More about Doubletree Hotel Crystal City National Airport
Nice rooms but location is not great in wintertime.
by TripAdvisor Member webwahine
I stayed here one night and I had a good stay overall. The rooms are very nice and look as though they have been recently renovated. They are not spacious but adequate. The lobby is one floor up from the main carport via escalator which makes it feel safer. There is a Starbucks station in the lobby that was open til midnight. The only thing I didn't like was the location. It's walking distance to the metro but in the winter, it's really not possible to do. There is a shuttle that goes to the metro every 30 minutes but if you miss it, you're stuck waiting in the cold. Also, it's hard to tell where you're supposed to get the shuttle since the metro has two exits. I asked the hotel staff prior to arriving but didn't get the same answer twice. I ended up taking a cab when I got there since I couldn't figure out where to get the shuttle from the metro station.
Horrible Stagg & Manager - Stay Away
by A TripAdvisor Member
Thios hotel has seen better days, especially of the tower whihc is not renovated. The rooms are dirty, outdated, and overall not worth teh askign price. The manager admits the hotel is basically substandard and as a consolation to all of our problems we received a box of chocolates that all Hilteon Honors memebrs received at turn down on our pillows, which was somewhat insultign given teh experience of havgin the valet not interestd in parking our car as he said you can also park your own car, and then the front desk clerk assigned us a regular room when we paid for a suite, and in addition on arriving to correct room the toilet did not work at all. What a dive. Stay away from this hotel, and if you do go to the hotel please be advised that the regional manager of the hotel chain actually works in this hotel so pleae forward your complaints to him as his name is Ron Simon. The lobbby areas are nice, but overall the staff are uninterested in doing their jobs for which the manager Dan Horribly was not surprised or interested in correcting.
Horrible horrible horrible
by A TripAdvisor Member
This is probably one of the worst places for service and cleanliness of rooms. Had issues with the manager Gabriel (who by chance was also listed in a complaint in another review). They are inept, and customer service - never an issue. They can care less.
Dirty rooms, terrible food and service.
Beautiful hotel with great service!
by TripAdvisor Member ntrtainrCoventry
We stayed here for 3 nights (June 9th through June 12th) and requested a king room with a city view of Washington DC (I wanted to surprise my wife with a special room with a special view). I also told them that we wouldn't be arriving until 10 or 11pm due to leaving Connecticut right after work at 4pm. They assured me that the room request would be no problem.
When we arrived at 10:15pm we were told that there was no king room with a city view left but she then found one? She gave us our key and we went up to find a view of another building and Washington DC wasn't in sight at all. After a 6 hour trip, my wife wanted to just accept it anyway but I went back down to get her special room instead.
I must say that the night manager and night clerk were both VERY helpful and apologetic about the room being given away (even though we had told them about our late arrival well in advance) and they finally did find us a city view room but instead of a king bed it had 2 doubles. (Not what we wanted but the view was nice). When we got all the way up to the room the programmed card key didn't work so I had to go all the way back down to the front desk a 2nd time. I remained very friendly and forgiving each time and I guess that paid off because, once again, the night manager and night clerk were VERY apologetic and even gave my wife and I free passes for the breakfast buffet as well. I thought that was a very nice gesture and it made everything almost totally OK again. By the way, the breakfast buffet is GREAT! As far as the actual hotel room, it was VERY clean and comfortable to say the least!
All in all, we loved this hotel from the Starbuck's in the lobby to the free shuttle to the Metro Stop. Even the swimming pool on the 14th floor was a nice touch, although I thought that they would have included a Jacuzzi as in most Doubletree properties. After all the walking around Washington I sure could have used one! No big deal though...just my 2 cents worth.
I strongly recommend this hotel even after the misfortune in not getting the correct room due to the extra steps and nice attitudes that they showed to me during the problem. I would have given them the full 5 stars otherwise.
Wouldn't go back
by TripAdvisor Member Donna Louise
Just got back from a 4 day stay. I have to agree with some of the other complaints that I read, the staff is completely uninterested in any problems you may have. We booked this hotel for precisely seeing the fireworks from our room as we were told it would be a great view. The room they put us in had windows with broken seals. We could barely see out of them. When we complained and asked for another room, we were told they would look into it and then call us back. They never called us back, so we called again. We were then told that we needed to buy a Fourth of July package and if we were willing to upgrade and pay more, they would move us. You've Got to be kidding me!! No where on the website did it say anything about a Fourth of July package. They never said anything about it when we checked in either. What a dissapointment. You can't even go up to the lounge or the restaurant on the top floors on the 4th without buying very expensive packages for the night. $109. per person for the lounge and $129. per person for the restaurant.
The place is getting old and it shows. The best thing we liked was the bed. Very comfortable.
You can find better hotels for less and without having to pay $17. a night to park your car.
