Another hotel message...
We are going to DC also, for 3 nights and have some qus...
1. where is the best area to stay - esp as we are relying on public transport and want to see all the essential tourist stuff
2. Trying for under $100 per night
3. Any highly recommended places that fulfil this criteria?
Thanks once again!

Expedia seems to have some good rates for hotels in DC and Rosslyn, Va. Rosslyn is the first stop outside of downtown and very convenient by metro. They have the Best Western (2 1/2 stars) for $86 a night and it's across the street from the metro.

If you want to be in DC, Dupont Circle is the best area to stay in, IMHO, but for under $100, you might have to try priceline for that area.

Good luck!

Karen

You have a couple of options here:

First, if you want to stay in DC, you should look into downtown around the Metro Center, Gallery Place, DuPont Circle Area. All are pretty good areas in the city to stay and all are located on the Metro's Red Line which can get you to the Blue and Orange Lines to take you to the Smithsonian and all the other touristy areas.

DuPont is probably a good bet because it is a nice area where you can walk around and have a wide variety of resturants.

Another option you have is to stay in Norther Virginia or Southern Maryland. Crystal City or Pentagon City in Virginia is a very easy commute on the Metro into DC.

A place like Friendship Heights or Bethesda in Maryland is also very accessable into DC and are really nice areas to stay and have a lot of shopping and resturants. These places are located right on the Red Line and are only 10-15 min to get into DC.

I frequently find weekend rates at the Red Roof Inn, 1 block from GalleryPlace/Chinatown Metro available for under $100. I often stay in Virginia - Arlington/Rosslyn, where the rates are lower, AND the taxes, which add up.

Radisson-Barcelo often has weekend rates under/near $100, and I agree that if you stay in DC, the Dupont Circle is one of the best areas.

DC hotels are talked so much on the board that almost any question has probably been recently answered ... please try the search function.

There is no "best area" for tourists, it all depends on your taste/needs. Many areas are convenient to a metro station. DC hotels are expensive, the average rack rate for rooms is $200-$250. Depending on what time of year you are coming, you CAN get discounts all the way down to the $100 range. Here are a few places from a post of mine I copied from a few days ago:

"Check out http://www.hotelsdc.com/ the rates there are about half what you normally pay for the listed hotels.

Once you are in the website, I would look at: Radisson Barcelo (Dupont Circle), Capitol Hill Suites (Capitol Hill) or Hotel Washington (White House)

All three are in absolutly safe areas, and all are within one or two blocks of metro. All are also close to many dining options.

Here are maps of the three hotel areas for the three hotels listed above (hotels show as dark brown):

Radisson Barcelo: http://www.stationmasters.com/System.../dupontci.html

Hotel Washington: http://www.stationmasters.com/System.../metrocen.html

Capitol Hill Suites: http://www.stationmasters.com/System.../capitols.html "

At the end of July, we are staying at the Crystal City/Arlington, Va Hampton Inn with a AAA rate of about $80 per night. That is near the airport & there are some metro stations in that area for getting into DC.