I stayed at the Sofitel in D.C. 8/13-8/17. Very nice when compared to other 4 star luxury level hotels. Wonderful décor, nice bedding, excellent towels, clean rooms. The hotel has French paintings and photographs of French buildings and architecture and famous people to carry out the French theme. There was a lovely Impressionist style painting in the headboard above my bed. The room keys are RFID, so no card reader slots to stick them in- just tap. This came in handy when I had my hands full. I kept my key card in my badgeholder that was around my neck, and the RFID reader read it through the plastic. Very convenient.
The hotel is about 1 block to the White House, so it is an excellent location. The hotel staff is excellent. Nothing but smiles and friendly faces everywhere. Did not meet a single unfriendly or unhelpful person. If you think courtesy is dead, come here.
There are plenty of restaurants and eateries within walking distance. So you won’t starve… Good thing too because the food here is expensive. It’s expensive for D.C. Room service, I paid $25 for a personal sized pizza (3 cheese and the worst doughy crust I think I have ever had- and that includes store bought ones which were far better.) On the other hand, one of my coworkers said that the food they ordered for her child on the kid’s menu (chicken skewers?) was great. So maybe they just don’t know how to cook pizza, which is not a French dish after all.
The hotel offers free coffee and tea in the lounge area every morning. This was a real perk as a way to start off my day as I headed off to my training class. It is also kind of necessary seeing as they do not have a coffee maker in the room. You will not be able to make do with little snacks or meals that you can warm up because there is neither a fridge nor microwave available either. This is standard for most luxury hotels. You are expected to pay at the bar, the lounge, the restaurant, or room service. No problem, but I did at least expect a coffee maker so just be forewarned. And as I said, there are plenty of eateries around… including Starbucks every few steps!
This is not really a hotel to look for value in. It is a top quality hotel. Only a couple of minor issues in the room… slightly bubbled wallpaper in a couple of places in the bathroom and a piece of molding missing in the bathroom by the door. Honestly if not for the fact that I was there so long, I probably would not have noticed… Anyway, I enjoyed my stay and greatly enjoyed the staff and the beautiful ameneties.
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