Tucked away in Washington D.C.’s upscale West End neighborhood, the Fairmont’s unassuming exterior belies the posh setting within. The garden courtyard is a beautiful melange of pink, mulberry and orange; grab a table in the marble-floored lobby for an air-conditioned vantage point during Washington’s hot and humid summer months. The Fairmont’s capacious guest rooms are decorated with a soft, natural palette consisting of cream, beige and ocher. Antiques and original art adorn these rooms, accompanied by Federal-style furniture. The hotel’s designers wished to carry the colors and feeling of the outdoor garden into the rooms; thanks to the guest rooms’ charming balconies that connect the two, they succeeded. The Fairmont’s Colonnade restaurant is most well-known for its brunch, which features crab, salmon, pate, tenderloin of beef and breakfast staples. For more local influence, try the Chesapeake Bay crap soup at Juniper.