This is a list of trips made by Barack Obama during his period in office as President of the United States. This list excludes trips made within the Washington Metropolitan Area, as well as trips to Camp David, the country residence of the President of the United States, or to the home of the Obama family in Kenwood, Chicago. The official residence and principal workplace of the President of the United States is the White House, in Washington, D.C.
Contents |
No trips made.
| Country/ U.S. state |
Areas visited | Date(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Williamsburg | February 5 | First presidential trip using Air Force One; first trip to Virginia.[1] | |
| Elkhart | February 7 | First trip to Great Lakes region; first trip to Indiana. Obama was promoting the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.[2] | |
| Fort Myers | February 10 | First trip to Southeastern United States; first trip to Florida. Obama was promoting the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.[3] | |
| Springfield | February 12 | First trip to Illinois. Obama participated in the celebrations for the bicentennial anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln.[4] | |
| Denver | February 17 | First trip to Mountain States; first visit to Colorado.[5] | |
| Ottawa, Ontario | February 19 | First trip outside of the United States; first trip to Canada. Obama met with Governor General Michaëlle Jean and Prime Minister Stephen Harper.[6] | |
| Jacksonville | February 27 | First trip to North Carolina. Obama announced withdrawal plans for US troops in Iraq.[7] |
| Country/ U.S. state |
Areas visited | Date(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Columbus | March 6 | First trip to Ohio.[8] | |
| San Diego, Pomona, Los Angeles | March 18–20 | First trip to Pacific States; first trip to California.[9] | |
| London | March 31-April 3 | First trip to Europe; first trip to the United Kingdom. Obama was attending the 2009 G-20 London Summit. Obama also met with Queen Elizabeth II.[10] |
| Country/ U.S. state |
Areas visited | Date(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strasbourg | April 3 | First trip to Continental Europe; first trip to France. Obama was attending the 2009 Strasbourg–Kehl summit.[11] | |
| Kehl, Baden-Baden | April 3 | First trip to Continental Europe; first trip to Germany. Obama was attending the 2009 Strasbourg–Kehl summit[11] | |
| Prague | April 4–5 | First trip to Central Europe; first trip to the Czech Republic, then holding the rotating presidency of the European Council. Obama met with President Václav Klaus. He also made a speech in Hradčany Square, Prague, in which he spoke about the threat of nuclear weapons in the post-Cold War era.[12] | |
| Ankara, Istanbul | April 5 | First trip to Asia and Southern Europe; first trip to Turkey. Obama met with President Abdullah Gül and prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and delivered a speech to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey. Obama also met with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople of the Orthodox Church.[13] | |
| Baghdad | April 7 | First trip to the Middle East and an Arab state; first trip to Iraq. Obama met with President Jalal Talabani and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. He also visited U.S. soldiers fighting in the Iraq War. | |
| Mexico City | April 16–17 | First trip to Latin America; first trip to Mexico. Obama met with President Felipe Calderón.[14][15] | |
| Port of Spain | April 17–19 | First trip to the Caribbean; first trip to Trinidad and Tobago. Obama was attending the 5th Summit of the Americas.[15] |
| Country/ U.S. state |
Areas visited | Date(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phoenix metropolitan area | May 13 | First trip to Arizona. Obama visited Arizona State University. | |
| South Bend | May 17 | Obama visited the University of Notre Dame to give a commencement address. | |
| Annapolis | May 22 | First trip to Maryland, excluding visits to Camp David. Obama visited the United States Naval Academy. | |
| Las Vegas metropolitan area | May 26 | First trip to Nevada.[16] | |
| New York City | May 30 | First trip to New York. No official business. President and First Lady dined at Blue Hill and attended the Broadway revival of Joe Turner's Come and Gone.[17] |
| Country/ U.S. state |
Areas visited | Date(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Riyadh Province | June 3–4 | First trip to Saudi Arabia. Obama met with King Abdullah and discussed various issues, including the Arab–Israeli conflict and Iran's nuclear programme.[18] | |
