Washington Georgetown Marriott [Master Thread]
 

Didn't see a specific property thread, so thought I'd start one. Property is a Cat 7.

Historic Washington Marriott Georgetown Transformed

Excerpt:

"Washington Marriott Georgetown, the first Marriott hotel built in the nation’s capital in 1981, announces the completion of its $28 million transformation.

The newly transformed Washington Marriott Georgetown, situated at 1221 22nd Street at M Street, NW, lies in the heart of the city’s West End neighborhood, an area noted for its tree-lined residential streets, embassies, and critically-acclaimed restaurants, including the city’s first Nobu, scheduled to open later this year.

The hotel is within walking distance to historic Georgetown, Foggy Bottom, and Dupont Circle providing visitors quick access to shops, museums, and galleries.

Washington Marriott Georgetown’s elevates the guest experience by adding 8,300 square feet of new public space, a completely reimagined food and beverage program, 18 meeting rooms, a new fitness center, and the M Club Lounge. The hotel’s guest rooms feature the new “Marriott Modern Design” room

Today, the new Washington Marriott Georgetown unveils the following:

The M Club Lounge – An exclusive 24/7 lounge, reserved for Marriott Rewards Gold and Platinum Elite members offers complimentary food and beverage options, including local craft beers and wine on tap, such as Jordan Cabernet. The M Club Lounge also offers free elevated business services. The M Club Lounge access is also available for a nominal fee.

TED Talks – As part of a brand wide partnership, guests can now be inspired through playlists of TED talks that are now offered through their in room entertainment system.

Marriott Hotels’ Signature Bourbon Program – Our certified bartenders offer guests an elevated experience that includes advanced mixology and a deep knowledge of the history, and production of bourbon. Guests can enjoy world-renowned bourbon brands, as well as signature cocktails, and locally-curated bourbon flights, featuring Jos. A. Magnus, a distillery located in DC.

The Visiteur – Guests can enjoy reasonably priced small plates at the hotel’s new food concept, highlighting global taste with local comfort. Standouts on the menu include a hummus bar and inventive tacos featuring Jerk Shrimp and Cocoa Chili. Innovative cocktails such as the Oops I Did It A Gin, Som Like Scotch or the blazing barrel aged Cigarettes and Sushi.

Fitness Center – The brand new fitness facility flooded with natural light and thoughtfully designed, features advanced strength equipment and offers digital fitness classes with over 600 on-demand workouts including yoga courses, interval training and cardio boot camp. State-of-the-art cardio equipment comes with TED Talk videos on-demand.

Greatroom – a stylish hub of the hotel that serves as a great social gathering place for both day and night – is accented with contemporary décor and a layout that provides guests with a space to relax, collaborate, or grab a nightcap. Guests can enjoy a variety of great food and drink options as well as seamless connectivity with free Wi-Fi and essential technology."

Washington Marriott Georgetown Hotel website


Cheers.

For those interested in staying here, be aware it isn't actually in Georgetown. It's in an area called West End, and is actually closer to DuPont Circle than G-town. You can walk to G-town in about 15-20 mins from this property, or take the circulator bus for $1.

Just to be clear, the hotel is in a great area with lots of shops/restaurants/bars within easy walking distance. But it isn't Georgetown.

In the excerpt above by Sharon, it says under the description for the M Club that there is complimentary food and beverages, including local craft beer and wine on the tap. This implies that these beverages are free. I doubt that. While possible, it is more likely that this an incorrectly written description.

Both Marriott and Hyatt are taking significant grief for naming their non-Georgetown properties "Georgetown" when they aren't that.

Perfectly nice locations, but to be clear, you have to walk through two construction sites to get to the nearest edge of Georgetown and the Marriott property isn't even really in the West End, but at least that isn't a total lie.

If you are headed to the center of Georgetown, it's a good 20 minutes walk or Uber (bad traffic) and 30-40 minutes walk to Georgetown Univ.

