YOTEL Washington DC

I stayed here for a business trip, so it was chosen solely for the great location -- easy for Union Station and the Capitol building -- but I was also genuinely excited to try out a YOTEL. I've always liked seeing their funky branding and design. Now that I've experienced it... I think more thought went into the design being unusual and photographable rather than livable or comfortable. When I checked in, I heard a lot of other guests at the desk asking questions about turning on the lights and shower etc... I thought, seriously? How complicated could that be?! And THEN I got up to my room and encountered it myself. There's a light panel with no real "on/off" features, just lots of different colors you can light up your mirrors and bed. I literally have two Master's degrees and work in tech, but the light panel had me near tears after a long day of traveling. The toilet and shower are in separate stalls and the sink is in the bedroom with the only tiny (and space-age looking) trash can - (I promise you that no woman designed this! Love toting my products and feminine trash around!) And for all the futuristic tech look, there were not actually enough outlets or convenient places to plug in, like I had to get my laptop rigged up in the bed's armrest? The beds are adjustable to stow in a sitting up position, but actually if you put them down to a normal bed, you could barely shimmy past it because it's right up against the wall. No in-room clocks or instructions for anything, because that would mess up the aesthetic I guess. If you want to call down to the front desk to ask about anything, you have to push a button on the phone that says "mission station" and hope it's a help line rather than a joke. I will say that all of the staff I encountered during my stay were super helpful and warm - but I do feel like they spend 95% of their time explaining very basic things to guests because it's not intuitive at all, or fixing the water temperature.

Parking $60 per night which I think is ridiculous considering we’re paying for a room and they know just about everywhere we travel in the city we had to pay for parking. $100 per night incidental fee but they claim it’s a safety net for spending at the hotel. The staff not being in place Manager was rude but I will say he apologized. Bar area and restaurant sit down area were a privilege. Coffee machine being down and when they were working you had to rig it to get the coffee out. It’s like if you’re not spending extra money, you get treated like you’re not valued. The rooms are already expensive and everyone who stays should get treated the same. Pool closed the whole time until we were checking out we heard it opened. We only stayed at this hotel because of the pool videos we seen online. This was due to air quality so I can’t fault the hotel but this was disappointing for us. They charge me for the room in the beginning with the daily incidental fee but at checkout they recharged my card instead of using the funds from the original charge and crediting me the difference. They reversed the original funds which will take a few days to credit to my account.

My stay at YOTEL Washington DC was unfortunately very disappointing. The front-desk staff were consistently unfriendly, arrogant, and often condescending toward guests. At times it felt as if I had to apologize simply for checking in and paying for the room. Service that should be professional and welcoming in this price range was absent; questions were answered curtly and requests were not taken seriously. It may also reflect wider changes in Washington over the past 18 months — the city’s atmosphere and visitor mix seem to have shifted, which can affect service and hospitality at some properties. Overall, the reception experience left a strong negative impression, and I cannot recommend this hotel based on my visit.

Wonderful Hotel on Capitol Hill in perfect walking distance to Rayburn, Cannon, and Longworth Building.

Read reviews and was scared about what I was walking into but honestly this hotel was pretty solid! If you're looking for a stay with tons of elite amenities then this isn't for you. But the rooms were more than fairly priced. The room we stayed in was clean and cozy. Not a huge room but we were other in it to sleep and get ready in the morning. The shower and toilet area were kind of different with how they are built but hey, no complaints. It was essentially a really nice budget friendly hotel. The staff were all helpful and people centered. Location wise was incredible! We had a view of the Capital building, which is like a block away. And it's close to all the historical stuff to do in DC. Easy uber ride or walk away.