The Watergate Hotel

Character and identity

Set on the Potomac in a Luigi Moretti building from 1961, this is a piece of Washington's skyline as much as a hotel: the sail-like curves are recognisable from Georgetown, the Kennedy Center and incoming flights into Reagan. After nearly a decade dark, it has reopened with a redesign that holds onto the swinging-sixties bones (the sweeping staircase, the indoor pool) and layers in Gucci grey marble, a custom LED ceiling and a mid-century-meets-millennial palette. Three restaurants, the rooftop Top of the Gate with 360-degree city views, the speakeasy-ish Next Whisky Bar and the 10,000-square-foot Argentta Spa anchor the experience.

Who's it for

Bottom line

The pull here is the building itself and what's been done with it: a genuine modernist landmark reopened with food, a rooftop and a spa that hold their own with the architecture. Book a river-view room for the Potomac and Kennedy Center sightlines, schedule a drink at Top of the Gate, and angle for the nautilus-curved nook inside The Next Whisky Bar.