A Comfortable and Convenient Place to Stay

Last summer (6/04) our family of four stayed for five days at the Carlyle, and I would definitely stay there again. While it does have a few rough edges (a very slow elevator, and no easy place to put your suitcase in the room,) it was all we had hoped for in an affordable suite/hotel. The location in near Dupont Circle is ideal, you are in a lovely residential neighborhood with restaurants and a Safeway nearby, and the small kitchen saved us quite a bit on food bills! At first, the room we were given was not what we had reserved, but the staff quickly remedied that, and put us in a corner suite which was much more roomy. I would suggest booking directly with the hotel and requesting a corner suite. We were fortunate with parking- it is first-come-first-served, but we were able to find a parking place from the first day. Fortunately, with the proximity to Metro, we never needed to move the car! This is a neighborhood of young, working professionals, so I might not have enjoyed this hotel as much if I was travelling with young children.

From the sounds of some of the earlier reviews, I believe the hotel must have undergone some renovations before our stay. It was definitely clean and rather nicely appointed.

Great, beautiful hotel

My husband and I stayed at the Carlyle January 2005, and had the best experience. These are the most beautiful rooms, I had ever seen in all my many years of travel. The staff was very helpful and the overall experience was GREAT! This will definitely be our home away from home, when we visit DC again.

You must experience it. Highly recommended.

There is no parking

We selected this hotel because they advertised Free Parking and we were driving into the city. They have parking for 8 sub-compact cars. Our van was not going to fit even if there had been room. The next morning I was glad that we were unable to park. The cars that did park behind the hotel were completely blocked in. The only parking is in a structure several blocks away and costing $26 per day. There is no street parking.

The rooms were very nice. It was a good location, but since they lied I would not stay here again. I would stay further out and take the metro in. The metro is very easy to use.

Great place with rough edges

First the positives: great location , nifty little but very functional kitchenette , free email ( when it works) and good price.

On the rough edges side there is really nothing art deco about the place except for signs telling you its art deco ;actually I would categorize it as more modern industrial - its all very functional but not very comfortable. Desk staff seem indifferent or worse, only one of two elevators worked and a lamp in my room was never fixed despite repeated requests. Also other annoyances like no newspaper in the morning( not even for sale) ,no in room coffee for the coffee maker and no shampoo were a bit odd .

Still though because of its residential location and somewhat human scale . staying here was an over all positive - they just need to work out a few of the rough edges

Would stay here again

My husband and I spent six nights at the Carlyle Suites. It was only a few pleasant blocks from the Metro and Dupont Circle. Our suite was the cleanest I've ever stayed in. You couldn't find a stray hair anywhere in the bathroom. We didn't have any view and one of the elevators was either out of order or slow but the accommodations were very comfortable. There isn't much parking available either at the hotel or on the street. We would stay here again.

Nice property

Stayed at the Carlye for 8 nights in August and enjoyed our stay! Large clean room with pull out sofa--all new furnishings, carpet, granite counter tops, and kitchenettes have plates, silverware, cookware. About 4 blocks from Dupont Metro stop. Free internet access in bar (wasn't always working but when it did, it was great as many DC hotels charge for access). Safeway grocery store about 2 1/2 blocks away.

Pleasant and Inviting

We recently returned from a 5-night stay at the Carlyle in Dupont Circle. (3/04) We (2 adults and a teenager) found our accomodations comfortable, very attractive, clean, quiet and convenient to restaurants and the subway. Four large windows provided an interesting city view from our top floor suite. The living room area sofa converted into a third large bed. The separate kitchen was small but spotless...everything one might need to prepare snacks and small meals if not gourmet dinners. We found the staff to be helpful and well- organized. After long days of sightseeing, this hotel suite provided an inviting, restful retreat.

Great property -- Awful service

I stayed here with a group last spring. They were in the process of renovating the hotel, a fact that they neglected to tell us ahead of time. I am on tour with a show, so our late night schedule means we sleep late. The construction was mind-numbing and loud (literally jackhammers on the other side of my wall) and started at 8:30 each morning.

The staff was unbelievably unaccommodating and rude. They were also extremely disorganized, and didn't have several of our rooms ready when we checked in, and many of the rooms were of incorrect type. These problems took days to correct. I had even called a day ahead to be sure that I'd have a full kitchen (I was assured that I would), and then arrived to a tiny cramped room (NOT a suite) with a microwave and a fridge (and one FULL size bed, not even a king). They coudn't move me until the next day.

The ironic flip side is that the renovated rooms (mine was one) are among the best I've seen. Ever. Clean, hip, spacious, and totally fresh and up to date. Sad it's wasted on such an abominably run property.

Eh

The front desk staff were rude and inattentive during my whole stay and then as I checked out the worst one tried to schmooze me into staying there again next time I come to DC. The elevators don't usually work and if they do expect to wait a while. It is, however, only 3 blocks off Dupont Circle.

Cramped, dirty, not really a "suite", front desk staff rude.

I stayed here in January of 2002, and was disappointed. We had a 2 bed "suite", but it was so small that if I was working at the desk my travel partner couldn't get past the desk chair to get from the door to the bed. The kitchenette was tiny, and the appliances were old and terrible. It wasn't very clean either.

The person I was travelling with is mostly deaf, and he arrived after me on a different flight. They would not let him in the room, even though I told them he would be showing up and he had the reservation confirmation number! They totally misunderstood him, and made him wait *outside* the hotel until I came back from dinner and explained the situation to them a second time.

For the two of us we could have had individual rooms (with shared baths) in a pleasant Bed &Breakfast for just a few dollars more, and it would have been much better.

If you're trying to save money I'd recommend the Kalorama Guesthouse instead ... the rooms there aren't clean either, but at least the staff is pleasant and *they* wouldn't call a tiny room a "suite".