Agreed that this is now a good area, but that wasn't always the case. Two rambling stories...

First: I lived in that area from 1983-86, and specifically on N St a block away during the summer of 1983. The area to the west of the Marriott over to Rock Creek Park and down to Pennsylvania Ave was about to be revitalized, but at the time, there were abandoned buildings, most of which used to be mechanics' garages. It was an easy area to find parking, but there was only a single streetlight in the middle of each block. One night, I parked over there. While walking home, I could see two people walking towards me. I slowed down so as to hit the light at the same time, thinking they might be potential muggers. Turned out it was Mike Nichols and Diane Sawyer. They seemed as relieved that I wasn't going to mug them as I was that they weren't going to mug me. A couple days later, around noon, I was waiting for the walk sign at K St, near the Mayflower, which is across the street from ABC News. Diane Sawyer walks to the corner, says how nice it is to see me again and walks on. Everyone was looking at me wondering who I am that she was talking to me. I was wondering when did she realize I was just the guy who had not mugged her a couple days earlier.

Second: That Marriott used to house Blackie's Steak House. My parents would stay there when they visited and we would always eat a meal there. We once sat next to Ted Kennedy and Daniel Patrick Moynihan. They and their party were quite enjoying themselves.

For those that don't know, Blackie's was repeatedly raided by INS. The restaurant would be tipped off ahead of time so employees would stay at home or quit. At one point, the restaurant had to close for a couple days while it hired and trained new staff because of the number of employees impacted. A restaurant I worked in at the time was also raided. We also knew ahead of time. Each employee had to go into a room where three INS agents quizzed us about where we were born, where we grew up, etc. I brought my passport with me to work that day and showed it to them.

Wouldn't be the first time that the public relations team wrote something incorrectly :D

Cheers.

I was there two weeks ago. Very nice. The lounge does have beer on tap, but it ain't for free.

The staff in the lounge is *very* attentive. And is always stocked with snacks beyond the normal candy, nuts, etc. Chips, granola bars, etc...haven't seen that yet in a lounge. Brand new coffee/espersso machine. They had some winery giving out free samples the other week too.

My only beef about the place was the construction (which isn't their fault, of course). The lighting in the lounge was a little too bright for me, and also, there were no places to put your used plates. You had to wait for the staff to come around and take them.

I felt bad leaving my stuff lying around, but, I guess that's what they want.

The "Georgetown" name, of course, is ridiculous. It's a 10 minute walk to Foggy Bottom, and another 10 or 15 to Georgetown after that.

And, in fact, it is only a block (or less) from the DuPont Circle Renaissance Inn.

There are a ton of places to eat only a block or so east.

I'll go back there if given the opportunity.

"georgetown"??????????
 

say what? that ain't georgetown! 1221 22nd Street at M Street, NW is not georgetown.

the sad part is that just about every hotel in the same area says either "georgetown" or "georgetown area": Hilton Garden Inn Washington DC/Georgetown Area (across the street from the Marriott), Embassy Suites WDC Georgetown (up the street), Best Western Georgetown, Westin Georgetown, Fairmont WDC Georgetown - wow! See for yourself on Google Maps.

at least the Park Hyatt, Ritz-Carlton and Ren Dupont Circle aren't blown such "georgetown"/"georgetown adjacent" smoke.

David

I created a wiki to clarify that the property, despite its name, is not actually in Georgetown but is closer to DuPont Circle. Now that we have that out of the way, look forward to more trip reports based on stays at the property.

If someone who stays there can post re: whether the M Lounge is open on the weekends I'd appreciate it, as I can then update the exec lounge sticky. Yes I know it's open 24/7, but is breakfast offered on Sat-Sun mornings in the lounge or in the restaurant, and do they serve evening apps on Fri-Sat nights as they would do Sun eve-Thurs eve.

Cheers.

