Stayed at the Best Western Unversity Tower that was recommended by our travel agent. It's a quaint hotel a block away from the "Ave" (University Way) and another block from the UDub campus. Main purpose for our hotel stay was because our daughter was going to grad school there, we wanted to check out the campus and the surrounding areas. The other hotels in the U-District were not highly recommended.

The 5 days there was basically used as a "pit stop & resting place" to clean up and sleep, the rest of our time was sightseeing and checking our Seattle. The free buffet breakfast was a great amenity and it saved us extra time trying to find a restaurant that served breakfast at 7 in the morning.

Check in time was 3pm which was a negative to us because we arrive in Seattle after a 10 hours (with connecting flights) plane trip from Hawaii and we wanted to just check in, take a bath and crash.

The hotel is a little funky with its decor and old, small & slow elevators-there's a lot of character with this hotel. We had a microwave and mini-refrig in our room so that was a real convenience with reheating food and storing drinks.

Trader's Joe is just a couple of blocks away and the "Ave" offers some interesting sights.

The only thing my wife didn't care for was the small bathroom(no where to put her makeup bag) with backwardsfaucet knobs. Got a clear view of Seattle downtown highrises and the Space Needle.

If you're looking for a reasonable priced, clean and well maintained hotel near the UWashington campus, this hotel has the best value.

We stayed at the University Tower Hotel for 3 nights. The rooms are a bit small and the bathrooms have no place to put anything, we ended up using the bottom of the side table in the actual room. The rooms are decorated very nicely and the price was great, but the area was not good for walking around (at least for us 'oldies'). One street over are restaurants but more of a younger person's type area, we stuck out like a sore thumb. There is a shopping area about 10 minutes away that had restaurants and was the saving grace for places to eat for us. The deluxe continental breakfast was the best part, tons of pastrys, fruit, breads, cereals, muffins, hard boiled eggs, juices, you name it. You could be there a week and not eat the same thing every day. Our maid service was awful and we even tipped!! Forgot coffee two days in a row, did not vacuum where needed....just not great. So, the good and the not so good......

My boyfriend and I stayed the night here on a day trip from Portland. The University Tower was BY FAR the best deal we found in the city when you consider what you get. The rating says it's a two star. I work in the hotel industry and can say it's easily a three star. The staff is excellent and the building is well designed inside and out. The lobby is beautiful and includes free computer kiosks which were very convenient.

It's not right downtown, but it's a short drive away. Also, our specific room was miniscule but we paid only about 90 bucks for it! WELL WORTH THE SHORT DRIVE AND SMALL room. If you decide to upgrade to a suite this is the perfect Seattle hotel.

Best Western University is an excellent hotel and great value for the money. Although not downtown, it is easily accessed off I5 (10 mins from downtown) and has free parking. The free internet terminals in the lobby are also good. The rooms are clean with newer furnishings and some nice views on the upper floors. It is definitely upscale for a Best Western... highly recommended!