arlflyer

The Washington Hilton is showing availability for one-night stays every night in August except for the 2-4 and 7-10. I would imagine given the timing of those mid-week periods that a meeting or convention might be occurring.


This is, in my opinion, one of the most overrated establishments in DC. I cannot in good faith recommend that anyone pay $15-20 for the sandwiches that they offer and do not understand why people rave about this place. These would be $8-10 hoagies in Philly or most anywhere else. There are many, many places that I would put well ahead of that place in contention for best sandwich in DC, including Stachowski's and Fast Gourmet to list just a few. The fact that people go nuts over this place is to me simply indicative of the fact that, for some strange reason, downtown DC has a pretty weak sandwich scene (though improving).

danimal96

I'm in the middle of an award stay right now at the HGI Georgetown and it's been a great experience. The staff has gone above & beyond to make me and my family feel comfortable, including the waitstaff at the restaurant and the valets. I booked a 2Q room and was hoping for an upgrade to a 2Q+sofabed room so my 13 y.o. boys didn't have to share a bed. Nothing available the first night, but the lady at the front desk (Andrea) offered to check the next day. She also noticed - on her own - that breakfast vouchers had only been printed for 1 guest rather than 4, and said she would take care of it right away. I stopped back at the desk 10 minutes later and she had them printed & was going to personally deliver them to my room. The next day, I stopped back to ask about the room upgrade and was pleasantly switched to a different room. When I check the new room & noticed it was the same as my other, I phoned the front desk and Andrea fixed it ASAP and came up to personally verify the new room was the right one. I was very thankful, and her exact quote was "anything to take care of our Gold members". I travel a good deal and generally get favorable service at Hilton properties, but this has been one of the best experiences I can recall.

Castleford Tiger

Just stayed at the Homewood Suites, Downtown, with my family. Pretty busy, but suited us fine, particularly the two room layout. Easy access to the White House and National Mall with some family-friendly restuarants close by.

CT

Bryant.Jr

I'm planning to stay in crystal city and is considering the hampton inn DCA vs hilton crystal city. From reviews in tripadvisor, the hampton inn seems better than the hilton, and is closer to the metro. The prices are similar for both property. I read that as gold you get breakfast in the executive lounge for hilton crystal city without being in executive room. Is this still true? How is breakfast in hilton's crystal city executive lounge? Thanks.

amanuensis

I've never stayed at the Crystal City Hilton because the Hampton is closer to Metro. And their breakfast is acceptable to me. Usually more hot entrees per day than the standard Hampton (but the same brand standard types). So if you have a favorite, you are more likely to get it on any given day.

However, the Hampton is right next door to what is now a Hilton Garden Inn. I think the HGI brand has the most consistently good breakfast of the entrire Hilton spectrum, especially if it is free because of Gold/Diamond myway choice. And it is also much closer to Metro than the Hilton -- although the Hampton is still a smidge closer.

Oops, I see the HGI is still not open. It must be still converting from its previous incarnation as a Radisson. I see this note for the soon-to-be HGI on the Radisson website:

So, evidently the Radisson needed a lot of work to bring it up to HGI brand standards. I thought it was supposed to be converted by now.

amanuensis

Sorry to quote myself, but I am still hoping for a review for the new Navy Yard Hampton. I trust FT reviews more than those on Trip Advisor.

The baseball stadium must make the Navy Yard area a hot site for new hotels. I learned just yesterday that Hilton is going to open a Homewood Suites right across the street from the Navy Yard metro station's ballpark entrance in Nov 2016. http://homewoodsuites3.hilton.com/en...AHW/index.html although since reservations are not yet being taken, I am not sure they will hit their date.

This new Homewood will be even more convenient for me than the new Navy Yard Hampton. I love the Crystal City Hampton, but I think I might make the Homewood my new DC home, if the rates are acceptable.

arlflyer

Actually Navy Yard is just plain hot in general. The stadium went up when the team came to town and opened in 2008, but due to the economy cooling off at that time a lot of the other planned projects went on hold. Then when DC boomed, the plans were dusted off and are now delivering at a rapid pace. It's across the board - tons of residential, commercial, and retail.

