University of Washington campus tour: Red Square and Rainier Vista

The University of Washington was founded in 1861 in what is now downtown Seattle and moved in 1895 to its present site, a wooded slope above Lake Washington a few kilometres to the north-east. It is one of the most handsome public campuses in the United States: Collegiate Gothic buildings in brick and stone, tall evergreens, water on two sides and, on a clear day, a snow-covered volcano at the end of the main vista. This guide follows a natural walking route and adds the practical details a visit needs.

The shape of the campus

The main campus is bounded by the University District to the west, a ship canal to the south and Lake Washington's Union Bay to the east. For a first visit, four areas matter:

Central campus: Red Square, the libraries and the Quad, on the highest ground.
Rainier Vista and the science buildings: a long axis running south-east from Red Square, with Drumheller Fountain in the middle.
The waterfront: Husky Stadium, the boathouses and the medical centre, along the lake and the canal.
West campus and the Ave: newer residence halls and the neighbourhood's main street.

Allow a couple of hours to walk it all at a relaxed pace.

Denny Hall and the oldest corner

Denny Hall, completed in 1895, was the first building on the present campus and for a while housed the entire university. With its round turrets and pale stone it looks like a small French château. A short walk away, in a clearing called the Sylvan Grove, stand four white columns saved from the university's original building downtown.

Red Square and Suzzallo Library

Red Square, officially Central Plaza, is the crossroads of the campus: a wide expanse of red brick laid in the early 1970s over an underground car park. Students cross it all day, and it is notoriously slippery in the rain.

On its east side is Suzzallo Library, opened in 1926 and the building most people picture when they think of the university. Climb the grand staircase to the reading room on the upper floor. It is some seventy-five metres long, with a soaring timbered ceiling, tall leaded windows and oak bookcases, and it is kept silent for study. Visitors are generally welcome to look in quietly.

The Quad and its cherry trees

Just north-east of Red Square, the Liberal Arts Quadrangle, always called the Quad, is the university's most graceful space: a lawn framed by Gothic classroom buildings. Around thirty Yoshino cherry trees line its paths. They usually bloom in late March or early April, and for a week or two the Quad fills with people from all over the city. If your dates are flexible, this is the time to come.

Rainier Vista and Drumheller Fountain

In 1909 the campus hosted a world's fair, the Alaska–Yukon–Pacific Exposition, and its designers aligned the central avenue with Mount Rainier, about a hundred kilometres away. The fair is long gone, but the axis remains as Rainier Vista. Walk from Red Square down to Drumheller Fountain, a large circular pool with a tall jet, and on a clear day the mountain hangs above the trees. Science and engineering buildings line both sides.

The HUB and student housing

The Husky Union Building, known as the HUB, is the student centre, just east of the libraries, with food, meeting rooms and space for hundreds of student clubs. First-year students mostly live in university residence halls, which are grouped in two areas: West Campus, close to the Ave, and North Campus, in the trees above the lake.

Husky Stadium and the Montlake Cut

Follow Rainier Vista to its end and you reach the waterfront. Husky Stadium, first opened in 1920, sits right on the lake, with views from its upper stands across the water to the Cascade mountains. On football Saturdays some fans arrive by boat and tie up alongside.

Next to the stadium, the Montlake Cut is the narrow canal that joins Lake Washington to the rest of the city's waterways. It is home water for Washington's rowing crews, whose eight famously won Olympic gold in 1936.

The Ave, museums and the neighbourhood

University Way, known to everyone as the Ave, runs north to south a couple of blocks west of campus. It is a busy, unpolished street of cafés, bookshops and places to eat from every part of the world. Two museums sit on the western edge of campus: the Burke Museum, which covers natural history and the cultures of the Pacific Northwest, and the Henry Art Gallery, devoted to contemporary art. The Burke-Gilman Trail, a walking and cycling path on a former railway line, skirts the campus and continues for many kilometres in both directions.

Arranging a visit

Like most universities, the University of Washington typically offers campus tours and admission presentations for prospective students, and the grounds are open to walk on your own. Schedules vary through the year, so check the university's official visitor page for what is currently available.

Getting there and around

By light rail: Seattle's light rail has a station beside Husky Stadium and another in the University District. Trains reach downtown in a few minutes and continue to the airport.
By air: Seattle's airport is south of the city; the light rail ride to campus takes around three-quarters of an hour.
By car: traffic and bridges make driving slow at busy times. Use the signposted visitor car parks.
On foot: the campus is hilly between the central plaza and the waterfront, so wear comfortable shoes.

Areas families usually choose

University District: a handful of hotels within walking distance of campus, the most convenient choice.
Downtown Seattle: the widest selection, close to the waterfront and market, with a direct light rail ride to the university.
Capitol Hill and South Lake Union: lively central neighbourhoods between downtown and the campus.

Tips for a smoother day

Start at Red Square, see Suzzallo Library and the Quad, walk down Rainier Vista to the stadium, and take the light rail back or loop round to the Ave.
Seattle is often grey and drizzly from autumn to spring; bring a waterproof layer. Summers are usually dry and mild.
Heading north afterwards? Vancouver is a few hours away; see our UBC campus tour.
Check the university's visitor page again shortly before you travel, as arrangements change.

Bloiq is reader-supported. Some links may earn us a commission; it never affects what we write. How we make money.

Cover photo: Martin Kraft, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons