Skip to content

4 New Seattle Hotels We Love

Seattle’s hotel scene is blowing up; here’s what we love about a few of the city’s new and revamped properties

By Emma Franke March 18, 2019

XXX | Image by KIPMAN Creative
XXX | Image by KIPMAN Creative

This article originally appeared in the March 2019 issue of Seattle magazine.

This article appears in print in the March 2019 issue. Click here to subscribe.

Graduate Seattle
WHAT WE LOVE: Formerly the Hotel Deca, the remodeled Graduate features special touches celebrating University of Washington graduates and students—both real (such as Bruce Lee, and Beverly Cleary) and fictional (such as Singles’ UW student Cliff Poncier, played by Matt Dillon)—who are depicted in guest room portraits and on student-ID-like room keys.
University District, 4507 Brooklyn Ave. NE; 206.634.2000; 154 rooms, from $99.

IT’S THE LITTLE THINGS: Fun features at new hotel properties in town include The Graduate’s hotel keycards depicting “famous” people such as Cliff Poncier. Courtesy of Graduate

State Hotel
WHAT WE LOVE: The new five-story mural titled “Fire Sale” on the hotel’s western side, a commissioned piece by artist Shepard Fairey (famous for the “Hope” poster used in the 2008 Obama presidential campaign). The bright colors and natural elements represent the fight and struggle for the environment. Scheduled to open this month.
Downtown, 1501 Second Ave.; 206.239.1800; 91 rooms, from $189.

Palihotel Seattle
WHAT WE LOVE: Rooms with bunk beds. The self-billed “unapologetically eclectic” hotel feels as comfortable as if you were staying at your cousin’s house—complete with the familiar fight over who gets the top bunk.
Downtown, 107 Pine St.; 206.596.0600; 96 rooms, from $132.

Hyatt Regency Seattle
WHAT WE LOVE: The lobby’s hefty conversation starter embedded in the wall: renowned earth artist Michael Heizer’s 5.7-ton “Black Diorite Negative Wall Sculpture,” aka “the rock.”
Downtown, 808 Howell St.; 206.973.1234; 1,260 rooms, from $159. 

Follow Us

Downtown Seattle Again Draws More Workers, Visitors

Downtown Seattle Again Draws More Workers, Visitors

The number of visitors approaches pre-pandemic levels

Downtown foot traffic hit yet another milestone last month. The Downtown Seattle Association says March averaged 101,000 daily workers, the highest average since March 2020. The figure is still only 60% of foot traffic in March 2019 as employees continue working remotely, but is a 12% increase from a year ago. More than 2.5 million…

Curvy Cactus, Chub Rub Launch Seattle’s First Fat Mall

Curvy Cactus, Chub Rub Launch Seattle’s First Fat Mall

The new pop-up marketplace highlights local makers and body-affirming fashion

Seattle Fat Mall — the city’s first-ever  — will turn the Curvy Cactus storefront on Fourth Avenue into a monthlong pop-up marketplace for plus-size fashion, art, and gifts from local makers. “We envision Seattle Fat Mall as more than just a retail space. It’s a celebration of our community,” say Amber and Alyss Seelig, sisters…

New Federal Rules Hit Eastside Youth Services

New Federal Rules Hit Eastside Youth Services

The Kirkland nonprofit is forced to scale back in response to shifting federal policy

In a region already struggling to meet the needs of unhoused youth, one of the Eastside’s most prominent youth service providers is cutting key programs in response to a rash of federal funding restrictions. Friends of Youth will no longer accept certain federal funding, citing recent executive orders and new restrictions tied to U.S. Department…

Would You Go See the Tulips… at Night?

Would You Go See the Tulips… at Night?

Night Bloom returns with a few new surprises

It’s still cold out. But that’s part of the charm. Throw on a puffer and a beanie and go see the tulips after dark. Tulip Valley Farms in Mount Vernon is running Night Bloom again this year, and it’s exactly what it sounds like: glowing tulip fields lit by lasers, Edison bulbs, and interactive stomp…