A National Geographic Hotel?

• June 16th 2023

by UrbanTurf Staff

UrbanTurf has learned that plans are in the works to convert a portion of the National Geographic Society headquarters in downtown DC into a hotel.

A proposal for a 160-room hotel on the upper floors of the headquarters at 1147 17th Street NW (map) was briefly outlined in plans recently submitted to the city. The ground floor of the project will include a hotel lobby, two gallery spaces, and part of a museum. UrbanTurf reached out to National Geographic to see if a hotel operator has been chosen, but did not immediately hear back. 

The project, designed by Hickok Cole, will also include a bar and restaurant on the roof that will require approval from the Board of Zoning Adjustment. 

"The bar and restaurant establishment is expected to be initially operated by the hotel but may be operated by a third party in the future," documents filed with DC stated. "Access to the rooftop bar and restaurant will be made available to both hotel guests and outside patrons through a shared elevator lobby, and it will be operated year-round and open generally for the majority of the day and evening."

Designed by architect Edward Durell Stone, the National Geographic building was constructed in 1962 and is designated as a historic landmark. The building is currently used for office on the upper floors and museum space on the ground floor. 

Update: National Geographic provided UrbanTurf with the following statement: 

"As part of the National Geographic Society’s Base Camp project, we are exploring a number of ways to engage and host the public, which may include a hotel. We look forward to welcoming visitors to Base Camp, our Home of the Explorer, when we open the new experience in 2026."

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/a_national_geographic_hotel/21151.