--- description: President Barack Obama left the White House on Friday afternoon for a Martha's Vineyard vacation, originally scheduled to begin Saturday. title: Obama Escapes White House for Martha's Vineyard a Day Early image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf90adb74a2bf9efb/69869ead3bc99972401a4d05/pres-vaca1.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Politics](/section/politics/) ## Politics Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [White House](/tag/white-house/) ## White House Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Obama Begins Martha's Vineyard Vacation a Day Early  by [Julia Zorthian](/author/julia-zorthian/)  ## Julia Zorthian Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 7, 2015 6:13 PM CUT  Obama tends to take a winter break in Hawaii, where he was born and raised, and a summer vacation in Martha's Vineyard. In between, he plays basketball and has been known to do some skeet shooting at Camp David. His favorite pastime, no matter the location, has become easy to spot: golf. Obama tends to take a winter break in Hawaii, where he was born and raised, and a summer vacation in Martha's Vineyard. In between, he plays basketball and has been known to do some skeet shooting at Camp David. His favorite pastime, no matter the location, has become easy to spot: golf.Jim Watson—AFP/Getty Images  by [Julia Zorthian](/author/julia-zorthian/)  ## Julia Zorthian Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 7, 2015 6:13 PM CUT President Barack Obama [left the White House for Martha’s Vineyard on Friday afternoon,](http://bigstory.ap.org/article/883a943bdf054b40a12563a66b9e2f21/obama-heading-marthas-vineyard-vacation-day-early "undefined") starting one day early on a family vacation that was originally scheduled to begin Saturday. The First Family will spend over two weeks on the Massachusetts island, where Obama is known to go to the beach and play numerous rounds of golf. They will reside in a seven-bedroom, nine-bathroom house equipped with basketball and tennis courts on the island’s western side. Obama has taken five previous trips to Martha’s Vineyard during his presidency, usually forgoing public communication for the duration. Last year, Obama interrupted and ultimately ended his trip early to address the [beheading of journalist James Fole](http://time.com/3148919/obama-isis-james-foley-execution/ "undefined")y and [protesting in Ferguson, Mo.,](http://time.com/3111730/barack-obama-ferguson-michael-brown/ "undefined") after the shooting of Michael Brown by a police officer. \[[_AP_](http://bigstory.ap.org/article/883a943bdf054b40a12563a66b9e2f21/obama-heading-marthas-vineyard-vacation-day-early "undefined")\] ### Photos: How Presidents Take Vacation  Obama tends to take a winter break in Hawaii, where he was born and raised, and a summer vacation in Martha's Vineyard. In between, he plays basketball and has been known to do some skeet shooting at Camp David. His favorite pastime, no matter the location, has become easy to spot: golf. Jim Watson—AFP/Getty Images  Fishing is in the Bush family DNA: for blues off the coast of Maine or anything with fins, almost anywhere else. George W. Bush relaxed as president by jogging and clearing brush on his Texas ranch near Waco. Since leaving office, he has become an avid mountain biker and, more recently, has taken up painting. Charles Ommanney—Getty Images  Clinton was never much good at vacationing. His staff had to practically force him to go on vacation his first year in office; his idea of relaxing was reading books while enjoying a cigar (chewed, not smoked). He sometimes played golf, but his somewhat elastic interpretation of the rules could drive his partners crazy. Bob McNeely—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Vice President George Bush tries to catch a fish in August, 1983 in Kennebunkport, Maine. The small town would sometimes be clogged with traffic when Bush, as Vice President and later as President, would visit, reporters in tow. Cynthia Johnson—Getty Images  "There is nothing so good for the inside of a man than the outside of a horse." That's what Nancy Reagan liked to say about why her husband often liked to go horseback riding while on vacation as his ranch near Santa Barbara, California. Above, the 'horse' was a riding mower. Reagan Foundation  President Ford and First Lady Betty chose Mauna Kea Beach, Hawaii on the Big Island for a getaway vacation in 1974, but they couldn’t escape the prying eyes of the press. Here, the president, a former All American football player at Michigan, turned his movie camera on a familiar photographer. David Hume Kennerly—Getty Images  Johnson preferred his 2,700 acre Texas Hill country ranch to posh resorts, and he hosted guests there year-round. He owned 400 head of cattle and delighted in playing cowboy for visiting dignitaries. He also took guests for a ride in his tricked out amphibious car, surprising them by turning off road and into a pond. Bettmann/Corbis  Johnson relaxes in his pool with his grandson Lyn and the First Family's new dog, Yuki, in 1968. Yoichi Okamoto—Corbis  JFK began competitive sailing in his youth. The president often snuck away for a bit of solitude on the Honey Fitz, his 92-foot power yacht on the Potomac. But being a talented sailor, his favorite was the Manitou, a 62-foot sailing yacht he first spotted as a young senator. Robert Leroy Knudsen—National Archives  In 1928, Calvin and Grace Coolidge spent their last presidential Thanksgiving at a beautiful Italianate villa, the Swannanoa Country Club, near Rockfish Gap on the summit of the Blue Ridge mountains in Virginia. The palatial mansion reportedly pleased the first lady. AP  FDR's polio limited his vacation options. He began visiting Warm Springs, Georgia in 1924 for its curative waters and later built a 2000 acre polio treatment center nearby. He liked to cruise the Potomac on the presidential yacht and three times as President returned to Campobello, in New Brunswick, Canada. Bettmann/Corbis  Clinton, his daughter Chelsea, center, and wife Hillary walk with Buddy from the White House toward a helicopter as they depart for vacation en route to Martha's Vineyard, Mass. Robert A. 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