Crowne Plaza Old Town, Alexandria

I originally stayed at the Crowne Plaza Alexandria last year for five nights and thoroughly enjoyed everything about my stay. The staff was extremely friendly, the food great, the availability of having a shuttle to take you to the Metro and to Old Town saved a lot of wear and tear - and the rooms? Clean, with wonderful views of the Capitol building across the Potomac. I raved about the place to my girlfriend who is a well-seasoned world traveller and seemed skeptical - UNTIL we stayed there for six nights this year - AND EVERYTHING WAS EVEN BETTER THAN LAST YEAR! They have the best staff around - Florina and Obed were always helpful and at times would go out of their way for us. The restaurant staff was always courteous and friendly, the kitchen has changed - and the food was even better this year than last, with some awesome sandwiches and salads as well as the best breakfast value in Old Town. And the shuttle - always there, always courteous. Just a total pleasant experience - we're already talking about going back and staying there again this year!

We stayed the last weekend in Aug '09. It was a nice hotel. Clean, quiet, and no complaints. There is a $20 per day parking fee not noted until you actually book the hotel. Our rate was $85 per night for 2 double beds- standard room and with the $20 parking fee, we still did better than other hotel rates. I thought internet access was included, but it was not. I checked for bed bugs, but did not see any. If you decide on this hotel, from my experience, it would be a good choice.

I thought it was a very nice, clean, comfortable hotel. I loved the little goodie bag on the bed and the relaxation CD that comes with the room. The bed is terrifically comfortable!! The only thing missing that I would like to have had is a mini fridge. Other than that I can't complain with a complimentary buffet breakfast!!

The hotel was very nice. We would stay there again if we went back. The beds were so comfortable. The staff was very friendly. The grocery store is only around the corner about a 5 min walk and there is also a Mcdonalds and Wendy's a 2 min drive away. I would highly recommend this hotel for anyone who will be in the Virginia area.

We scheduled our stay with Priceline and had no issues, but got a GREAT deal (I would recommend using it to save some $$) Our view was great on the the 7th floor, but would probably be even better on a higher floor. The internet service was fine on the 7th floor, maybe a little slow compared to what I am used to, but it was fine for what I needed it for. The shuttle to the airport and Metro was great. There were not a lot of restaurants within walking distance that were open after 5, so we tried the room service. The room service and pizza were pretty good. I did have to ask for housekeeping to give me new glasses after 2 days, and they just wiped out the ones that I had. There are a lot of nice parks and trails within walking distance. They are doing renovations, but other than the lobby being re-wallpapered and painted, and our room being dusty, it wasn't a huge inconvenience. I didn't notice that there was a $15 per day charge for parking, so be prepared for that when you make your reservation. The room was very comfortable and clean, other than the dust. All in all, we had a great stay.

Renovating the front entrance and the 3 floors above me, I could hear jack hammers and other tools starting pretty early in the morning. Concrete dust everywhere, especially in the elevators. The wallpaper in the hallway on my floor was half peeled off, I guess this floor's next, if they'll just wait until I'm gone. The view they said I'd have is not that great, my room is at the corner of the building, and I have to crane my neck to see the water. The carpet in my room is greatly in need of shampooing, but I guess they're getting to rip it out anyway... They should have warned me about the renovations when I made my reservation.

My sister was attending a conference from out of town at the Crowne Plaza, so we decided to meet for lunch at the Chequers restaurant there. It was the worst restaurant experience we have ever had. None of the orders arrived as they had been described in the menu (the undercooked children's cheeseburger had no cheese, the children's pizza plate came without the side items, the salad didn't have tortilla strips with it, and the panini sandwich was cold). The reason none of these problems could be rectified is that once our server brought the food no one ever came back to check on us. On top of the awful meal, our check had incorrect prices on it. The children's meals were listed at $3.99 in the menu, but we were charged $4.99. The hostess said she couldn't override what was in the computer, so we were left with few options. Very overpriced food that was low quality.