The facade is largely made of brick and stone and contains classical design elements such as brackets, dentils, ornate lintels, quoins, and rustication.

On both 29th and 30th Streets, the facade is divided vertically into seven bays and horizontally into a two-story base and ten-story upper section, with a recessed top floor.

[8] The western elevation is partially visible and is made of plain brick with one-over-one sash windows, a recessed exterior light court, and a metal-sheathed section near the top.

The lowest parts of the outer windows are clad with stone panels, while the upper sections are topped by lintels with splayed keystones.

[10] When the hotel first opened it contained advanced mechanical equipment for its time, such as elevators, mail chutes, steam heating, and electric lighting.

[19] During a renovation in 2011, the hotel's ground floor was gutted, the ceiling was raised, a large glazed-ebony door was installed,[20] and the walls were redecorated with black-and-white photographs of women.

[25] The current design of the lobby as of 2023[update] dates to a 2019 renovation, which added seating areas enclosed with stained-glass panels, as well as blue-tinted lighting and rounded mirrors.

[8][31] Originally the top ten stories of the hotel comprised about 200 short-term guest rooms and 400 long-term residences,[16] starting at the third floor.

Each bedroom had furnishings such as damask coverings and large pillows, and the hotel as a whole had custom-designed furniture such as double-faced bookcases, as well as appliances such as electric alarms.

[53] Two hundred fifty prominent New Yorkers,[13] including William Colford Schermerhorn, John D. Rockefeller, Olivia Sage, and Helen Gould, contributed to the Women's Hotel Company's fundraising effort,[4] which had raised $300,000 by the beginning of 1900.

[51][54] When the Women's Hotel Company was incorporated in March 1900, a building committee was appointed to review potential sites;[55] subscriptions had reached $350,000 by that June.

[16][29] The Martha Washington Hotel opened on March 1, 1903,[71] serving both long-term residents and short-term guests; it aimed to attract a white and middle-class clientele.

[76] Originally, the hotel employed male bellhops and elevator operators, as the managers felt that women could not physically carry luggage.

[12] An article in the Star-Gazette described the Martha Washington's clientele as including "a large number of literary women", as well as students, a YWCA manager, painters, advertisers, and accountants.

[84][85] The novelty of an all-female clientele prompted one person to write to The New York Times, complaining about the presence of "observation automobiles" near the hotel.

[88] After the minimum room rate was raised to $12 per week in late 1905, the New-York Tribune said that "the last touch of philanthropy has disappeared from the Martha Washington".

[101][102] By 1930, an auditor for the Bell Securities Company, the holding corporation that owned the hotel, had said that the Martha Washington's future was "extremely limited" because of decreased salaries and profits.

[106][107] Later the same year, the hotel's general manager E. J. Carroll obtained a liquor license, allowing the Martha Washington to serve wine.

[111] John B. Campbell, the Martha Washington's longtime "house mother", estimated in 1949 that he had served three million women during the preceding 22 years.

[115] Dick McCarthy and Joseph Rauti of Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, opened a restaurant called the Colonnade Room at the hotel in 1961.

Nonetheless, there were still some reports of illicit activities in the late 20th century, including allegations that employees stole from residents and that prostitutes were using the exterior staircases to conduct business.

The New York Times described the lobby as "dark and drab", having been downsized to make way for stores, and the bedrooms as having "chipping paint and worn bedspreads".

[120] At the time, there was high demand for the hotel; its manager Janis Algar said that "a lot of women from out of town don't know the neighborhoods and are reluctant to take an apartment right away".

Kevin Maloney of PMG agreed to upgrade 83 tenants' rooms and allow them to continue paying the same rental rate if they endorsed a certificate of no harassment, which was required for the hotel.

[149] Danny Meyer announced in October 2013 that he would open a restaurant at the King & Grove New York,[150][151] and he outlined plans the next year for a wood-fired pizzeria.

[23][24] The $20 million project involved renovating all of the hotel's rooms, adding space for three restaurants, and moving the main entrance to 29th Street.

[174] Danny Meyer closed his restaurants at the Redbury that month,[175][176] citing delays in the full reopening of the hotel[177] and the migrant crisis.

[7][178] The editor Louise E. Dew was a resident,[7] and Jean H. Norris, the first female magistrate in New York state, also lived in the hotel in the early 20th century.

[36] Following the 2011 renovation, a critic for ABC News wrote: "We find the check-in process disorganized and the modern minimalist room, with gray carpeting and no pictures on the wall, stark and sterile.

[27] U.S. News & World Report stated that "the hotel features a contemporary ambiance with updated guest accommodations sporting a chic new look".