The 9 best hotels in Seattle for every kind of traveler

National Geographic

6 hours ago

When visiting Seattle, there's no shortage of accommodations that will command or pique the interest of travelers. Views of Puget Sound or Lake Washington, rock 'n' roll history, glass art, and Pacific Northwest seafood and wine await curious explorers. From island lodges to high-end hotels, these nine places to stay are worth checking into when planning a trip to the Emerald City. Guests staying at Hotel Ändra Seattle can take a cooking class at Chef Tom Douglas's on-site cooking school, Hot Stove Society. Photograph courtesy of Hotel Ändra Seattle Here's an inside look at the lobby of Hotel Ändra Seattle, located downtown four blocks from Pike Place Market. Photograph courtesy of Hotel Ändra Seattle 1. Hotel Ändra
Best for: Foodies
This 123-room luxury hotel is home to Lola, one of 14 Seattle-based restaurants owned by James Beard award-winning Chef Tom Douglas, that serves eastern Mediterranean dishes such as grilled octopus with romesco sauce and seafood tagine with Turkish pepper paste and saganaki—but the hotel also features his cooking school, Hot Stove Society. Take a class in Korean, Jamaican, Asian bao, French pastry, or paella-making, or learn basics like bartending. You can also buy tickets to his two-hour food podcast, recorded on Thursdays in the hotel, which includes breakfast and a trivia quiz where Douglas asks audience members questions related to his show's theme.
Assaggio, a central and northern Italian restaurant, is also located on-site at the hotel. Across the street, there are three more Douglas restaurants: pizzeria Serious Pie, Dahlia Bakery, and Neb Wine Bar. The hotel is four blocks from Pike Place Market, one of Seattle's best-known attractions.
Good to know: Seattle ranked No. 3 of America's most diverse food cities in a 2025 survey by Escoffier, a top-ranked culinary school, of big cities that analyzed 46 different ethnic cuisines. (San Francisco was No. 1, New York City No. 2.)
(The essential guide to visiting Seattle) 2. Inn at the Market
Best for: Shopping
Over 100 restaurants and food vendors offering everything, including fresh seafood, spices, artisan chocolate, and jewelry, fill Pike Place Market, which opened in 1907. If you enjoy shopping, you should consider staying at this 79-room hotel located inside the market. 'Amid the market's hustle and bustle, we're an oasis of tranquility, a one-of-a-kind Seattle original,' says Jay Baty, sales and marketing director, who notes half the guest rooms offer stunning views of Elliott Bay from floor-to-ceiling windows, as does the guests-only rooftop deck. This brick-and-steel hotel's three restaurants include Sushi Kashiba, the French-inspired Café Campagne, and Bacco Café, serving breakfast all day, including Dungeness crab Eggs Benedict. Guests can shop at four on-site shops: Watson Kennedy, Isadora's, Fini, and Bobbie Medlin, which sells French ceramics as well as art and flea market finds.
Good to know: A new 20-acre Waterfront Park features an Overlook Walk that links Pike Place and downtown Seattle. Take a scenic water taxi to West Seattle, where Alki Beach is a favorite for swimming or picnicking, Vashon Island, or a car-and-passenger ferry to Bainbridge Island.
(Meet the famous fish throwers of Seattle's Pike Place Market) 3. Sheraton Grand Seattle
Best for: Art lovers
The Seattle area is known for its glass art, thanks to Dale Chihuly, the world's most famous glass artist. Sheraton's lobby showcases one of the best glass art collections, which features the artwork of Chihuly and 27 pieces created by artists who've studied at the school he co-founded, Pilchuck Glass School. All 1,236guest rooms and the second to fourth floors display art by Pacific Northwest artists, ranging from Coast Salish silk-screen prints to paintings.
'Every corridor from the lobby to your guest room is a gallery awaiting to be discovered,' says Dillon Sand, senior marketing manager. The 35-story hotel has a top-floor indoor pool and duplex gym with panoramic views, restaurants for Asian fusion and Pacific Northwest food, a wine bar, and 75,000 square feet of event space.
Good to know: Guests can visit the Chihuly Garden and Glass—a 3-minute Monorail ride from Westlake Center, near the hotel. The venue's eight galleries display Chihuly's vividly colorful art, such as a 100-foot-long flower-inspired installation suspended from the ceiling, and the garden artfully places glass trees and plants amid real trees.
(10 must-do experiences for your next trip to Seattle) Eco-conscious travelers should consider checking into the Populus Seattle. Photograph by Ric Stovall courtesy of Populus Seattle The six-story hotel that uses 100 percent renewable electricity and plants a tree for every night's stay. Photograph by Pic Stovall courtesy of Populus Seattle 4. Populus Seattle
Best for: Eco-conscious
This 120-room luxury hotel in Pioneer Square goes above and beyond in terms of sustainability and nature-inspired design. A building originally built in 1907, this six-story hotel uses 100 percent renewable electricity, plants a tree for every night's stay, and its restaurants convert all food waste to compost. Exposed Douglas fir beams and exposed brick adorn the lobby and all guest rooms. More than 35 artists created over 320 boldly colored artworks—posted in public areas and rooms—that capture the natural beauty of the Pacific Northwest. A hanging artwork crafted from fallen trees and living plants, including native red cedars and yews centuries old, greets visitors at the entrance.
