Spokane, Washington – It’s a palace, an art gallery, a taste of Europe — and a bed for the night. But if the old-world elegance of the historic Davenport Hotel, which opened in downtown Spokane in 1914, doesn’t impress you, the city’s boundless confidence in its future ought to vanquish any doubts.
The 284-room Davenport, which reopened in 2002 after a $35 million restoration, is an unlikely splash of luxury here in the woods of northeast Washington. Meticulously restored down to the smallest detail by local business owners Walt and Karen Worthy, it’s as fine as anything you’d see back home.
Spokane, caught in the doldrums for the last half-century, is finally catching up with its more prosperous neighbors, Seattle to the west, and Boise, Idaho, to the east. Over the last five years, a downtown renewal project, spearheaded by the hotel, has literally transformed the heart of the downtown district.
Designed in an era when anything seemed possible, the Davenport is a designer’s eye candy, but abandon all ye who enter here, any notion of a single, unifying theme. Giving rein to a fascination with the exotic, the architect, Kirtland Cutter, designed each of the public rooms — the lobby, dining rooms and ballrooms — in an entirely different style.
Celebrating the fact, the hotel hands out a “Walking Tour” guide, starting at the lobby. This abbreviated Grand Tour offers a peek at the highlights of the Spanish Renaissance, a touch of English Tudor, the scent of 18th-century France and the soul of the Venetian Renaissance, all in one place. Afterward, take a walking tour downtown, where urban renewal is in full swing.
At the center of Spokane sits River Park Square, a glass-and-steel shopping and entertainment complex on Post and Main Streets, two blocks from the Davenport. Designed around a central courtyard lit by thousands of recessed lights and skylights, the Square has three floors of shops — including Nordstrom and Bon Marche — plus seven restaurants, a 20-theater Cineplex and on-site parking.
As construction got under way, investors took the plunge and snapped up other downtown office buildings and warehouses. Soon dress shops, home furnishing centers, shoe stores, galleries, restaurants and wine bars were tucked into remodeled ground-floor space.
A block away is the Spokane River, a major tributary of the Columbia, and the reason that Spokane was located on this spot. Riverfront Park, a five-block-long greensward space runs between the riverbanks and Spokane Blvd., with walking and jogging paths, benches and play parks for children.
As for the Worthys, the Davenport proved a lucky find. On the skids for 50 years and locked up tight for the last 15, it was threatened by demolition. But when the couple took a closer look, they realized that most of the original interiors were intact.
As the layers of paint, paneling and wallpaper fell away, elaborate carvings, Venetian “salamonica” columns, ornate friezes, marble floors, coffered ceilings and gothic arches emerged.
Soap and water stripped away dirt and smoke, revealing colorful designs, gold-leafed medallions and original paint. Workmen cleaned and restored the lobby fountain and removed the black paint from the art-glass ceiling, painted over during World War II.
As you’ll see on “the tour,” the lobby, reminiscent of Spanish Renaissance, has an open courtyard tiled in stone, covered side arcades on the ground and mezzanine floors, and ornately decorated open beams between coffered ceiling panels. Gold leaf on sculptured friezes and medallions complement gold-tone wall fixtures and column capitals. Chairs and tables in seating groups are the hottest new place to meet friends.
The Marie Antoinette Ballroom, prettily French with crystal chandeliers, elaborate ceiling moldings and pastel colors, is nice for weddings. But the Elizabethan Room, paneled in oak with a low, flat ceiling and sterling silver light fixtures, is the choice of a Rotary Club luncheon.
The Venetian room, the Hall of the Doges, is intriguingly over the top, with gold-trimmed gothic arches, a covered arcade on the perimeter; gothic arches on an upper “clerestory” level and fresco-like ceiling painting. It deserves all the ooohs and ahhhs that it gets.
Both the Palm Court Restaurant and the Peacock Room, a lounge and bar, come highly recommended. The Palm Court, open all day, serves excellent food, including a lavish Sunday buffet. The Peacock Room offers a lighter menu, or you can order from the Palm Court Menu.
As for the guest rooms, originally there were more than 500, most small and without private baths. Now there are 284, including 24 suites, each with a large private bath. All have hand-carved mahogany furniture, imported Irish linens (from the same mill that supplied the hotel in 1914), marble floors, walk-in showers, wired and wireless Internet access, flat-screen televisions, voicemail and direct phone lines.
Spokane has come of age.
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Incidental intelligence
Spokane, capital of the Inland Empire, is in northeastern Washington State, on Interstate 90. Seattle is 280 miles west. The Idaho border is 15 miles east. The Coeur D’Alene Resort, in Coeur D’Alene, is 33 miles east. Oregon is 180 miles south.
Hotel packages are themed around weekend getaways, romantic retreats and golf. Standard doubles for two starts at $180 per night, depending on space and the season.
The Davenport Hotel is at 10 South Post Street, Spokane, Wash. 99201. For reservations call 800-899-1482, or visit www.thedavenporthotel.com.
Anne Z. Cooke and Steve Haggerty explore the world from Venice, Calif. They can be reached at TravelsWithAnne@cs.com.
