The Willard InterContinental

On our trip to Washington DC in the spring of 2019 we had the opportunity to stay downtown.  Utilizing some rewards points available my wife found us a great hotel to stay at, only blocks from the White House, the Willard Intercontinental.  It was a great base of operations as we explored the city, mostly on foot, with no kids in tow.  We first arrived at the hotel shortly after arriving in town, long before we could check in, so that we could drop off our luggage.

A hotel has been around for many years on this location, but it has gone through many changes over the years. While the outside is old the interior was completely gutted in the last quarter of the twentieth century.  The hotel reopened in 1986 after being closed for almost two decades.

Our first view of the hotel from across the street.  This is actually the back of the building.

We walked past the back entrance along the side of the building.

Then we came to the main entrance at the front of the hotel.

Inside the lobby is quite elegant.

We didn't spend too much time as we were just dropping our luggage off, but once we came back later in the day to actually check in we got on the elevator and headed to our room on the eleventh floor.

I usually forget to take pictures until after we've messed up the room by living in it, but this time I remembered to take some photos right after we entered.

Downstairs an elegant hallway spans the length of the hotel, connecting the front lobby with the rear door, which we ended up using when our travels took us out that way.

I found the carpeting quite interesting.

I found a painting on the wall especially interesting as it features Alice Roosevelt Longworth.  I've been reading about Theodore Roosevelt for a while, but an even closer connection is that Alice (TR's oldest child) married Nicholas Longworth from Cincinnati, Ohio, just to the north of where we live.

One evening after some searching we discovered the Willard History Gallery, which is open 24 hours a day.  I won't cover the contents here, but you can view all of the photos (including many signs) in this album.  You can also read about the Willard's history online here.

This carpet was found in the lobby.

We also saw this beautiful flower display in the lobby.

Did you know that Kentucky politician "Henry Clay first introduced the Southern-style Mint Julep to Washingtonians" at a bar at the Willard?

 The ceiling of the lobby was also quite impressive with designs representing many different states.

While we'll probably never be able to stay in the hotel again (without points it is beyond our normal budget) but we really enjoyed our stay there and had a great time using it as a base for exploring the city.

If you want to see more pictures from the hotel check out this album.

~Matt