Kimpton Hotel Monaco Washington DC

My husband and I were set on getting married at a hotel as are families are not from the area. We toured I would say almost every hotel in the DC area that could hold 140 guests and it was, for the most part, basement ballroom after basement ballroom. Hotel Monaco was the last venue we looked at and honestly wasn't high on my list as the images on the website didn't really pull me in (especially the carpet). But once we arrived for our tour, we both knew this was the venue for us! The hotel itself is extremely historic lending two gorgeous ballrooms on the 4th floor with floor-to-ceiling windows and ornate walls and architecture. We worked with a few Directors of Catering as with the pandemic came some turnover, but ultimately Joseph ended up being our DOC. He was extremely organized, so nice, and answered all of our questions along the way. Julian who was our banquet captain was fabulous. Our tasting was incredible! The chef was able to accommodate my dietary restrictions and in the end many for various guests. We got married in the Paris Ballroom in the nontraditional setup of using their stage at the end of the room. Our cocktail hour was in the Athens room and then we headed back to Paris for the reception. Our guests raved about the beautiful rooms, the amazing food, the specialty bride & groom cocktails, and the staff. Beyond the wedding, our guests loved staying at the hotel and again raved about the friendliness of the staff. We would 100% recommend Hotel Monaco to anyone!

A wedding at a hotel was not on our radar when we first started planning our wedding. We absolutely did not want a “big box” ballroom wedding. We wanted history, interesting architecture and maybe a little bit of glamor. Hotel Monaco delivers on those things. The hotel itself is remarkable. The high ceilings and marble staircases brought a sense of drama. The fact that the building itself is the old post office meant that we weren’t going to be stuck in a cold, square box. But the team at Hotel Monaco sealed the deal. From our initial planning with Emani to our day-of contacts Natalie and Joseph, the Hotel Monaco team never dropped the ball. They stayed on top of all of our requests and made sure that every detail was in place. When we made requests we were pretty sure would get rejected, the team happily accommodated them or provided alternatives. Natalie and Joseph made themselves readily available to us and we are extremely grateful for all of the work they (and the rest of the Hotel Monaco team) put into making our wedding feel so special. This doesn’t just apply to the event staff, but the front desk and valet/porter staff as well. They were always ready to help and were always cheerful and gracious. But the food. Let me tell you about the food. It was so good. From our rehearsal dinner at Dirty Habit to the cocktail hour and then reception itself, the food was on point every single time. We had multiple guests tell us that the short ribs were some of the best they had ever had. The serving sizes were also generous, so no one went hungry. We also had a handful of dietary restrictions that the hotel accommodated with ease. We were often asked about the theme for our wedding. If we had one, it was that we wanted to bring our family and friends together for a night of celebration with good food and dancing. It’s now been a month, and we’re still getting feedback that our wedding was one of the “most fun” weddings that many of our guests have attended. Hotel Monaco deserves a lot of the credit for that and we are grateful.

After our original venue in D.C. was sold and all 2021 events canceled, we reached out to Hotel Monaco. We were on a time-crunch to rebook (only 8 months out from our wedding date) and the space was everything we were looking for: a location in D.C. that was classy, had history and character, and was within our budget. The events team was incredibly responsive and we had a signed contract within days. I was pretty adamant about not getting married in a hotel ballroom (I spend a lot of time in hotel ballrooms for conferences so couldn't imagine getting married in one), but I can assure anyone reading this that Hotel Monaco is *not* your average ballroom. The spaces (Paris Ballroom for ceremony and reception, and Athens for cocktail hour) are breathtaking and one-of-a-kind. Beyond the venue, the events team is incredible. I asked A LOT of questions and Natalie was incredibly responsive and helpful. Our package included a complimentary night in the presidential suite and a discounted rate for the night before the wedding, which made the perfect spot for me (the bride) and my family to get ready. And there were so many places within the hotel to get pre-ceremony photos! Our guests, most of whom were local to the D.C./Northern Virginia area, also loved that we were married at Hotel Monaco. Not because it was so close to home (which is what we thought they'd appreciate the most), but because they didn't have to travel from ceremony location to reception location to home. We had to keep adding rooms to our room block because so many people wanted to stay the night. We would book Hotel Monaco again in a heartbeat!

It was a pleasure to work with Buddee and he exceeded our expectations. Buddee and his entire staff were extremely professional and they truly made sure that we had the best day of our lives. We would recommend The Hotel Monaco and Buddee to any of our friends and family looking for a fantastic wedding reception venue. The process starts with Buddee tailoring our wedding day to our specifications, and making sure no detail gets overlooked. The menu tasting exceeded our expectations, and it was really nice to see and taste all the delicious food we had for us and our guests. Buddee even made recommendations to us based on our tastes and feedback to him. Buddee and his staff really went out of their way to provide what they called “signature moments” for our day, and it truly made a difference. And of course, the cocktail hour space and main ballroom are absolutely amazing. The domed ceiling and white columns made it the perfect venue with a “DC feel” for us to have our reception, while still having the convenience of a classic hotel. Once item we were concerned about was the food, since never having been there for a wedding. You always hear that the food is going to be good, but The Hotel Monaco blew us away. The food was fantastic, and we received so many complements about the food, the presentation and the atmosphere in general. The ballroom and the unique architecture of the hotel provided an amazing backdrop for pictures. One of our favorite pictures of the night was us on the spiral stairs outside of the main ballroom. When I first got to the bridal suite on Friday, I was welcomed by a phone call from Buddee personally, asking if we needed anything. The care and attention to detail that Buddee and his staff provided us was like nothing I have ever experienced. My fiancé and I were very confident leading up to the wedding that everything would run smoothly and we can say that every single thing was perfect. During the wedding, their “Chief of Staff” during the reception took special care of our table, and made sure we had everything we needed. They even took special care of our parents, which made it feel very extra special. We are very thankful for Buddee’s hard work and he helped make our wedding day the most memorable day of our life!

Having our wedding at the Hotel Monaco was one of the best decisions we could have made! The event coordination team is incredibly professional and took care of everything. Buddee is great to work with and was a huge help in working with our vendors to make sure the day went off without a hitch. We loved the space and the affordability and coordination efforts exceeded our expectations.

We absolutely loved having our wedding at Hotel Monaco! It was extremely convenient having everything at one location, and made the wedding even more enjoyable for our guests since they were able to all be at one central location, and then be able to walk to everything around the city. The food was absolutely amazing, and the service was beyond anything we could have imagined. The little things that the staff did really made our day even more enjoyable (ex. setting aside a plate of hors d'oeuvres from the cocktail hour for us to enjoy in between doing pictures and before going to the cocktail hour, cutting a large portion of our wedding cake and saving it for us, since we missed having any during the reception, providing a complimentary bottle of champagne for us to enjoy once we got back to our room). Hotel Monaco (especially Buddee, their Catering/Events Director) really went above and beyond to make our wedding day even more amazing!!

Buddee is a total pro when it comes to running the show for your wedding. He is really easy to work with and makes sure that you've thought of everything when it comes to your day. The venue is top notch and they do a great job with service. The food was really good and the staff kept the evening moving. I can't recommend this place enough as a venue it added to our evening being amazing.

The venue was a dream. It is unique in its decor, its theme, and location. The architecture and hidden entrances provide fantastic locations for photoshoots. My only criticism was working with the venue coordinator. We had heard nothing but praises for him and were sorely disappointed by his treatment throughout the entire process. While the day of the wedding was executed perfectly, we did not feel welcome and he was not as responsive as we were told he would be. It almost seemed like it was a bother to work with us. Nevertheless, the Hotel is magnificent and we loved our day!