More about the location: I too wouldn't call this West End, which I consider to be the area around the Park Hyatt. To me, 22nd and M is just a a commercial area, arguably around the far (western) end of the M Street downtown office area populated with private firms (consulting, law, etc.) rather than government buildings. If you walk (south) toward Washington Circle, there are some nice apartment and condo buildings, so that the area becomes more residential. There's also the GW Hospital area before you get to the Foggy Bottom Metro Station.

BTW, I too remember eating in Blackie's but I was never aware of the INS raids.

Also BTW, IIRC there's a conference center with hotel on the Georgetown campus which I thought was operated by Marriott, but I suspect it might not be open to reservations from the general public. When I first saw the thread title about a Georgetown Marriott, I assumed that it was this property and not the downtown full service Marriott.

The term West End was not used until the garages were torn down and the area around the Park Hyatt was developed, south and east of Rock Creek Park, west of 22nd St, north of M and L Sts. The Marriott predates that by many years. I believe technically the Marriott is actually in the Dupont Circle neighborhood. When I lived on N St we always referred to the neighborhod as Dupont Circle, and Badlands, which was on 22nd south of P St, was considered in Dupont Circle. IIRC, everything east of 22nd St was considered Dupont Circle.

I still think of M Street as M Street.

Oh for gawd's sake already!

We've determined the property is not in Georgetown proper. The wiki even reflects that & says it's closer to DuPont Circle.

Can we please move on & wait for a trip report on the property. Geesh. If you (generic you) have an actual trip report on the property then please post it. Your fellow FTers would appreciate it.

If you (again, generic you) want to get into a pissing war on what constitutes the West End et al, then take it to the MidAtlantic forum. Geesh.

Cheers.

Can no longer take it to the Washington DC forum. :D

The University hotel and conference center was Marriott-run for years and years. It used to take public bookings too, even last year IIRC. It was known as the Georgetown University Hotel rather than as a Marriott even while it was advertised in small print at least somewhere that Marriott in some form or another ran the place and the campus dining halls.

Much of M Street NW is not Georgetown. But you can bet that hotels in the West End and even Foggy Bottom at times have tried to sell an affiliation with Georgetown despite not being part of Georgetown. Not much different than hotels a few minutes walk from Times Square advertise themselves with Times Square somehow.

This hotel is in the West End, a place which used to have the closest major commercial movie theater to Wisconsin & M Street NW and was the Georgetown crowd's main (but small), non-artsy walking distance theater for some years.

I live across the street from this property and one word of warning is that there is a massive construction project right next door to the hotel. They have incredibly bright lights on all night and seem to start working at 7am m-sat. Specifically avoid north facing rooms. If you're looking for a relaxing property this is not the place to be right now. Give it 4-5 months and it'll be back to the somewhat quiet and cozy west end.

I used to work right behind this Marriott, and our property management definitely considered us part of Dupont Circle. That said, I'd prefer to be here or the West End over Georgetown proper for convenience. Staying at hotels in the thick of Georgetown mean you are stuck with the miserable traffic, even when just trying to get out of there.

It's not just the traffic in Georgetown but the lack of Metro stations. Moreover, in the main commercial areas, you can see crowds of people at times and sometimes they're rowdy/drunk. Often M Street and Wisconsin Avenue just aren't at all pleasant.

Stayed at the Marriott not-Georgetown and the front desk service was atrocious, including management... the renovation can't fix that...

Great and appropriate name for the hotel. I'll be using it going forward.

When did you stay there? Because I was there three weeks ago and it was great.

