After surviving pandemic delays, this new hotel ready to open in Bellingham
With Whatcom’s tourism industry hoping for a more robust season, visitors will have another option for accommodations in north Bellingham.
The Hampton Inn by Hilton Bellingham Airport is planning to open on Friday, May 7. The 98-room property at 1055 W. Bakerview Road, near the Bakerview Starbucks cafe, will feature a large indoor saline pool and hot tub, fitness center, business centers, a 600-square-foot meeting room, an airport shuttle and a large buffet breakfast.
“We’re so excited to present this beautiful property to guests and the public,” said General Manager Craig Schultz in a news release. “The features and our Bellingham location make our Hampton Inn ideal for leisure travelers, for our team sports during weekends and also for our corporate travelers on weekdays.”
The Hampton Inn by Hilton Bellingham Airport is owned and managed by Erck Hotels, which also operates the Bellingham Home2Suites by Hilton, which is nearby.
The Hampton Inn brand is a familiar one to Bellingham residents. For years, the hotel at 3985 Bennett Drive was known as the Hampton Inn before dropping the brand in 2017. The next year it became a Best Western Plus property.
While the COVID-19 pandemic continues to devastate to the tourism industry, hotel occupancy rates have shown some recovery this spring, said Sandy Ward, president/CEO of Bellingham Whatcom County Tourism. In March, Bellingham’s occupancy rate was 55.6%, up from 34.3% in March 2020 when the pandemic started taking hold and shutdowns began.
Ward said in an interview that she’s excited about the Hampton Inn opening; it’s a well-known brand that adds another piece to an area already known for providing several good options for visitors.
The Hampton Inn will have around 25 employees, 20 of them full-time. It cost approximately $20 million to build and experienced a five-month COVID-19 delay in construction due to a government-mandated shutdown and extra time for procuring and shipping building materials, Schultz said in the news release.
For information or reservations about the Hampton Inn by Hilton Bellingham Airport, call 360-812-7200 or visit hilton.com.
