Historic Inns

Dubuque, Iowa

Historic Hotels & Inns in Dubuque

Five historic stays in what the City calls Iowa’s oldest city, from the 1915 Hotel Julien in the Old Main district to Victorian mansions near the bluffs and a bluff-top estate on the North End.

5 historic places to stay · verified October 2026 · by Historic Inns editors

The short answer

Stay downtown at Hotel Julien Dubuque, opened in 1915 in the Old Main Street Historic District, with elevators, a restaurant, a spa and complimentary parking in its own lot. For a historic house, book the Redstone, wagon maker Augustine A. Cooper’s Richardsonian Romanesque duplex on Bluff Street; the Richards House, a Stick Style B&B in the Jackson Park district; or the Hancock House, a Queen Anne mansion on the Grove Terrace bluff. Four Mounds Inn rents rooms in the 1908 Grey House and the 1924 White House on a bluff-top estate on the North End, so plan to drive. Book early for the 2027 commencement weekends, May 1 and May 8, and note that Dubuque’s airport has had no scheduled airline service since January 15, 2026.

Our top picks

Most haunted

The Redstone Inn

Built c. 1895

Wagon maker Augustine A. Cooper's red brick and sandstone duplex by Thomas Carkeek, its family side more ornate than its tenant side.

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Compare them side by side

InnAreaBuiltRoomsTypePriceHaunted
The Richards HouseJackson Parkc. 1882–B&B–Rates
The Hancock HouseWest Eleventh Streetc. 1890–B&B–Rates
The Redstone InnCathedral Districtc. 1895–Inn–YesRates
Four Mounds InnFour Mounds & the North End1908–24–Inn–Rates
Hotel Julien DubuqueOld Main & Downtown1915133Grand hotel–Rates

Price is a typical nightly rate: $ under $200, $$ $200–349, $$$ $350–549, $$$$ $550+. Rates vary by season; check the inn for exact prices.

Where they are

The neighborhoods

Where to stay, by area

Old Main & Downtown

The Old Main Street Historic District covers Main Street from First to Fourth streets, the city’s first commercial core by the old ferry and riverboat landings, lined with three- and four-story brick blocks. Hotel Julien Dubuque stands at Second and Main, where its own history says a hotel or inn has stood since 1839; the hotel lists 133 rooms and offers complimentary parking in its lot by the rear entrance. The Fenelon Place Elevator’s lower station is at the west end of Fourth Street, and north of Old Main the Upper Main Street and Millwork districts continue the historic core.

Port of Dubuque riverfront

East along Third Street, the redeveloped riverfront is anchored by the National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium, a Smithsonian affiliate, with the National Rivers Hall of Fame and the William M. Black dredge in the Ice Harbor. Parking is free around the clock in the Port of Dubuque Ramp at 351 Bell Street and the lots at Fifth & Bell and Third & Bell. None of the five stays is in the Port itself; Hotel Julien, in Old Main, is the closest.

Cathedral District & Fenelon Place

Dubuque’s first residential area lies below the bluff along Bluff Street and takes its name from St. Raphael’s Cathedral, which served most of the city’s Irish immigrants; most of its surviving houses date from the mid-to-late 19th century. The Redstone, at 504 Bluff Street, is a small inn with 12 rooms on its booking engine, complimentary breakfast and guest parking. The Fenelon Place Elevator’s lower station is at the west end of Fourth Street, by Bluff Street, and at the top the Fenelon Place Residential Historic District lines the bluff.

Jackson Park & West Eleventh Street

North of the business district, the Jackson Park Historic District is where Dubuque’s wealthier residents built, with mostly mid-to-late-19th-century houses, the 1902 Carnegie-Stout Public Library and two churches of 1878, St. John’s Episcopal and St. Patrick’s. The Richards House on Locust Street is the district nomination’s key example of the Stick Style. Up the bluff to the west, the Hancock House on Grove Terrace is the one individually listed property in the West Eleventh Street Historic District, and the West 11th Street Stairs climb from Bluff Street to Grove Terrace along the route of the Eleventh Street Elevator, which ran from 1888 until it was abandoned in 1927.

