HotelChatter - D.C.

The Fairmont Washington Has 105,000 Bees (On Purpose)

Jenna — 2009-05-20T16:08:03-05:00

<![CDATA[<img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/6929/fairmontbees.jpg" class="top"> Bees at the Fairmont Royal York, 2008. Last summer, we kind of got the heebies when we learned that the <A href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/The+Fairmont+Royal+York/ian/169544">Fairmont Royal York </a>in Toronto had purposely put <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2008/7/8/1460/39058/hotels/Fairmont_Royal_York_Has_40_000_Bees_Like_On_Purpose">40,000 honeybees </a>up on their rooftop to harvest their own honey in an effort to "enhance the hotel's culinary program." And now the <A href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/The+Fairmont+Washington+D.C./ian/126091">Fairmont Washington D.C.</a> has stuck three honey beehives up on its roof with the same goal, boasting a bee population totaling about 105,000 bees. Each hive has a queen and 33,000 worker bees: <blockquote>They travel up to three miles away from their rooftop home foraging for food, and always return to their respective hives. Nearby Rock Creek Park offers trees and plants with the

Which 'Ultra High-End' Boutique Hotel is Coming to D.C.?

Jenna — 2009-04-06T15:28:41-05:00

<![CDATA[<img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/6929/newdchotelsite.jpg" class="top"> <img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/3/q_n_a.jpg" class="right"> We've got some hot goss out of our nation's capital today: according to the <a href="http://washington.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2009/04/06/story8.html?b=1238990400^1804707">Washington Business Journal</a>, an "ultra high-end" 50-room hotel is on its way to Georgetown. Castleton Holdings Inc. and ICG Properties have "attracted an undisclosed high-end, boutique operator" to put its name on the hotel, which will be at the site of the former headquarters of the American Trial Lawyers Association (yes, the building pictured above that resembles your college dorm). From the <a href="http://washington.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2009/04/06/story8.html?b=1238990400^1804707">article</a>: <blockquote>Although the partners will not identify the hotel operator they have selected, [a rep] said, "The hotel concept we're looking at is unlike anything currently in D.C." The freestanding five-story brick building on 4,400

Should Politicians Pay Their Own Inauguration Hotel Bills?

Jenna — 2009-02-13T15:29:24-05:00

Yikes. An article this morning reported that New York Governor David Paterson and three of his aides allegedly racked up almost $20K in charges for their four-night stay at the AKA White House District hotel in Washington, D.C. for the inauguration — and it's on taxpayers to cover it.

According to the revelatory blog post on LoHud, each of the rooms Paterson's party occupied cost an average of $1,280 a night ("according to records of state-issued credit-card expenses"). This isn't hard to believe at all, considering most inauguration attendees spent an average of $600 per night — we know a room charge of twelve-hundo is not so unbelievable.

Obama Can See His New Digs From His Hotel Room

Jenna — 2009-01-05T17:15:15-05:00

<![CDATA[<img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/admin/hayadams.jpg" class="top"> As we <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/1/2/1254/80198/hotels/The_Obamas_Will_Check_Into_the_Hay_Adams_Hotel">reported last week</a>, <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/tag/Barack%20Obama">Barack Obama</a> and his family has moved out of their Chicago home and the gang has headed to D.C. For the time being, they're living in the historic <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/The+Hay+Adams+Hotel/local/2">Hay-Adams Hotel</a>; word on the street is that the girls started school today. No doubt the fam is up in the <a href="http://hayadams.com/washington-dc-suites.php">Presidential Suite</a> (duh), where the views are probably even better than this one from a Junior Suite at the same hotel: imagine waking up every morning and gazing out the window to see the White House your new home for at least the next four years. Big thanks to <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/courtneymay/3147578755/in/pool-hotelchatter/">CourtneyMay</a> for dropping this into the <a href="http://flickr.com/groups/hotelchatter/pool/">HotelChatter

Oprah Will Check Into Four Seasons D.C. for Inauguration

Jenna — 2008-12-23T11:18:38-05:00

<![CDATA[<img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/6929/oprahobama.jpg" class="top"> Oprah Winfrey has been perhaps Obama's loudest and proudest celeb supporter this year, and the rumor mill has been churning out all sorts of Oprah/Obama rumors since Barack was elected in November. We've <a href="http://blogs.suntimes.com/oprah/2008/12/oprah_winfreys_going_to_dc_for.html">heard that</a> she's been planning to tape a couple of special shows in the nation's capitol from the Kennedy Center Opera House, and, thanks to a <a href="http://www.nypost.com/seven/12192008/gossip/pagesix/dc_househunt_144905.htm">NY Post story</a> last week, people have been buzzing about the Winfrey possibly purchasing a mansion of her own in Washington to ensure she'd be close to Obama (<a href="http://blogs.suntimes.com/oprah/2008/12/oprah_im_not_moving_to_dc.html">false</a>). We're not so sure about that househunting thing now that we've heard (again from the <a href="http://www.nypost.com/seven/12232008/gossip/pagesix/we_hear_______145475.htm">NY Post</a>) that Winfrey is planning to shack up at