Epic escape room austin12/4/2023 ![]() Indeed, the hotel is steeped in all kinds of history, not just spy history. Opened in 1925 and deemed “Washington’s second-best address” by previous American Presidents, behind the Mayflower Hotel’s classic façade hides some of its history of espionage. Ask the concierge for a tour of the space which they’ll oblige if a guest isn’t staying the night-which is available for a splashy (and not so secret) rate of $1,069 a night. This monument of mid-century space age glamour celebrates its notorious past in small ways (the pencils in the guest rooms say “I stole this from The Watergate Hotel”) to the large: “ The Scandal Room,” where the break-in went down, is preserved in historical ephemera glory with era-appropriate binoculars, a reel-to-reel tape recorder, and manual typewriter. Best known as the site of the 1972 White House break-in that ultimately led to the toppling and resignation of Richard Nixon, it does not shy away from its failed espionage laden history it embraces it. Located just steps from the Kennedy Center and historic Georgetown, the luxurious digs might have a killer rooftop bar, plush guest rooms, and an indulgent spa, but that’s not exactly what keeps it on the map. There’s quite possibly no hotel in the country as infamous as The Watergate. “The Scandal Room” at The Watergate Hotel | Photo courtesy of The Watergate Hotel And we've rounded up the best places to explore the city’s clandestine legacy.įrom hotels that celebrate their salubrious histories or specialty spy museums to historic sites, here’s where to peel back the layers on the center of world espionage in Washington, DC. Whether it's bars with names like “ Off The Record” to spots that draw in curious onlookers with espionage artifacts, spy tourism is practically its own entity here. After all, we are named after one of the country’s very first spymasters: George Washington.Īs a city living and breathing spy craft, a closer surveillance will show just how deeply it’s steeped into the local culture. In fact, DC’s affiliation with the world of spies is part of its selling point. ![]() And while there are certainly a lot of secrets here, the city’s role in espionage is definitely not one of them. It’s estimated that 1.4% of Washington, DC’s population are spies-that’s a fairly staggering percentage for a relatively small city with just over 700,000 residents.
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