We’re not generally drawn to traditional hotels, and a Georgian townhouse hotel is about as traditional as it gets in London. But we make exceptions for conservatism in the name of something that’s worth conserving — and the old-school London luxury hotel is a tradition that’s worth hanging on to. And like so many of the purest examples of various national traditions, the Kensington happens to be a foreign creation: that of the Doyle Collection, an Irish concern.
In a town as traditional as Washington, a little bit of modern design goes a long way. The newly redesigned Dupont Hotel is, in its subtly stylish way, one of the hippest hotels in the nation’s capital. It’s the only hotel on Dupont Circle, in a neighborhood better known for dining, nightlife and entertainment than for monuments or institutions — which, provided you’re not here with your high school history class, is definitely a good thing.