There’s often a stigma attached to airport hotels, that they are something you suffer through, because you are stuck in a hub city overnight or have a super early plane to catch and live far from the airport. But these days many airport hotels are upping the luxury amenities in an effort to make the hotel a proper destination (if only for a night), rather than a pitstop. These three North American hub city hotels are perfect examples.

1. Westin Denver International Airport

Anyone who has traveled to Denver knows the airport is beyond inconvenient, located some 27 miles from the city itself, which makes having a great airport hotel here a serious perk. The recently opened Westin Denver International Airport is stunning to look at. A striking curved glass structure that is connected to DIA, it’s a design hotel in its own right for the architecture. The rooms have a modern look and feature soundproof windows along with local artwork and flat-screen TVs. We thought the bed was super comfy and loved how quiet the room really was despite the runway location. Onsite dining options include a trendy grill restaurant, a bar with runway views and a coffee shop for morning fuel. There is also a gym with an indoor lap pool and a hot tub to soak away the jet-lag.   

2. Fairmont Vancouver Airport

Completely soundproofed and featuring awesome views from floor-to-ceiling windows, The Fairmont Vancouver Airport has won numerous awards, and we understand why! The hotel is located directly above the US departures terminal and is just a two minute walk from the luggage carousels. It has a varied selection of restaurants and bars and there’s even live music nightly in the Jetside Bar — many of the windows here front the runways so you can watch the planes take off and land night or day. Families with airplane obsessed children might want to book a few nights. The Absolute Spa is also onsite and offers more than 120 different treatments, including lots for jetlag recovery. 

3. Grand Hyatt Dallas/Fort Worth

Located right inside Terminal D of DFW Airport, the Grand Hyatt has 298 modern chic rooms and suites that went through a $13 million renovation in 2011. Rooms also feature art hung walls and luxe amenities like deep soaking tubs and touchscreen room controls. One area where an airport hotel can either impress or disappoint is dining, and here the Grand Hyatt delivers. The property hosts the only sushi bar at DFW Airport as well as a very good Mediterranean restaurant and a Wine Wall where you can eat and drink in the vicinity of nearly 1,000 bottles of vino. But the perk we love most, however, is the rooftop swimming pool. It is chlorine-free, infused with minerals and maintains a salinity level that is almost the same as a human tear, making it very therapeutic.