| Cairo, Giza | June 4 | First visit to Africa; first trip to Egypt. Obama issued an important speech to the Muslim world at Cairo University. The speech was entitled "A New Beginning".[18][19] | |
| Dresden, Buchenwald, Landstuhl | June 5 | Obama visited the Buchenwald concentration camp, ahead of the D-Day commemorations, and a former US military hospital. He also spoke of the Arab–Israeli conflict, and met with Chancellor Angela Merkel.[20] | |
| Paris, Caen | June 5–7 | Obama was in France to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the Normandy Landings. Obama met dignitaries including Nicolas Sarkozy, President of France, Gordon Brown, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Stephen Harper, Prime Minister of Canada, and Charles, Prince of Wales. In Paris, Obama and his family took part in sightseeing, including visiting the Centre Georges Pompidou.[21] | |
| Green Bay | June 11 | First trip to Wisconsin.[22] | |
| Chicago | June 15 | Obama made a speech to the American Medical Association, and pushed for reform in the American medical industry.[23] |
| Country/ U.S. state |
Areas visited | Date(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moscow | July 6–8 | First trip to Eastern Europe; first trip to Russia. Obama met with President Dmitry Medvedev to discuss global issues, including the War in Afghanistan. Obama delivered a speech to the New Economic School in Moscow.[24][24] | |
| L'Aquila, Rome | July 8–10 | First trip to Italy. Obama was attending the 35th G8 summit. Obama also met with President Giorgio Napolitano.[25] | |
| Vatican City | July 10 | First trip to the Vatican. Obama met with Pope Benedict XVI, and discussed issues such as poverty, stem-cell research, peace in the Middle East, and the need to reach out to the Muslim world. Obama and the Pope also exchanged gifts.[26] | |
| Accra, Cape Coast | July 11 | First trip to Sub-Saharan Africa; first trip to Ghana. Obama met with President John Atta Mills and made a speech to the Parliament of Ghana. He also toured a former departing point of the trans-Atlantic slave trade, the Cape Coast Castle.[25] | |
| St. Louis | July 14 | First trip to Missouri. Obama threw out the ceremonial first pitch at the 2009 Major League Baseball All-Star Game. | |
| Holmdel | July 16 | First trip to New Jersey. Obama spoke at the PNC Bank Arts Center in support of Governor Jon Corzine's re-election campaign.[27] | |
| New York City | July 16 | Obama spoke to the NAACP in honor of the group's 100th anniversary.[28] |
| Country/ U.S. state |
Areas visited | Date(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guadalajara | August 9–10 | Obama attended the annual North American Leaders' Summit.[29] | |
| Portsmouth | August 11 | First trip to New England; first trip to New Hampshire. Obama led a town hall meeting on health care reform. | |
| Belgrade | August 14 | First trip to Montana. Obama led a town hall meeting on health care reform. | |
| Grand Junction | August 15 | Obama led a town hall meeting on health care reform. |
| Country/ U.S. state |
Areas visited | Date(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York City | September 9 | Attended to memorial services of journalist Walter Cronkite held at the Lincoln Center. | |
| Minneapolis – Saint Paul | September 12 | First trip to Minnesota. Obama addressed a rally for health care reform. | |
| Troy | September 21 | Visited Hudson Valley Community College, about a technology program. |
| Country/ U.S. state |
Areas visited | Date(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Copenhagen | October 2 | First trip to Scandinavia, and to a Nordic country. First trip to Denmark. Obama was attending the 13th Olympic Congress, supporting the unsuccessful Chicago bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics. While in Denmark, Obama met with Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen. He also met with Queen Margrethe II and Henrik, Prince Consort of Denmark.[30] | |
| Springfield | October 14 | President Obama visited highway construction project sites and discussed job creation programs.[31] | |
| New Orleans | October 15 | President Obama traveled to New Orleans, Louisiana to survey reconstruction efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and hold a town hall meeting at the University of New Orleans.[32] | |
| San Francisco | October 15 | President Obama traveled to San Francisco, California. The President did not make any public appearances, although was present at a fundraiser for the Democratic National Committee.[33] | |
