Hotel Harrington

Location, Location, location This is a very old hotel that has never been closed for remodeling. The rooms are stark, small and often noisy, but clean and supply everything you need for a great visit. We walked everywhere, including museums, tours, and restaurants. The staff was a high point because they were friendly and tried to accommodate any need that they could. Don't be afraid to ask! It's definitely a trade-off; a reasonable price and a great location but not a particularly nice room.

Great walk ability to the national mall and downtown, The staff at check in was good and they even upgraded our room. The hotel is definitely dated but you can't beat the value of the room for the location and the price paid. The gentleman who worked in the gift shop is very kind and helped my preschooler find a t-shirt she liked. I do not recommend breakfast the the Harriet. It will go down as the worst coffee I have had ever.

The lone star that i gave this review is purely for the location. This hotel is within very reasonable walking distance to many historic sites and memorials. However, this building was established in 1914 and reflects its age very poorly. Upon entering this "establishment" there was an odour that reeked of sewage and payment is required right off the bat. After paying we went into the elevator which accommodated 3 people comfortably. Next we went to up to our room. The room's first red flag was the fact that one, the door felt paper thin and the lock could be easily opened from the outside, and secondly, the lights wouldn't turn on. Thirdly, after driving for 7 1/2 hours naturally you'd want to lie down. But ohhh no! The beds were rock hard. Furthermore, the air conditioning didn't work which would have been helpful in the 97 degree weather! After inspecting the bathrooms we noticed a wet and used towel on the bathroom floor. Also, the bathroom was tiny, the sink had no hot water, the shower was leaking, and the floors were clearly unclean. Regarding service and personnel, they were unresponsive and when we requested additional towels and pillows their reply was, "Alright you can come down and get them yourself". Finally, the walls were paper thin and all outside noise could be heard. Needless to say, avoid this hotel at all costs, there are plenty of other better quality hotels at the same price within the area with better service, and amenities.

Love the location because it’s centrally located downtown and landmarks. Oldest hotel in DC so it’s expected to not be the best place you’ll stay due to needing upgrades. Rooms were super quiet & quaint at least the area of the hall we stayed in. Harry’s is a fun “dive” bar that’s connected to the hotel. It’s open til 3am on weekends and Bartender Linda will have you in stitches. Front desk overall was Fantastic! We found them polite, resourceful and personable. Checked in our room at 930am (instead of 4pm) which was Major convenient! Con- Our room was super arid so maybe have bottled water next to you. Beds were comfy (hard) which we prefer. If you do a Moonlight tour I Highly suggest Sam & Sal’s Moonlight tour(brochure in the gift shop)! It’s more personalized, more site to get out and take pictures, George was hilarious and personable, $59 for 3hrs! Can’t beat that for what you get! Overall we loved our stay at the Harrington and would easily go back there when we do!

We have prepared before staying at this hotel, and maybe because we have no expectations at all , we can kinda accept the old room. Only soap are offered in the room, but with such great location and price, we have nothing to complain about. They offer to keep your luggage after you check out, which is what we need.

This hotel is exactly average. The rooms are not the nicest rooms ever. The furniture and carpet is stained. Very dated. Not the most comfortable bed in the world. This is balanced by the lower price compared to other hotels in the area and the fantastic location if your goal is to tour attractions. If you just need a place to lay your head at night this is the place. They have restaurants in the bottom for breakfast lunch and dinner but we didn’t get a chance to try them. The staff is friendly and the sheets and towels were fresh daily. We never heard our neighbors unless someone was being loud in the hall. My biggest complaints are when we arrived there was a sign to call the front desk if we needed to adjust the AC. We called and they said it was not on for that room due to the (average) temp outside. They did provide us with a fan for our stay. In the room we would also periodically get whiffs of sewage. I think they had a plumbing problem in our room but it wasn’t unbearable and it wasn’t all the time. And lastly, the restaurant in the bottom has a patio and it stayed open pretty late and it was easy to hear the people on the patio from our room so if you like an early bed time you may want to request being on an upper floor if possible. All in all would I stay here again? Probably, just for the location and price alone. Public transit it pretty good, so if you wanted to stay a little further out it’s totally doable but we really liked everything being in walking distance.

It's a very old an historic hotel. It could definitely use some major upgrades. Heat is an old radiator type. No air conditioning. We slept with the windows open. We was on the 6th floor. We had 2 full bathrooms. But one of them had the worst shower. One second the water was freezing and extremely hot the next. And I didn't touch the knob.

We spent only one night in DC but enjoyed our stay. This is an older property but it has been maintained over the years. Pros: clean; friendly staff; great location near restaurants, shops, and museums, Harry's was a fun bar in downtown DC. Cons: the room was small, there was no individual climate control, you have to buy parking on a different block from the hotel, the beds are extra firm so beware if you like something soft. Overall for the price and location this was a bargain and we enjoyed our stay.

Not sure who is going here expecting the Ritz Carlton. Are the rooms small? Yes. Was there enough room for my 12yo Son and I to manage? Yes. Are the rooms dated? Yes. But did we spend much time in the room? No. Was the room clean? Yes. People start here for the location, PERIOD. We were a block from the main metro rail station, a block from Fords Theatre, around three blocks from Whitehouse, within three blocks of the Smithsonian/National Mall. Location... Location... Location.... The biggest tip I can give is to being a power strip. Our room had 1 outlet that wasn't used, on the floor. Thankfully I read that tip and had a power strip handy. We didn't have any of the temp issues others mentioned. I would skip the two restaurants though (Harriet's/Harry's). Both were not very good and service was subpar.

