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I rarely engage in the bashing of products and services, preferring to withhold comment except for occasions of excellence. However, my recent experience at the Georgetown Inn forced my hand. I have stayed at the Inn several times prior to this most recent experience, including for the wedding of my cousin several years ago, during which most of my extended family was there. It was always pleasant. Somewhat dated, but a good value with perfectly good service. Things have changed.Last weekend, my wife and I went to DC for our anniversary and stayed at the Inn. The newly-renovated rooms seemed fine, and we went to roam around Georgetown to shop and eat dinner. Upon our return later in the evening, the room seemed very cold. It was a mild day, and we had set the heat at 70 degrees. Air was blowing out of the vent, but the room was around 60. We called, and the front desk casually relayed that they had turned off the heat. For our side of the building. In May. They asked if we wanted to change rooms, but at 10pm we had no interest in packing up and moving, so they offered a space heater. We got one that was so small it barely made a dent, and wound up sleeping at 60-65 degrees. OK, so that's a bit absurd, but whatever, we'll live.When I woke up the next morning, though, and wanted to shower, the fixture was broken and no hot water would come out. by holding the flimsy fixture together just so, one could get some intermittent warm water, but it was on the opposite side of the stall and thus it was impossible for one to simultaneously hold the fixture and get under the stream of water. So I went forward with a 50 degree morning shower. At this point, I'm not real happy. I've had better experiences heat-wise for 10% of the price in India and Africa.When we went to check out I asked to speak to a manager to discuss our issues and the $180 we paid for a pretty lousy room. I was told that there was no manager on duty and that the desk only had a 10% leeway on rebates. I'm reasonable, so I said OK, $18 is not really enough, but if you could tell a manager to call me the next day, we can work something out. Well, I didn't receive a call, so I called back on Tuesday. I was told the manager was gone again, and so I left a voice mail explaining the situation and asking him to call. No response the next day. I called and talked to another person at the desk who said he understood the situation, and would relay my desire to speak with his manager immediately that evening. Again, no call. Finally I called last Friday and was told that the manager was there but indisposed. I left a FOURTH message on his voice mail to please call me. Nothing. I am a pretty patient, reasonable guy, but this situation is comical. We paid $180 for a room with no heat or hot water, and a management team that couldn't give less of a damn about it. My advice is to avoid this place like the plague, as their lack of professionalism is staggering. The location is excellent, but it is clear they are banking on that and nothing else at this point.

Walk to everything! We've stayed here a couple of times and have always enjoyed this historic location that it is so centrally located in Georgetown. Cute suite is very reminiscent of the rich cultural feel of historic DC. A must visit for breakfast is the Billy Martin's Tavern across the street where history is abundant, including where many spies were served & booth #3 where John F. Kennedy proposed to Jackie, & much more. The view at our first room was of an unattractive rooftop, but we weren't in the room much during daylight so it didn't matter. Overall great value for the area & this is coming from a couple of locals who grew up nearby.

As many who stayed have found, the experience can be both good and bad.Our priority was the location which was ideal as a base for the long weekend we were there. We booked in the knowledge that rooms may not quite be perfect, which they weren't.THE GOOD:Location (again). Everything you need is on the doorstep including local public transport.The room was better than expected after reading some other reviews. The faux colonial decor belies the fact the building is probably less than 60 years old. It was quite clean & reasonably spacious with good housekeeping attention to detail. I've paid more & stayed in worse with far inferior locations.General interior condition of the hotel & room was also better than expected & it appears the management have made real efforts to correct some of the maintenance issues others have experienced. Internet worked fine & it seems the new wifi system has solved the previous issues. All other room functions worked as intended (though see A/C comments below).Staff were friendly & helpful to our needs although some additional training wouldn't go astray. But the attitude was generally good which is what counts.The Daily Grill has good food & provides a vibe in the lobby which may otherwise have been absent NOT SO GOOD:Despite the best efforts of the staff there's no escaping that this is a fairly old property which wasn't built to a very high standard from the beginning. Noise insulation is quite poor from the hallway & between rooms. We had a room on the back of the hotel (not facing the street) which still ended up very noisy due to the 747-jet engine grade exhaust / refrigeration fan on the roof of the Daily Grill below which operates until closing a bit before midnight. Replacing this single fan with a quieter one would improve the sleep quality in over 50 rooms. This isn't helped by windows which seal poorly with a sign on them instructing not to open...a little bizarre. Double glazing would improve noise insulation substantially but at a high cost considering the large number of windows involved. In the meantime bring ear plugs!Heating & general ventilation is via a primitive A/C system which can either heat or cool, but only when controlled from the hotel's central system instead of from each room.The bathroom is as horrible as others have described. It's of a lower standard than most 1-star budget airport hotels. Taps & shower head fittings could be pulled in & out of the wall by hand. Main problem is the original design & it's tiny size doesn't allow much improvement without a complete room redesign & renovation.If several million $$ were spent on renovations to correct all the shortcomings then this hotel could be outstanding given its great location which is actually better than the much more expensive Four Seasons past the end of the shops on M Street. But then the price would inevitably increase too.To sum up: it was slightly better than expected although we had admittedly lowered our expectations based on previous reviews. The ideal location made up for most shortcomings & it was fine for the short period we were there and at its price point. If you plan to be out most of the time & only returning at night as we did, then it may work well for you. If you're looking for a serene luxury experience or family resort to spend a lot of time at, then it ain't the Shangri-La and you'll need to keep looking.

The Georgetown Inn is centrally located in a gorgeous part of Washington. The room was large, the bedding very good and furnishings (sofa, lamps etc) couldn't be faulted. But the over all feel was of a rather dated hotel and on the decline. Despite the size of the room, there was no bath. The shower was old (and querky when you came to use it). There was no safe in the room nor no means for playing music. That'd be OK in a lower cost hotel but when you are paying 300 dollars a night ? TV was also poor standard and couldn't be viewed from certain angle as it is located in a cabinet with opening doors. More could be done about sound proofing. I could hear other rooms and the road outside is quite noisy (buses stop outside, emergency services with sirens blaring through the night) and I was quite high up in the hotel so the lower floors must be worse. The reception only ever seemed to have one person and so if they were on the phone you had to just wait. The reception staff seemed uninterested in their customers. I took breakfast in the Daily Grill which is within the hotel and the service each time was slow and inattentive (having to remind the staff about orders, waiting to be served etc). My impression is that this could be a great hotel but that attention to the details and to the customer need some work.

I first stayed in this hotel in 1999 and found it pleasantly different from the stiff and sterile business hotels, yet of an upper standard, personable and functional. Been there a few times since, but probably will not return. The maintenance is lacking, the wall-paper which is coming off in places appears sympthomatic of a general decline and it is always worrying when the electricity appears shaky. Regrettable, because essentally it used to be a very good hotel in a central and charming location. The family liked it.