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General
 6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2020
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]  
Organization General
Organization
 
RLJ Lodging Trust (the "Company") was formed as a Maryland real estate investment trust ("REIT") on January 31, 2011. The Company is a self-advised and self-administered REIT that owns primarily premium-branded, high-margin, focused-service and compact full-service hotels. The Company elected to be taxed as a REIT, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, commencing with its taxable year ended December 31, 2011.
 
Substantially all of the Company’s assets and liabilities are held by, and all of its operations are conducted through, RLJ Lodging Trust, L.P. (the "Operating Partnership"). The Company is the sole general partner of the Operating Partnership. As of June 30, 2020, there were 165,865,246 units of limited partnership interest in the Operating Partnership ("OP units") outstanding and the Company owned, through a combination of direct and indirect interests, 99.5% of the outstanding OP units.

As of June 30, 2020, the Company owned 104 hotel properties with approximately 22,700 rooms, located in 23 states and the District of Columbia.  The Company, through wholly-owned subsidiaries, owned a 100% interest in 100 of its hotel properties, a 98.3% controlling interest in the DoubleTree Metropolitan Hotel New York City, a 95% controlling interest in The Knickerbocker, and 50% interests in entities owning two hotel properties. The Company consolidates its real estate interests in the 102 hotel properties in which it holds a controlling financial interest, and the Company records the real estate interests in the two hotel properties in which it holds an indirect 50% interest using the equity method of accounting. The Company leases 103 of the 104 hotel properties to its taxable REIT subsidiaries ("TRS"), of which the Company owns a controlling financial interest.

Liquidity and Management's Plans

In response to the near elimination of travel and hotel demand resulting from the spread of the novel strain of coronavirus (COVID-19) and the related government mandates, the Company had previously announced the suspension of operations at 57 of its hotel properties. As government mandated stay-in-place restrictions are lifted, the Company has developed a framework to open hotels in a socially and financially responsible way. The Company's primarily transient oriented, select-service and extended stay hotels located in drive-to and leisure markets will re-open sooner than traditional full-service hotels. As of June 30, 2020, the Company had reopened 21 of its hotel properties, has subsequently reopened 15 hotel properties and continues to evaluate reopening additional hotel properties based on market conditions. In the event stay-in-place restrictions are reinstated, the Company would consider temporarily suspending hotel operations where there is no adequate demand.

The ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Company's operations continue to have a material adverse impact on its financial results and liquidity, and such adverse impact may continue well beyond the containment of such outbreak. Since the extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic impacts our operations will depend on future developments that are highly uncertain, the Company cannot estimate the impact on its business, financial condition or near- or longer-term financial or operational results with reasonable certainty.

Given the impact on lodging demand, the Company has taken various actions to help mitigate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on its operating results and to preserve liquidity. Operational measures the Company has taken include:

•Suspension of Hotel Operations:  The Company suspended operations at many of its hotel properties. As government mandated stay-in-place restrictions have been lifted and lodging demand stabilized and began to recover, the Company began the process of reopening certain hotel properties.

•Cost Containment Initiatives:  The Company continues to operate with reduced operating expenses by implementing stringent operational cost containment measures. These measures include significantly reduced staffing, reduced energy costs, elimination of non-essential amenities and services and the closure of several floors and most food and beverage outlets at properties that remain open.

•Capital Investment Reduction:  The Company reduced its 2020 capital expenditure program by deferring all capital investments, other than completing projects that are substantially underway and nearing completion.
•Return on Investment ("ROI") Project Suspensions:  The Company suspended most of the 2020 ROI projects.

In addition, the Company has taken aggressive actions to increase liquidity and preserve cash at the corporate level including:

•Common Stock Dividend:  The Company’s board of trustees authorized the first, second and third quarter common cash dividends of $0.01 per common share.

•Share Repurchase: The Company suspended further repurchases of its common shares and Series A Preferred Shares (defined below), as applicable.
•Increased Liquidity: The Company enhanced its liquidity position by drawing down $400.0 million under its $600.0 million revolving credit facility. As of June 30, 2020, the Company had approximately $1.1 billion of cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash reserves.
In June 2020, the Company amended its Revolver and unsecured Term Loans, which are defined in Note 7, Debt. The amendments included a waiver of quarterly financial covenants through the first quarter of 2021. Additionally, after the end of the covenant waiver period, certain covenant thresholds were modified through the second quarter of 2022. Refer to Note 7, Debt, for additional terms of the amendments.