DebitNM, guess what, I just got the Dupont for our July stay for $119 (way down since I first started looking). We'll be there in a few weeks, so I'll be sure to let you know what I think!

Oops, forgot to say that was on Hotwire.

Now this was a successful thread! Fun seeing how it all unfolded!

excellent, sf! Can't wait for feedback, but of course, it won't change anything as we are locked in, but I am sure it will be great.

saw your thread on betterbidding :)

I went to the Dupont Hotel bar last week. They have a happy hour that only lasts until 6 pm which features $5 specialty cocktails

how did the lobby look, vjp?

And thanks for the tip!

Just got back from the Dupont. Excellent location and our room was not huge, but modern minimalist style nicely appointed and had a view of Dupont Circle (I'm guessing rooms on any floor that end in 17,18,19,20 will have that view). Great that you got such a good price - mine was considerably more. If you have a car, parking runs $35 per day and room taxes are about 14.5%.

As vjp said, Happy Hour special cocktails are $5, and the Cafe has a full breakfast for $11 - $13 not including $3 coffee, but my breakfast was so huge I didn't eat the rest of the day. Kramer books and Afterword Cafe is directly across from the hotel cafe and a cute alternative.

Just read some recent posts on Tripadvisor re: The Dupont. There's a lot of grumbling, esp. about a/c not working. I hope this doesn't turn out badly.

Good luck Debit. Our A/C worked fine.

susncrg, what room were you in - maybe DebitNM and I can both request that room!

I was in 720 (only partial Circle view, but good view nonetheless) but 718 or 719 might have full Circle view.

I just saw this. We stayed there in early February and were there for the first blizzard and the huge snowball fight on Dupont Circle. We loved the hotel. It was clean, very comfortable beds and nice linens. And the breakfast is huge. If you like books, Kramers, across the street is great. Decent food too.

Deb, the lobby is minimilast and has several areas of comfortable seating.

We had planned on seeing the Smithsonian too but the blizzard changed that! It was still a lot of fun.

DebitNM, I'm here!! We're on the 4th floor, overlooking Connecticut Avenue. Our room has 2 beds. We'd have preferred a king, but there wasn't one available, and of course, we got our room on Hotwire, so we can't be choosy! The room is narrow, but long, the bathroom is great, the room is very nicely decorated (shutters on the windows!), the bed in comfortable, there a desk and a settee/chaise-like thing, and most of all, the A/C is working just fine!! I'm very happy so far (of course, we've only been here about 1/2 hour). We parked directly across the street in the Central Parking garage - $21.00 overnight. We're returning the car in the morning.

SF - enjoy your trip!!!

YAY!!! A real, first hand report. Let me know how the stay goes. Let me know what sites you go to as well. Stay cool!
Deb

Update - it's 19th that we overlook (not Conn. Ave), and the shower is excellent. I just got back to the room after being out all day -- it isn't at hot as it's been, but wow is it humid, and my feet are killing me! Tomorrow, sneakers instead of sandals!

Let's see, yesterday, we took a cab to meet my DS and his GF, and my cousin and her family for dinner in Chinatown, but not at a Chinese restaurant -- new place called Zengo -- Asian-Mexican fusion (?). It was really really good -- shared plates. All eight of us enjoyed both the food and the place. We walked back to our hotel, enjoying the slightly cooler night air.

Today, we returned our rental car (oh, update about parking below), walked through Union Station (where the rental car return was), and then met my cousin at the Newseum. So interesting. We spent about 3 hours there, then walked over to the cafe at the Museum of the American Indian for lunch. Very very good -- I had mussels, and they were cooked in front of me and yummy. After lunch, we walked past Ford's Theater (didn't really see the point of spending money to go inside), then walked past the White House, finally hopped in a cab for the last mile back to Dupont Circle. I'm just cooling off before we meet DS and GF for dinner at 7:30. DH is poking around Kramerbooks.

Two practical items:

Parking at the Central garage across the street is not a good idea unless you're just parking overnight as we were. It's cheaper to park overnight there than at the hotel, but more expensive than the hotel if you leave it all day, too. For that, use the PMI garages on the south and north sides of the circle.

Re the rental car. We rented at Dulles, from Budget, and specifically had a "plan" that allowed us to return the car to Reagan or to Union Station (the latter for a $12.00 surcharge). We get to Union Station (finding the car rental return was no easy task), return the car, go to the counter, and the young woman says "$710.00", to which we said, of course "Uh, no. It should be about $160.00". To which she said, "but you rented it at Dulles". To which we said, "yes, and we were told specifically that we could return it any day Thursday through Saturday at the same per day rate, to either Reagan or Union Station. Oh, okay, $162.65". Ridiculous -- imagine if we didn't speak English, or weren't assertive!

Oh, I forgot to say, the 2 beds are doubles, not queens. We're not used to such a small bed, but we're managing :-)

sf--welcome to DC! sorry u were greeted with such awful weather, but it sounds like its not stopping u. Zengo is a fun place esp when there are games at the Verizon Center. Enjoy your stay!