Jupiter Hotel

Though there’s a certain family resemblance between a hotel like the Jupiter and the glossy high-design luxury boutiques you see in the design magazines, the small-market American budget boutique is an altogether different sort of place. The Jupiter, the Thunderbird or the Hotel San Jose in the heart of Texas, the Ace in Seattle: all are visually appealing, stylishly designed, and all are eminently livable; luxury, however, is not a part of the program.

Get your head around this idea and you’re in for a good time. The Jupiter, like its cohorts, is aimed at young, creative types, an audience that’s interested in design and in thoughtful and quirky hotels, but that would feel underdressed in a high-gloss hotel like one of Ian Schrager’s, for example. The Jupiter’s guests are more likely artists who don't spend much time sleeping in their hotel rooms than design-industry professionals with expense accounts.

It’s hard to imagine feeling underdressed in the Jupiter, or anywhere in Portland, a deeply casual city. It’s an unprepossessing sort of hotel, a renovated Sixties motor inn attached to the Doug Fir Lounge, one of Portland’s top bars and live music venues. This makes for a lively atmosphere, and more than a little noise; choose a front-side room if you’re social, and a back-side one if you’re a fussy sleeper. Inside they’re handsomely minimalist, mostly white, with bold wallpaper — photorealistic forest scenes, or vibrant cartoony florals — and simple Blu Dot furnishings alongside recognizable designer pieces (provenance not guaranteed). Comfortable, to be sure, but far from decadent.

Big-city boutique clichés like pricy fusion restaurants or $18 hotel-bar cocktails are right out — the Doug Fir is more about upmarket diner fare, and like any indie-hipster bar, it pours more Pabst Blue Ribbon than martinis or mojitos. If you’re up for it, you can get yourself a massage on-site, or even a haircut, but extras like these are somewhat beside the point. The Jupiter is quite naturally a part of what’s happening in Portland, and you’ll see as many locals as out-of-towners in this stylish crowd — and that touch of authenticity is something money can’t buy.