Kimpton George Hotel — Hotel in Washington

Date- August 2020 (2 nights) The theme of the hotel is captivating; the rooms just a bit above average, and the staff friendly and engaging. Rooms do not include suites, for the most part. We were assigned a “Executive 1 King” room, and it was nice. The styling and décor had a clear theme, George Washington. I took pictures all throughout the hotel for my history buff mother. However, it was substantially smaller than neighboring property rooms, and the only suite available at the property is the Presidential Suite. Next remodel: add more suites. One recommendation, though, is to better close the gap between the room doors and the floor. A brush or plastic bottom seal would help with climate control and add to the sense of privacy in each room. We were thanked for our loyalty. However, we had to ask for amenity points and the Raid-the-Bar benefit was unavailable. In other similar hotels, a bodega was erected at the front desk to accommodate the sudden thirst and hunger of guests. Sadly, guests will have to go elsewhere for snacks or soft drinks. A late check out of 4pm was offered. Benjamin, the Housekeeping manager, who checked us into the hotel was delightful and fun to interact with. TC. who was our wine sommelier for wine hour was engaging and quite friendly. He was knowledgeable, and as accommodating as possible. Hunter, the night auditor was perky and helpful, even first thing in the morning! We chose to stay at this hotel for a special event, and we were delighted when it was not only recognized but we were also given mini cinnamon rolls to snack on. Excellent job, front desk, on making us feel like valued guests. The room could not have been cleaner, and to top it off, housekeeping staff came to our room and checked on us just after we arrived to ensure we were happy with everything. All toiletries and bathroom supplies were provided in adequate supply for the duration of our stay. The only recommendation I have is that the flooring and carpet along the baseboards we routinely vacuumed. The restaurant was open, and wine hour proceeded as usual, less the prohibited congregating. Coffee service is not offered at the front desk, but coffee machines (Keurig or Nespresso) were in the rooms. Laundry- pricing was appropriate and two bags were available for dirty clothing. No one likes to pack their dirty clothes in with their clean ones; thank you for thinking ahead about this. Wifi was strong throughout the hotel but streaming was regularly interrupted and not reliable. Maintenance- Excellent. 5/5. The hotel is appropriately branded and can be easily located. The entrance is clean and crisp, but the handicap buttons do not function, which makes bringing a luggage cart in a bit challenging. The hallway walls and floors are clean, free of scuffs and debris. Artwork that captured the eye was present all throughout the hotel. This hotel is one of the few Kimpton hotels that are charging the AMENITY FEE during the pandemic. The charge is listed at the front desk as an amenity including disinfection fogging, Personal Protective Equipment (masks, gloves, sanitizing wipes), and disinfection gel, all of which should be standard during a pandemic. The television remote control cover was a great idea, though, I have to admit. A picture of what the amenity fee is supposedly for is included in this review. Many of the other ‘amenities’ offered did not apply to most guests, such as an electric car station (How many people have these already?!?), use of a bike (standard at all Kimpton properties), PressReader (who doesn’t get their news on their phone or internet enabled device these days), local and long distance calls (who doesn’t use their cell phone nowadays?), upgraded WiFi speed (a standard Elite membership benefit of all IHG properties), and other questionable...

Ok, first things first. The location is great. We came from Dulles airport and it was really straightforward - don’t take the directions from the hotel website, just get the silver line metro from the airport to Metro Center and then take the red line to Union Station. 6.75$ at time of writing per person one way. A very small walk from there to the hotel. Take into account the shocking queue at immigration at the airport. ||So the first strange thing. We were checking in and the lady wrote down a room number and then changed her mind and gave us another. We couldn’t work out until later why but after going into the room and sorting our luggage out we worked it out. There was a horrible noise in the room….we think it was to do with the AC. It kept coming on and off every couple of minutes. It was room 311 in case it hasn’t been fixed.||Next morning we went downstairs and explained the situation and were moved straight away, so apologies to whoever had the room that night.||It was late but we went for a walk - the Capitol was really close and it was nice and quiet around the hotel. So quiet as we couldn’t see any restaurants etc close by.||Next morning they had some coffee, yoghurt, fruit and cakes available, which was a nice touch. We went to the Corner Bakery for breakfast just around the corner and see my review of that. Good place to start the day.||The room we ended up in was nice, but needed an update, as did the whole hotel to be fair. Saying that, the bed was lovely, the AC worked, there were bottles of water left every day and you could ask for more, there was an empty fridge and a safe, so everything you might need.||The free wine from 5-6pm was also a nice touch; not much choice ie one white and one red, but the wine was good quality.||We managed to walk to the Capitol building, the main museums and the Washington monument and Arlington cemetery, but also used the metro to come back from the cemetery and go to the baseball and to the White House when we were in a hurry. One of the easiest subways to work out and great value for money.||Staff were all very friendly, apart from the lady that booked us in.||So why not 5 stars? A few reasons:||As has been mentioned on other reviews, the whole place needs an update/upgrade; a lick of paint, a new brighter colour scheme and new carpets.||Judging by our initial room, the AC needs an upgrade.||The WI-FI was not the greatest.||The restaurant was closed when we were there for refurbishment, but in the 4 days we were there we didn’t hear anything happening; it also meant there was no focal point in the hotel. There was no bar, for example, so you never had a chance to meet anyone else in a relaxed environment.||The amenity fee was extortionate. I totally understand a city tax but I couldn’t work out what the fee paid for……a 10$ a day towards Uber was mentioned but in reality how many people would use it? Free WI-FI……..really should be included. If you take advantage of the wine hour and the grab and go breakfast you would get some benefit but nowhere near what they charged, which I think was 32$ plus tax per day.||What was quite telling was we booked this hotel months ago, partly based on the tripadvisor reviews. When we looked today it was number 26.||The hotel did grow on us after the first night, but with some TLC it could be a great hotel as the...

I have to say I was very disappointed. Maybe I set my expectations too high from all the glowing reviews, but my stay was subpar from the first minute until the last.

I have to start with the neighborhood. We passed what appeared to be a homeless shelter right around the corner on the way to the hotel, no more than a block away.

When we first arrived there was no valet or anyone to help with our bags. We had to wait several minutes for someone to appear. He didn't speak until we asked him if he could valet the car for us. Very strange. When we got to the front desk we were asked 3 separate times if we had stayed at the property before, all by the same person. She was unpleasant and did not seem to care about anything. She gave us our keys and we went on to the room.

I was a little disappointed that the room was on the second floor, but that really isn't too big of a deal. The room itself looked nice. It was a decent size and seemed clean. There was no view. All you could see were other guest rooms and air conditioners. The bed was not great. As soon as you touched it you could hear and feel the springs.

The disappointment with the staff continued throughout the stay. No one ever greeted us when we walked in. The same doorman/valet who didn't come out the first day was there several other times and just kind of stared us down. We only encountered one nice person at one of the daily wine tastings. He engaged us and offered advice. The final day was the last straw with the staff which caused me to really never want to return. Again, there was no one to be found at the front door. There is no valet stand to wait at to get the car. There is no number to call for the valet. After waiting 10 minutes with no one coming I finally walked over to the front desk where they rudely told me someone would get my car soon. This is not how I expect to be treated at a property like this.

To top it all off, they charge a $20 per day "resort fee" on top of the hotel rate. They say this covers WiFi and a few other things. The WiFi is free anyway if you sign up from Kimpton's free program. There was no value at all derived from that extra $20 per day.

I would not stay here, or at any other Kimpton...