The Kimpton hotels all seem to be well decorated with friendly attentive staff and this location was no different. I had a enjoyable stay. Nearby restaurants are good and inexpensive too.

My husband and I stayed at the Palomar for a mini-romantic getaway. We were greeted and there was a small mix-up, I had booked a room with the $1/drink deal and that wasn't listed on my reservation, but they honored it. I had also signed up for the loyalty program and they had us on the list for an upgrade, but I guess the hotel was booked.

My observations of the lobby was that this was a hip and eclectic place - the music was thumping and the people were from all walks of city life. I also noticed what appeared to be visitors from around the world. Think a Benetton advertisement in real life. The ages of the guests ranged from 20's to the 70's - I did not notice any children around.

The wine hour was very highly-attended (it was a Saturday), and the wines were nothing special. They offered flatbread and olives.

The rooms were nice (we had the king spa room) - the bed was comfortable, there was a big walk-in closet, the spa tub looked nice and there was a separate stall shower. They offered robes and socks. We had a deal where we got $10 worth of free items from the mini bar, but we didn't take advantage of it. Our view was of the building next door.

We were disappointed that the restaurant was not available for breakfast until 8 AM, in fact, we actually left and got breakfast elsewhere. It kind of spoke to the vibe of the hotel that it was not an early-riser type of place.

I would stay there again, but it would not be a first choice for a romantic getaway - this is a place I would go with girlfriends for a night out.

I stayed in the Palomar Hotel in Chicago and loved it so didn't hesitate to book this one in DC. Check in was a breeze. They'd already emailed me before to see if I wanted to opt for a reduced price upgrade if a room was available. It was so we ended up in a suite on the9th floor.

The room was great with contemporary furnishing,everything spotless and funky animal print robes. We also got a $10 off the minibar voucher thrown in which was nice. The only gripe was the TV had a few channels which were a bit grainy.

Every evening they have free wine and nibbles in reception. We only made it once but it was very relaxed and the reception surroundings are very comfortable with sofas and a faux fireplace.

The bar is accessed by walking through Urbana restaurant and they have a happy hour between 4-7pm (or 5-7pm? it's all a blur) where you can get various reduced price drinks includingsparkling wine for $5 per glass and Peroni lager for a similar price. The staff were very friendly and warned us well in advance for last happy hour orders. I also recommend th calamari available in the bar and the restaurant. V good.

We asked and were granted a late 1.30pm checkout on Sunday which enabled us to go up to Washington Zoo (free entry!) and back. So nice to get some activity in on the day of checkout without having to vacate the room first.

The hotel is in the Dupont Circle area of Washington and is a 10 min walk through a posh residential neighbourhood to the centre of town and the White House etc. It is also 100 yards from the Dupont Circle Metro station from where you can get anywhere for a few $. There's some nice neighbourhood shops in the road including a pet shop, kebab shop, Thai, Chinese takeaway, Starbucks next door a small supermarket opposite and the cool Scion restaurant (www.scionrestaurant.com) where we had a nice meal one night. Comfort food best describes Scion!

There's free wireless internet available if you sign uo to the Kimpton In Touch website and it was a good connection throughout the hotel. The one thing you notice in this hotel throughout is how friendly the staff are. They all seem very happy and will always greet you as you pass through.

Next time I'm in Washington (I work for National Geographic) I will definitely stay here again. Absolute value for money and a great hotel experience.

Note, they also allow dogs in here as we saw a few in there.

I cannot fault the service and in particular Phillip, the concierge, my sister and her new husband stayed at the hotel for their wedding night and I telephoned from the UK to arrange a gift to be placed in their room. On telephoning the hotel I was put though to Phillip who immediately emailed me (to save on long distance phone calls) with the telephone number for the shop in question, he then liaised with the shop direct before picking up the gift and placing it in the room. He kept me informed throughout the whole process by email. A big thank you for making this process seem so easy from so far away. Next time I am in Washington I will definitely be staying at this hotel as the service was so outstanding.