Panama And Tea House - Seattle

One of a kind place. Historic 1910 building in the International District , Seattle 's mix of Chinese, Philipino and Japanese cultures. It 's a lively ethnic Multicultural neighborhood close to King Street Station, Downtown Seattle, ferries, light rail connections to Capitol Hill and the Airport.The Panama is a living museum dedicated to preserving the history, experience and memories of Seattle 's Japan Town Nihonmachi . Rooms have small sinks and share bathing and toilet facilities down the hall (I stayed over a week, never had to wait to use either and all were kept clean). Coin operated laundry is also available on site.A comfortable tea room and coffee house on the street level offers a mind boggling selection brewed fresh to order by a friendly batista. Historic artifacts and photos tell the story of the hotel and its surroundings a once thriving community of Japanese Americans: business owners, laborers, families and the architect of the Panama itself Sabro Ozasa.Owner Jan Johnson is usually present to share these stories while she oversees the Hotel 's operations and welcomes guests. A lower level of the tea room offers even more comfortable seating and is generally quieter. If you 're lucky, Miu Miu the resident cat may come say hello or sit in your lap.If you 've ever wanted to stay in an old style hotel, the Panama is your place.Across the street, one of The City 's many community gardens climbs Yesler hill to Kobe park, a peaceful contemplative place if you don 't mind the noise of Interstate 5 directly behind. Together, the park and gardens create a green oasis with a view over the International District, Local Landmark Smith Tower and the Ball Parks next door.Rooms: Smaller than atandard modern hotel rooms in former single room occupancy hotel. Comfortably appointed with antique furniture, small corner sink with toilet and bathing facilities down the hall.Nearby activities: Lively ethnic neighborhood with plenty of restaurants, inclusive Bruce Lee 's favorite, stores, tea shops, museums and a plaza park active all day.Safety: Sometimes a homeless person or two in the generalarea usually enjoying the space across the street quietly, sometimes not so quietly, however I never felt afraid or inconvenienced.Do lock and remove valuables from your vehicle. Mine was never bothered.Walkability: Great neighborhood to walk around. Many things to see do and eat.Food drinks: Great tea room in the building downstairs at street level. See more in main review above.Numerous restaurants bars tea rooms bakeries and Uwajimaya grocery nearby.Noteworthy details: No elevator. Old fashioned rooms. Not your standard American hotel. More like the standard of 120 years ago...

Large tea selection. Very friendly staff that let me wander through and look at the historical features and displays.

My wife and I were traveling to Seattle for a couple days and we can across this hotel on AirBnB. The location was great (just a block from the train station), the employees were friendly, and the price was very reasonable. My only complaints were the noisy neighborhood (which is not in the hotel's control, of course) and the lack of outlets; each room has a single two-prong outlet so if you want to connect a laptop you'll need an adapter/expander.

We stopped for tea and conversation. Everyone got their favorite tea, and all raved about it. I had the Chai straight, and it was strong! I should have had it as a latte. Lots of historical documents and artifacts on display. Look for the window in the floor. The basement is full of the property of Japanese-American families that they left behind when they were sent to the WW2 internment camps. We did not ask about rooms.

This review is for the hotel only. We stayed two nights here last weekend. The décor and ambience of the hotel is very unique and appealing. The linens were all comfortable and clean, but the mattresses are so soft that you can't sleep on your tummy without it hurting your back. The shared bathroom was only slightly inconvenient, but we were aware of this feature before booking the room so it didn't bother us. The shower room was pretty dank and unclean, the shower drain was full of gunk hair. We only took one shower because we didn't want to use the nasty shower again. Definitely bring shower shoes! The front door is kept locked and the hotel can only be accessed by having an employee come open the door. One morning, we left to get coffee and pastries and when he returned and called to have the front door opened, it took almost 10 minutes for someone to come down and it seemed like they had just rolled out of bed after having a rough night. You can't access the hotel after 12 am, which can be inconvenient if you're in town for an event that may go late. We happened to be in town for a concert and had to get back to the hotel by midnight, otherwise we wouldn't have been able to access our room. The location is very convenient to downtown Seattle and we were able to easily walk to the hotel from the stadium after the concert. Overall, it wasn't a terrible experience, but it's not convenient to stay here for us; we like to be able to come and go as we please.