Mr. Trump, who appeared nervous and uncharacteristically subdued beside Mr. Obama, called the president “a good man.” He said that the meeting was “a great honor” and that their conversation had lasted far longer than he would have expected.
“I have great respect,” Mr. Trump said, turning to face Mr. Obama. “We discussed a lot of different situations, some wonderful, and some difficulties. I very much look forward to dealing with the president in the future, including counsel.” Given that Mr. Trump has never held elective office or served in government, some administration aides suggest that Mr. Obama could play a larger-than-usual role in acquainting Mr. Trump with the demands of the office.
“The meeting might’ve been at least a little less awkward than some might have expected,” Josh Earnest, the White House press secretary, said. Aides said that the two men discussed foreign and domestic policy issues that Mr. Trump would need to deal with on Day 1 in the Oval Office. As early as Friday, the president-elect will get a version of the President’s Daily Brief, a classified compilation of all threats facing the United States and other highly significant intelligence information.
Mr. Trump’s trip was surreal for many Republicans and Democrats in Washington, who never expected to see the real estate executive and reality television star in an Oval Office meeting to begin preparations to lead the most powerful nation in the world. Mr. Trump, whose campaign drew support from white supremacist groups, sat just in front of a bust of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the Oval Office.
Outside in the Rose Garden, reporters could see Denis R. McDonough, the White House chief of staff, emerge from the West Wing talking in hushed tones with Jared Kushner, the president-elect’s son-in-law and adviser. The two then headed off for a stroll around the South Lawn. Nearby, aides to Mr. Trump snapped photographs of one another in the White House colonnade, standing in the spot where a crowd of shocked White House aides, some openly crying, had watched the day before as Mr. Obama called for national unity after Mr. Trump’s victory.
The Oval Office meeting was the centerpiece of a marathon day in the capital for Mr. Trump, his first since winning the presidency. His wife, Melania, had tea with Michelle Obama in the White House residence and took in the view of the Washington Monument from the Truman Balcony. White House aides said the two women talked about raising children in the White House.
“We want to make sure that they feel welcome as they prepare to make this transition,” Mr. Obama said of the Trumps.
Later on Capitol Hill, after meeting with Republican congressional leaders who will hold sway over enacting his agenda, Mr. Trump strode with Representative Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin, the House speaker, to a balcony overlooking the platform on the west side of the Capitol where he will be sworn in on Jan. 20, 2017, peering out to the National Mall below.
“Really, really beautiful,” he said of the view.
The president-elect arrived in the late morning from New York at Reagan National Airport in his trademark jet with the name Trump emblazoned on its side, and then rode with his wife in a black, armored sport utility vehicle in a motorcade that moved swiftly through Washington. By midafternoon, crowds had gathered on a crisp autumn day on both sides of Pennsylvania Avenue next to the Trump International Hotel, where barricades were set up. Police officers were lined up on motorcycles, officers on horses patrolled the area, and tourists taking photographs mingled with camera crews.
Mr. Trump and his wife had lunch with Mr. Ryan at the Capitol Hill Club, a peace summit meeting after Mr. Ryan had offered tepid support for the Republican nominee during the campaign and Mr. Trump had branded him a “weak and ineffective leader,” threatening retribution.