For Old World elegance, the Fairmont Olympic is hard to beat. A palace in the Italian Renaissance style, this extraordinary hotel features hand-burnished oak walls, Greek key crown moldings, winding grand staircases and brilliantly glinting crystal chandeliers. The Fairmont Olympic, built in 1924, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. From the grandest foyer in Seattle to its 450 guest suites, the hotel is a stunner. It’s very close to Pike Place Market and the Space Needle, as well as plenty of galleries and shops. Even if you choose not to stay here, you’ll want to drop by for afternoon tea, or a five o’clock cocktail. Dinner at The Georgian is a study in opulence, while more low-key evenings take shape at Shuckers or the Terrace, a piano bar. Furnishings are comfortable, and the atmosphere of every room is appropriately evocative of early 20th-century style. High ceilings are highlighted by beautiful valanced window treatments in gentle florals. Mahogany chairs are upholstered in soft, striped green velvet. Chippendale-style desks and chairs sit near the foot of the bed, which is covered in a golden jacquard duvet. If you ever wanted to know what it would have been like to be a character in a P.G. Wodehouse novel, all you have to do is visit the Fairmont.