Washington Marriott Georgetown (newly renovated)
 

Introduction Summary: Nice rooms, good staff, convenient lounge. Check In Friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable front desk staff. Clearly trying hard. Good elite recognition and thank you! Hotel was sold out during my stay, so no upgrade available. Separate elite line, but was unmanned. The team knows the hotel and lounges, and they seem to enjoy working here, which makes them very pleasant to interact with. Room Standard above average Marriott. Rooms are newly refreshed. Modern finishings with clean lines and a minimalist aesthetic. Good power outlet accessibility with USB ports. Two outlets and one USB port are available at the desk. An actual working desk is in the room in addition to a small cafe table. Lightning, outlets, and wifi speed allows for very good productivity. Small bathrooms though. And some rooms, like mine, have unimpressive views of construction next door.I will address wifi specifically since it's important to me and many others. I just did a speedtest and I'm getting ~8 Mb down and ~0.5 Mb up. The connecting is stable. I've been able to work remotely very well! Dining 24-hour M Lounge. Of note: evening appetizers are still served on weekends! Very good selection. Two hot appetizer mini plates, salad, charceuterie and cheese. Lots of drinks available. On a sold out night I did not have trouble finding a place to sit. I did not attend breakfast. All day, however, there are snacks like hummus and yogurt to go. The yogurt is Chobani, which isn't exactly cheap. On a general I feel as if the food options at the lounge reflect that same general above average quality. The lounge staff is quite nice. They answer questions informatively and are efficient at cleaning up plates. Open 24 hours. Fun note: nice candy selection with to-go bags! Malt balls, Runts, Reese's, chocolarte covered raisins. Also trail mix and jerky to go!The lounge space itself is like the new rooms. Modern and airy, which clean lines. Several separate areas allow one to be close to TV noise or find a quiet spot to work. Definitely a plus to this hotel Location Has this thread talked about how it's not actually in Georgetown? ;) Short walk from Metro and very close to George Washington University. Lots of restaurants within 5-10 minutes walk. About 15 minutes to Georgetown. 5-10 minutes to Foggy Bottom Metro station. Convenient Walgreens next door. 10 minutes to Duport Circle. Overall Solidly above average. Nothing stunning, but certainly modern with good staff. Would I go out of my way to stay here as a treat? No. Would I happily return if I wanted to be in the area? Yes.

Thanks for the review w/ pics. Much appreciated.

Cheers.

I've stayed at the Georgetown Marriott several times since it has been remodeled and I too like it very much.

I have some issues with it though (and they are incredibly small).

The small bathrooms, all I want is some counter space.

Each room I have been in has had those Fairfield Inn style "closets". I don't like them. They're too narrow, I can't keep my shirts and pants apart far enough, and there's usually an ironing board tossed in there too. Don't get me wrong, I *want* the ironing board, but there must be a better way.

The restaurant, while it has some nice things on the menu, would be better I think if it had just a few more items. Great tacos, but a burger would be nice. And, hot dogs aren't exactly my style. I'm guessing since there are so many dining options in the area, they don't want to compete.

The lobby, I like it. I like the whole space. But people tend hog the tables there. That's not Marriott's fault, of course.

The lounge, I love it. The food is great. And they have Uncle Brutha's #9 and #10 sauce for your eggs in the morning During that snowstorm-that-never-was-a-snowstorm last month, several of us worked from the lounge all day. The WiFi was strong. I ate way too much candy. I fear the lounge is so good right now because it is new. Actually, one of my stays was when it *just* opened after the remodel, and they had free wine tastings, and even more food. Once the hype and newness goes away, I hope it doesn't just become a boring lounge.

My assessment is very mixed.

The Good:

The new M Lounge is great - maybe one of the best executive lounges in all of the Marriott family hotels in the USA. The ambience is very pleasant, and the food offerings, at breakfast time, during the day snacks, and evening canapés, are of high quality. The service by the staff was very good. Very impressive.

The Bad

1. Upgrades
I'm a Plat and I nicely asked about an upgrade when I checked in for a one night stay. I was told they only have a select group of rooms available for upgrades for Plats. So I asked if I could have a corner room. I was told that was an 'executive king' and there would be an upcharge of $40. I probably had an incredulous look on my face because she added that all the upgradeable rooms were taken.
As a Plat, I have never been charged for a nicer room. Especially for something as pedestrian as an executive king.
Also, there is a special area for Elite checkin but it was never manned whenever I walked through the lobby.