For my twins 13th birthday, one wanted to go to DC to see Lincoln and the other wanted to go to Salem.. so here we are in DC. I picked this hotel because of the closeness to all the monuments, white house, and museums. It's a neat hotel being 106 years old. You can definitely tell it's old as hell. Got the push pull system for the ac. Smelled old too. Beds were uncomfortable. Convenient location. Don't want to walk? It was only $8 for uber to drop us off at the Lincoln memorial. Despite it being super close to everything, I wouldn't stay here again. Mostly because of the area. I've been in some pretty sketchy places and I can adapt in almost any situation, but I've never felt uneasy anywhere the way I did in this area. Homeless/guys walking right up behind you trying to get you to stop walking and im pretty sure it's not to ask for food or money.. nicely.. Nah. Gonna pass on the next stay at the Harrington.

I really hate to write poor reviews in general and seldom do, but I really do have to review Hotel Harrington to warn others because of our experience. We stayed here this past weekend, and obviously we knew that for the very budget price we are paying we weren't expecting glamorous and updated hotel amenities or even the best treatment. We fully knew we would get what we paid for, and we expected that because we wanted a bargain, etc. for this weekend as we would get two rooms for the price it would typically be for one room in other hotels in the area. However, the treatment we received by the hotel staff and especially the front desk receptionist was horrible and honestly speaking, flat out disrespectful. When we arrived, we had our luggage held in a back room to pick up later when our room was actually ready for us. When we came back to collect it, the receptionist led us in the back and told us to "hurry up" when my sister was struggling to pick up her bag (it was stuck to the wall from some sticky substance. Gross, but again, remember we knew this would be a budget experience). That was the first beige flag though, was that she didn't have to be unnecessarily curt. We saw a lot of people coming down from their rooms and complaining that the AC wasn't working; she offered them fans instead and told them that this isn't like other hotels, so they would have to deal with it. It did make me a little wary that she was also curt to everyone in general (a lot of people also grumbling about how they were being spoken to) and on top of that, we were also wary since there was a heat wave this weekend and we weren't sure if we also would be suffering in a hot room. We asked if we could check out the room first and see if perhaps we would need to rebook elsewhere. I gave her my ID as collateral and we went up to check the room. We actually genuinely thought it was fine, it wasn't fridge-cold like other nicer hotels with up to date amenities would have been, but we felt we could deal. It was getting super late and we had a long day walking about and I honestly forget about my ID. We saw the receptionist was busy with other clients so we started walking out the door (we left our luggage and everything upstairs) when she comes *screaming* after us. I am not exaggerating. She yelled at us in front of the other clients, then went back to her conversation with them while rolling her eyes at us and saying to them "I am *so* sorry about *THAT*." When it was finally our turn to speak with her I did apologize saying I forgot my ID but also that I had experiences before where we paid at checkout and we didn't know it wasn't the case here as she didn't tell us. She ignored all of that and continued to rant and treat us disrespectfully, and when I stood up for us and asked her not to speak to us like that and if we could just move on she told me I had an attitude. That was the last straw; I told her we wouldn't pay to be treated like this and we grabbed our things and literally walked across the street to a different hotel and booked new rooms that night. In my opinion to it was beyond well worth the extra money for us to have gone somewhere else, and the overall trip cost actually wasn't even that much more at our new hotel. Don't waste your time here. The way we were spoken to, I don't even know that we would have stayed here if they compensated us for it.

Well, I am usually a travel planner extraordinaire, but I got duped on this one. Lol. I chose this hotel mainly for location. It is in a very convenient location. Pretty close to everything. We were able to walk or scooter to pretty much everything nearby. I knew it would be older but I did not expect it to be so run down. Like, they don't try AT ALL. Every single part of this hotel was filthy. Not just the room. EVERYTHING. Check in was easy and fast. They even let us check in an hour early. Parking- no on site parking provided. I asked the clerk at check in where to park and he just casually pointed left of the building and said park at "One Parking Garage"..... what he didn't mention is there are about 10 "One parking garages" within about a mile of this place. So that was stressful. Both restaurants attached smelled HORRID and were filthy. Our room was DISGUSTING! And the electrical work throughout the hotel and our room was very concerning. I feared there would be a fire the entire time we were there. The AC actually worked. I was concerned it would be an issue when I saw the strange wiring for the thermostat. See photo. The carpets were disgusting. There is NO WAY this hotel isn't full of black mold. We were sneezing our entire stay. Beds were not comfy at all. Horrible bedding as well. There was aluminum foil for some reason all over our windows. Holes in the window screens. Come on! It's not expensive to replace window screens at least! Replace them! And finally, the bathroom... What in the Saw murder bathroom is going on here? Lol. We took showers and the water would literally flood into the hotel room, soaking the horrid maroon carpet. Also, y'all know your wifi doesn't work. Stop playin! Lol. On a positive, the water for sale is cheap in the gift shop. Never again. Do not recommend!

