“Mer-mom” and I have just come back from a two-night stay at the new and much-talked-about Donovan House hotel in Washington DC. See HotelChatter for details.
Though I’ve stayed in relatively new hotels before, this was my first time staying on the very first night. I’m pleased to say that we are now experienced hotel-testers (and are willing to offer our services to the highest bidder!) Pictures of the hotel are posted here.
Upon arriving at the hotel on Friday (March 28), almost the whole staff was standing on the sidewalk waiting for guests to arrive – and seemed quite excited when anyone showed up. Everything in the hotel is decked out in shades of dark plum, black, white and beige. A plum-colored leather banquette lines one wall, and metal rods suspend swing-like seating from the ceiling. There’s a huge cherry blossom arrangement in front of the elevators (shiny, white cabins which pipe in an eclectic assortment of music, from Latin pop to 90s hits).
Our first (of three…long story…) rooms was a handicapped-accessible room with two double beds – which was missing the much-talked-about cocoon shower, and lacked a closet (in favor of a waist-high half-rod tucked in a corner). Though it was a perfectly nice room, the lack of the special shower and any closet space prompted us to ask whether it was possible to be moved to another (non-accessible) room. The (ever-cheerful, still-learning) staff was happy to accommodate the request, and we were moved up a few floors to a normal room. This actually did have the cocoon shower, which was basically a normal shower that was at the end of a spiral-shaped entrance-way. We’d hoped that the “spiral shower” concept actually applied to the water, but alas, the water only comes down from a rain-shower head above.
We spent Friday night in this room. The hotel was quiet and we heard little street noise, despite seeing a road crew dig up the street outside all night. However, there’s a gap between the top of the curtains that lets in a good deal of ambient light, so the room never gets completely dark (which may be a problem for some). The real surprise came in the morning – when we woke up early, turned on the cocoon shower, and were greeted with cold water. And more cold water.
Trudging down to the lobby (where the free continental breakfast was being set up: pod coffee machines, muffins, apples), we were told that this was a hotel-wide problem, and that the road crew outside the previous night had been trying to fix it. But would we like to be upgraded to a suite as compensation for the cold awakening? Of course we would! We moved down the hall to a gorgeous two room king suite, with two big-screen TVs, one bathroom exactly like the regular room plus an additional half bathroom, and a sitting room with a large plum-colored leather couch. It was a gorgeous (and huge) room, and we were very pleased! After a day of sightseeing, we returned to the room and found the hot water had been fixed, and I had my first warm cocoon shower. We spent Saturday night in the suite, and despite a few additional hiccups (the room phone wasn’t working, for example – we had to call the front desk from a cell!) it was a very pleasant stay. We also tried the small fitness center (four or five treadmills, three ellipticals, a bike, a weight set and a bench). The rooftop pool bar, we were told, would open before the summer, and a restaurant is in the works.
Throughout, the staff, though obviously new and still learning the ropes (the doorman still didn’t have the DC cab fare system down, and the acting concierge wasn’t quite sure how to locate the hotel on a map of the city), was charming and eager-to-please. Their true star was Carmen from housekeeping, though, who should be running the whole hotel chain – who responded to every small request and suggestion with a great attitude and made us feel like part of the hotel family. We’ll definitely be back – especially if they have future weekend deals!
**Edited to add: Mermaid rating: Four seashells (out of five)**
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