2. The room
a. No desk
b. No drawers to store things in
c. No closet per se, instead only a cutout area with a rod and some hangers- very Motel 6 cheap looking
d. The tv was mounted on the wall facing the foot of the bed, and it could not be swiveled. So if you wanted to watch tv in a chair, it was at quite an angle.
e. The door to the bathroom was frosted glass, so at night, when you go to the bathroom and turn on the light, it fills up your small room with light thereby disturbing anyone else in the room trying to sleep. I really hate that.
f. The A/C was noisy.

Georgetown now off my list.

I am currently at this property and have to say that overall I am happy.

As has been belaboured over and over again here, this property is not in Georgetown proper, but many nearby hotels claim the same affiliation.

Front desk staff is excellent and the person manning the Elite check-in desk even managed to handle an incoming flight crew and efficiently check me in at the same time, apologizing for the "delay" (I didn't sense any need for the apology). I was also proactively asked if I'd need a late checkout.

I asked for a Suite, was told by the agent that she wasn't sure any were available and King bedded rooms were scarce tonight (Suites were selling online but I took her word). After she genuinely looked in the system, she told me that she was able to find me an Executive King on the second floor and asked if that would be okay. I told her it would be.

The room is located in the "Business Wing" of the hotel which is a three story section accessed by a separate elevator. It is a proper one-bedroom suite with a large bathroom, though it does not match the description or photos of the one-bedroom suite listed on the hotel's page. It overlooks a small interior "rooftop courtyard" (non-functional I believe) so while there is no view so to speak, there is absolutely no street noise.

As previously mentioned, the room is minimalist but well appointed and clean. There are still a few things denoting the age of the property (such as the large gap underneath the entry door and the aging shower door) but the renovations turned out excellent with ample plugs by the bed. The only "complaint" would be that the television in the bedroom of my "Executive King" is completely undersized.

Official parking is valet only and $49 (plus tax) per night. Upon check-in, I was able to find a spot a block and a half away. Upon returning later this evening to unload luggage (luggage assistance was fairly slow), it took ten minutes or so of driving around, but I was able to find parking three blocks away. Note that this is really only effective for a Saturday night stay.

Oddly enough, I had some leftovers that I wanted to reheat and was told that there are no microwaves anywhere on the property (although I am GLAD to know there are none in the kitchen to be honest!) as the owner has made it very clear that he doesn't want a single microwave in the building.

The M-Club Lounge is open 24/7 for self-service and has evening appetizer and breakfast servings 7 days a week. Snacks and sodas are kept stocked and offer a large variety.

Thanks for the update. Much appreciated.

Cheers.

I've stayed here a half-dozen times since the new M Club opened in January.

The self-serve coffee in the M Club lounge is now illy. I don't know when this changed, but it has changed. Also, the coffee machine now works. Before, it always broke down. The machine also now has a skim milk option for cappuccinos and lattes.

Self-serve wine prices have increased with some glasses around $15 and $18.

You can also order restaurant food and have it delivered to the lounge. I don't remember that being an option before. Now, they even have menus on most of the tables. Cheese at night has been downgraded from a two or three variety gourmet cheese board to standard concierge club yellow/orange cheese cubes.

Overall, I share other sentiments that this is one of the better domestic Marriott lounges. It would be nice if they had at least had some champagne or more premium wine if they're going to sell it at such a steep price. I don't understand why the hotel charges so much for wine when there are so many bars and restaurants in Washington with better wine at better prices.

Room service has been downgraded to the newer Marriott Bites concept. You're still charged a room service fee and the food prices are about the same as traditional room service, but the food comes delivered in plastic containers in a paper bag with plastic cutlery. The Cesar salad with grilled chicken is good, though the parmesan cheese is grated and not shaved.

