This was a difficult one to rate. I want to preface my review by first saying that if you're planning to visit Loews Arlington Hotel because of its luxury vibe and high-end facilities then you won't be disappointed because that is exactly what you'll get.

The rooms are lovely, very clean and modern. Everything feels brand new and there is definitely an air of quality that you'd expect for this sort of hotel.

The front desk staff were incredibly friendly and welcoming (special shout out to Ayanna), as were the staff in the lobby café. I definitely recommend their baked goods for breakfast if you're not keen on room service. The croissants in particular were delicious.

Despite the many pros, there were some negatives that impacted our stay that I think are worth mentioning. To start, while Loews is new, at times elements of the hotel felt unfinished or not as well thought out as it should have been.

For example, if you want to get to the hotel's parking garage from the lobby you have to go through the convention center of the hotel - which during weekdays, is rammed with conference attendees.

Navigating this circus with your bags is awkward enough, but if you happen to be in poolside attire or more relaxed clothing and unexpectedly find yourself surrounded by business people it can definitely feel strange.

Re: the pool. The facilities and the area around it are lovely. Do note however that there is some construction going on directly beside the hotel pool which can be seen and heard by those in the area. If this doesn't bother you that's fine but it might be annoying if you aren't expecting it.

Food at the Italian restaurant (I can't remember the name) was good but the service was slow - the server forgot to put our order through despite waiting 25 mins after ordering. It was a busy weekend though so I'll give them the benefit of the doubt that that's not standard practice.

Sadly, we received truly awful service from the bar staff at the pool bar. After my husband finished his meal, one of them, a female staff member, spoke to us very rudely.

Her coworker had informed us earlier about the poolside policy regarding outside food/drinks (which was completely fine and we had no issues with that whatsoever) but when she arrived and spoke to us her tone was incredibly aggressive and condescending as she tried to "move us along".

Aside from the fact it wasn't necessary as we weren't doing anything wrong (we were actually considering buying more food from the bar!!), she seemed to want to cause a scene on the heels of her co-worker's words, so we quickly got up and left.

The whole episode was just bizarre to be honest. I've never experienced anything like it before - not ever at a motel or a chain hotel let alone somewhere like Loewe's.

Ultimately, this was the biggest contributing factor for not giving a higher rating as mostly everything else were minor issues and wouldn't have impacted my stay, but the poolside encounter left me with a really bad feeling and a less than positive view of how (certain) staff treat the guests there.

Hopefully my experience was a one-off. I would still recommend the hotel for those visiting the area, but just make sure you do your research so you're as informed as possible.