The Watergate Hotel

I stayed at the Watergate hotel on 02/26/2026-02/27/2026 for business reasons. When I arrived my room wifi was not working and I was unable to get my laptop to connect to my work calls. The staff at the Watergate hotel were exceptionally accommodating and upgraded my room to a better room, they also helped me connect to the wifi and let me have a late check out. Everyone was so nice and I highly recommend you stay here for your next visit to Washington, DC.

The level of commitment from the staff is truly remarkable. I had a concern about a specific issue, and within less than 60 minutes, I was personally contacted to find a solution. Beyond the issue itself, I want to highlight and sincerely thank the entire team for their exceptional dedication in every role: from housekeeping and room arrangements, to the front desk, the restaurant staff, and the management team.
I only wish I had had the chance to visit the Scandal Room, but perhaps on a future stay.
My appreciation and recognition to everyone for such an outstanding level of service and commitment.

This was a lovely hotel experience. Brought my 4yo. Accommodations were wonderful and staff was so kind.

I have several observations. First is that the hotel itself is a dump. Worn out, sad sack kind of dump. More importantly, the light in my room does not shut off, I have been waiting for a half hour to get help with this. Believe it or not, the front desk at this hotel is staffed by... a bot! No I am not speaking figuratively. Literally a bot. When you finally get a human they tell you the problem;em will be fixed, they're sending somebody up. But in fact nothing is being done. I finally got the manager, who said shed send up engineering. Evidently, in response to my previous calls pleading for help because I have an early flight, nothing had actually been done. Unbelievable.
My colleagues noted that the hotel appeared empty. Now I understand why. Do not make the mistake of booking here. Unbelievably poor infrastructure and service. A terrible combination.

I came here after a flood force me from my home in Washington, less than a mile away.
I’ve never been here before, and did not choose it. They were running a deal and another hotel was the same price. It’s on one of the most beautiful parkways on the East Coast. Rock Creek Park is under appreciated park. If you were, the Potomac is probably the most talked about thing. Everyone who comes takes pictures.
The staff here is first rate professional. I like polite, but I like genuine, meaning, don’t give me the plate answer give me the actual answer. Staff is full of people from all over the world. And being Washingtonian makes me feel at home.

I’m gonna throw some names out, because I think it’s important to recognize the people who make a difference. And all of these people I have made a difference in my stay in many different ways. Judit. Jessica, Max, Moses, DJ, Anteneh who really puts up with me and us genuine, Danya, Da’Ron. Hugo I hope your vacation is good! Thanks for making me feel at home.

The beds are comfortable and clean

Oh, and the views are good. lol

I arrived here after booking on Expedia. Cheapest room. Fled my home from catastrophic flood. Was woken by construction, but I am not on vacation, this is not a business trip. I needed sleep. I had fled my home was exhausted. Furthermore, I explained this, and immediately was moved to another room. Jennifer and Anteneh and Danya helped make the move very easy. Antenenh Has been remarkable over and over. Jessica just keeps helping. So this place is full of very helpful people. Max, De'Ron and especially Judir, have been more helpful, in more ways, then I can express here. There are a few people Like David and so many names I don't remember that I want them to know I am thankful for their good work. I had to give a 4 on sleep quality given I was woken up and moved. But Sleep Quality is great. The beds are comfortable and clean. The staff is hardworking and kind and full of wonderful characters. I never considered a stay here, but as a local I'll be sending friends here.

Love this hotel with the wonderful amenities, this was a wonderful birthday. The hotel was breathtaking very clean very fancy. Overall a 10/10. We thought we had a balcony in our suite but it wasn’t available. Overall still a wonderful experience.

Thank you for my birthday cake

Front desk guy was so accommodating! The star of the show is truly the indoor pool in the spa area. 10/10 highly recommended!

Disappointing stay for something that’s ranked a 5 star hotel. Stayed in river view suite with balcony. Terrible night sleep- poor quality mattress could feel plastic through sheets. Old stains on furniture were so gross. Bathroom smelled like cigarettes. Ended up leaving a day early.

Everything here screams upscale. From the reception, to the room service, to the restaurant. Everything is done with care. My only complaint but probably only relates to me is that I run typically hot so I am able to go walk around outside in 30 degree weather in the middle of winter which makes my room unbearably hot for me to sleep in since I think the whole hotel has the heat on so me trying to cool my room down to the upper 60's felt like an impossible task.

