'It's been a great honour,' says Trump, as he leaves the White House

Donald Trump pumped his fist and waved as he departed the White House on Marine One on Wednesday for the last time as US president.

"It's been a great honour, the honour of a lifetime. The greatest people in the world, the greatest home in the world,'' Mr Trump told reporters before heading to Marine One, rotors whirring, on South Lawn.

"We love the American people, and again, it has been something very special. And I just want to say goodbye but hopefully it's not a long term goodbye. We'll see each other again.''

Mr Trump will be the first president in modern history to boycott his successor's inauguration.

Marine One was headed to Joint Base Andrews where Air Force One was parked, a dramatic backdrop against the rising sun.

A red carpet has been placed on the tarmac for Mr Trump to walk as he boards the plane.

Four US Army cannons were waiting to fire a 21-gun salute to the president.

Hundreds of supporters greeted Mr Trump at Andrews.

By the time Mr Biden is sworn in, Mr Trump will already have landed at his private Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida.

Aides had urged Mr Trump to spend his final days in office trying to salvage his legacy by highlighting his administration's achievements - passing tax cuts, scaling back federal regulations, normalising relations in the Middle East.

But Mr Trump largely refused, taking a single trip to the Texas border and releasing a video in which he pledged to his supporters that "the movement we started is only just beginning''.

In his final hours, Mr Trump issued pardons for more than 140 people, including his former strategist, rap performers, ex-members of Congress and other allies of him and his family.

Mr Trump, awaiting his second impeachment trial, will head to Florida with a small group of former White House aides as he charts a political future that looks very different now than just two weeks ago before the Capitol riot.

White House cleaning crews worked overnight on Wednesday and were still going as the sun rose to get the building cleaned and ready for its new occupants.

In what will be the office of incoming press secretary Jen Psaki, a computer keyboard and mouse on her desk were encased in plastic.

A moving truck had backed up to the door of the West Wing entrance, where the presence of a lone Marine guard usually signals that the president is in the Oval Office.

Most walls were stripped down to the hooks that once held photographs, and offices were devoid of the clutter and trinkets that gave them life.

During his time in the capital, Mr Trump rarely left the confines of the White House, except to visit his own hotel.

He and his wife never once ate dinner at any other local restaurant; never ventured out to shop in its stores or see the sites.

When he did leave, it was almost always to one of his properties: his golf course in Virginia, his golf course in New Jersey, his private club and nearby golf course in Palm Beach, Florida.

The city overwhelmingly supported Mr Biden, with 93% of the vote. Mr Trump received just 5.4% of the vote.