JMyra

Hi
Going to Washington solo for the first time in many years, looking for an attractive hotel in a convenient location
under $200 per night. (Isn't everyone?) If there was a great breakfast or afternoon tea (free or not), I'd consider that a big plus. Concentrating so far mostly on Dupont Circle to Downtown area, but open to other ideas. In the running so far are the Hilton Embassy Row,the George, Courtyard at Dupont Circle, Holiday Inn, Radisson Barcelo, Doubletree Downtown, Topaz,
Windsor, Swiss Hotel Watergate, but can't find any mentions so far about breakfasts or tea. I can email each directly, but any customer recommendations would be helpful. thanks
Thank you.

whistler162

Hilton's Embassy Suites, Hampton Inn, or Homewood Suites all offer some kind of breakfast with your stay.

Homewood Suites looks like a good bet ie. < $200, good location Massachusetts Ave NW, and a complimentary breakfast.

JMyra

thank you for responding. I know about the rolls and coffee offered by some of the chains, I was hoping for a personal recommendation for a hotel where someone here has stayed.

bardo

If you opt for Dupont circle, you won't care about hotel breakfast as there will likely be dozens of wonderful breakfat options within a block of your hotel.

puddy

Not sure when you are going, but the JW Marriott apparently has rates of $94 for weekends through the end of August and only $99 on Labor Day weekend.

JMyra

Thank you for responding but in this case I DO care about a great breakfast in the hotel, it's a luxury that I enjoy, either room service or in a breakfast room. If I can't have it within my price,fine, but I thought perhaps someone would have a great "find."

JMyra

My last reponse was for bardo, I wasn't fast enough. puddy, are you familiar with the JW Marriott, or just passing along the good price? thank you.

puddy

I have never stayed there but am familiar with the JW brand which is their luxury brand. It seems to have a very good location.

http://www.marriott.com/epp/default....rshaCode=WASJW

DeeDee

JMyra,
We stayed at the Embassy Suites on 22nd NW between N and M Sts. in June. I believe you can easily get a room in your price range there.

They offer a cooked to order breakfast each morning and cocktails in the afternoon.

We found the room to be quite comfortable. The hotel is half way between the Foggy Bottom metro and the Dupont Circly metro stations. It is in a convenient area for restaurants too. It's about a 10-15 minute walk to the metro stations.

MikeT

My suggestion would The Jefferson, which is known for its breakfast and afternoon tea. Other suggestions would be the Mayflower or the Four Seasons.
These hotels will provide great, classic upscale breakfast and teas.

Of the places you mentioned, none are known for their restaurants or food, save maybe the St. George. There has also been an exlosion of boutique hotels which have great restaurants, although I can't vouch for the breakfasts. Those would include Washington Terrace and Medera, which both have hot, new restaurants attached.

JMyra

Interestingly, there are several negative comments on the Jefferson in the fodors Washington hotel ratings.
Embassy Suites might be it. I'd love the Four Seasons, but probably out of the price range. I will check anyway.
Thank you to all.

Anonymous

I've stayed at the ES in Chevy Chase and in Crystal City, and the breakfasts were distinctly NOT very good. They will cook eggs or pancakes to order, but one of them had a steam table of scrambled eggs so excluded them from the to-order offerings. There were a couple of choices of cereal, some oversweet muffins, one type of bagels, one or two fresh fruits, etc., just not a high-quality spread.

Flyboy

I recently booked the Radisson Barcelo near Dupont Circle AGAIN for $99 in early October. The rooms are HUGE and if you happen to be an elite member, they're pretty decent about upgrading to suites, too. If you happen to be there on Sunday morning, you will find their brunch to be one of the very best in Washington. If not, it's a very decent restaurant on any other day you happen to visit and you might want to try the tapas offerings on weeknights, too.

Another nice hotel in that immediate area that has a decent breakfast and a pleasant ambiance to it is the "boutique-style" Hilton Embassy Row. Breakfast will run you around $14. You should be able to get your room for well under $200 a night, unless there is something special happening that drives up the rates. If you care to go deluxe, you can try the concierge level.

The Dupont Circle is an attractive, active neighborhood -- an excellent place to stay in Washington DC.

puddy

I agree with Anonymous... personally, I would not consider an Embassy Suites breakfast to be a luxury. I'm sure the quality varies slightly from hotel to hotel, but the offerings are pretty much the same and not very good.

I would check Expedia for rooms... most hotels in DC I believe can be be had for under $200. Expedia often has special rates if you pay up front and sometimes includes breakfast. Or, if you go to the individual websites, many hotels often have special packages that include breakfast.

DeeDee

Just to clarify, the Embassy Suites at 22nd St NW offers a buffet line breakfast in addition to cooked-to-order. We found the food to be completely satisfactory. There was a variety of choices from cold cereal, muffins, breakfast pastries, toast, bagels and fresh fruit to hot foods--pancakes, French toast, omelettes (with whatever you prefer), bacon, sausage (both pork sausages and chicken sausages), and scrambled eggs. Breakfast drinks included a variety of juices, tea, hot chocolate, and even Starbucks coffee.

It's not fancy. You grab a tray and silverware, get your food and find your own table. It was perfect for us. Where else can a family get a full breakfast and be out the door to sightsee in 30 minutes?? If you are looking for a fancy, served breakfast you would be better off at a hotel offering restaurant-served breakfast. We have no complaints with Embassy Suites breakfasts, however, and this ES was particularly nice.

Anonymous

DeeDee, the breakfast system you described for the ES at 22 St fits the general description of all the other Es's, The cooked-to-order is a stop on the cafeteria-type line at all the ES's I've been to. (I favored them when I traveled a lot for work -- I've been to dozens!)

But I think they must order their food from different places. For instance, the bacon served to us at the ES in Chevy Chase was some sort of fake soy-ish leathery stuff, absolutely inedible and bearing little, if any, resemblance to real bacon. There was one type of muffin, and we couldn't figure out what type it was supposed to be. There was quantity but not quality -- and we are definitely not picky eaters. We were very disapopointed, because in the past other ES's were just fine. I' relieved to hear that this might have been a geographical quirk, rather than the whole chain degrading.

LN

Just wishing to clarify - If you can finagle a good deal at The Jefferson and have breakfast included then you would undoubtedly be staying at a truly good hotel. Many company execs coming to DC to testify before Congress, or looking for special funding have generally stayed at the Jefferson.

JR_BIODTL

If a good free breakfast in the hotel is top priority, go with the Embassy Suites on 22nd. I've stayed here and it's always been good.

PamSF

Not a hotel but a great B&B in Dupont Circle is Dupont at the Circle. Rooms for less than $200, good breakfast, great hosts, parking and two short blocks to the metro. This is one of our favorite b&bs we've stayed at in the US.