The Best Boutique Hotels in Washington DC, USA
When you’re not canvassing local restaurants and living it up at the White House, seek out these stylish places to stay in the US capital – bookable with Culture Trip.
If you’re headed to DC, chances are you’re intrigued by America’s cultural and political history, so a distinguished hotel with character is in order. Catering mainly to suited diplomats and business folk, this city is packed with storied buildings reimagined as boutique hotels and fleshed out with some of the best design, food and drink in the game. It’s not all prim and proper, either – outside landmark-central Downtown, each neighborhood has its own energy.
1. The Graham Georgetown
Hotel
2. The Hay-Adams
Hotel
4. ARC THE.HOTEL
Boutique Hotel
No-fuss, no-frills, but with clean-cut style in spades, ARC is a crash pad for the traveler who tends to be out and about. It’s best suited to younger or solo city-breakers (rooms with two queen beds, in particular, are top value for pairs of friends). Close to delightful Georgetown and walkable to the main sights, ARC is a bubble of calm, with its polished woods and ice-white linens. Meanwhile, mini-fridges and power showers go above and beyond the basics.
5. The LINE DC
Boutique Hotel
This colonnaded, century-old church has been spruced up by a crack design team, setting industrial-chic light fixtures and lush pot plants against white box rooms with parquet floors. Ask for a higher floor for killer views. It’s bang in DC’s go-to nightlife neighborhood, Adams Morgan, with its vintage stores and Japanese grills – but the real hotspot is in your hotel. Join a hip crowd over katsu sandos (the cutesy Japanese nickname for “sandwich”) at Asian-persuasion Brothers and Sisters.
6. Riggs Washington DC
Boutique Hotel
Former banks always make for the best retro-modern reinventions, and the transformed Riggs National Bank building now gleams with art deco chandeliers, marble passageways and Beaujolais bar stools. Individually designed rooms come in peony shades with liquid-look floral motifs, but it’s the four First Lady-themed suites that really tap into this city’s historic glamour. Downstairs, Cafe Riggs is inspired by the grand cafes of Budapest and Vienna – there’s also a rooftop for city-view aperitifs.
7. Eaton DC
Boutique Hotel
An indie hotel very much following in the hipster footsteps of cult brand Ace, Eaton is a creatively charged, sociable spot with an activist’s spirit. From the locally sourced, vegan-leaning bites at American Son to yoga sessions and inspirational movie screenings, this hotel is all about connecting with a community and making a difference. Just in it for the room? Wall-sized art, colorful woven throws and record players take you back to the resistance spirit of the seventies.
8. American Guest House
Guesthouse
Old-school in a quaint, wood-paneled sense, this is the other end of the scale of hip-minimalist hotels in DC. Ornate wooden writing desks, tiled fireplaces and tasseled curtain cords make you feel like an out-of-towner “taking rooms” in a 19th-century novel. You’re slightly off the tourist track, up between Dupont Circle and Adams Morgan, but you’re rewarded with the quietest – and comfiest – night’s sleep in town.
9. Generator Washington DC
Boutique Hotel, Chain Hotel
Generator’s sharply designed poshtels changed the game when they sprang up in cities from Berlin to Miami. And the room design in this DC outpost doesn’t sit on the fence – pastel walls and geometric mirrors clash happily against hot-pink scatter cushions and graffitied oil paintings, while, for real bargain-seekers, more subdued dorm rooms have affordable bunk beds. One major perk (for summer, at least) is the swimming pool on a shaded terrace, surrounded by comfy loungers – the perfect spot when you need to switch off.
Still looking for the perfect place? Read our guide to the best hotels in the city, or treat yourself to a stay at one of the best luxury hotels in Washington DC. Alternatively, you could make a visit to one of the most famous and historic hotels in the city, which are all bookable on Culture Trip.
Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.
Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.
Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.
Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.
We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.