My husband and I recently got married at the Hotel Monaco and Washington, DC (October 2016) and had the best experience ever! So many of our guests commented that it was the most elegant and best wedding they have ever been to! We worked with Buddee Clinton at the Hotel for about 10-11 months before our wedding and he was always very helpful and responsive to my questions and emails and calls! We used the Paris Ballroom for both the ceremony and reception and it was just lovely. We used the Athens Ballroom for the cocktail hour. The food is absolutely fantastic. Our dinner started with a garden salad and goat cheese tart and we did a choice of the honey and herb roasted chicken or the grilled salmon. And we did both the pomegranate mousse and chocolate dome as the desserts among the guests. The dinner and dessert is so filling and delicious! We still had a wedding cake, but you do not need a massive cake at this venue since dessert does come with dinner! We had two bar stands which was great because no one was ever waiting for a drink and there was wine service with dinner! I would recommend this Hotel for anyone looking to get married in Washington, DC. The rooms have just been recently redone and the bridal suite was big enough for all of the girls to get ready in. We also used the new restaurant Dirty Habit for after-reception drinks in the outdoor courtyard area which was beautiful on a nice Fall night. All of our guests were very impressed with the hotel and we loved the fact that there were no other weddings at the hotel that night. The hotel is exclusive to your wedding in the fact that there cannot be another wedding happening in the hotel on the same night as yours. We can't wait to get back for our anniversary or just to have dinner at the restaurant! A perfect choice for the ceremony and reception!

We were incredibly pleased with the Hotel Monaco as our wedding venue, and can’t imagine it could have been any better. Buddee (Director of Special Events) has been doing this for many years, really knows what he’s doing, and has great taste. He and Eric were exceptionally helpful, well organized, and wonderful to work with. We were pretty organized ourselves, and did not feel a need for a wedding planner or day-of coordinator, as Buddee kept us on schedule leading up to the wedding, had good suggestions on vendors (though we found some less expensive ones on our own), and was on top of everything the week and day of. The Hotel Monaco got rave reviews from our guests. It’s exactly the unique, unconventional hotel experience that we had hoped for. Location is great, within easy walking distance of DC attractions, many restaurants and bars, and Metro. The front desk was terrific, as we experienced ourselves and many of our guests told us, and the lobby and rooms are beautiful and recently redecorated. The bridal suite (one night included) is gorgeous. Guests can even borrow yoga mats and bikes, and partake in free wine at 5 PM every day in the lobby. The Paris Ballroom, where we had the ceremony and the party, and the Athens Room, where we had the post-ceremony reception, are both beautiful and also recently redecorated. Our Jewish ceremony under a simple Chuppah inside the columns and under the dome in the Paris Ballroom was gorgeous. We didn’t spend extra for chairs or tablecloths, and the standard ones looked stylish and the chairs were very comfortable. At Buddee’s suggestion, we put family pictures on the bookcases, which was a nice touch. Although I know they could fit more, the room worked perfectly for the 143 guests we ended up having, and probably would have been fine up to 170 or so, even with a large band (Bachelor Boys Band). Most of our guests danced most of the time, which was great and packed the dance floor, but it made for a fun, awesome vibe. The room is so beautiful that we didn’t think it needed much, but the classy, artistic flowers from Yellow Door (on Buddee’s list) were perfect. We weren’t really planning to get lighting, particularly once we found that all of the DC vendors we contacted had $2,000 minimums. But we found what turned out to be an incredible lighting company, Baltimore’s Premier Event Solutions, which really transformed the already gorgeous room with 8 LED uplights and a dance floor light for less than half that much. (See my review under DJs.) Our parents had some concern that our 7-piece band, including sax and horn, would overpower the room and be too loud, but it worked out just right. But the Bachelor Boys’ equipment apparently focuses sound on the dance floor, so this could be different with other bands. The food service was amazingly well coordinated and fast, and the food that was served to my husband and me when we were away from the table was reheated without our asking. The food (on the less expensive menu) was delicious, interesting, and had large servings that were beautifully plated. The passed hors d’oeuvres at the cocktail reception were also good and seemed to be plentiful; the one extra we elected for was 2 cheese displays and 2 veggie displays (total cost $870), which the guests seemed to appreciate. I am trying to think of anything to criticize, but amazingly I really can’t!!!

