Capitol ideas: Washington D.C. welcomes more hotels

Holding court: The Courtyard by Marriott is in Washington D.C.’s fast-growing Capitol Riverfront.

By Mark Chesnut

The cherry blossoms are about to make their annual appearance in the nation’s capital, but business and leisure travelers will find an array of reasons to visit Washington D.C. year round, thanks to new hotels, meetings and event venues and urban renovation projects in the works.

One of the city’s new hotspots is the Capitol Riverfront Business Improvement District, adjacent to the Washington Nationals Stadium. This year, “the Front,” as it’s sometimes called, is debuting nine new restaurants and a brewery, within a complex called The Yards. The district is home to the 204-room Courtyard by Marriott Capitol Riverfront/Navy Yard.

Washington D.C. recently welcomed a new attraction that can also serve as an interesting venue for business events. The Ford’s Theatre Center for Education and Leadership, housed in a building directly across the street from the historic Ford’s Theatre, features two floors of permanent exhibits that highlight the effect of Lincoln’s death and his long-term legacy on the nation. Slated to open in 2015 is the National Museum of African American History and Culture, the newest of the Smithsonian Institution attractions.

Hotels are also upping their offerings in D.C. Of special interest to business-minded travelers is the Fairmont Washington D.C., which recently completed a multi-million-dollar renovation of its 24,000 squarefeet of meeting and event space. And new hotels will be making their debut soon — including the 1,175-room Marriott Marquis, which will have more than 100,000 square feet of meeting space when it opens in 2014, a 182-room Cambria Suites,  scheduled to open  in CityMarket in 2014, and a 48-room Capella Hotel, which will open in 2013 in the former American Trial Lawyers building in Georgetown.

Related resources

• Cheap Washington D.C. flights
• Washington D.C. hotels

Mark Chesnut is a travel writer, editor and publisher of LatinFlyer.com, which focuses on travel to Latin America. His first trip to Washington D.C. was on an eighth grade class trip.

Tagged: Family time, Hotels