Stay Last Weekend and Pictures
 

I stayed the past three nights at the W in Washington DC. Overall it was a great experience.

In service... the hotel far exceeded my expectations (especially compared to my stay at the San Francisco St. Regis a few weeks ago). I found everyone to be very nice. It is a bit awkward walking into the hotel and having to authenticate your status as a guest multiple times as your make your way to elevators... but once they get used to seeing you its painless.

The spectacular room is small but comfortable and the view is very nice. It seemed as though a suite was an option for an upgrade but I required two beds so I opted to stick with the original room assigned. The check in staff were very helpful.

I went to the bar both Friday and Saturday nights in the later part of the evening and it wasn't took crowded (after 10). I think they do a good job of keeping it from getting out of hand. There is also a ton of staff on the roof top and its always easy to get a drink. The beer selection sucks: choice of stella, miller light, corona, or heineken. Three stellas and a corona ran me $23 before tip. The view is amazing and as it gets later its easy to commandeer a table as people leave (reservations for tables on weekends are not an option- even for hotel guests).

I only had breakfast at the JG Steakhouse. The breakfast was excellent and fairly inexpensive ($15 for a full American breakfast). Dinner reservations for JG Steakhouse were also impossible on Friday and Saturday night... even as a hotel guest. I guess not impossible... I believe the concierge said they could find a spot after 9:30pm for us.

Negatives/Complaints:

- Valet parking is $45 and the parking attendants are lazy and take their sweet time
- They are stingy with refilling soap/hair products (even after requested) and providing enough towels
- Elevators periodically don't work- twice over the weekend I had to use the stairs to get to a different floor to get on an elevator.


Overall it's a great hotel and as I said before- the service by far out shined my most recent experience at the SF St. Regis.

Here are some low quality iPhone pictures I took throughout the stay:

Hotel Room:
http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/s...ker/photo2.jpg
http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/s...er/photo-1.jpg
http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/s...ker/photo3.jpg
http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/s...ker/photo4.jpg

View from Room:
http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/s...ker/photo5.jpg

Hallway:
http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/s...ker/photo7.jpg

View from Roof Top Bar:
http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/s...ker/photo6.jpg

JG Steakhouse:
http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/s...ker/photo8.jpg

Just stopped by for a quick cocktail at the POV lounge on the top floor of the W. Bar had a few dozen people, even though it was a Monday night.

Seems like the perception remains it's tough to get upstairs, but all one has to do is wait for the elevator on the right and an attendant will take you up.

Reservations are needed for a table, but there's plenty of space to stand, including high tops without bar stools.

The view is unbeatable. If you've never seen the White House and the monuments from above, it's well worth a visit be it for sunset or late night.

I just came back from this property and thoroughly enjoyed it. The staff could not have been better---from Whatever/whenever, check in, to housekeeping to restaurant staff ^ Excellent! But then again, W is generally ^ anyway.

Since others have already done pretty well in reviewing the property, I'll just add that if you are taking the metro, you can either get off at McPherson Sq (blue and yellow) or Metro Center. It's pretty convenient.

Also, room service was excellent. The burger was THE best burger I'd had in a long time. ^

The only negative thing I have to say is that the walls are thin. The alarm clock/radio has pretty strong built in bass. If you have inconsiderate neighbors, it can be quite loud.

I was in a fantastic suite (pictures here: www.flickr.com/photos/dunkindonuts) and it was truly fantastic. I really enjoyed the bathroom ^ The living room was also very comfortable.

Nice pics! I don't ever want to see you complain again about not getting a suite upgrade because you seem to get more than most of us. :D http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/starw...s-advance.html ;)

To be fair, that thread was about not getting upgrades in advance, and I didn't get upgraded in advance this time either! I had to ask at check in! ;)

And, I don't think I get more upgrades than most people. I always post pictures of a new property that I visit and like you said, I take nice pics (;)) so people tend to remember my posts. But honestly, I had plenty of stays (paid or award) where I did not receive any suite upgrades.

I guess I just remember all those nice suite pics because I tend to get stuck in the room next to the ice machine/elevator. :D

Property does look really nice. I had tried to redeem a FWN there a month or so ago and wasn't able to get a room. Will have to check it out in the future.

