Des Moines, Iowa
Hotel Fort Des Moines, Curio Collection by Hilton
A $50 million restoration of Iowa's grandest 1919 hotel, host to 13 U.S. presidents from Wilson to Obama
Open · 2021
Hotel Fort Des Moines, Curio Collection by Hilton, reopened in 2021 after a $50 million restoration of Iowa's largest 1919 hotel, which has hosted 13 U.S. presidents from Woodrow Wilson to Barack Obama. The 290-room hotel restored historic details throughout, including gold-inlay headboard details referencing its past.
The essentials
- Group
- Hilton (Curio Collection)
- Opening
- 2021
- Rooms & suites
- 290 rooms and suites
- Segment
- Luxury/Historic
- Designer
- Proudfoot, Bird and Rawson (1919 original)
- Entry rate
- NC
The place
Downtown Des Moines, Iowa.
The concept
Opened in 1919 as the largest hotel in Iowa — an 11-story, reinforced-concrete Renaissance Commercial building designed by Proudfoot, Bird and Rawson, then the most expensive hotel project in the state's history — the property has hosted at least 13 U.S. presidents, from Woodrow Wilson to Barack Obama. A $50 million renovation, completed around the building's 2019 centennial, reopened it as a Curio Collection hotel in 2021, restoring historical details alongside custom touches like gold-inlay headboards referencing its past.
Dining & wellness
NC — full current dining program not independently confirmed at time of writing; check the hotel's own site for current outlets.
