Review of the Embassy Suites Old Town Alexandria for The Marine Corps Marathon

It would be hard to find a better location to stay for the Marine Corps Marathon!  LTD has stayed here for years and since last year the Old Town Alexandria Embassy Suites had a facelift.

Luxury Travel can be both Healthy and Meaningful at the same time!  Never forget our Marines by running the MCM, ending at the Iwo Jima Memorial!

The lobby is unchanged and still resembles the typical Embassy Suites with an atrium. This area could use a facelift as well and maybe it is in the plans.

Happy hour was also expanded to include call brands of mixed drinks which is a welcome change from beer and bad wine. Snacks are provided which generally include vegetables and dip, pretzels, cheese cubes, chips and salsa. Happy hour is two hours long and well attended.

The rooms have new carpeting, chairs and a completely updated bathroom. The bathroom now has sliding shower doors (yes I still hate shower curtains in hotels!!!), new vanities and tile. Our room is still cramped but this is a reasonable price to pay to have more vanity space. This could be overcome by having a bathroom door that swings outward and smaller trash cans. Oh well when I’m hired as a hotel bathroom designer, I can give these suggestions.

The beds have the welcome king sized pillows on a king sized bed. (Seems intuitive but rarely happens!) but overall the beds and pillows are not so comfortable. I do not believe those were updated like the bath rooms.

Breakfast is reasonable with made to order omelets, scrambled eggs, pancakes, yogurt, bagels, etc...typical embassy suites and nicer than a Hampton inn. I would prefer to see more fresh cut fruit. Bananas and cantaloupe don’t make the cut for me.

For the Marine Corps Marathon you won't find a better location because the proximity to King Street station gives you easy access to everything MCM:

Expo shuttle is 1 mile walking or one metro stop away

The MCM Expo is one of the Best Running Expos Around

Race start is three metro stops away and easy to get to for the early start to meet your friends.

You should always run with friends!

As a spectator, the race course is accessible from both metro lines stopping at king street - our favorite is yellow line to national archive stop and walk to mall for miles 17 or 19. This allows for brief stop in any Smithsonian museum during your spare time!

Visiting the finish line is difficult no matter where you stay in DC or Virginia. We have no solution for the family to unite in the chaos that is MCM finish line.

Don't forget a Cowbell to root on your runners!!!!

Before the race, make a visit to Arlington National Cemetery to understand the real meaning of the MCM.  It is closed during the race, but you won't regret visiting at any time!

Take time To Visit The Fallen at Arlington National Cemetery

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