Correction: Blue or Orange lines.

If you’re going to Washington DC and want to party 24 7 then the new W is the place to be. Ideally located downtown, less than 2 minutes from the white house and 4 easy blocks from Metro center it is ideal. The lobby is beautiful and the Suite was fantastic, over 900 sq feet with a modern contemporary feel.

Now the downsides – Be warned most rooms are 200 sq feet so unless you are upgraded to or purchase a suite it will make London’s rooms look spacious. The rooftop bar has fantastic views and is called Altitude. It really needs to be renamed Attitude. Despite having less than 25% occupancy of tables, all the remaining ones had reserved stickers on, yet in the 45 minutes we were up there not one became occupied! It’s a good job we just ignored the reserved sign! It was not good we were reprimanded for doing so. Maybe if you like $18 glasses of wine (we did - hic!) served by spotty teenage looking folks who somehow think they are elite as they are waitresses here, then this is the place to be. The hotel needs to decide if it is a club or hotel. It won’t survive long term being both.

The other issue the hotel has is the soundproofing. :mad:To say the walls are paper thin is quite an insult to paper. You can hear everything from next door. You won’t sleep or you will be woken up early unless both your neighbors have the identical schedule.

Hotels in DC need repeat business and I doubt anyone stays here twice if they value sleep– Trust me stay at the Westin and your trip will be better.

Just stopped by Bliss for a Rapid Rub- great little spot. They let me work out in Sweat prior to my massage (I wasn't a guest, I live here), which was one of the nicest gyms I've worked out in- hotel or otherwise.

About Sweat:
- 7 to 8 very new, well functioning treadmills with the all touch screen controls. Great selection of stations to watch
- Extensive free weight selection
- An excellent multi-exercise station
- Leg press/curl (which I find to be more rare these days, but greatly appreciate)
- Hanging punching bag
- Plenty of yoga mats/other mats/jump boxes etc
- Fridge well stocked with Fiji water
- Complimentary headphones/newspapers
- Really cool lightbulbs

I took a few pictures but will get some better quality ones when I go back.

About Bliss:
- On the smaller side: from the areas I was in, only 2 or 3 treatment rooms.
- Very cool design: The wall separating the retail area from the back of house has a cool colorful design and a door in it that was kind of tricky to find the first few times I went through it.
- Staff was top notch and super friendly
- Men's lounge/locker room: Fairly standard for a Bliss, but nice and new. There are two steam showers- the one on the left is larger with a padded seat, the one on the right is smaller with a marble ledge. I tried both because I couldn't get the water warm enough- not sure if this was just a temporary problem, but I didn't bother to ask.
- My only nitpick, and this is universal to all Bliss spas: I wish they would put better quality disposable razors in the locker rooms. I usually bring my own, but the one time I forgot was not a pleasant experience

The spa menu pricing is a little towards the upper range of the middle for DC, but in my opinion worth it. I had a great experience.

Do registered guests have good success getting a table on the roof? What is the process in order to book a table? Are meals served, or just drinks?

Guests have no priority in getting tables upstairs and they are regularly booked up (for weekends) 2 weeks in advance. Guests do not have to have reservations or wait in line to go to the standing room area upstairs that has stand-up bar tops. You book a table by calling the hotel in advance.

They have a pretty awesome "bar tapas" menu created by Jean-Georges who did the steakhouse downstairs, but not a full menu.

Another FTer let me know that the restaurant (POV at W) is on OpenTable. In my experience, OpenTable is only given a portion of the tables at a restaurant. Regardless, it's a very easy starting point.

To get pre-upgraded, should I call SPG or should I call the hotel directly?

Pre upgraded? Your profile shows you having gold status. That entitles you to a better room if available in the same category you have booked. I'm unaware of golds having much success in the pre upgrade arena, unless perhaps it's a significant wedding anniversary or birthday and the person has reached out to the hotel GM.

If you are staying during the next two weekends, before the expiration of free weekend nights, I anticipate a similar scenario to that reported here:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/starw...ot-suites.html