Marcus Whitman Hotel & Conference Center

The Marcus Whitman is a wonderfully restored, old hotel and much of the old world charm has been retained. But the restaurant is not for foodies. There are many wonderful restaurants in Walla Walla, so my advice is to stay at the hotel, experience the wonderful wineries in the area, and go somewhere else for dinner. They try hard to be creative and some of the menu items they do well. My wife’s New York steak was great… perfectly grilled, great vegetables, nicely presented. My rack of lamb, however, was fatty and had little flavor. The risotto under it was cold and when they brought out another batch for me it was crunchy. Risotto is not supposed to be crunchy. The greens had a strong bacon flavor that became overpowering after the second bite. They did make up for it by offering us free desserts.

Called to «give them another chance» as the manager asked and was told they were too busy talk. I’d have to call back later! Guess that settles that!

Meh. It’s mostly hype. As another helper commented the rooms are totally outdated. I’ve had better rooms at much cheaper hotels. My room has no microwave. The TV is super small like perhaps 27″. The coffee pods are kept in tins. Don’t take those or you will be charged.
I just had dinner in the lounge. I sat at the bar. A super broke down bartender who the rest of the employees seemed scared of sort of served me. I felt kind of bad for him by the time I left.
I got falafel. It was totally bland. Like no flavor at all. Plus it was served with pita cut into pizza type slices which made it impossible to make a decent sandwich with. Boo on that. Plus some couple had a fussy baby in there, where we’re all drinking. Boo on that too.
The drink was super strong. 4.50 for well drink
Take the stairs. Elevator is ridiculously slow.
Save your money and go to a chain hotel. Nothing here to see.

Basic accommodations but I had a groupon deal. Perfectly located in the center of town, tasting rooms even in the same building. Ate some sliders in the bar, were decent.

Highly recommend! Old world charm
Stayed in 2 BR suite 199 $. Awesome.
A great place to stay when doing the Walla Walla wine tasting .
Dr Jeff

Nice place overall, though the rooms are a bit dated. The elevators are extremely slow for only being 4 floors (West Wing)… not sure if the other areas are different. Centrally located is a plus, especially if you are into wines. Being there for a wedding, I did not have time to check out any of the tasting rooms. The ‘complementary’ breakfast was buffet style and was alright, though it didn’t change the two days I was there. If you’re into carbs, fat (bacon/​sausage), and sweets (pastries) it will be good enough.
The bar closes too soon (10?) so I unfortunatly wasn’t able to check it out.
Overall the place is OK. Unless there is a particular reason to stay at the Marcus Whitman, you can go two or three blocks north and save a good 60 or 70 dollars a night.

Staff are SO helpful, hotel is clean, rooms spacious, tasting rooms convenient, in room amenities include locally made items, and the Vineyard has great food and beverages (skip the stuffy old restaurant and just enjoy the spacious bar).
I’d give it a 5 but the gym was really sad and the breakfast, while complimentary, is high fat, sugar, carbs. So healthy fitness minded benefit from packing their own and using the in room fridge.

Tiny room that are to close together. Very uncomfortable beds and super tiny bathrooms. I don’t know why this is the #1 place to stay, aside from the location I see no clear advantage to this place.

I have absolutely no complaints about my stay at the MWH. The staff was friendly, the room was clean, the water was hot, the AC was cool, the wifi was fast, the location was centralized… it’s everything you’ll need in Walla Walla. I was here on business, so I especially appreciated the corporate discount and the advice on dining. I stayed in the West Wing, so maybe next month when I come back I’ll check out the tower and add another review. Thanks!

This place is SO wondrous that it resonates class you’d expect from a long bygone era. Everything about the hotel is gravity filled and hushed. Next time you’re in NYC listening to the roar of the night, import The Marcus for a great night’s sleep. The rooms are indescribably nice, the dining area for breakfast and the food itself beyond comparison. It’s all, «as good as it gets.»