| College Station | October 16 | First trip to Texas. President Obama gave a speech on public service at the Texas A&M University, alongside former President George H. W. Bush.[34] | |
| Silver Spring | October 19 | President Obama travelled to Silver Spring, Maryland to visit the Viers Mills Elementary School, praising the school for mitigating the achievement gap between minorities and non-minority students.[35] | |
| New York City | October 20 | President Obama travelled to the headquarters of the Joint Terrorism Task Force in New York City.[36] | |
| Hackensack | October 21 | President Obama travelled to Hackensack, New Jersey to support the unsuccessful re-election campaign of Governor Jon Corzine at Farleigh Dickinson University.[37] | |
| Boston, Cambridge | October 23 | First trip to Massachusetts. Obama visited the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, before attending a fundraiser for the re-election campaign of Governor Deval Patrick.[38] | |
| Miami, Jacksonville, Arcadia | October 26–27 | President Obama spoke at a Democratic Party fundraiser in Miami at the Fontainebleau Hotel.[39] He also spoke at the Naval Air Station Jacksonville,[39][40] and toured the DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center in Arcadia, describing the necessity of developing a national 'smart' power grid.[41] | |
| Dover | October 29 | President Obama travelled to Dover Air Force Base to oversee the return of eighteen American soldiers killed in Afghanistan.[42][43] |
| Country/ U.S. state |
Areas visited | Date(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Camden, Newark | November 1 | President Obama was supporting the unsuccessful re-election campaign of Governor Jon Corzine.[44] In Newark, he drew a crowd of approximately 11,000.[45] | |
| Madison | November 4 | President Obama travelled to Wright Middle School in Madison, Wisconsin to discuss America's public education strategies with Secretary of Education Arne Duncan.[46] | |
| Killeen | November 10 | President Obama travelled to Fort Hood outside Killeen, Texas, to speak at a memorial for the victims of the Fort Hood shooting.[47][48] | |
| Arlington County | November 11 | President Obama travelled to the Arlington National Cemetery on Veterans Day, laying a wreath on the Tomb of the Unknowns.[49][50] | |
| Anchorage | November 12 | First trip to Alaska. President Obama made a brief trip to Elmendorf Air Force Base, speaking to military personnel there while en route to Tokyo.[51][52] | |
| Tokyo | November 13–14 | First trip to East Asia; first trip to Japan. The trip was the first stop on a four-nation tour of Asia. While in Japan, Obama met with Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama.[53] Obama also visited the Tokyo Imperial Palace, meeting with Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko,[54] and made a speech at the Suntory Hall in Tokyo.[52] | |
| Singapore | November 15 | First trip to Southeast Asia; first trip to Singapore. The trip was the second stop on a four-nation tour of Asia. Obama was attending the APEC Singapore 2009 summit.[55][56] While in Singapore, Obama took part in bilateral meetings with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, as well as Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, President of Indonesia.[52] | |
| Shanghai, Beijing | November 16–18 | First trip to China, the third stop on a four-nation tour of Asia. In Shanghai, Obama met with Shanghai Party Secretary Yu Zhengsheng and Mayor Han Zheng.[52] He also took part in a town-hall style meeting with Chinese students, addressing a range of issues such as internet censorship and U.S. arms deals with Taiwan.[57][58] In Beijing, Obama took part in a bilateral meeting with Paramount Leader Hu Jintao, and met with Premier Wen Jiabao.[52] Obama also met briefly with his half brother Mark Ndesandjo,[59] and visited various cultural sights; these included the Forbidden City and part of the Great Wall of China.[60] | |
| Seoul, Pyeongtaek | November 18–19 | First trip to the Korean peninsula; first trip to South Korea. The trip was the final stop on a four-nation tour of Asia. Obama met with President Lee Myung-bak at the Blue House, discussing such issues as the inactive South Korea – United States Free Trade Agreement.[61] Obama also met with American soldiers stationed at Osan Air Base in Pyeongtaek.[62] |
| Country/ U.S. state |
