BETHESDA, Md. – AC Hotels by Marriott, part of Marriott Bonvoy’s portfolio of 30 brands, has opened the doors to its newest hotel in the heart of downtown Bethesda, Md. AC Hotel Bethesda Downtown welcomed its first guests on Tuesday, August 16.
OTO Development, part of The Johnson Group, developed and will manage the new hotel, which is adjacent to and shares amenities with Avocet Tower, an office building developed by Stonebridge.
The 18-story AC Hotel Bethesda Downtown has 220 guest rooms and more than 11,000 square feet of shared space complete with a signature restaurant. Other amenities include 3,500 square feet of flexible top-floor meeting space with an outdoor terrace overlooking Silver Spring, Tysons Corner, Arlington, and Downtown D.C., and a 5,000-square-foot fitness center with a full range of weights, cardio equipment, a yoga studio, a spin room, and stellar views.
“AC Bethesda is filled throughout with the details that matter most to discerning travelers,” says general manager Chris Raines, who heads up a leadership team including Maria Bardos, CGMP, director of sales, and Jim Barnett, director of food and beverage. “From commissioned artwork to top-tier amenities to intuitive technology, even high-end toiletries, our hotel is designed to provide guests with everything they want—and nothing they don’t—in a well-designed, thoroughly considered space.”
Corella Café & Lounge is named after the hometown of Antonio Catalán, the founder of AC Hotels. With minimalist aesthetics featuring 23-foot ceilings, the venue is designed to serve everything from locally roasted morning coffee to late-night bites and creative cocktails. Seating is available inside, at the bar, and out on a street-level patio.
Corella’s signature cocktail—a tea-infused gin martini—celebrates Bethesda’s Madonna of the Trail, the first in a series of 12 granite mother-and-child statues placed along a key 19th-century migratory route stretching from Maryland to California. The cocktail ritual echoes the 12 Madonna of the Trail statues with a mix of 12 ingredients, including gin from Tenth Ward Spirits, a local distillery.
AC Hotel Bethesda Downtown is located at the intersection of Montgomery and Wisconsin, just a few blocks from Marriott International’s new global headquarters and only seven miles from downtown D.C. The hotel is a one-minute walk from the Red Line Metro Station and a three-minute bike ride to the Capital Crescent Trail; it is also located near the National Institute of Health and Walter Reed Medical Center.