A charmingly haunted stay. Yes, it is grimy, old and haunted but hey, it was what we needed for the price we needed and it served it's purpose well. Let me explain. We are underpaid teachers that needed a vacation to see a friend get married. We didn't have a large budget and the only way we could attend was if we got good flight/hotel rates. We paid about $45/night for Hotel Harrington through Expedia and were happy to have a bed, shower and a roof over our heads at night. With that said, it is named "The Oldest Hotel in DC" and it 100% has not been updated since it was built. Same carpet, AC, paint, furniture, everything. We couldn't stop cracking up at the A/C controls. We couldn't figure it out and once we pulled the lever, tons of dust and dried paint rained down on us. There were little left behind hairs from past guests everywhere and we got a few bug bites. Also I would warn against staying in the winter, as the heater controls don't work. PROS- Location, location, location. It is walking distance to everything and right next to the National Mall. It's close to shops, restaurants and scooter/bike parking. Again, we paid $45/night and got what we paid for. It wouldn't be worth it if you pay more than that. We didn't need anything fancy, so we got what we paid for! ***Also, the hotel employees guided us to park at a parking structure down the street, but just keep in mind that street parking is free on Sundays and the garage closes early

I'll have to take L for this because I usually do research on anywhere before I go/visit, but think I booked this hotel in haste because of its location primarily. This hotel is downtown, and very close to airport. It's less than 15 minute ride to get there, so that's one pro. Also, there was a very nice housekeeper who stocked room with plentiful towels, toiletries, etc. so that's another reason for extra star. But, that's about it. I think they should go ahead and tear this hotel down and do complete rebuild and remodeling. Or at the very least, do a renovation. I mean, after the fact, I did some research after checking in and being utterly disappointed about the whole dismal hotel. Guess it's the oldest hotel in DC, so they are trying to maintain some of its original look, but there's no excuse for the state of this hotel. The front entrance area smells horrifically as soon as you walk in. It's a very damp, moldy smell and it's overpowering. I held my breath when I had to come in and take elevator. The room is also very outdated. I didn't feel comfortable leaving anything on the ground so kept most of my stuff on the chair. I wouldn't even say there's value with this hotel as it's not very cost effective, so what are they doing with the money? An update is definitely needed. Would not recommend anyone stay here unless maybe for a quick night but maybe local hostel would be better choice. Smh.

Rating -0 The filth was unbelievable. The rudeness of staff was incredible. Do not stay here. Unbelievable how disgusting this place is. Over priced, actually 2 cents is overpriced. Don't stay here. Terrible!!!

First I would like to give 5 star but only for location. Hotel is really old one wich need good reconciliation, replacement, recleanong. Price is high but the serves is poor. The keys didn't work second day. I had to go down to fix it. Weird, yukkk smell was in elevator and in the lobby. The rooms isn't smell or looked fresh. As I told only location is 5 star , the rest is

I found this hotel because I didn't want to spend a fortune and it was close to where I needed to be. For $225 a night in DC, it was worth it. If it was in any other average city, it would be way too much. There is a parking garage across the street and it was $27 for a Monday 24 hour period. I believe the garage closed overnight so your car would be stuck there so keep that in mind, and no in/out privileges either, like most parking in DC. The hotel is obviously old and not modern. Not room ac or heat control, but you can close the vent. We got a corner 2 queen room which was just fine. It was cool having windows on 2 walls. We got a printout of local attractions and nearly restaurants and check in and out was friendly and easy. Everything was close by. Everything in the room is probably not newer than the 80's. Bathroom was tiny but we didn't need much. Don't have high expectations. I also spent another night in DC in the SW area at a brand name hotel for about $140 more. Nothing was close by but it was only a couple years old. In the end, I asked the family which hotel they'd stay at if we returned and we all agreed the Harrington.

Family want to stay historic hotel which We saw time out magazine . And very deep cheep( well this time is everywhere we can find discounted hotels! I step inside feel very very vintage. Pic of President and history of hotel . Ok , ok . They have 2 elevator 1 is to 6 others 6-11 ok some hotel like that. And my floor 10th my room is straight to elevator. Oh the shining ( movie very scary! Blood from elevator I feel very much this one and family said same!!) Inside the room. Ok bed are clean ( blue light check) carpet dirty but bath room.. no shampoo, conditioner, body soap or soap nothing! No way it's not youth hostel! Even better hosteling international hostel!! Well we are just out to look out side dinner, coming back take a bath and sleep. Sound ok till after 3 am. Very hot room and very very dry and very dusty . Room itself was not much dust can't see but on the carpet many stuff not clean . I know they are not vacuuming any more but please just check the room pick up stuff!! By the way air is very bad.. I cough a lot get med and inhaler.... I m not recommend who has asthma or young kid( even tight budget please go others) if u want to check hotel just look inside or go bar or restaurant!! But this is only my opinion! I want to mention

Location is Great! Walking distance to many sights. Building is very very old. Needs many updates. Limited working outlets in room. A bedside light with usb ports would be really nice. Be careful when showering. Water went from tepid to very hot quickly. The fish tank in the lobby needs to be cleaned. For a night or two, it's ok. Employees were nice.

I stayed there in 2000, so I don't remember much other than that we picked it for location and value. Not sure if the value is the same, but I'm pretty sure it's still in the same location.

