Trip GrapevineTop places, picked by travellers

Iowa City · Hotel shortlist

The best hotels near UI Health Care Medical Center

Mei-Lin Zhou

Mei-Lin Zhou Japan

Updated 1 September 2026 · 18 Iowa City hotels assessed

These are my five favourites in Iowa City, out of the 18 that qualified. I read what other travellers scored them before I picked, so the order follows the guests, 4.5 down to 4.3.

All five are within 2.8 km of UI Health Care Medical Center.

Courtyard by Marriott Iowa City University Heights

Highest rated of the five

Courtyard by Marriott Iowa City University Heights

★★★★★4.5 from 375 reviews

Courtyard by Marriott Iowa City University Heights comes out on top of this list, and not narrowly: 4.5 from 375 guest reviews is a score that holds up at that volume, which is the whole test here. A perfect ten from nine people does not beat it.

It is a 3 star property, found under poi and around $189 a night on the dates we checked.

18 hotels in Iowa City qualified for this list and five made it. Hilton Garden Inn Iowa City Downtown University is the one I would book if the first is full.

Check rates Read more

All five, ranked

  1. Courtyard by Marriott Iowa City University Heights1

    Courtyard by Marriott Iowa City University Heights

    ★★★★★4.5 from 375 reviews

    500 m from UI Health Care Medical Center, about a 6 minute walk

      Check rates Read more

    • Hilton Garden Inn Iowa City Downtown University2

      Hilton Garden Inn Iowa City Downtown University

      ★★★★★4.5 from 790 reviews

      1.2 km from UI Health Care Medical Center, about a 15 minute walk

        Check rates Read more

      • Drury Inn & Suites Iowa City Coralville3

        Drury Inn & Suites Iowa City Coralville

        ★★★★★4.8 from 1,161 reviews

        2.8 km from UI Health Care Medical Center

          Check rates Read more

        • Hyatt Regency Coralville Hotel & Conference Center4

          Hyatt Regency Coralville Hotel & Conference Center

          ★★★★★4.5 from 495 reviews

          2.6 km from UI Health Care Medical Center

            Check rates Read more

          • Element by Marriott Iowa City5

            Element by Marriott Iowa City

            ★★★★★4.3 from 219 reviews

            1.2 km from UI Health Care Medical Center, about a 15 minute walk

            • Pool
            • Spa
            • Gym
            • Parking
            • Kitchen
            • Pet friendly

            Check rates Read more

          How this list was put together

          18 Iowa City hotels qualify for this list. We ranked them on guest rating first and on how close they are to UI Health Care Medical Center second, then took the top five.

          Two things decide these lists. The first is my own time in the city: every hotel on this page is one I have stayed in, walked into and looked at, or gone back to check. That is where the shortlist starts, and it is why some well reviewed places are not on it.

          The second is the numbers, and those are what set the order. The rating and review count come from the big travel sites, pooled through Google, so a score here reflects Expedia, Booking, Hotels.com and the rest together rather than any one of them. I also read the review breakdown by topic, which is where the figures on service, breakfast and location come from. Hotels with fewer than forty reviews are left out altogether, because a rating that thin is not a rating. No more than two come from one neighbourhood.

          What I do not do is move anyone up the order. The ranking is the guest score, highest first, and nobody pays to be on the list.

          Distances are straight lines from published coordinates, so the real walk is a little longer. Amenities are as recorded by Google Hotels and can change without notice. Rates are an indicative nightly figure for a midweek autumn stay, not a quote. Check the booking page before you commit.

          Mei-Lin Zhou

          Mei-Lin Zhou Japan

          Works agency hours in Vancouver and spends all 18 vacation days abroad. One new country and one repeat visit per year. Five trips to Japan and a running list of ramen shops.

          Trip Grapevine earns a commission on bookings made through the links on this page. It costs you nothing, and it does not change the order of the list, which is set by the measurements above.