From hearing the crack of the bat to the smell of buttery stadium popcorn and the temptation to try every kind of hotdog, baseball is a game best enjoyed live and in person. However, for many of us, a day in the stands, root, root, rooting for the home team requires a trip and an overnight stay. Whether adorned with memorabilia from baseball’s history, offering unparalleled views of iconic stadiums or providing unique amenities tailored to fans, these hotels bring the excitement of the game out of the stadium and into the entirety of any baseball sojourn. Here are five of the best hotels in the United States near baseball stadiums.
[Also, we ventured into splurge territory with this one, so you’ll see some options above our usual $350 a night ceiling.]
The Rally Hotel | Denver, home of the Rockies
Photo courtesy of The Rally Hotel
Just steps from Coors Field, situated in McGregor Square, a popular entertainment district in downtown Denver, The Rally takes a love of the game to a new, Mile-High level. Throughout the lobby you’ll find: memorabilia from the 1998 All-Star Game at Denver’s Coors Field; a display of the jersey Larry Walker (who played for the Rockies, the Montreal Expos, and the St. Louis Cardinals during his 17-year career) wore while being inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame; a two-story kinetic sculpture that sends baseballs moving through chutes; and a slew of signed bases and bats. More subtle displays include red stitching on the leather chairs in the lobby and guest rooms that are numbered in the same font used in the stadium. Even the chandelier in Call Me Pearl, the hotel’s cocktail bar and lounge, is in the shape of the Colorado “C.”
Hotel Commonwealth | Boston, home of the Red Sox
Many of the 245 guest rooms at Hotel Commonwealth overlook Fenway Park, which was built in 1912 and is the oldest Major League Baseball ballpark still in use in the United States. Billing itself as the Official Hotel of the Boston Red Sox, the hotel has a slew of game-day packages, ranging from tickets to the game to a behind-the-scenes tour of the famous (or infamous, depending on how you look at it) Green Monster, also known as the left field wall at Fenway Park. There’s also the Fenway Park Suite for superfans, which was curated in collaboration with the team. The 700-square-foot room has a balcony that looks directly into the park and some unique memorabilia, including part of the original scoreboard and baggies of authentic Fenway pitching mound dirt.
LUMA Hotel | San Francisco, home of the Giants
Photo courtesy of Dylan Patrick
For Giants fans, there’s arguably no better hotel in the City of Fog than LUMA. Set in the dynamic Mission Bay, this boutique hotel opened in 2022, just a baseball’s throw from Oracle Park, home of the Giants. It’s very design-forward and has numerous large-scale installations from famed artist Jim Campbell, including one in the lobby that uses 4,000 LED bulbs to create shadowy figures climbing a waterfall. Each of the 300 guestrooms is modern, with a large floor plan and walk-in showers. Many have floor-to-ceiling windows too, some of which overlook the Park. If your room doesn’t have those coveted ballpark views, you can visit the 17th-floor rooftop bar and Spanish-inspired lounge, Cavaña, where you can take in the stadium’s scoreboard and larger outfield, as well as the Bay and the city’s skyline.
Detroit Foundation Hotel | Detroit, home to the Tigers
Photo courtesy of VasenkaPhotography | CC BY 2.0
Located close to the Detroit Tigers’ Comerica Park is the impossibly cool Detroit Foundation Hotel. Originally built in 1929, the bulk of the building was formerly the local Fire Department headquarters. Now it’s a trendy 100-room boutique hotel with a tavern-style restaurant, a private dining room, a chef’s table, a bar, lounge, retail, two business meeting rooms, a rooftop banquet space, a fitness center, a podcast studio and locally produced art on every floor. The rooms are spacious, sleek and affordable, but if you have money to blow, consider the Commissioner’s Suite, which has separate sleeping, dining and relaxing areas, as well as floor-to-ceiling windows.
Live! By Loews | St. Louis, MO, home to the Cardinals
Photo courtesy of Mike Kalasnik | CC BY-SA 2.0
You can’t get much closer to the Cardinals than Live! By Loews in St. Louis. Immediately adjacent to the Cardinals’ Busch Stadium, the hotel stands on the site of what was once Busch Memorial Stadium, the Cardinals’ home from 1966 to 2005. The area’s history shines through the hotel’s design: Blueprints from the former stadium hang as wall art and travel trunks previously used by the team adorn the walls of the lobby lounge. The 216-room hotel also has four restaurant and lounge concepts, including The Whiskey Room, with nearly 500 bottles of the good stuff.
Hilton Baltimore Inner | Harbor, MD, home to the Orioles
Photo courtesy of Chris6d | CC BY-SA 4.0
Baseball has long been a part of Baltimore’s identity — this was where The Great Bambino was born, after all — and fans take game viewing seriously. Arguably, the best place for O’s loyalists is the Hilton Baltimore Inner. Beyond its location just steps from Oriole Park in Camden Yards, the hotel has 10 one-bedroom balcony suites with perfect views of home plate. During baseball season, the hotel also offers a handful of packages for those visiting for a gameday, with perks like free parking and a gift card to use in the stadium. And even if you aren’t spending the night, the hotel’s restaurant and beer garden, Diamond Tavern, is a fun place to soak up the atmosphere before the game.