Maybe the Hilton, next time?? Yeah!!!
by TripAdvisor Member imilove
My best friend and I stayed at this hotel for 3 nights/4 days. The good- the bed was great, as well as the cleanliness of our room. HOWEVER, the bad - the service was the absolute worst!!! My best friend is a travel agent and a member of Hilton Honors program and recently used her card in San Francisco; however, the front desk personnel refused to give us our promised upgrade and rate for her being an agent or HH member. After we received our key and headed to our room, we noticed that our room smelled like smoke. So, I headed back down to the lobby to explain our situation, only to be turned around with a, " well its non smoking but someone must be smoking in the hallway. There is nothing we can do."
Every personnel person we spoke with there on, besides the cool valet guys, were rude and terribly blase about everything. The concierge was the absolute rudest!! We asked her ONE question, " Could you help us find a spa in the DC area?" She yelled at us, "Just go to Pentagon City!!!!" We explained to her that we were looking for some other places to go but she was adament that we go to Pentagon City, all while she TALKED TO HER FRIEND ON THE PHONE! I guess she didnt like her job because she sure didnt want to do it.
Words of Advice: No matter how nice your room is, bad service is not worth it! There are many hotels in the Crystal City/Arlington area. You would think they would try to compete?!!!!!!
Never again!!
by TripAdvisor Member Summer37
I attend a wedding this past weekend and the groom reserved rooms at this hotel for out of town guests. After reading the reviews already posted, I was a little uneasy about staying here. The only postive thing I can say is that the lobby / dining areas are nice and the beds are comfortable. They have 2 towers at this hotel, the north is newer than the south......so if you have to stay at this hotel, insist on staying in the north tower. I stayed in the south tower, the rooms are old in outdated with regards to the carpet, sinks, tub, toilet, etc. I did not feel comfortable walking on the floor without any shoes on. The south tower needs major renovation!! Parking is the worst, there are only 2 levels underground and the parking spaces are tight and awkward. They even charge $17 per day to park. There are many hotels in the area and I am sure better choices. Avoid this one at all costs!!
Not bad at all
by A TripAdvisor Member
After reading the reviews about the Doubletree we were very worried about staying there. However, it turned out to be a very enjoyable experience. Our room had been recently renovated and was very clean. The beds were very comfortable indeed. One complaint we had was that the restaurant downstairs was FREEZING. The whole hotel was cold as the air conditioning blasted out day and night and it made eating in the restaurant a most uncomfortable experience. We sat down in there one night but had to leave at it was just too cold. No wonder there is hardly ever anyone in there! The buffet breakfast was very good but a bit on the expensive side at $14. We found all the staff to be very polite and helpful. The Skydome Restaurant gave great views over D.C. but the cover charge of $5 a person (even for hotel guests) at the weekend was a bit naughty. We decided to drink in the lobby bar instead.
not a bad hotel
by TripAdvisor Member weatherley1
After reading the reviews I was also thinking that we had booked a poor hotel. We booked through Virgin Holidays and everything was fine. Reading a review on another website I telephoned the hotel and requested a room in the North Tower which had been refurbished. The location was fine for trips into Washington on the Metro , which was situated at the Pentagon City stop. The shopping mall was also located there , which had a good selection of shops. Breakfast were typical buffet and not over priced with friendly staff. All in all I would recommend this hotel and its location.
Above average
by TripAdvisor Member QZOCK
Close to some restaurants - average on restaurant proximity.
Close to the airport - excellent on this factor.
The airport itself is below average however.
Main lobby is one floor up. Little odd but OK.
Check in crew very friendly and helpful. (I did not encounter any of the previous reviewers problems.).
I was upgraded to a pseudo-suite. Hhonor GOLD kind of thing.
The bed was very comfortable... but I'm thinking the furniture may need upgrading and were not comfortable at all. No fridge despite the suite... it would have been a nice touch.
Room soundproofing very good, or I had very quite neighbors... not sure which.
Elevators are medium speed -seemed a little small however.
Night check in staff efficient and friendly.
Morning check out crew still half asleep. 545AM so I guess that's OK.
Shuttle bus crew very efficient and friendly both pick up and drop off. I recommend people flying out of DCA to ditch the rental car the night before the flight and take the shuttle to the hotel and shuttle to DCA in the morning... it'll save you a lot of hassle in the morning.
Bathroom very nicely done, clean, well maintained and functional.
Wake up call right on time. Nice radio alarm. (Same model as used in the Embassy Suites and the Hilton)
View (territorial... ie other buildings).
Room air conditioner/heater with central thermostat control was very quiet but effective.
I have yet to stay at the ES, but so far of the Hilton group, it's the best one in Crystal City.
Photos
Audie Murphy Gravesite
Our fish and chips - we shared
Carlyle
The Unknown Soldiers of the Battle of Bull Run