Visiting Walla Walla for the first time this was a superb hotel. Old but very well maintained. Firm mattresses. Nice bathroom. Excellent common areas. Great restaurant, excellent breakfast. Great service everywhere. We were very impressed.

This is the number one place for tourists to stay at when they come to enjoy our fair city and to partake of some of our incredible wines.
This hotel was renovated about ten years ago and its reputation has improved as people appreciate the quality that you get when staying here.
The lobby area is sumptuous and it is the only place in town to hold a convention.
The restaurant is expensive but the food is always excellent.
The bar is cosy and a great place to relax after a hard day’s work, or when winding down after a stressful conference day.
The elevators all work.
There is ample parking at the back as there are often no parking spaces left in the front.
There are a number of wineries whose tasting rooms are actually in the building but have outside entrances. (No need to drink and drive!)
It is less than 10 minutes from the airport.
It is less than a three minute walk to Starbucks.
You can be wine tasting at at least 10 different wineries within two minutes.
You can walk to at least half a dozen restaurants within five minutes.
The views from the upper floors are spectacular as this is the tallest building in Walla Walla.
If you are coming to wine taste in Walla Walla, this should be your first choice for lodging.

Plain old Not Worth It. Stay somewhere else for less (the rooms in the new part of the Marcus Whitman are like, um, a worn-​out room at a Holiday Inn Express. And I do not mean to insult the Holiday Inn folks in any way.) and eat in the «fancy» old-​timey restaurant if you want. Better yet, belly up the bar to get the feeling for less $$$.
The bathroom was so small that the door practically scraped the toilet. This was NOT the charming kind of funky. Just plain, old trying-​to-​make-​a-​buck-​and-​hold-​down-​the-​bottom-​line funky.
Also, aside from the tasting rooms right in the hotel (and what’s the fun in that?) other wineries are miles apart from each other. Not much fun drinking and driving on winding country roads.
Bottom line? Go to lovely, delicious, beautiful Napa. Walla Walla is no Napa. The fact that so many people are being lured to Walla Walla is a credit to their p.r. people.
Nice work, liars.

We stayed two nights here between Christmas and New Years. Fantastic! We were just road tripping across eastern wa with no plans when we stumbled upon Walla Walla and decided to make scopula day wine trip.
Service was superb from the moment we arrived and didn’t stop the whole time. We traveled with our 3 year old border collie and the hotel was extremely accommodating for her too.
The historic building is gorgeous and the rooms themselves are up to date and clean. No strange smells or anything that can be found in other old buildings.
We’re just super impressed with everything. Especially the lounge and the Marc restaurant downstairs. Proximity to wine tastings was key.
Stay at this hotel!

Beautiful old hotel within walking distance to lots of great downtown shops and restaurants. There is a new wing that has been added since the hotel was built in 1927. It will cost a few extra bucks to stay in the old tower, but I think it is worth it to get the full historic feel.
The hotel might be old but the wifi is certainly modern. Free and fast, just the way it should be. Honestly I have never been to a hotel with faster wifi, it’s like being at home, easy to stream Netflix.
But who needs wifi when you have wine to drink and charm to soak in. The on site restaurant is great, however I recommend the lounge which has a more affordable yet still very tasty menu.
The rooms are spacious and clean with mini fridges and a comfortable bed.
If you’re in Walla Walla it’s the best hotel so stay here.

I had grate time here all around at first I was put into a west wing room (which was like a clean motel 6) but when a presidential suit on the top floor became available I was immediately upgraded at no cost! the lobby is gorgeous the location is awesome and the people who work here rise the bar for professionalism (I think the actually like there work).
Despite the fact that it is the only REAL hotel within 100 miles they still treat you like they are competing for your business.

Probably the fanciest hotel in Walla Walla but still not the best. Service was overall good and accommodating. The hotel itself is old and needs some lifting to do. Complimentary breakfast was good and easy access.