This hotel is awful. The people at the front desk are not helpful about parking or room heating and cooling. Everything is old but not in a maintained, classical way... Everything is depressingly shabby and poorly maintained. There is no way to control the AC in the room, it's centrally controlled. The cold tap water is warm. The elevator broke during our stay, so guests are using the freight elevator in the back. Website says the hotel offers paid parking but it hasn't been updated in seven months after interrogating front desk clerk whose only available information is that he doesn't drive so he couldn't possibly know anything about parking. Edit: I forgot to mention that the lobby smells. I think the afternoon desk clerk makes popcorn in a vain attempt to cover up or mask the gross odor of the lobby. Edit the second: While using one of the restrooms on the lobby level, I saw a cockroach on the floor.

Everything is old. Old carpet smells bad, very small size vanity top,and broken safe lock. They don't provide shower and hair shampoo except soap. There is a bar downstairs and the people made loud noise till the early morning! We are so tired and can't sleep. There are no parking spaces. Only 3 spaces for temporary picking up and always full. We have many luggages and dropped them after driving 2 rounds. The only good thing is the location is very convenient to the museums.

Sorry not good. It seems the 100+ year tradition is coming to an end. The website and the street view both show active restaurants and gift shop in the lobby. They are all closed and construction wakes up anyone on the lower floors. They made a point to mandate the signage on the exterior though, so upon check in, we couldn't wait to hit the restaurant. Only after the card was processed did we get the news that EVERY downstairs venue was closed. For renovations? Any savvy person can see this is a corporate thing, maybe a massive rent increase to offset the losses and they found the tipping point of three century old businesses.

Place was kept clean but super run down and maintenance engineer was a total rude person. Open my window when it's raining and blast heat when it's 70 degrees outside?! Never staying here again.

Place was absolutely filthy and old. Looks like they have never bothered to clean the place since it opened. I don't know how this place hasn't been shut down yet since it looks like it's not a new problem...

I should have done more research before booking this hotel. I knew it was gonna be dated but didn't expect it to be dirty- mold on the walls, ketchup(?) splattered on the walls, bathroom floor dirty, etc. again not only traded but broke down- tinfoil on window to prevent outside air from coming in, electrical outlet plates falling off the wall, broken handle to bathtub, etc Gave a star based on location but not much else good to say about this hotel

We knew going in it wasn't a 5 star hotel. We rarely book expensive hotels since we spend the majority of our time outside seeing the sights. But this place was one of the worst we've ever used. The staff weren't bad. Some were friendlier than others. They didn't seem to know as much about the area as we would have expected. The building is over 100 years old and it REALLY shows it. There is extensive wear, tear and obvious damage, throughout the building. It appears there is no effort to do any repairs or modernizing. It looks very bad. Overall the building smells pretty bad. Given how old it is we weren't surprised, but again there doesn't appear to be much of an effort to address it other than using a fair amount of bleach. The building kitchen and attached restaurants are filthy and smell really bad. We ate a lunch once (outside) and a breakfast once (inside), but after seeing the kitchen area we never ate there again. The bathrooms are pretty bad, which is often an indicator of how everything else in the restaurant might be. It held true in this case. The rooms are very small, especially the bathroom. The bath does not have any electrical outlets. In fact, there aren't enough outlets in the entire room. We always had to unplug the TV, refrigerator or lamps to charge our phones and watches. Last thing we'd add is there are numerous instances of some very sketchy electrical work. There are LOTS of cords and wires coming out of the walls and connecting to extensions,TVs, speakers, etc. Hard to believe it's not a code violation. At the very least it looks pretty bad. Suffice to say we won't use this building again if we come back to DC.

We stayed here on our trip to DC, & we were thrilled to discover that this hotel is over 100 years old, and the oldest place to stay in Dc...while also being reasonably priced & centrally located! For the location alone, it's worth staying here! There's history in the hotel, and I would agree with some other reviewers that it's very dated. But that's part of the charm! The hotel itself was clean, and the staff was extremely friendly and accommodating. They kept our luggage/bags for us for free, both before check in and after check out! We had the deluxe family suite, which they upgraded us to for free when we asked! This included 2 twin beds in one room with its own bathroom and tv, and then separated with an old sliding wooden door, the other room was 2 double beds with its own tv and bathroom. The view was great, the TVs were not...they were smaller and no good channels, but we weren't there to watch tv anyway. The beds were different...one was higher than the other, one squeaked a little, one was softer, it was no big deal! We had to call down to the front desk to get shampoo/conditioner, but they had some for us! Every bathroom had lots of soap and clean towels. There are 2 restaurants right in the hotel, and plenty of others around. We skipped the breakfast place, Harriet's, because of the poor reviews. But we had dinner at Harry's, which is a bar/restaurant, and it was great! Super big portions, even on the kids menu, and the burger that I got was fantastic, plus they gave us a giant bowl of free popcorn that was fresh and delicious! We will definitely revisit Harry's. They had 80's music playing and lots of tv's with various sports and events, plus the staff was great. We loved the Hotel Harrington; if you're looking for a sleek, modern and updated hotel, this is not it. But if you're looking for a reasonably priced hotel with old world charm, friendly staff, and an amazing location within walking distance of the metro, the White House, Ford Theatre, and more...this is the place! Family friendly and fun! We'd stay here again for sure!

