We stayed at the Hay Adams for 2 nights recently on a weekend visit to DC. It was a nice experience, but not quite up to what I expect from a hotel of this reputation and at this price.

Our room was nice, but not substantially nicer than many other hotels I have stayed in. The hotel could use some sprucing up. The hallways were dingy and the carpet needs replacing.

The bathroom was spacious, immaculately clean, and very nice, though the shower situation was not great. As one reviewer noted, the water pressure isn't very good, and there is an awkward shower mechanism which we could not adjust to keep it from shooting water in such a way that it drenched the bathroom floor.

The room itself had scuffed and chipped floor mouldings and standard-issue furniture. There was no proper closet, only a very small wardrobe that scarcely held our clothes for the weekend. However, the bed was lovely and very comfortable with crisp linens and plentiful pillows. One thing I particularly liked was that, in contrast to many hotels that are now providing only a duvet on the bed (which in most cases is WAY too warm for the room), this bed had a sheet and a light blanket, with a duvet folded at the end of the bed. The sheet and blanket were plenty of cover, and I appreciated not having to swelter under a duvet. In the end the bed is what matters most to me in a hotel, as I'm mostly there to sleep, so this was a positive.

Another positive is that housekeeping is very attentive--the bed was beautifully turned down in the evening and after we showered in the afternoon the towels were all always replaced when we came back after dinner.

My gripe is that there were several special events in the hotel that weekend and these caused some inconveniences which were not acknowledged by the hotel. There was a roof party on Saturday night and the guests was constant, noisy traffic in the hall from the time we got home from dinner until after 11pm (we were on the 8th floor where the stair to the roof is located). A few of the drunk partygoers were also staying in rooms near ours, and we could hear quite a bit through the walls. As other reviewers have noted, you hear EVERYTHING in this hotel--your neighbors, the housekeeping staff in the hall, etc.

Additionally, another special event took over the restaurant, which is a lovely space for breakfast, and instead breakfast was pushed to a small, noisy, windowless room where the staff are clearly not accustomed to serving. No compensation is made for being pushed out of the main dining room. I think a true luxury hotel that wants people to come back should make some kind of concession when the expected amenities are not available because of special events.

So in the end, If you are going to Washington to see the monuments, the Smithsonian museums, the National Mall, the White House, this is a great location, and the rooms are nice and service is good. But don't expect a really memorable and special experience. As for me, next time I want to stay in a luxury hotel in Washington I will probably try the Willard.