When I booked the room, I initially thought the price was pretty high for Walla Walla ($ 275.00/night for a Jr. Suite). This is more like Seattle or San Francisco rates. However, this was a fairly last minute trip decision and it was over the Labor Day weekend. So I thought perhaps it was a supply/​demand thing and therefore they thought they could get a higher rate. I also thought this was going to be a high end hotel with some old world charm.
Not Really. The room was old alright, but definitely lacked any charm and it smelled like a janitor’s closet. I think they must have over done it with some kind of deodorizer. The room was fairly decent sized, but not as large as one might expect for that rate. The bathroom was small, although it did have a separate vanity outside the bathroom which was a nice feature. I was in the newer wing of the hotel. Apparently the tower has different style rooms but I did not see any of those rooms. It was also lacking a blackout curtain. It only had a sheer curtain that let in light from the street lights at night and woke you in the morning with a cheerful sunrise, whether you wanted it or not. The bed and pillows were not great either. My wife’s neck and back were killing her after one night. I feel like this is a $ 100.00 room at best. At $ 275, they are clearly delusional.
The hotel lobby is nice. This part of the hotel does have an old world grandness about it, however unless I was planning to sleep on one of the couches in the lobby, it doesn’t offset the miss on the room. They have a free breakfast buffet that is better than most, but again, that does not offset the miss on the room. I also thought the main dining room (The Marc) was pretty small for a hotel this size, so if you are planning to eat there, I would recommend reservations.
I did express my concerns with the manager (Jonathan) and I thought he handled the situation well. He apologized and said if they had any other rooms he would upgrade me, but the hotel was completely booked. He did offer to discount the room a bit for the first night which I appreciate, but we moved to another hotel for the other two nights. He is the only reason I’m giving this three stars. Otherwise, it would be a strong two. I think this hotel, and many of the other establishments in the Walla Walla area for that matter, need to reevaluate their status. I feel that they want to be a Napa Valley type of resort area, but just charging high prices without the amenities is not going to cut it.

A well restored and maintained historic hotel opened since 1928. At the time it opened, it was the only hotel on record to use the same system for heating and cooling rooms. Times have changed, and the Whitman has done a good job of modernizing, yet maintaining the historical touches of the hotel, which other places could learn from. There are two different parts to the hotel, the original tower, and the newer conference center wing. Our room was in the newish part, and was very clean, with extremely comfortable beds.
The main lobby of the hotel is breath taking, and a highlight of the building. It is worth just stepping in to take a peek. It takes you back to another era, and I could have spent a couple hours just resting in one of the lounge chairs. If kicking back wasn’t your thing, there is a small fitness center available, or you could do some wine tasting in one of the six wine tasting rooms located just off the hotel’s lobby — Tero Estates & Flying Trout Wine, Locati Cellars, Lodmell Cellars, Trio Vinters, and Mansion Creek Cellars.
With our reservation type in the morning they offered a delicious complimentary full (hot/​cold) buffet breakfast in the main dining room. In the afternoon you will also find freshly baked cookies and coffee available in the lounge. Also in the early evening, they had a happy hour that you should not pass up. Walk through the main dining room and back, and you will find yourself in a cozy bar lounge with comfortable leather chairs. A great place to partake of some great apps with a glass of wine from their vast collection. For dinner, their well critiqued restaurant, the Marc, serves up local fresh Pacific Northwest influenced dishes with stunning wine pairings; be sure to make reservations well in advance.
The staff was always friendly and attentive, and quick to answer any questions we had about the area.

I’ve never actually stayed here, so this is just a review of the Marcus Whitman lobby. During my winter vacation in Walla Walla I had the opportunity to kick up my feet and avail myself of the affordably priced complementary refreshments in the swank Marcus Whitman lobby.
The lobby is very nice. Everything has been restored to its 1927 grandeur, and the couches are soft, but not enveloping. The refreshments are very fancy for a hotel, and free to people who act like they are guests. If the rooms are anything like the lobby they are very nice, but it would be very difficult for them to be as cheap as lobby since the lobby is free.
Come in and enjoy the Marcus Whitman lobby. Of all the hotel lobbies I’ve used without staying in the hotel, the Marcus Whitman has the best by far.