The rooms were very run down, the elevators smelled and the front desk staff were downright rude in all three encounters I had with each of them. Won't be back ever.

This is the most disgusting hotel I have stayed in. Imagine what you want in a hotel and cross it off the list because it will be subpar. The floors are filthy, I would not even walk around in my socks. Which is probably the result of not vacuuming which is obviously apparent. Throw in the sink that does not have a place for anything, not even a toothbrush. Want to plug in your laptop, well good luck finding a plug that works, not that you want to stay in the room with the musty smell. I honestly don't know how this place passes building codes and any standard for public use. The people are super nice, the hotel is a disaster.

Very convenient location to the mall and subway. Lots of restaurants and stores close by too. Cheap for those on a budget. I will admit, it is run down a bit, and certainly could use a deep cleaning and renovations...but the historic aspect & location made up for it. The staff was very kind to us during our stay, too. We had a knee injury, and they offered us bags to fill with ice.

Booked this room on Hotwire.com and the pictures on the site are deceiving and over embellished. Quite a surprise to see the actual room. The room was doable for a one night stay if all you're going to do is sleep there. The hotel is a bit antiquated. The rooms are small with closet depths of your hand. We booked two rooms and weren't impressed with either. Hair was found in the sink & the comments card from the last guest was still in the room with the last clients message about the room needing a light repaired. Who knows how long it's been there and the light still needs to be fixed. Air conditioning is adequate, the bed was uncomfortable as I think it needed a new mattress. The rooms could be cleaner, as well as the bathrooms. The carpet is dated and I would not chance walking barefoot on the floor. The closet depth was nonexistent. One of the electrical outlets in our room is a definite fire hazard. The most modern thing was the toilet. It was efficient and no concern that it wouldn't flush. If you need to be in DC & can't stay at a pricier place this might work but sheesh for the price they charged I can't imagine that you couldn't find something else in town. I won't be a repeat customer.

I have stayed here a few times because the location and the price cannot be beat. However, it is extremely rundown and things go wrong pretty frequently. The last time I stayed, the water in my room stopped working and I had to take a shower in another room that the housekeeper opened up for me. This last time, the room lights went out at night and it took quite a long time for them to be put back on. It was a creepy experience. As they say, you get what you pay for, And that is definitely true in this case. I would not stay there again because one never knows what might go wrong.

I live outside of DC but was working a lot of hours for an event on July 4 & 5 outside. I knew I wouldn't want to commute back and forth so I decided to get a hotel room. I picked this hotel because of the price. It was extremely reasonable, especially for the 4th if July. I got a non smoking king room. When I first saw that they had smoking rooms I was a little nervous because usually you can smell the smoke everywhere, but my room did not smell like smoke at all. The tv is flat screen and they have full cable channels. They have a microwave and mini fridge. They have an electric water heater and instant coffee packs. I didn't drink those, but at least they have it. There were extra pillows and blankets which are always great. Ultimately my bed was not comfortable. It seems like it was an old mattress or needed to be flipped. I slept on the side near the tv, so maybe if I tried the other side it would have been more comfy? Who knows. They said they have an agreement with a parking garage 2 blocks away, the hours that I was working their price wouldn't have worked for me so I used parking panda and got a spot at a location down the block for 2 days at an about the same price than their $24/day price. And it was right across the street from the hotel. My room was near a center elevator that I think the staff uses and it was pretty loud but I was so tired I slept through it all anyway. So that was a negative. Most shocking thing to me was the shampoo! I was a little nervous cause I forgot my shampoo and conditioner and I have very long and thick hair. They only had shampoo and it was really good shampoo! My hair wasn't tangled or anything. It's the little things! Bottom line - it is an old old hotel. But for the price and proximity to everything downtown it is definitely worth it.

The cost and location. The rooms were good size adequate furnishing. Restaurant below are great food. Good service. Could use a renovation but that might increase price. It's within walking distance to Ford's theaters. The mall is close too.

This place needs to be condemned, and it was supposed to back in Nov 22. We walked into the hotel and we already had a bad vibe. We opened the door to our room and it was worse. There were holes in the walls, and to fill them in, they put toilet paper in the holes, the sheets and bed were there from when the hotel 1st opened up, and we kept rolling to the middle of the bed. The walls were paper thin so heard every person walking by the door and it felt like they were in our room. The rooms were small and no outlets. The bathroom was so tiny we couldn't keep our toiletries in there. The best part was there was a beautiful pair of underwear in the hallway that was still there when we checked out that afternoon. We were supposed to stay there 5 nights but only lasted one. The staff at the front desk were very nice and let us check out early (probably happens a lot). We went a few streets over and a few $$s more and so much better!

This was a very quaint place. I felt instantly at home. We had easy access to parking, the theater send restaurants. The staff were friendly and the price of the room was reasonable. The tile bathroom was totally retro. Great visit to Washington DC.

When me and my family stayed here it was a ok experience. When we first walked in it smelled like cat pee and my grandmas house. We got our key cards and we liked were we stayed. That night we heard people yelling and screaming at each other. couple nights later my mom dropped her glasses behind the dresser and when i moved it back i found a old bag of crackers laying there and i was disgusted. When i was making my bed i found stains on my bed sheets and they said "we cleaned it" before i even got into my room. Overall i will not be staying here any longer and i will take my money and my family somewhere else

Stay away from this bad hotel, The Spanish guy working on the reception it's very rude and incompetent, This is the bad hotel in whashinton dc.

