intelligence agencies. Ira was a skilled organizer, flexibly filled some gaps, and provided interesting information about DC and Israel. Having mostly enjoyed small group programs, 40 seemed too big a group. The hotel offered comfortable, modern rooms and good meals, pleasant staff, and an easy way to get cabs, although the immediate neighborhood was a bit soulless. Please update the overview and itinerary to refer to 18 intelligence agencies.

This trip was great. Our tour leader added an additional component about Israel that was absolutely fascinating. Enjoyed it a lot.

This trip was very disappointing. The subject matter was covered almost exclusively by lecture in a small room with too many people for its size. The speakers were mostly experienced former CIA personnel but with a limited exploration of ethical issues and not much self-reflection except for Jon Wiant who understood the complexity of issues and the wisdom to acknowledge hard truths. Two trips broke up the 4 days but not much. The leader, Ira Deutsch, was knowledgeable about Washington. He spent a lot of time talking about his own experiences, sometimes relevant, sometimes not. He made some choices that were not in the best interest of seniors, switching a daylight excursion of the Lincoln memorial and two war monuments to nighttime , in the dark for seniors with canes, vision problems and mobility issues. Very bad judgment. Half the participants could not walk up to the Lincoln Memorial. Fortunately, no one fell but many stayed behind on one of the best features and outdoor opportunities. At least one decided to skip the trip altogether and another wanted to stay in the bus, an option not made available to others who might have opted for that rather than risk falling. He explained his choice to Road Scholar as more convenient than safe, in my opinion. I do credit him with offering to take left over food to either homeless or fire fighters. Good social consciousness on that side but please apply it to the folks at hand with more awareness of mobility issues. Rethink classification of this course in light of more walking in unlit areas than warranted. For the price, the accommodations were fine (except NO SECURE WIFI!) food was fine and lots of nice people. Maybe include an option of email addresses, tell us how we can get a copy of the class photo, etc. Maybe offer some more small interactives with the speakers to add some energy and dynamism to the programs. Please update your travel directions regarding taxi service. No reservations needed. Thanks

Great program and location of hotel is very good within walking distance of the Capitol , National Mall , and Waterfront . Spy museum and the Museum of Law Enforcement are wonderful. Our leader , Lil , was excellent and good source of information even though she was not local . Our lecturers were very informative . I would recommend this program to anyone who likes to learn new things and is willing to be adventurous .

This program exceeded my expectations. I came home with a cap that read "Assume Nothing" -- perfect for a program about spies, lies and espionage. Highly recommend.

Excellent program. Our guest speakers were superb; knowledgeable, well-spoken, engaging an thought-provoking. Our tour leader did an excellent job. The topic of cybersecurity was especially timely given the ongoing events in eastern Europe.

WOW!! A real "eye-opener" to what is going on in the world around us. I learned "secret stuff" I never dreamed of.

DC is somewhat complicated. Find the location of the museums and Mall locations. Can you easily walk 1-2 miles to take advantage of free time? If you would need transpertation, determine if Uber or something should be included. There should be a better set of places to eat. Maybe look these over before a trip.

I came in knowing for little about the topic and I left knowing how much I don't know but I did learn a lot.

This was my third spy program with Road Scholar and I was very happy with it and would recommend it.

We have now enjoyed 4 separate non related Road Scholar programs and each On my way! was superb in every way possible. We learned so much more than we ever knew or thought we would learn from this experience. The program was superb in every way possible and NOTHING could have been done better! If you want to learn more, THIS program should be high on your list!

This was my first time with Road Scholar. I was thoroughly pleased with the quality of the program, the speakers, the museum tours and interactions with other participants. I think Road Scholar brings together quality travel and accomomdations with expert learning. A win-win for me.

nice visit to DC

My husband and I are life-long learning "nerds" and we chose to attend this program on espionage because it sounded interesting and it started on the date of our 50th anniversary. I've never enjoyed spy movies because they're too complicated. But this is the most fascinating Road Scholar I've attended and we learned a lot!

Really enjoyed this trip--saw places I would not have seen in DC & heard from people I would never have had access to--highly informative & a stimulating delight

Absolutely worth while and at a great price. Looking forward to my next adventure while learning.

Very enlightening and thought-provoking. I came away with a much greater appreciation of the role our intelligence resources play in today;s geopolitical climates. And, I gained a a deeper appreciation for the role that our intelligence resources play in today's somewhat cyber-frenzied times.