Surrounded by water and forest, Seattle is a metropolis that still manages to feel restorative. The 150-plus days of rain it gets annually helps, making the landscape verdant and picturesque year-round, and guests can easily accomplish city adventures and mountain retreats in a short period of time. If you’re looking for a combination of luxury and convenience, Seattle has that, too — and as visitor numbers continue to go up, so does the range of hotel options.
How Voting Works
Every year for our World’s Best Awards survey, T+L asks readers to weigh in on travel experiences around the globe — to share their opinions on the top hotels, resorts, cities, islands, cruise ships, spas, airlines, and more. Nearly 165,000 T+L readers completed the 2023 survey, an increase of nearly 25 percent over pre-pandemic voting levels. A total of more than 685,000 votes were cast across over 8,500 unique properties (hotels, cities, cruise lines, etc.).
Hotels were classified as either resort hotel, city hotel, or safari lodge based on their location and amenities, and they were specifically rated on the criteria below:
- Rooms/facilities
- Location
- Service
- Food
- Value
For each characteristic, respondents could choose a rating of excellent, above average, average, below average, or poor. The final scores are averages of these responses.
Courtesy of Lotte Hotel Seattle
What Readers Loved
No surprise that Seattle’s quintessential sights — Pike Place Market, the Space Needle, and Seattle Aquarium among them — attract travelers to hotels in the downtown area. All five reader-voted properties are within walking distance of these attractions, and one hotel, Inn at the Market in the No. 4 spot, is even located within Pike Place. Another property, The Edgewater (No. 3), is set on Pier 67; one reader called the views from this hotel “beyond amazing” and said that staffers make guests “feel like family.” Four Seasons Hotel Seattle (No. 2) is neighbors with the Seattle Art Museum and an easy stroll to Waterfront Park, while the No. 5 winner, Fairmont Olympic Hotel, is just a few blocks away. Here are readers’ picks in the Emerald City.
The Winner
Lotte Hotel Seattle
Courtesy of Lotte Hotel Seattle
Lotte Hotel Seattle occupies 16 opulent levels of the 44-story F5 Tower, a gleaming and angular addition to the city’s skyline. Open since late 2020 and envisioned by French industrial designer Philippe Starck, rooms and suites in the 5th Avenue property are distinct, with giant windows overlooking Elliot Bay, oversized mirrors, and plenty of art. Lest you forget that you’re in Washington state — which is almost 50 percent forest — timber is incorporated into the interior design, from a striking live-edge check-in counter made from a gargantuan sequoia to log stools in rooms. Dinner at 16th-floor restaurant, The Charlotte, consists of contemporary seafood and seasonal dishes served with more ocean views. The Seattle Convention Center and Seattle Art Museum are 10 minutes away by foot, while Pike Place Market is 20 minutes.
The Full List
Reader Score: 95.43
Reader Score: 92.20
Reader Score: 90.15
Reader Score: 90.12
Reader Score: 88.69