Hotel Check: EVEN Hotel Seattle, South Lake Union
HOW MANY ROOMS? 130 rooms and suites
Hotel Check: EVEN Hotel Seattle, South Lake Union
PROPERTY HIGHLIGHTS A new wellness brand, EVEN Hotel is all about helping you live your best life whether that means through healthy meals, meditation and yoga spaces, one of the largest gyms in the city, or outdoor garden areas with fire pits. The most notable feature is the stash of workout equipment and supplies in each room that make burning off some energy as easy as rolling out of bed.
PRICE Internet rates for a traditional room on the random dates we checked start at $106
CONTACT EVEN Hotel Seattle, South Lake Union, 527 Fairview Ave N, Seattle, WA 98109, Phone +206-596-2302, https://www.ihg.com/evenhotels/hotels/us/en/seattle/seasw/hoteldetail
WHERE IS IT Close to the lake and dozens of corporate headquarters (including Amazon), this EVEN Hotel became a fast favorite of millennial travelers looking for something different and geared toward their health-focused lifestyle. The nearest light rail stop is Westlake, which is a 15-minute walk or $4 Uber ride away. Aside from a taxi, which can get snarled in traffic, the light rail is one of the easiest and cheapest ways to reach the airport.
WHAT’S IT LIKE? This property is actually attached to the extended stay brand, Staybridge Suites, which is also part of IHG. They share many of the same facilities although the two brands are distinctive in their own ways. The colorful lobby of the EVEN property welcomes guests with a station of flavored waters near reception where they are given the rundown on all of the wellness amenities offered throughout the hotel.
Pay close attention and you will notice many clever touches throughout the building such as the fact that there are no odd-numbered rooms given the hotel’s name and that USB ports and power outlets are in all corners of the rooms and public areas. It’s clear that a lot of thought and design went into the brand’s development to truly be something unique in the marketplace.
ROOM FACILITIES Hardwood floors mark the entryway to the room, and this space goes beyond the foyer to be part of the in-room gym area. A separate carpeted area creates a transition to the sleeping and relaxing section of the room where large king or paired queen beds are covered in eucalyptus, moisture-wicking linens with thick pillows and bedside power outlets. Rooms are not necessarily larger than other hotel rooms, but they make exceptional use of the space.
Built-in desks have trendy Apple-designed lamps and a bevy of more charging outlets. Wall-mounted, flat-screen TVs come with ten channels of workout and yoga content for guests to enjoy, and dry erase boards provide a place for people to keep tabs of their latest workout goals and routine. An impressive spiral book provides dozens of workout routines and exercises that involve the variety of equipment in each room from the resistance bands on the wall-mounted brackets to exercise balls and yoga mats. Anti-bacterial wipes are available in the room to clean equipment, but housekeeping also seals things like yoga mats with special bands indicating everything has been sanitized. Bathrooms have sliding doors with glass shower stalls offering Beekman 1802 toiletry products like goat milk soap on the vanity and fragrant liquid products dispensed from eco-friendly wall-mounted units. Don’t be surprised to see two types of shower gel with lavender or ginger overtones. One is intended to be a morning energizer while the other is meant to relax you after a day’s work. Refrigerators provide a place for guests to store their own favorite snacks, and every other floor has filtered water and ice dispensers for guests to use. In fact, there are reusable workout bottles on the desks that guests can refill and take home after their stay. Soundproofing, another important factor for those who plan to work out in their rooms, is excellent.
RESTAURANTS AND BARS Cork & Kale is the lobby dining outlet serving three meals a day from a healthful and creative menu including options like morning protein smoothies and vegetable frittatas to hearty salads and flat breads later in the day.
A grab-and-go marketplace supplies further drinks and snacks, and when happy hour rolls around, there are a variety of drink and snack specials on offer at the lobby bar. All rooms come with Keurig coffeemakers for a caffeine pick-me-up at any time of day.
LEISURE FACILITIES One of the largest hotel-operated workout facilities in the city is available here with modern equipment, a stretching room and yoga studio, and corner suites on each floor that come with their own exercise bikes.
If you don’t feel like packing your sweaty workout clothes in your suitcase, simply put them in the mesh bag found in the closet so that the hotel can launder them for free. That’s a nice perk!
BUSINESS AND MEETING FACILITIES Free wireless Internet is available throughout the hotel, and all of the meeting rooms feature floor-to-ceiling windows and the latest audiovisual equipment. The lobby is designed to be a coworking space with communal tables, work booths with TVs, and conversation seating areas.
VERDICT This is a groundbreaking concept for a hotel; the Chief Wellness Officer (otherwise known as the general manager) is often seen chatting with guests and sharing details about this new and growing brand (soon to expand beyond the United States to Australia and New Zealand). Sure, there are plenty of properties with gyms and some even with ensuite workout equipment, but the entire wellness concept that is woven throughout the hotel is unique. It includes things like motivational quotes on the walls, do not disturb signs shaped like barbells, and an outdoor garden with space to relax with games like corn hole and Jenga when weather permits.
(Pictures by EVEN Hotel Seattle, South Lake Union)
By Ramsey Qubein
Ramsey is a regular contributor to Business Traveler across all print, digital, web and social channels. He travels more than 400,000 miles a year criss-crossing the globe to report on hotels, airlines, loyalty programs, and all things travel.
You can find more from Ramsey at http://www.ramseyq.com/, on Twitter – @dailytraveltips and Instagram – @dailytraveltips