Four Mounds & the North End bluffs

Four Mounds is a bluff-top estate off Peru Road above the Mississippi, which the Four Mounds Foundation puts at 100 acres and calls Iowa’s last remaining ‘gentleman’s farm.’ Four Mounds Inn rents rooms in the 1908 Grey House, which the foundation says sleeps up to 14 adults in seven bedrooms, and the 1924 White House, which sleeps eight in four bedrooms; both stand in the Four Mounds Estate Historic District, named for four prehistoric burial mounds on the blufftop, and inn revenue funds the foundation’s education and mentoring programs. Plan to drive. Eagle Point Park, whose overlooks take in Iowa, Wisconsin and Illinois, and Lock and Dam No. 11 are also on the North End.

The inns

c. 1882The Richards House

Built c. 1882 · Stick Style · Jackson Park · B&B

The Richards House

Why stay F. D. Hyde's four-story Stick Style house in Jackson Park, where the inn counts eight fireplaces and over 80 stained glass windows; a B&B since 1989.

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The Redstone InnThe original uploader was Kepper66 at English Wikipedia. / Public domain

Built c. 1895 · Richardsonian Romanesque · Cathedral District · Inn

The Redstone Inn

Why stay Wagon maker Augustine A. Cooper's red brick and sandstone duplex by Thomas Carkeek, its family side more ornate than its tenant side.

The ghost story Lore holds that Augustine A. Cooper, the wagon-works owner who built the house, still lingers: Bob Vila's 2023 roundup of haunted hotels says Cooper still makes his presence felt at the 12-room inn as a gentlemanly apparition whose soft footsteps are heard throughout the property.

Check ratesFull storyBook direct

Before you book

Planning your stay

Getting around

Dubuque Regional Airport has had no scheduled airline service since January 15, 2026, when the City ended its agreement with Denver Air Connection. A reservations-only shuttle runs from its terminal to the Eastern Iowa Airport in Cedar Rapids (book at least 24 hours ahead), rental cars, taxis, Uber and Lyft are available, and Megabus and Jefferson Lines run intercity buses. The Jule’s city buses run Monday to Saturday from the Intermodal Transportation Center, with no Sunday service listed, for a $1.50 full fare. Downtown and the Cathedral district sit below the bluffs: the Fenelon Place Elevator lifts riders 189 feet from Fourth Street to Fenelon Place, and farther north the West 11th Street Stairs climb to Grove Terrace.

Parking

Downtown meters are enforced Monday to Saturday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., at $0.25 per 20 minutes ($0.25 per 30 minutes at 10-hour meters), and the City’s ramps charge $1 an hour to a $10 daily maximum. In the Port of Dubuque, parking is free 24/7 in the Port ramp at 351 Bell Street and the lots at Fifth & Bell and Third & Bell. Hotel Julien has complimentary parking in its lot by the rear entrance, the Redstone and both Four Mounds houses list guest parking, the Hancock House has free, unmetered street parking only, and the Richards House doesn’t say. At the top of the Fenelon Place Elevator the streets are narrow, with parking on both sides.

When to go

The season runs from spring through fall: the Fenelon Place Elevator operates April 1 to November 30 ($2 one way for adults, cash only), Travel Dubuque says riverboats call from late spring to late fall, and the William M. Black dredge is open from Memorial Day through fall. Travel Dubuque puts peak fall color around the weekend nearest October 10, best seen from Eagle Point Park, the top of the Fenelon Place Elevator and the Riverwalk. The Fireworks and Air Show Spectacular was held on July 3 in both 2025 and 2026; the 2027 date hasn’t been announced. Winter is quiet, and the elevator is closed December through March.

Accessibility

Hotel Julien has an elevator bank serving all guest floors, accessible entrances on Main Street and at the rear parking lot, accessible rooms on the third floor and above, and roll-in showers in select rooms. The Hancock House has no elevator and says guests must be able to climb stairs; the Richards House, the Redstone and Four Mounds publish no accessibility details, so ask before you book. In town, the river museum has elevators in both main buildings and lends wheelchairs, and the Jule’s door-to-door MiniBus serves riders 65 and older and ADA-eligible riders for $3 one way.