'Preserving an existing structure reduced carbon by 36 percent, equivalent to 2.2 million miles driven or 492 tons of coal burned. There wasn't a material from the original building [that was] not used: even artwork frames came from its wood floors. New construction is one of the most damaging things for the planet,' says Rod Lapasin, the general manager.
Good to Know: Pioneer Square is home to Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park and the longest-running Art Walk in the country on First Thursdays. 5. The Edgewater
Best for: Music lovers
No hotel wanted the Beatles back in 1964, but the Edgewater gladly accepted them. An iconic photo shows them fishing out of the hotel's window. After they check in, hotel guests can check out the free acoustic guitars and songbooks of about 1,000 classic rock and pop songs from the front desk. The cozy lobby with a river-rock fireplace next to the water hosts free concerts that feature emerging bands.
'You can sip a cocktail and play in our lobby or take to your room,' says Ian McLendon, general manager. 'Bands play by the window, so you see the sunset behind them. We also hold free concerts on our pier, and a big, ticketed standing-room-only show in our restaurant maybe three times a year.'
The Edgewater is Seattle's only overwater hotel. The 222-room hotel juts into Elliott Bay on Pier 67, next to the ferry to Canada (a three-hour ride to Victoria, British Columbia). Music fans can splurge to stay in a suite. In the Beatles Suite, guests can play Beatles CDs on a state-of-the-art stereo; the Pearl Jam Suite has a Fender guitar, amplifier, record player, and rare Pearl Jam vinyls.
Good to know: An independent record shop, Easy Street Records, curates the Edgewater's vinyl collection, and it has an in-house diner that serves food named for legendary musicians, such as the Culture Club, and the TLC Chili, or the Dolly Parton Stack—two pancakes, two strips of bacon, and two eggs any style.
(7 of the best coffee shops in Seattle) 6. Fairmont Olympic
Best for: Travelers who enjoy grand hotels
Sometimes only a grande dame hotel will do: Old World-style details, a gilt-vaulted lobby ceiling, marble galore, crystal chandeliers, and plush rugs. A member of Historic Hotels of America, this 1924 property features 450 elegant rooms and suites, a 42-foot indoor heated pool, a hot tub bathed in natural light, a spa, gym, and beauty salon. Restaurants and bars include The George, a brasserie for local seafood and dry-aged meats; Olympic Bar, serving mostly Washington wines and beers; Founders Bar, a speakeasy-inspired bar behind a bookshelf inside the Olympic; and Shuckers, a casual oyster bar and an espresso bar. Cocktails feature local ingredients, like honey from the hotel's rooftop hives.
Good to know: The hotel is a five-minute walk from Pike Place Market, a 20-minute walk from the Seattle Art Museum, and a 25-minute walk from Chihuly Garden and Glass. 7. Hotel 1000
Best for: Luxury travelers
One of only three hotels in Washington with Michelin One Key status, this 120-room hotel offers posh experiences like Seattle's only Topgolf Swing, where you can play at two golf simulators and a $1,000 bath that includes Perrier Jouet Champagne, caviar, a French Girl Rose soak and body polish, plus a bath butler to draw your bath. The spa's $350 spa facial includes a rose gel mask, LED light therapy, and lymphatic drainage. You can watch a dramatic Champagne sabering every Thursday in Rosebay, its cocktail bar.
'We want to create memorable experiences for our guests, from decorating rooms for anniversaries to making picnic baskets for outdoors. Our region's natural beauty can't be beat, and we showcase it with an etched-wood artwork of Mount Rainier using Japan's Yakisugi technique and more wood and stone in our lobby and a raindrop light installation,' says Jeffrey Modaff, general manager.
Good to know: Part of the Hilton luxury collection, this hotel is a five-minute walk to the waterfront and three blocks from the Seattle Art Museum. 8. Lodges on Vashon
Best for: Families
Half of these 16 modern-design, Scandi-chic wood cottages with king beds are suites with two extra twin beds. Guests can reach these Vashon Island cottages via a 20-minute water taxi ride from Pier 50 in Seattle or a 20-minute ferry ride from West Seattle's Fauntleroy Terminal. Nestled next to evergreens and landscaped paths, this pet-friendly lodging also has a communal area with firepits and games. You'll find the cottages slightly hidden in lush, manicured greenery inside Vashon Uptown, a small town with delightful restaurants, shops, and cafes.
Good to know: Family-friendly activities on Vashon Island include beachcombing, biking, hiking, and troll-hunting. 9. Seattle Gaslight Inn
Best for: Bed & Breakfast fans
This lovely Craftsman-style 1907 home is an eight-room bed and breakfast that has an outdoor pool, a living room, and a library—both with fireplaces. Some guest rooms feature stained-glass windows, some have decks overlooking Seattle, one has a fireplace, and the majority have private baths. The B&B serves guests a Continental breakfast in its oak-paneled dining room. 'We're in Capitol Hill on a residential block on a hilltop, a three-minute walk from the fantastic French Bakery Nouveau, near many shops and restaurants. Guests call us an urban oasis,' says owner Joelle Wheatley.
Good to know: Capitol Hill has many LGBTQ-friendly spots and Volunteer Park, a 48-acre park that's home to the Seattle Asian Art Museum.
(How to plan the ultimate US rail trip along the West Coast or Eastern Seaboard) Sharon McDonnell is a travel, food, drink and culture writer in San Francisco and member of SATW.