Hotel Recommendations please

Thinking of travelling for the weekend of Sept 15th 2 nights 15 %26amp; 16th.

Primary sight we wish to visit is the National Gallery of Art. A little shopping, nice restaurants nearby.

We are driving and hotel or closeby secure parking would be required.

Some hotels I have seen mentioned in the forums are the Embassy Suites Alexandria-Old Town, Embassy Suites Hotel Washington, D.C. and also the Renaissance Mayflower Hotel. Looking for something in the 150-200 per night range.

Recommendations anyone?

Hotel Recommendations please

It%26#39;s a good time to be traveling to DC in terms of weather and hotel rates. Take a look at Expedia. They are showing the Embassy Suites Washington DC and the Embassy Suites Convention Center for $170/night. Another place to consider--Jurys Washington DC for $125/night. Jurys is well-liked by those who have stayed there.

Hotel Recommendations please

Hi Mayan06:

First of all, I would not recommend staying in Old Town for such a short stay. Better to stay within walking distance of the places you want to see, in my opinion.

The Embassy Suites Washington is offering a suite including breakfast for $170. It%26#39;s a decent location and you%26#39;ll get more room for your money if that%26#39;s important to you. Another good choice would be the ES Convention Center available for the same price. It%26#39;s a long walk, but a doable one if you like to walk, to the major sites.

Mayflower is nice if you can get a good deal - for $189, I%26#39;d personally choose othe Courtyard or the Jurys to save that extra money, but to each his own, of course.

I did a quick search and found a few other places that you may want to consider due to their location, price and positive reviews:

Courtyard by Marriott Convention Center ($149) - walking distance to the National Mall and nightlife around Penn Quarter/Chinatown

Jurys Washington ($125) - at Dupont Circle - would need to take metro or bus to National Mall, but it%26#39;s only a couple stops. It%26#39;s a nice area for nightlife.

Melrose Hotel ($159) - a good rate for a 4 star hotel - not far from Georgetown for restaurants %26amp; some nightlife

Phoenix Park Hotel ($124/night avg rate) - I believe they may have free parking across the street from the hotel on the weekends. Call to verify, though. Great location for the sites, but not the best for nightlife, although it%26#39;s not too far from Penn Quarter/Chinatown and you can always metro or cab.

Anyway, if you find anything on your own and want opinions, please write in again. You should be able to get a good deal for the weekend. Be sure to write a review of wherever you end up for future travelers. Enjoy your stay!

Thanks for the input each of you.

Have spent some time looking at the various Hotels and would like some further input.

Jurys Washington- Located Dupont Circle, what is this area like? Interesting shops, restaurants? Is it a good area to wander? Probably to far to walk to the National Gallery but looks like an easy trip on the red line. Well priced at $125.

Embassy Suites Convention Centre is reasonably close to the mall but is there anything to see close by at night, restaurants and so on. Is this where the new Penn quarter is?

We are not interested in night clubs but enjoy fine reasonably priced restaurants serving quality not quantity. My impression is that we probably would like the older Dupont area more than the newer convention center.

Mayan:

Dupont certainly has more character than the Convention Center area. It is a quick and easy metro or bus ride to the mall. For restaurants in the area, I%26#39;d recommend Hank%26#39;s Oyster Bar at 17th and Q. Great little place.

Bistrot du Coin at Connecticut %26amp; S can be loud, but it%26#39;s a fun place with decent food.

Mimi%26#39;s American Bistro at 21st and P gets good reviews.

Pizzeria Paradiso at 20th and P has excellent pizza (it%26#39;s tiny so the line to get into is usually long on weekends).

Also, if you enjoy Impressionism, you should try to make it to the Phillips Collection at 21st and Q.

Hope this gives you a few ideas.

Another idea, if you like to wander - there are lots of embassies around the Dupont area, especially along Massachusetts Avenue, going NW. It%26#39;s called Embassy Row. You may also want to walk from Dupont into Georgetown. There%26#39;s lots to see there and that%26#39;s probably where the most shopping is closest to ';downtown'; DC.

Have fun!

Mopsydog thanks for the heads up for the Philips Collection which would be very close to the Jurys Hotel. Unfortunate that the Klee exhibit ends on the 10th just before we would get there. But they seem to have an extensive collection of Impressionist paintings to see.

Leaning towards the Jurys

The Phillips is splendid, even if no special exhibition has taken the place of the current Klee one. The nearby Textile Museum (an even smaller jewel of a museum) has just installed a new, special exhibition -- ';Pieces of a Puzzle'; which looks intriguing:

www.textilemuseum.org/exhibitions/current.htm

And there are even more intriguing sites in the Jurys%26#39; neighbhorhood. For example:

http://www.dkmuseums.com/Members.html

And if you click onto the Tours %26amp; Trails tab at the top of Cultural Tourism%26#39;s home page, you%26#39;ll see a link for its ';Insider%26#39;s Insights'; itinerary you can print out for a self-guided walking tour of the neighbhorhood which is quite good:

http://www.culturaltourismdc.org

p.s. There%26#39;s a Central Parking garage at 15 Dupont Circle, the entrance is on New Hampshire Ave; I believe the cost is $10/day on weekends.

We just booked for later in Sept at the Washington Court Hotel...it was on Hotwire as a 3 1/2 star hotel near Capitol Hill for $100....seems like a good value and good location...hope I%26#39;m right

Cocklecove thank you for excellent info I will follow up.

Booked the Jury%26#39;s Washington for Sept 15th to 17th.

Restaurants. Saw somewhere that the Adams-Morgan area has lots of neat reasonably priced spots. Where exactly are the restaurants and bars in the Adams M area? Do you just walk North on Connecticut or 19th? How safe is it to walk this area after dark?

Some restaurant recommendations already made, would welcome others.

Metrorail does not go into Adams Morgan. However, there is a shuttle bus from the Woodley Park Metro station that can take you there (for more info: www.wmata.com). If you do go to Adams Morgan at night, don%26#39;t stray from the beaten path and go down any deserted side streets. In fact, this is advice that the DC police give.