If I could give them 0 stars I would! This hotel is more like a horror movie...the mattresses are from the 70's, smelled like smoke, and the paint was peeling off from the ceiling. The front door wouldn't close unless you locked it from the inside and push it very hard. The tv didn't work because the wires were spliced. After coming back to our room after a very long day we discovered we didn't have hot water so we couldn't shower. We tried to call the front desk and the phone didn't work so we had to use our cell phone. After about 40 min they fixed it but at this point it was 12:30am. They don't have Wi-Fi even though they advertise that they do. One of the room windows was duck taped shut and we couldn't air out the room from the smoke smell. The worst part is that our daughter woke up with bug bites all over her (probably bed bugs) luckily we left after that. Paying $200 a night we don't expect much except for a clean room and hot water.Don't ever stay here unless you want to see the twin girls from "The Shinning" movie come down the corridor!!!!

The staff was extremely friendly and polite. They helped with any directions I needed as well as information that I needed. The hotel does need some updates but for my daughter and myself it was not an issue. We were not in our room all that much because we were out exploring the city and all that it has to offer.

I picked this hotel for its convenient location for a few nights visit in July. It's not fancy and the decor is a little run down but my room was very clean and there was no mold in the bathroom, no evidence of pests. The staff were very pleasant. My room had a fridge but no coffee maker or tea kettle. I like to enjoy morning coffee in my pjs before heading out and sometimes tea late at night so that was disappointing. I can recommend this hotel for budget conscious travelers who are looking for clean but not fancy accommodations.

Won't recommend this location to any one. The property is not maintained well. Was not clean. Very old and unclean bedding. Things were broken and not in working conditions. Bathrooms doors won't lock. Main door locks are not proper. Air conditioning was not working properly. It was hot and humid in the room. Rooms were untidy. The Centralized AC inlet was making too much noise. Whole night it there was lot of noise from that vent. The only good thing is location of this Hotel other than that nothing is good about this hotel. Please do not book this Hotel it will ruin your experience.

I got the opportunity to stay in the oldest operating hotel in Washington DC recently, and I must say that for the price, I was quite happy with what I experienced. Located in the heart of the city, for younger travelling tourists or those on a budget this hotel is a perfect place to stay while visiting the city and seeing the many museums located within walking distance of the hotel. We stayed in a room that had once been three separate rooms separated by adjoining double doors. The doors have been removed over the years, replaced with simple sliding barriers to give some privacy. So we had a "room" that was originally three different rooms, each with their own bathroom, and a total bedspace for five people. During our time there we got to see lots of international folks streaming in and out of the hotel, as it was time for the International Scouting Jamboree. Lots of fun! The room itself was comfortable and the beds were solid. Room upkeep was done well, and I had no complaints there. The view from our room overlooked E Street, and that was nice. Soaking in the history of the hotel was a nice thing as well. This is a hotel that has seen a lot over the years. Well worth the stay, in my book!

It gets a 3 due to location. Good for budget minded but needs a few renovations like paint and new carpeting. Old hotel, no extras. But near Metro and many of the sights. Step above a hostel

Worst hotel that I've been to. They overcharged for my room and lock us out early eventhough we have reservations 2 months ahead and paid for. The hotel has no parking eventhough they said there's parking on their website.

I recommend this hotel. The staff was friendly. I will always remember the bell boy (man) spinning along with a scooter, then realized he was parking it. They let you leave your luggage there before being able to check in. That let us visit things for a half a day. It is a tight fit, though room is expensive in DC. It is an older hotel, you see the wear but you can see they try to keep it up. It was clean and many of the older things made it interesting such as the old style mail drop. The location was excellent and easy walking distance. The timeline display on the first floor of the history of DC and the country with the hotel could have you reading for a long time.

Great place if your not too wanting anything fancy. This place is old, don't expect allot but for the price and location, you can't beat it. Has a attached tavern that serves pretty good food and big portions!! Coffee shops and restaurants also near by. Overall the room was clean and the staff was very nice, would like to see ceiling fans in every room eventually since it's hard to figure out the AC.

So having been to DC before, I knew the hotel rooms are usually on the small side. I picked Hotel Harrington for the price and location to all the big touristy places. I arrived on a Sunday with my cousin. We got a room with two twin beds. Upon entering the room, we immediately noticed the stained carpet, the dings and paint chipping on the walls/baseboards. The radiator in the bathroom was on full blast heat, same with the room. Since the air conditioning unit is old, we didn't know how to turn it down at first so we propped open the window. I also opened the window in the bathroom which helped a lot. The bathroom is cute, black and white tile floors and vintage looking bathtub/shower. But beyond that, there were cracked tiles, the floor was dirty, the shower head had calcium buildup, the tub needed to be cleaned badly. I don't know what kind of convention was in town, but there were a group of kids sitting in the hallway on the 3rd floor blocking the hallway. And we could hear them as if they were right in front of our room. I'm guessing since their rooms were so small they couldn't hang out in there haha. In all, I would definitely pay more money to stay somewhere else. The location and the history is what sells this place. Everything else needs a serious upgrade. I will add though, when we checked in, the front desk staff were warm and welcoming!