The Hotel Monaco has always been my dream location, and it was everything I had hoped for! Buddee Clinton, the wedding coordinator, is incredibly knowledgeable and helpful. Whenever we met with him it was clear we were in great hands! The hotel is beautiful and so unique - there's nothing else like it! The week of the wedding, the entire staff was so helpful and friendly they made it stress-free. The food was delicious, and the Paris Ballroom is a gorgeous ceremony AND reception spot.

Everything ran flawlessly at Club Monaco. Buddee Clinton can be slow to respond in the beginning but ultimately delivers. The food was a little overcooked at the wedding-that was disappointing but I know it is hard to cook for such a large quantity. We had 175 in the room and it was wonderful. Our service was in the round. It was BEAUTIFUL, UNIQUE and nice to see faces of our loved ones during the ceremony. The natural sky light over our chuppah was amazing. I was nervous about there being room for the dance floor and a 10 piece band but the Monaco made it work and it was perfect!

The Monaco is an absolutely beautiful hotel and a unique historic venue with wonderful service. I am so happy we had our wedding there. We have received many comments about how nice everything was and how much fun family and friends had. Buddee at the Monaco put a lot of time into helping plan and execute our wedding; it was greatly appreciated. Also he was very responsive to our questions and very patient with my brother with special needs, to figure out the best way he could fit into the ceremony and reception and be the most comfortable.

Originally I had vetoed hotels and country clubs because I wanted something more unique than the typical gilded banquet room. Our church was near Penn Quarter and I was looking into rooms here when I saw the photos of their ballroom. It was a perfect wedding for 130 people (they say it can fit up to 200 but I wouldn't go above 150, it was very intimate feeling without being packed in). We were sold when we saw the building, beautifully renovated; modern while still preserving the architectural features that make it "DC". The food was amazingly good, the service perfect, and they are 100% pet friendly. We don't even have pets but loved this! Other reviewers have said Buddee was difficult but I found him ideal. He is not your wedding planner, he is your hotel coordinator. He's prompt with replies and gets to the point. If you want a best friend, pay for a wedding planner. If you want a fantastic, stress-free wedding go with Buddee and his team, they know what they are doing. All of this for less than the other hotels in DC and for less than a venue rental + catering.

Our wedding reception was at Hotel Monaco in DC and we couldn't have been happier. We loved the space - the food is excellent, and Buddee and his staff are truly experts. They made the day flow quite smoothly -- despite the unexpected snow. My only complaint (and we heard this from several guests) was that the food was cleared way too quickly. The food is REALLY good- people wanted to eat it - and it was cleared too fast. Otherwise, an amazing location - great for pictures (love the staircase and hallways) and just a beautiful spot!

All of our guests raved about the Hotel (its beautiful) and Buddee was a pleasure to work with!

We got a great wedding block discount on rooms at the Hotel Monaco. Kimpton Hotels have lots of fun extras - goldfish by request, free happy hour, 'raid the mini-bar' credits for loyalty members, etc. Gorgeous hotel, and they delivered complimentary chocolate-dipped strawberries and bubbly, and other snacks, to the bridal suite.

Very neat architectual space, old building with modern furnishings. Also great history to the space and in a fun area of town;Great deal--excellent food from Poste restaurant (award winner), not from catering kitchen. No additional fees for cake cutting, dance floor etc which rack up at other locations. No min spend for use of space. Cocktail reception space is very bland and they were pretty light on the canape service. Event staff helpful in the planning, very responsive but not overly friendly.

there was a skylight above the dancefloor, roman pillars around the venue