Looking for a UW facility for quiet scholarly work, a lab meeting, office gathering or departmental retreat? The Friday Harbor Labs (FHL), in the beautiful San Juan Islands, has housing and meeting spaces available October to April with discounted rates for UW budgets.
The Friday Harbor Labs is the UW’s marine station, located on a 480-acre forested preserve on the lovely shoreline of San Juan Island. Established on this site over 100 years ago, the station has a rich history of marine research and education. While facilities are generally full from May to mid-October, with students taking courses and researchers working on diverse projects, during other times of the year, they are available for rent to groups holding lab retreats, collaborative workshops and small conferences.
In addition to its many research labs, the station’s facilities include housing that can accommodate up to 150 people — from dormitories and one-room huts to private cottages and apartments. FHL also offers a number of well-equipped meeting rooms, a full-service dining hall, and natural surroundings that are perfect for long walks and talks or quiet contemplation. The town of Friday Harbor, with diverse small shops and several restaurants, is a 5-minute drive or 25-minute walk from campus. 
A separate facility exists on one end of campus for scholarly work by individuals or small groups (six or fewer) at the Whiteley Center. The center has elegant cottages in the woods and a Study Center overlooking the harbor for either private work (of any type, from painting to book-writing) or small collaborations.
Information on holding an event at FHL can be found here. Note that while the dining hall is generally closed in winter, it will open to provide full meal service for groups of 30 or more. Tours of the Friday Harbor Labs research facilities can also be arranged. Rates for housing and use of meeting spaces can be found here for the greater FHL campus, and here for the Whiteley Center. Payments on a UW budget number receive a 14% discount from these rates and are tax exempt.
For questions about holding group events, email Morgan Johnston at FHLFAC@uw.edu; for the Whiteley Center, contact Stephanie Zamora at HRWCTR@uw.edu. Because the entire campus is a biological preserve, pets are not allowed.
The University also operates three other off-campus facilities with meeting options: Pack Forest, Olympic Natural Resource Center and the UW Botanic Gardens.