Mold and many negative things such as cheap everything and etc. the hotel needs to shut down or renovate.

Let me start by saying this: No, I didn't "do my research" as much as another person might (I didn't scour Google and other such sites for reviews) because I actually trusted that a 3.3/5 rating was on the higher end toward 5 and for such a reasonable price, how could I go wrong? I am, after all, a broke millennial who just wanted her husband to have a nice 30th birthday in a place I knew he wanted to visit for a long time. Second: I was not expecting a top-rate experience because I wasn't dealing with a top-rate hotel. 3.3 out of 5 stars. 2,231 reviews equally 3.3 stars. I was expecting more than what I got. After a 7.5 hour train ride, we walk Washington and arrive at the hotel: "Hi, I know we're a little early, but I wanted to know if we could check in.." (about an hour- it was ~2pm, and their check-in is 4pm, which is an hour+ later than most hotels). The manager at the desk just stared at me and pointed to the clock on the wall without saying anything, which immediately filled me with rage. He eventually told me we could check our bags with bag check, so we did and we left to look at some spots in the city. First of all, communication would have been preferable but let me also tell you that I have arrived 4+ hours early at 5-star hotels and they have immediately brought us to a room. If that's not possible (which is unbelievable to me, since this hotel has thousands of rooms), tell me, don't point at the wall. I'm not expecting special treatment but again, communication is key. When we arrived to check in (for real, allowed this time) and went up to our room, a rickety elevator greeted us with so many cobwebs covering the ventilation at the top that dust was hanging off of it, which I can only assume must have been what was producing the perpetual stench of mold permeating the air. Stepping off the elevator didn't provide any additional relief- the hallway was musty and humid and way too warm, and the walls were dirty. It smelled terrible. We thought with hope the room would be better. We were wrong. Upon entering the room we noticed the walls were covered in scuffs, dirt, and unknown substances. The only thing that appeared clean was the sheets (thank god). When I went to plug my phone charger behind the bedside table I noticed with horror that the floor/wall/space hadn't been cleaned since 1997 and there was dust/crumbs/cobwebs/dust build-up all over he carpet, the back of the table, the outlet, etc. Disgusting. On the wall was a rusted metal pole that had an up-pointing arrow next to it that said "ON", which was the direction we had to push it to get the garbage barely-cooling air conditioner to try to do its job. The bathroom floor was sticky and there was- I am not kidding- bloody snot stuck and dried to the inside of the shower curtain. The shower head was green with age and black spotted with mold and the toilet had a lever to flush it like a school lavatory- so we literally had to step on it to flush the toilet. Every surface that was painted white had missing chunks of paint and cracks that showed the grey steal underneath. The TV was nice, until we turned it on. The guide didn't work and the service was poor enough that we had to set the display to the smallest setting to see anything without the fuzziness of antenna television. The carpeted floor of the main area was sticky with humidity (and whatever else) and I can tell you passionately that I was afraid enough of it to wear socks throughout our stay. I hate wearing socks indoors. I will say, the one redeeming experience was bell service. They were prompt with our bags and very cordial both times we used it. I went to the shop inside 3 times and every time the man behind the counter was on the phone on speaker with a friend/relative/whatever. We had been considering eating at the restaurant on the ground floor when we'd arrived but after we saw the decrepit condition of the living quarters we ate elsewhere every day of our stay. I do not recommend this hotel. The perk was location and the fact that Peet's Coffee is across the street, but there are a hundred other hotels in the area and many other Starbucks and Peet's. I am now under the impression that the reason Harrington Hotel's sign says "the tourist hotel" is because only a tourist with a limited budget would find this place a tolerable steal for a stay at the capitol. I am a tourist with a limited budget and I highly recommend you stay elsewhere. I like to think of my hotel room as a haven of peace and relaxation after a long day in a new city after sight-seeing and I was horrified every time we got back to this room. I will pay twice what I paid elsewhere to have a better experience in Washington next time I go.

Set your expectations. This place is over 100 years old, but the rooms are clean. If you're going to spend lots of time in your room, this may not be the place for you. The rooms are small and dated. There were 3 outlets in my room, and my USB charger kept falling out of them. I finally charged my devices in the bathroom. If you are going to not be in your room, then this is a good place for you. It isn't expensive and it is conveniently located to the good stuff. I got a good nights sleep and didn't spent a lot of money to do it. That works for me.

I'm going to try my best to be tactful with this review. If this is truly the oldest operating hotel in DC, then that's fun, but it's definitely not old in the charming, grand, historic sense... it just seems old and cheap. I'm giving two stars as a courtesy, mainly based on the hotel's convenient location. I elected to "sleep" fully clothed without covers, and I used my backpack as a pillow. If I could've slept standing up or levitating, I would've. I'm pretty laid back in general, but this place just grossed me out. Everything's pretty worn down and cheap, I noticed a distinct basement-like smell in the lobby, elevators, and my room, and had to try to overlook things that had clearly not been cleaned in a very long time. To be completely honest, I wonder if new coats of paint/caulk are added in lieu of cleaning.

