Located Steps from the White House and Showcasing Unparalleled
Views of the Historic City, W Washington D.C. Marks a Milestone in W’s
Continued Global Expansion
W Hotels Worldwide, the hotel category buster and industry innovator,
today unveils its first hotel in the U.S. Capital with the opening of W
Washington D.C., the W brand’s 25th hotel in North America
and 32nd globally. The closest hotel to the White House, W
Washington D.C. offers a progressive point of view and reveals
spectacular views from all sides of its 15th Street and
Pennsylvania Avenue location. Owned by Nakheel Hotels, W Washington D.C.
takes over the historic former Hotel Washington, which opened in 1917.
The new W Hotel mixes the historic building’s Beaux Arts
architecture with the edgy yet elegant designs of Los Angeles-based
designer Dianna Wong, setting the stage for W’s fully integrated
contemporary lifestyle experience, including POV (Point of View), the
hotel’s destination rooftop bar and lounge, boasting unparalleled views
of the White House and the city’s soaring monuments; W Living Room (W’s
take on the traditional hotel lobby); and two firsts for Washington
D.C.: J&G Steakhouse, from three-star Michelin Chef Jean-Georges
Vongerichten and Bliss® Spa, offering manicures, pedicures,
facials and massages in a fun, no-attitude atmosphere.
“W Washington D.C. is a global flagship for the W brand as we transform
from an American phenomenon to a global powerhouse,” said Eva Ziegler,
Global Brand Leader, W Hotels Worldwide and Le Méridien. “The hotel will
provide guests and locals alike with W’s unique signature programming
set in a cool design environment that gives a contemporary nod to
Washington’s long history and offers incomparable views of this most
scenic U.S. city.”
Iconic Architecture Mixes with Modern Design to Create the Capitol
of Cool
Acclaimed designer Dianna Wong has preserved the history of the iconic Beaux
Arts architecture of the iconic former Hotel Washington building
while super-imposing W’s design style of vibrant colors, innovative
textures, and cutting-edge elements that ring in a new era of modern
glamour for both Washington’s power elite and jet setters alike. Guests
first experience the contrast of Wong’s design as they walk through the
F Street entrance doors, where they are welcomed by a digital fireplace,
crackled paint, and deconstructed fixtures and artwork symbolizing “old
Washington” and the deconstruction of the former Hotel Washington. In
the W Living Room many of the building’s original architectural elements
have been restored to their former luster, including famed plaster
moldings, playful chandeliers and majestic arches. Wong’s duality of
masculine and feminine power, or as she deems it, “pinstripes and lace,”
serves as a design theme throughout the new hotel.
"It's been thrilling for me to work on the first W Hotel in the nation's
capital," said Dianna Wong, principal at Dianna Wong Architecture and
Interiors in Los Angeles. "The new Obama administration has brought a
sense of excitement, elegance and youthful energy to Washington D.C. and
this hotel captures those qualities. D.C. is the seat of power in
America, but the insider knows that the dynamics of power in this town
revolve around politics and pleasure. For me, this dance is symbolized
by pinstripes and black lace, a duality between masculine and feminine -
themes we use throughout the hotel. There is interplay here between
history and fashion, classic and sleek, monumental and sublime” added
Wong.
Mix and Mingle with Washington’s Power Set at POV Rooftop Bar
For decades, the former Hotel Washington’s famed rooftop terrace was the
most popular destination for presidents, politicos, and Washington’s
power set, providing the most renowned views of the White House lawn and
the city’s soaring historic monuments of any leisure spot in the
nation’s capital. With the opening of W Washington D.C., the rooftop
returns, reinterpreted as a modern cocktail lounge inspired by craft
cocktail expert Sasha Petraske.
