(Metacomment 1:
all of the pictures shown in the review and a few others
are were located
here. Since that website has become a pain, I've updated this post to have all photos uploaded directly.)
(Metacomment 2: I did post a question about
parking at this hotel in the
Washington DC thread which I answer in this current post.)
Why Here? One of the Marriott family properties in Arlington,VA - hadn't stayed here and wanted to try it. Maybe I shouldn’t have.
The Reservation: Made via the company travel web site at the company rate. So YRWV (your rate will vary).
Location: Across the street from the Pentagon City Metro Station and a part of the Fashion Centre @ Pentagon City Mall. Not the closest Marriott property to the Pentagon - Google Maps shows the Residence Inn Arlington Pentagon City a few blocks closer - and not among the Marriott properties in Crystal City next to DCA.
The Property: From my photo of the elevator, there's 18 floors to this property and it is on the south end of the mall next to Nordstrom's. If you want to shop, this could be a place for you. If you like construction, this is really the hotel for you since the mall is being remodeled and affects your access in and out of the hotel.
Layout: Your standard one building/single corridor spine with rooms entered off of the single corridor.
Lobby/Front Desk: On the first floor. If you drive up to the front door on Hayes St., there's valet parking. If you want to park yourself, I identify multiple options - including parking on the back side of the mall if you so desire - later in this post.
Room 619: While being a Marriott Platinum, I have no status within the RC chain nor RC credit card so, checking in after 8 PM, I was given a room with 2 queen beds on a lower floor immediately overlooking the roof of the Nordstrom.
Notes: Since I was here for all of about 10 hours, I ended up using my time primarily as a parking research activity + some work (the room had a desk).
Did not eat at the hotel, did not see the promised land of the RC Club, did not go to work out, did not park here overnight.
Parking: If you want to park at or near this hotel, here’s an annotated map originally sourced from Google:
0. If you’re ok with valet, hand over your keys and pay $38/night.
1. If you want to self park in the mall parking, 10+ hours of parking costs $18:
2. If you go with the suggestion of parking over at the Pentagon Centre, that will cost $20 if your parking period is over 10 hours:
If you are ok with street parking, the City of Arlington, VA has a number of options. Using the city’s
Transportation/Parking Page, you can access the
Interactive Parking Meter Map and query down to the parking meter or parking kiosk level the maximum time you can park at a given location as well as when parking is enforced (or not enforced).
(Of course, I found all of this info after the fact but since I’ve done the leg/mouse work, it’s posted here in flyertalk for reference.)
Given their proximity to the hotel and what I found the evening I inhabited the RC, if you are willing to find a street parking spot after hours (primarily after 6 PM), most spots are free until enforcement starts again at 8 AM Monday-Friday or Monday-Saturday. If you can compete with the people who dine at the California Pizza Kitchen, some of the spots across Hayes (shown in pink on the annotated map) come free after they leave after 10 PM.
This is where I ended up parking for the night – and then getting into my car and leaving by 8 AM.
South of 15th St. S, metered spots are generally available on both sides of Hayes (shown in blue on the annotated map). Around the block from the hotel on 15th St. S, a handful of metered spots may be available (shown in green on the annotated map).
FWIW, there are two spots on Hayes in front of Nordstrom – they are 2 hour maximums enforced 24 hours per day if that strikes your fancy.
I’ve annotated on the Google map when parking is enforced as well as the maximum duration that you can park. For the kiosk spots, you can pay for your parking by using a mobile app and knowing the parking zone of your spot
Summary: Flat out, I won’t be back any time soon, even after doing all of the research WRT parking. There’s no easy way into this hotel if you’re trying to self park. I’m not a fan of valet parking and, unless you’re primarily travelling by Metro, you really need a car in Northern Virginia. With the construction in the Fashion Centre mall, the unfriendly access to the hotel and a lack of foresight shown when integrating this hotel into both the mall and the surrounding areas, I don’t see much utility of staying here on business.
David