Before you book

Book early for the 2027 college commencement weekends: Loras College and the University of Dubuque both graduate on Saturday, May 1, and Clarke University on Saturday, May 8; the University of Dubuque also holds a winter commencement on December 17, 2026. Cancellation terms differ: Hotel Julien needs 48 hours’ notice, the Richards House asks for 72 hours for a single room, and the Hancock House gives a 60-day voucher rather than a refund for cancellations 15 or more days out and no refund within five days of arrival. The Richards House includes a full breakfast for two and bills Sunday nights of Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends and New Year’s Eve at its Saturday rate; the Hancock House serves full breakfast on weekends only, and Four Mounds’ Grey House and White House suit groups.

Questions travelers ask

What is the oldest hotel in Dubuque?

Hotel Julien Dubuque has the longest run as a hotel: its own history says a hotel or inn has stood at Second and Main since 1839, and today’s building opened in 1915, after the earlier Julien burned in 1913. The oldest building among the five stays is the Richards House, which the Jackson Park district nomination dates to 1882 (the inn says 1883); it has been a B&B since 1989.

Should I stay downtown or on the bluffs in Dubuque?

Stay downtown at Hotel Julien to be near the river and the Port of Dubuque, with free parking, elevators, a restaurant and a spa. Choose a historic house instead: the Redstone on Bluff Street, near the bottom of the Fenelon Place Elevator, or the Richards House and the Hancock House in the Jackson Park and West Eleventh Street districts, which come with steep streets and stairs. Four Mounds is a country estate on the North End bluffs, so plan to drive.

Where do you park in downtown Dubuque?

Meters cost $0.25 per 20 minutes and are enforced Monday to Saturday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; the City’s ramps charge $1 an hour to a $10 daily maximum, and parking in the Port of Dubuque, including the Port ramp at 351 Bell Street, is free 24/7. Hotel Julien has complimentary parking in its own lot, while the Hancock House has free, unmetered street parking only.

When is the best time to visit Dubuque?

Late spring through fall, when the Fenelon Place Elevator runs (April 1 to November 30) and riverboats call; Travel Dubuque puts peak fall color around the weekend nearest October 10. Plan around the Fireworks and Air Show Spectacular, held on July 3 in 2025 and 2026 (the 2027 date isn’t announced), and the 2027 commencement weekends at Loras College and the University of Dubuque (May 1) and Clarke University (May 8).

Does Dubuque have historic bed and breakfasts?

Yes. The Hancock House, Charles T. Hancock’s Queen Anne mansion by Frank D. Hyde on Grove Terrace, lists nine guest rooms and serves full breakfast on weekends. The Richards House, a Stick Style house on Locust Street, says it has eight guest rooms and more than 80 stained glass windows, and it includes a full breakfast. The Redstone, A. A. Cooper’s Richardsonian Romanesque duplex on Bluff Street, is a small inn with 12 rooms on its booking engine, and Four Mounds rents rooms in its 1908 Grey House and 1924 White House.

Is there a haunted hotel in Dubuque?

There is no official ranking. The Redstone has the clearest ghost story: Bob Vila’s 2023 roundup of haunted hotels says builder Augustine A. Cooper still makes his presence felt there as a gentlemanly apparition whose soft footsteps are heard throughout the property. Hotel Julien’s own history repeats stories that Al Capone hid out on its eighth floor, with guards on the stairs and elevators, while saying no records confirm he owned the hotel; that’s a gangster story, not a ghost story. These are stories guests and writers tell, not documented fact.

Keep exploring

All of Iowa →

How we chose these inns

Every place on this page is at least 50 years old, holds a credential we can check (National Register listing, a listed historic district, landmark status, or Historic Hotels of America membership), and takes bookings today. We verify each one against primary sources before it goes on the list, and last checked this list in October 2026. Read our criteria.

Planning details on this page (parking, transport, seasons and events) come from: cityofdubuque.org, catalog.archives.gov, en.wikipedia.org, hoteljuliendubuque.com, rivermuseum.org, traveldubuque.com, bobvila.com, fenelonplaceelevator.com, therichardshouse.com, thehancockhouse.com, fourmounds.org, flydbq.com, kcrg.com, anamancs.com, loras.edu, clarke.edu, dbq.edu, visitgalena.org.

Sources (13)

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