391 Washington Street
https://www.thehotellafayette.com
Hours: 10:00am – 4:00pm
Last Admittance: 4:00pm
Photography and Filming Allowed
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes on first floor
Visitor Experience: Visitors will view the lobby and first floor hallway. The Lafayette Brewing Co. restaurant will be open starting at 11am.
Building Description: The Hotel Lafayette has been welcoming guests for 115 years, and continues to be a historical and architectural landmark for the City of Buffalo. A handsome red brick and white terra cotta French Renaissance-style building, it was designed by respected Buffalo architect Louise Blanchard Bethune, the first professional woman architect in the country and first female member of the American Institute of Architects.
The Hotel Lafayette opened its doors in June 1904 and was immediately hailed as one of the fifteen finest hotels in the United States. With hot and cold running water in all bathrooms, and telephones in all rooms, the seven-story hotel offered “the best that science, art and experience can offer for the comfort of the traveling public.” Soon after, an addition doubled the size of the hotel, and fifty years later it was still operating as a luxury 400 room hotel. The hotel underwent a major renovation in the 1940s, introducing many of the Art Deco elements still seen throughout the hotel today.
Following decades of hospitality, the hotel was faithfully restored in 2012 to return it to its original splendor and welcome a new generation of guests. The Hotel Lafayette is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.