President-elect Donald Trump may consider his new Washington, D.C. hotel to be among the world's most luxurious, if not the best, but members-only organization Luxury Travel Intelligence (LTI) disagrees and isn't holding back in its "honest and unbiased" assessment.
LTI founder Michael Crompton recently shared the group's list of the best and worst new luxury hotels of 2016, which ranks the Trump International Hotel, Washington, D.C. as the third-worst luxury opening this year.
"The building itself is undoubtedly impressive, but once inside we start to ask questions," writes Crompton, referring to the Old Post Office building that houses the hotel and dates back to the late 19th century.
"LTI finds the décor a little garish and more quantity over quality," he adds.
Underwhelming service only compounds the problem, according to LTI.
"Service is poor on occasions and lacks confidence. The whole experience seems a little forced and therefore this place is not for the true discerning luxury traveler."
[READMORE] READ MORE: Democrats, Feds Go Back and Forth on Donald Trump's DC Hotel[/READMORE]
Despite the hotel's struggles, Crompton acknowledges that Trump's new status is likely to keep it relevant in the coming year and beyond. "No doubt the tourist hordes will keep the place eternally busy."
If there's any other good news to come of LTI's damning review, it's that at least two other hotels rank worse than Trump's new D.C. hotel, with Dubai's Palazzo Versace and the Four Seasons, Oahu coming in first- and second-worst, respectively in 2016.
The Four Seasons, Dubai DIFC and the W, Punta de Mita round out LTI's list of the five worst new luxury hotels this year.
While LTI's breakdown of Trump's new hotel is sure to sting, the president-elect could have bigger problems pertaining to his lease agreement with the General Services Administration. If Trump doesn't "fully divest himself of all financial interests in the lease" ahead of his inauguration next month, he could be in violation. However, the GSA has said it can't yet speculate on the potential consequences at this time.
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