Best Historic Hotel: The Willard InterContinental celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2006, as the "new" 12-story Willard, replacing the original, smaller "City Hotel" that existed here between 1816 and 1906. Whether known as the City or the Willard, the hotel has hosted nearly every U.S. president since Franklin Pierce in 1853, including two presidents who lived here for a time -- Lincoln in 1861 and Calvin Coolidge in 1923. President Ulysses S. Grant liked to unwind with cigar and brandy in the Willard lobby after a hard day in the Oval Office, and literary luminaries like Mark Twain and Charles Dickens used to hang out in the Round Robin bar. The hotel continues to draw political, society, business, and cultural icons today.
Best Location: Three contenders in three different locations win this category: For a true heart-of-the-city experience, the Hotel Monaco can't be beat. The hotel lies halfway between the White House and Capitol Hill, across the street from the Verizon Center and two Smithsonian museums, and in the middle of a neighborhood known for its many restaurants, shops, and clubs. If you desire proximity to the White House, no hotel gets closer than the Hay-Adams, right across Lafayette Square from the Executive Mansion. And if you'd like to be within walking distance of both Capitol Hill and the National Mall, the Residence Inn Capitol is a good choice. Also see the W Washington, D.C. Hotel.
Best Trendy Hotel: Donovan House, which arrived in March 2008, and the W Washington, D.C. Hotel, which debuted in July 2009, represent the ying and yang of trendiness. Donovan House's style is offbeat, with its cocoon spiral showers and leather-wrapped beds, rooftop bar, and "People Are Art" motif. The W Hotel is chicly trendy, from the Bliss Spa on the lower level, to the canopied rooftop bar overlooking the White House, and in between a Jean-Georges Vongerichten restaurant and très moderne guest rooms.
Best Place for a Romantic Getaway: The posh Ritz-Carlton Georgetown in the heart of Georgetown is just enough off the beaten track to make you feel like you've really escaped; its small size, only 86 rooms, adds an air of intimacy. While the Ritz's spa, sexy bar, lovely rooms, and solicitous service may tempt you to stay put, it would be a shame to pass up the chance to stroll hand in hand along Georgetown's quaint streets to dine close by at one of the city's most romantic restaurants -- 1789 and La Chaumiere among them.
Best Washington Insider Hotel: The Willard wins again. This is where the term "lobbyists" came into popular use, after all. When President Ulysses S. Grant enjoyed a brandy in the Willard lobby, he was often besieged by politicians and businessmen clamoring for his attention. "Lobbyists," Grant called them, making famous a term someone else had coined. Lobbyists still come and go here, as do high-ranking government officials, television news anchors, and visiting heads of state. Be sure to duck your head into the Round Robin bar.
Best Inexpensive Hotel: The boutique Normandy Hotel's rates start at $99 and though they can go as high as $349, rates still tend to be less expensive here than at other D.C. hotels offering the same degree of personable service and chicness. Extras like an exercise room and pool are available at its sister hotel around the corner. A multitude of restaurants, bars, art galleries, and shops lie within walkable reach in the Dupont Circle and Adams-Morgan neighborhoods.
Best Service: The Four Seasons staff pampers you relentlessly and greets you by name. The hotel also offers an "I Need It Now" program that delivers any of 100 or more left-at-home essentials (tweezers, batteries, cuff links, electric hair curlers, and so on) to you in 3 minutes, at no cost. And then there's the Mandarin Oriental, where staffers speak in hushed tones, almost bowing; the spa features something called an amethyst steam room; and the very design of the hotel follows the principles of Feng shui, the better to attract good fortune.
Best Health Club: The Ritz-Carlton, Washington, D.C.'s is still the best fitness center in the city. Its two-level, 100,000-square-foot Sports Club/LA boasts state-of-the-art weight-training equipment and free weights, two regulation-size basketball courts and four squash courts, an indoor heated swimming pool and aquatics pool with sun deck, all sorts of exercise and dance classes, personal trainers, the full-service Splash Spa and Roche Salon, and a restaurant and café.
Best Views: The Hay-Adams has such a great, unobstructed view of the White House that the Secret Service comes over regularly to do security sweeps of the place. Ask for a room on the H Street side of the hotel, on floors six through eight. For a coveted overlook of Washington's famous cherry blossoms in spring or of the Tidal Basin and Jefferson Memorial year-round, stay at the Mandarin Oriental, specifying a room offering that particular view. And the new W Washington, D.C. Hotel is the only lodging whose views take in both the White House and the Washington Monument, from its rooftop bar as well as from specific guest rooms.
Best for Travelers with Disabilities: The Omni Shoreham Hotel has 41 specially equipped rooms for guests with disabilities, about half with roll-in showers, and vibrating door knockers and pillows, and flashing lights to alert guests when fire alarms are sounding (all of these devices are available, but you must ask for them). The hotel carries copies of disabilityguide.org's Access Entertainment guide, which offers detailed information about how to travel around and enjoy D.C., if you have limited mobility.
Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without
notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before
planning your trip.