The fantastic experience was made that much better by the phenomenal staff. DJ, Sam, Aziz, Max, and Sarah to name a few. They took such special care of our family.

I wanted to share how wonderful our recent stay at the Watergate Hotel was. The attention to detail, professionalism, and genuine hospitality from the entire staff made the experience truly memorable. Every part of our visit felt thoughtfully prepared, and the concierge team went above and beyond to help create a weekend my wife and I will always remember.

Thank you to everyone involved for delivering such an exceptional guest experience — we are already looking forward to returning.

Beautiful hotel and exceptional service!

The Watergate staff seemed to take our comfort personally, in a way that many hotels of this class seem to miss. It was literally a pleasure to stay here.

Dayron is the most amazing person, best person, so hospitable, kind and generous. He really goes the extra mile to make your stay special!

We had a great experience thanks to the bellman Anteneh who helped us during our stay. From the moment we arrived, he was welcoming, professional, and genuinely kind. He handled our bags with care, made sure we were comfortable, and even took a moment to point us in the right direction for a few things around the hotel. It’s the little things that make a stay feel smooth and stress-free, and his attitude really set the tone for our visit. Much appreciated.

I loved it!! DJ at the front desk went above and beyond for myself and guest! We did a tour of the facility and were educated about 214!! He’s great!!

Stayed here in January of 2026 for a solo trip to DC to relax and visit our nations monuments etc.

The hotel is beautiful and well designed. The staff were beyond professional and helpful. I happened to be there at the same time as the Melania premiere and after a snowstorm so needless to say it was very busy. Nevertheless the staff handled every concern and issue within a timely manner, giving me great recommendations on where to eat and providing extra towels.

However I still would rate this a mediocre stay based off the hotel room itself. The bed was not comfortable at all very firm and hard. The TV is old and does not allow casting so you're forced to watch whatever is on "cable" which isn't a lot. The room did not have a microwave to warm up food. You have to call and have one delivered to your room. which was done quickly but is kind of annoying that should be in the room already no? I requested a room that faced the river however the room while facing the river also was blocked by a tree (lol) and construction site.

I ate breakfast in the restaurant and the wait staff were amazing however the food was expensive (75 dollars not including tip) and not that great. The lemon ricotta pancakes were hot and somehow stiff?? The chicken sausages were hard and the coffee was weak, but eggs were soft, hot and fresh.

All in all it was an average stay. I'm not sure what others look for when they book a hotel but or me I care about the bed, the amenities, and the staff.

I am giving the Watergate hotel an average star rating not because it is the most awful hotel I have stayed in or anything like that . However my experience was most definitely average and not the "revel in extravagance" experience as advertised on their website.

Cons: Housekeeping needs a serious overhaul. No tissues in the box - had to call for extra. There were two of us but only 1 tea cup and 1 espresso cup for a double room. Called to ask for an additional cup - 2 hours later they showed up with paper cups, not a real cup as requested on their digital request system (it was played back to me and there was no mix up there). 4 tea bags. Not good quality - not really OK for a "luxury" hotel in my opinion. TV not working - asked after night 1 to see if they could fix it. They said they did - still same problem. I decided to have a bath - hairs in the bath (I have a video). For the shower - it had potential to be a great shower but had some issues keeping temperature.

The pros - The room was really quite nice. The staff were uniformly polite, happy and tried to be helpful. I feel like they are working under a faulty model so it did not appear to be their fault. The room was relatively comfortable. The bed was also quite comfortable. Once I checked out the receptionist asked if the TV had been successfully fixed - I told her it hadn't and she did give me a discount on the resort fee.

This hotel is fine. It also has historical significance. However I think it is always about expectations vs reality. I am not super picky but when I pay more I would like more. Any of the issues above in isolation is not a huge big deal to me. However too many things were sub par so this ended up being a disappointing stay for me unfortunately.

DJ is more than a valet/ concierge. Tonight he doubled as my superhero. Not only did he go out of his way to make my experience pleasurable. He helped me navigate my snowycar out of icy terrain out of the kindness of his heart. This just speaks to the kind of man in person DJ is. He is the reason I will be returning.