Exhibit 5.1

	Hogan Lovells US LLP
	Columbia Square
	555 Thirteenth Street, NW
	Washington, DC 20004
	T +1 202 637 5600
	F +1 202 637 5910
	www.hoganlovells.com

July 17, 2017

Board of Trustees

RLJ Lodging Trust

3 Bethesda Metro Center

Suite 1000

Bethesda, Maryland 20814

Ladies and Gentlemen:

We are acting as counsel to RLJ Lodging Trust, a Maryland real estate investment trust (the “Company”), in connection with its registration statement on Form S-4, as amended (the “Registration Statement”), filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), relating to the issuance of: (i) up to 50,937,376 common shares of beneficial interest, par value $0.01 per share, of the Company (the “Common Shares”) and (ii) 12,879,475 shares of Series A cumulative convertible preferred shares, par value $0.01 per share, of the Company (the “Preferred Shares”) in connection with the Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated April 23, 2017, by and among the Company, RLJ Lodging Trust, L.P., Rangers Sub I, LLC, Rangers Sub II, LP, FelCor Lodging Trust Incorporated and FelCor Lodging Limited Partnership (the “Merger Agreement”). This opinion letter is furnished to you at your request to enable you to fulfill the requirements of Item 601(b)(5) of Regulation S-K, 17 C.F.R. § 229.601(b)(5), in connection with the Registration Statement.

For purposes of this opinion letter, we have examined copies of such agreements, instruments and documents as we have deemed an appropriate basis on which to render the opinion hereinafter expressed. In our examination of the aforesaid documents, we have assumed the genuineness of all signatures, the legal capacity of all natural persons, the accuracy and completeness of all documents submitted to us, the authenticity of all original documents, and the conformity to authentic original documents of all documents submitted to us as copies (including telecopies). We also have assumed that the Shares will not be issued in violation of the ownership limit contained in the Company’s Articles of Amendment and Restatement of Declaration of Trust, as amended. As to all matters of fact, we have relied on the representations and statements of fact made in the documents so reviewed, and we have not independently established the facts so relied on. This opinion letter is given, and all statements herein are made, in the context of the foregoing.

This opinion letter is based as to matters of law solely on the applicable provisions of Title 8 of the Corporations and Associations Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland, as amended, and applicable provisions of the Maryland General Corporation Law, as amended. We express no opinion herein as to any other laws, statutes, ordinances, rules, or regulations.

Based upon, subject to and limited by the foregoing, we are of the opinion that:

(a) following (i) effectiveness of the Registration Statement and (ii) issuance of the Common Shares pursuant to the terms of the Merger Agreement, the Common Shares will be validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable; and

(b) following (i) effectiveness of the Registration Statement and (ii) issuance of the Preferred shares pursuant to the terms of the Merger Agreement, the Preferred Shares will be validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable.

This opinion letter has been prepared for use in connection with the Registration Statement. We assume no obligation to advise you of any changes in the foregoing subsequent to the effective date of the Registration Statement.