OK, let me be the first to say that my problems are probably not indicative of how the hotel really is. My problems were with the room itself and not the staff or the cleanliness.

First off, the hotel is right on the Metro stop, so you're just a few steps away from riding right into the middle of the DC action. Secondly, the hotel is within walking distance of a 4 story shopping mall and the beauty of that is you can walk over there all indoors via pedestrian walkways and bridges. The location of the hotel is first rate. You do, however, have to park in the public garage and they tack on $17 to do that a night.

The staff was very polite and helpful. They even let me know I could apply the room to my airline miles but I couldn't find my card with the number on it so it didn't do me any good. It was nice of them to let me know about it, though.

The restaurant on site was on the mezzanine level. The only contact I had with that place was a drink at the bar, and that was fine.

The room itself was nicely decorated. The bed was nice and comfortable with nice bed linens and there was a large hutch where the TV was located. They supplied you with plenty of pillows.

The bathroom was nicely done. Nice fixtures, plenty of goodies such as soap, shampoo and a shower cap. All in all, the room at first glance had great potential.

Now on to the bad list: the heating unit was extremely noisy and kept cutting on and off every 20 minutes. The clock radio supplied was a little difficult to operate. I figured it out but I think a standard clock radio would have worked well here instead of their "Hilton brand" clock radio.

Now on to the big thing: we were leaving at 9AM, so I didn't wake up until 8:15 or 8:20. I was going to take a quick shower and get dressed and leave. When I turned the shower on there was NO hot water!!! I let it run for a while but nothing happened. I was totally disappointed. It was that one thing that ruined the experience for me. It was running 4 or 5 stars up until then. It was hard for me to give it anything more than 2 stars. I could have called to complain and wait around for them to fix it, but we were in a hurry.

Anyway, my stay isn't an indicator of how your visit might turn out. I say give them a try. They might work for you. They just didn't for me.

I reserved this hotel for my parents to stay for a week over Thanksgiving. They has a great room and were treated so nicely by the staff they didn't want to come to my house for the last few nights after the other guests had left, even though I had just purchased a new guest bed!
The hotel even honoed the reasonable rate I got in advance on the internet even though I had made a mistake with the dates. Overall a terrific experience. I agree it can be a little hard to find the first time driving.

I made a fairly last minute reservation at the Arlington Hilton when business had me in Northern Virginia. Finding the building was easy, but it could be a tad confusing if someone didn't know the Ballston area of Arlington.

Check in was fast and easy. The clerk gave me a new parking ticket that would get me in and out of the pay garage beneath the building. Unfortunately, he didn't tell me that I'd also need the original ticket ot exit and I got yelled at by the woman working the booth at the garage exit.

The lobby is small and attractive. The elevators are quick and well lit. The room was a very nice surprise. These are big, newly rennovated rooms. Big closets, plenty of furniture, good lighting and a nice little coffee station all by itself, so the coffee maker doesn't take up room on the bathroom counter (a small pet peeve of mine).

The hotel's location is fantastic - there's a metro station just around the corner and plenty of shopping one "neighborhood" over in Clarendon. While the Ballston Mall is attached to the hotel, I've always found that place to be a bit low-end and I avoid it. It's much better to drive a few blocks down Wilson to eat or walk around and window shop. For drivers, the hotel is a few blocks from 66 and backroads provide quick, easy access to suburbs like Langley, Falls Church and Fairfax.

I didn't eat at the hotel, but I did take advantage of the fresh brewed Starbucks coffee in the lobby. A nice, free touch.

NEXT REVIEW (SEE CAMINAR, RITZ-CARLTON, HOLLAND HOUSE, GRAND CASE).

I had a terrible experience with the Hilton in Towson, Maryland, terrible, terrible would never go there again.

However, this Hilton in Arlington was okay. At $130-150 it was okay. Location, Location, Location.

The thing that saved this hotel a bit and the most appealing (woman wise) feature is that there was a neat little mall with a department store Macy's (I believe) right next door without having to go outside. It was also a short drive from the Capital.

I stayed during the summer and the hallways were really hot but thank goodness the A/C worked in the rooms.

Room was spacious enough (tiny bit bigger than average) and nice enough Bathroom had most of the amenities I like.

BIG PEEV:
Had to pay $20 per day for GYM and it was not on the premise.