Areas visited | Date(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Point | December 1 | President Barack Obama travelled to the United States Military Academy (a.k.a. West Point), where he presented his new battle strategy for the War in Afghanistan.[63] | |
| Allentown | December 4 | President Obama travelled to Allentown, Pennsylvania, where he held a town-hall gathering discussing the proposed health care reform.[64] | |
| Oslo | December 10 | First trip to Norway. Obama was accepting the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize.[65] | |
| Copenhagen | December 18 | Obama made a speech at the Bella Center to attendants of the United Nations Climate Change Conference 2009. He also took part in a bilateral meeting with Premier Wen Jiabao,[66] and met with Dmitry Medvedev, President of Russia, to discuss completing a nuclear disarmament treaty to replace START I, a 15 year treaty that entered into force on 5 December 1994.[67] |
| Country/ U.S. state |
Areas visited | Date(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wilmington | January 12 | Obama travelled to Wilmington, Delaware, to attend the funeral of Jean Biden, mother of Vice President Joe Biden.[68] | |
| Boston | January 17 | Obama travelled to Boston, Massachusetts, to campaign for Martha Coakley in the Senate special election.[69] | |
| Elyria | January 22 | President Obama travelled to Elyria, Ohio, visiting the Lorain County Community College and emphasizing his political agenda.[70] | |
| Tampa | January 28 | President Obama travelled to MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, where he met with crew helping with the humanitarian response to the 2010 Haiti earthquake, before holding a town hall meeting at the University of Tampa.[71] | |
| Baltimore | January 29 | President Obama travelled to Baltimore, Maryland. While there, he toured local small businesses, delivered a speech on job tax credits, and met with members of the Republican Party.[72] |
| Country/ U.S. state |
Areas visited | Date(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nashua | February 2 | President Obama travelled to Nashua, New Hampshire, touring small business before giving a speech at Nashau North High School.[73] | |
| Lanham | February 5 | President Obama travelled to Lanham, Maryland, where he toured small businesses and delivered a speech on job creation.[74][75] | |
| Langley | February 5 | President Obama travelled to Langley, Virginia, to visit the headquarters of the Central Intelligence Agency to honor victims of the Camp Chapman attack.[76] | |
| Lanham | February 16 | President Obama travelled to Lanham, Maryland, where he discussed the future of nuclear power in the United States at a local chapter headquarters of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.[77][78] | |
| Denver | February 18 | President Obama travelled to Denver, Colorado. He delivered remarks at a fundraising rally and a fundraising reception for Senator Michael Bennet.[79] | |
| Las Vegas | February 18–19 | President Obama traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada. He held a town hall meeting with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and then delivered remarks to the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.[80] | |
| Bethesda | February 28 | President Obama traveled to Bethesda, Maryland for a routine medical examination at the National Naval Medical Center, where he later visited wounded soldiers.[81] |
| Country/ U.S. state |
Areas visited | Date(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Savannah | March 2 | President Obama traveled to Savannah, Georgia, speaking at the Savannah Technical College and outlining his energy-efficiency program.[82] | |
| Arlington | March 5 | President Obama traveled to Arlington, Virginia, discussing his Administration's policy and the economic situation at the headquarters of OPOWER, an corporation producing efficient energy use technology.[83] | |
| Glenside | March 8 | President Obama traveled to Glenside, Pennsylvania, where he discussed health care reform at Arcadia University.[84] | |
| St. Louis | March 10 | President Obama travelled to St. Louis, Missouri, where he discussed his plans for health care reform.[85] | |
| Chevy Chase | March 13 | President Obama traveled to Chevy Chase, Maryland, Maryland, where he watched his daughter play basketball.[86] | |
| Atlanta | March 13 | President Obama traveled to Atlanta to discuss his plans for overhaul of the American education system.[87] | |
| Strongsville | March 15 | President Obama travels to Strongsville, Ohio, where he discussed plans for health care overhaul.[88] |
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