Upgrades are difficult here. Even just getting a slightly bigger room. Staff are generally pleasant, especially in the lounge. The lounge attendants take a lot of pride in their work. I've seen the same ladies for months now. They're very cordial. Not Singapore or Hong Kong service, but much better than many other properties. No newspaper delivery, but newspapers -- Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post -- were available every day in the M Club and in the lobby.

My room had a desk, but the desk was built into the new long hutch and cabinets. The TV is great, in my opinion. Massive. Like 55 inches or more. Unfortunately it doesn't swivel for the chair.

No water is provided in rooms, which is kind of annoying because the M Club doesn't have bottled water. Only a fountain with three taps: sparkling chilled, chilled still and non-chilled still. You can however bottle it yourself in a small glass jug.

Since my last stay, the Marriott Georgetown (not actually in Georgetown) is now serving trays of red, white and sparkling wine to guests at check-in every evening. The sparkling wine wasn't really chilled so it was difficult to determine the quality. It was kind of flat, too. The wine is served in high-quality plastic glasses.

WiFi speed

http://www.speedtest.net/result/6921880938.png

Water temperature barely acceptable for a hot shower

Lounge hours:
Beverage/Snack - 24 hours
Breakfast: M-F 06:30 to 10:30 / Sat-Sun 07:30 to 11
Appetizer Sun-Thurs 17:30 to 19:30
Alcoholic beverages available for purchase - Daily 1100 to 2300

The evening food is always enough for a good meal replacement. Every time I have stayed, there has been a salad bar option.

Alcohol prices are absurd.

I've asked and been upgraded to the large king and large double rooms. They really don't have many suites. Before renovation, I think they had one real suite and then several hospitality suites with Murphy-style fold-down beds. The larger rooms with the alcove are nice.

Same prices as the bar in the lobby, so I assume they just allow you to consume in the lounge with snacks. Other than that, the lounge is great, especially the staff.

I agree about the staff. The ladies are great. When I was there in December, there was less expensive wine in the lobby bar. The wine prices are very high. I told the manager they should offer a discount in the lounge or do a complimentary wine tasting. Something. I'd rather just buy a bottle in the lobby bar or better yet buy a bottle at the attached Walgreen's and take back to my room.

[QUOTE=hockeyinsider;29321940...I'd rather just buy a bottle in the lobby bar or better yet buy a bottle at the attached Walgreen's and take back to my room.[/QUOTE]
+1 to the Walgreens idea!

The Walgreen's doesn't sell wine. Been in this hotel now for about 2 years straight. There is a liquor store up near 22nd and P Streets. Good Prices. Have any questions about this hotel, IM me

You've stayed in the hotel for two years consecutively?

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...d512b00ce1.jpg

Nice day in D.C.
I am typing this from the G'Town Marriott, Nth floor, corner room looking at M and 22nd right now.
Yeah, just about every week, started this hotel in Jan 2016. I've been here before Jan 2016 but mostly this one specifically since then.
I did have to stay at he JW a few times and the Key Bridge as well in that time frame.
Stayed at Ren Dupont Circle for 16 months (sort of across the street). JW on and off about 1 yr. Key Bridge about 20 times. Marriott Marquis about 30 times.
Been based out of D.C. hotels since about Dec 2009. Give or take a break now and then.

FYI, I do go home most weekends.

Do you check out of the room? Do they store your stuff or give you any extras? I know someone who lived 7 days a week in the Georgetown Marriott for three months in late 2016 and early 2017, but the most they gave him was a microwave and bigger mini-fridge in his room. He didn't even get a complimentary glass of wine every now and again for three straight months of business.

The Key Bridge Marriott rates are low enough that one could live in the hotel for less than renting an apartment in D.C., at least when you consider what furniture, lawn maintenance, rent, food, TV and internet subscriptions, and so forth would cost every month. By my back of the envelope math, it would be about $250-300 cheaper per month.