Hotel Monaco Seattle (guestroom), downtown

In the heart of downtown Seattle, close to Pike Place Market, Pacific Place shopping (including nearby Nordstrom and Macy's), Pioneer Place, and the Seattle Art Museum, Kimpton brand's elegant Hotel Monaco ranks among the most gay-friendly lodging options in the city. Rooms are bathed in colorful, exotic tones and color schemes and have flat-screen TVs, louvered wooden window blinds, L'Occitane bath products, Yoga Chanel on TV, CD stereos, free Wi-Fi, and dual-line speaker phones. The hotel's Sazerac Restaurant serves kickin' New Orleans-style fare, such as shrimp cakes with preserved lemon-celery heart remoulade, barbecue-pulled-pork sandwiches with aged cheddar and watermelon salad, cider-glazed pork ribs with sweet-potato home fries, and flash-fried catfish with lemon-whipped potatoes and jalapeno-lime meuniere. The Monaco is about a 20-minute walk from the gay bars of Capitol Hill.