Stay. Cool.

The right way to kick off a radical sabbatical is with The Highlander Hotel’s swimming pool. We’re not above bragging, so we’re proud to say that it is not only one trippy place to take a dip but also the largest indoor pool in Iowa City. We’ve repainted it a deep blue, installed garage doors for easy travel between the pool and the courtyard, added no-slip tiles to the floor, shaped up the ceiling, added a ping pong table, remodeled the hot tub and we even had Thomas Argan paint our massive poolside mural.

Just beyond the garage doors is The Highlander Hotel’s retro chic courtyard. If ping pong by the pool, board games in the lobby and a giant Pictionary board by the bar weren’t enough entertainment for guests, they can get competitive out here. We have bocce ball, croquet and the Hawkeye gameday classic—bags! Our courtyard is the hottest spot to tailgate and guests can celebrate a big win around the fire pit.

For the guests who love to be close to the action, we have rooms that are poolside or adjoining to the courtyard. We also have some rockin’ rooms on the second story with private balconies overlooking the pool or wall to wall windows overlooking the courtyard. To keep things safe during COVID-19, we give out four neon wristbands, per room, that gives guests a license to swim. For those wanting to have more people swim, let our staff set them up with their own room, or have them purchase additional wristbands for $35 each. (Limit 4 additional wristbands per room.)

The Highlander Hotel knows how to throw a sick party, which is why we keep our pool open until 10pm each night and offer an adult swim on Fridays and Saturdays until midnight. We also have refreshments on site and if you guests don’t want to leave the pool, they can text us to have their drink of choice delivered to them! The poolside Snack Shack is up and running (call us for hours) so guests can walk up to the counter, grab a flatbread pizza, ice cream cone or cinnamon roll waffles, along with beverages without ever having to set foot outside of the pool room. With just a text guests can have drinks delivered anywhere on our property. Try a signature cocktail in one of our roomy suites, chill with a glass of Italian Pinot Grigio next to the pool or kick back with a local craft beer next to the fire pit.