Watergate Hotel Reopens After $125 Million: ‘No Need to Break In…’

The storied Watergate hotel, located on the banks of the Potomac River in Washington D.C., reopened after a six year, $125 million renovation.

Known as much for being a part of the complex where a break-in to Democratic campaign headquarters, which resulted in the resignation of President Richard M. Nixon in 1972, as for its cotemporary design and sophistication, the number of rooms was increased to 336 from 251, including 32 suites.

The property has 17,000 square feet (1,579 square meters) of new meeting and event space including a 7,000-square-foot (650-square-meter) ballroom.

The renovation preserved the 1960s exterior, but the interior was completely gutted and rebuilt. The look and feel was designed to evoke the 1960s Mad Men era and the hotel’s links to the Watergate scandal are memorialized in its customer service phone number, which ends in 1972, and recordings of speeches by president Nixon that will play in public restrooms.

(Photo: Accura Media Group)