Hotel Harrington is a wonderful iconic hotel in the heart of dc! It is the oldest operating hotel and it definitely has character along with a cool history timeline by the elevators. Yes, I agree that it needs a major update but if you're on a budget, this place is a winner. Great location, rooms were very clean but yes outdated (bring your own hair dryer), and did I mention great location? It's close to all the monuments, some iconic restaurants and bars and near metro stops. If you plan to lounge and stay at your hotel for a long time then you might want to stay at another place. But Hotel Harrington provides a great stay for those that need a clean place to crash and a great location. The staff is also very nice and accommodating. I would stay here again!

I wasn't expecting too much from this hotel, but wow--the Harrington really is dated. If you didn't know before, it's the "oldest continuously operating hotel" in DC and has plenty of history to it. Having stayed here for a night, it sure appears as if the last renovations were done at least 30 years ago. However, for its price, the basic amenities are all there--and there's free wi-fi. I read both Yelp and TripAdvisor reviews for this place before deciding to stay here. LOCATION: Conveniently located a mere 5 minutes away (by car) from the National Mall; it's 10 minute away if you're walking. It's also a few hundred yards away from the Trump Tower, Pennsylvania Avenue, a few minutes from the Verizon Center, and a short drive away from Chinatown. PARKING: Hotel parking (valet) is managed by PMI at 1220 E Street NW, and is walkable. It's only a couple of blocks away from the front doors of the hotel. Find Ollie's Trolley on the corner of E St. and 12th, cross the street, and walk towards Pennsylvania Ave. The garage will be on your left. PRICE: There were three of us staying here for the night, so our rate was $195/night--which is relatively cheap for 2 queen beds compared to the major hotels in the area (within 3 miles or so), which are in the $350 to $800/night range. ROOMS: They are old and clearly need an update. The rooms (including beds) are clean enough, come with a mini-fridge, an iron, a small desk, a small closet, and a cathode ray television with inconsistent reception (21st century translation: Those big, ol' boxy TVs that were around before flat screens became the standard). The biggest disappointments in the room was the bathtub and the AC system...err, vent. We were freaking out a bit since the water in the tub was not draining properly and the water was rising to about 2/3 of the way from my knees; maintenance came up and worked on it, but the issue persisted. There is no vent in the bathroom, and you could hear the water from the floor above you trickle down every now and then. The room was too warm for our liking, and there seems to be no way for us to make the room colder even after playing with the AC vent. Noise in general was a problem, but mainly because of the large school groups slamming their doors (yes, I'm talking about those of you on the 4th and 5th floors from this past Monday). FOOD: Harry's Restaurant is accessible from their 11th St. entrance or through the lobby. There's a bar right across from the restaurant, while Ollie's trolley is a 30 second walk away on the corner of E. St/12th. There are sandwich shops, cafes, a pizza place, and a Qdoba all about a minute away on foot. The best thing about the Hotel Harrington is the location. Rooms *need* to be remodeled. If you have business in the immediate area or are on a tight budget, this place is an okay, basic option. However, if you're looking for a more comfortable place to stay, keep searching and be prepared to shell out an extra $300 or so to get what you want.

CREEPY! UNPLEASANT, FEELS UNSAFE, BETTER OPTIONS/VALUE ELSEWHERE Taken in by the potential charm of a vintage property and moderately good reviews, we signed up for two nights at Hotel Harrington--but bailed after the first. Now I know, when people talk about run down old hotels that have been converted into public housing as warehouses for those waiting to die, what that space might feel like. There's virtually no public space beyond a tiny lobby and the hallways. So forget being out of your room, or finding a quiet corner to read or converse, unless you're willing to pay for the restaurants. Room itself was cramped and felt threadbare. Semi-gloss paint on the walls. Furniture of poor quality and repair. Creepy, creepy, creepy. Didn't find any bedbugs, but was shocked to see the mattress didn't have the bedbug/mite covers that are almost universal now. (Last hotel that didn't have them might have been ten years ago, so that's hundreds of nights.) Bathroom was nice--vintage bathtub, but clean and seemed like newly grouted walls. Even though we'd paid $200/night in advance for the room, my partner and I decided to leave as soon as we could, regardless of whether we got any money back. Management, by the way, was not cordial or supportive in this process, or much else in our interactions with them. (Although the cleaning staff were delightful.) We ended up at Kimpton Donovan Hotel, which was lovely and cost less.

This hotel would get three stars and a repeat customer if they replaced the beds, but sleeping on a worn out mattress drops it to two stars. Maybe get Casper or Tempurpedic or Purpler Mattress to be the sponsor of the new mattresses. But this hotel is a great location and price for everything Washington D.C. but don't come into this hotel thinking it has 21 century amenities. Which is ok for me but others will be instantly turned away. To make this hotel go from two stars to four would be FIRST and foremost replace the worn out spring mattresses to midFoam mattress or new spring mattress. SECOND retire the antique central a/c and add window a/c units. THIRD up date the electrical and clean up exposed outlets and wiring. FOURTH change out the shower heads. FIFTH remove all the paint used to cover up original wood work and all the wall paper. Embrace the style when each section of the building was built. SIXTH change the carpet out either with new or tile the floors and add rugs. SEVENTH is upgrade the cable service to HD, even though I didn't come to D.C. to sit and watch tv.