Larry Knutson's in depth and illustrated history tells the story of the presidential time spent "away from the White House." For 18th- and 19th-century presidents, a return to their plantations and farms signalled a "vacation." Our modern notion of a vacation emerged in the 19th century, when together with the desire to escape summertime Washington, presidents enjoyed the outdoors, train travel, and the presidential yacht on their escapes.

In the 20th-century presidential vacations evolved along with improvements in transportation and communications that meant presidents could get away farther and faster while their responsibilities followed them—as did reporters who wanted to keep the public informed on what presidents did, almost all the time.