Navy Yard has the advantage of being one of the few places in DC where there was a clean slate (as opposed to most other neighborhoods where things had to be wedged in between historic buildings, etc.), so it's been extremely attractive to developers. The last couple years have been crazy - every time I come down there it's like I hardly recognize it, and I live in the DC area.

amanuensis

Thanks for the explanation. Years ago, soon after it opened, I tried the Navy Yard Marriott Courtyard for two weeklong stays. At that time, there were almost no places to eat other than a Five Guys. And for health reasons (i.e., not wanting a heart attack), I limit how often I eat there. So I have stuck with Crystal City since then, even though it is a slightly longer work commute because it is so much easier to find food. Sounds like it is time to investigate my options again.

arlflyer

For sure! Plenty of options for dining. In Navy Yard proper there are a good number of choices from fast casual to higher-end: Nando's, Sweetgreen, Bluejacket, Morini to name a few off the top of my head. And it's a modest walk (about 15-20 minutes) to Barracks Row which has a couple dozen restaurants including highly-acclaimed ones such as Rose's Luxury and Garrison. Much better than Crystal City!!!

omghaxcode

Looking to stay in DC over the Labor Day Weekend. I'm Hilton Diamond and would love an upgrade if possible. I won't have a car and I'd like to be walking distance to food and sights as this is the first time in DC us. I'm surprised by how cheap everything is. Does anyone have any suggestions? The Capital Hilton is so close to the White House... is it just old?

Capital Hilton: $125
HGI Downtown: $140
HI White House: $140
HGI Georgetown: $124
Washington Hilton: $113

I'm open to other properties also if there are better choices.

SusanDK

That's a good price for the Capital Hilton and I found it a fine hotel when I was there for a conference a few years ago. As a Diamond, you will have access to the Executive Lounge which was small but had a reasonable breakfast. Although check the opening hours of the lounge to be sure they are open on the weekends as it tends to be a business hotel.

I was upgraded as a Diamond - room is not large but it was clean, nice bathroom and had a couch / chair / table in addition to the kingsize bed. I was quite happy at this hotel for 3 nights. No complaints.

arlflyer

Nice rates! DC properties can be really cheap when both business and tourist travel are off, as is the case on Labor Day weekend.

If this is your first time in DC I would suggest the Capitol Hilton as well. It is, as noted, a largely business hotel, so it will not be flashy but has a solid product. Since business travel will be down that weekend I could see you lucking into an upgrade if you ask. But don't expect it - as with any US Hilton property.

The location is very central to everything a first-timer would want - the monuments, museums, and tourist sights, as well as the hot restaurant/nightlife areas: the 14th Street corridor, Mt. Vernon Square, Shaw, Penn Quarter, Dupont. What kind of activities and dining are you interested in?

Need

The HGI at 14th street is even closer to the White House but off to the side, but I would stay at Capital Hilton. Uber and Lyft are really cheap so you don't really have to worry about not having a car. When we were there, we walked to the museums and take a ride back on either Uber or Lyft and most of the time it is around $6 to $8.

omghaxcode

We've never been to DC so we were just planning on doing the museums and Monuments (as much as can be seen in 2 days). Food wise, we're interested in casual dining. I've seen Nando's suggested here and I love Nando's in London so we will probably hit that up.

jamesteroh

I like the Washington Hilton myself. Not sure if this is still the case, but the Capital Hilton lounge used to be closed on weekends. The Washington Hilton lounge is open on weekends and they are strict about giving only diamonds and those on the top floor access so no issues with overcrowding.

I like the location since it's a short walk to the DuPont Metro and easy access to the Smithsonian's and I have walked to the White House from there before. Lots of places to eat at that are an easy walk.

The Washington Hilton used to be generous with late checkouts (I used to be able to get a 4 p.m. with no problem but last time they'd only give me up to 2). Providing they have suites available they are generous with upgrades as well, I had gotten nice suite upgrades there before suite upgrades were a benefit and sometimes they will go as far as to upgrade a diamond the presidential suite. Fitness center is really nice too.

Only dislike about that property is if you need your bags stored they charge a fee. I complained to the front desk about it once and was told it was part of their union contract and it goes to the bell staff not the hotel so I simply don't tip. I usually tip $5 for storing 2 bags but since they insist on charging $1 a bag I either don't tip or adjust the tip to whatever I would normally tip by what they charge me upfront to store the bag.