UW-Eau Claire holds commencement at the Sonnentag Event Center on Menomonie Street, and the SpringHill Suites at 1111 Menomonie is next door, about a minute by car and a short walk. That is the room to want. The rest of the city's hotels, the Hampton Inn on Craig Road and the independent Lismore downtown among them, are four to five minutes away and on UWEC's own visitor page. Both rounds are published: Saturday 19 December 2026 at 10 a.m. in the Sonnentag, and Saturday 15 May 2027, which is not the 13 May ceremony for the Barron County campus. UWEC requires a ticket for every guest, "including infants and children", up to six per graduate, runs free parking and a shuttle, and broadcasts live. No room count was confirmed for any of the three hotels and no availability series has been run. Chippewa Falls is 26 minutes; Menomonie, where UW-Stout graduates the same season, is 35.
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Next door, then five minutes
SpringHill Suites by Marriott Eau Claire, 1111 Menomonie Street. Next to the Sonnentag Event Center at 1075 Menomonie, where UWEC graduates. About a minute by car and a short walk. On UWEC’s visitor page. No room count confirmed in an English-language directory, so none stated.
Hampton Inn Eau Claire, 2622 Craig Road. About a mile and four minutes. On the visitor page. No count stated.
The Lismore Hotel, 333 Gibson Street, downtown. An independent hotel, about two miles and five minutes. On the visitor page. No count stated.
UWEC’s “Plan Your Trip” page lists eight hotels in all. No matched-window availability series has been run for Eau Claire, so this page publishes no count of what remains, and the size of the graduating class was not verified in the research.
Two Saturdays, and a third that is not this one
Saturday 19 December 2026 at 10 a.m., Sonnentag Event Center, per UWEC’s fall commencement page. Saturday 15 May 2027, per the commencement page and the catalog calendar. Both weekdays check out.
UWEC’s registration calendar also lists 13 May 2027 as the Barron County commencement. That is the Rice Lake campus, sixty miles north, and a family reading the calendar quickly could book the wrong weekend. The Eau Claire ceremony is the 15th.
The Friday night for both rounds. December’s 10 a.m. start makes it unavoidable; the spring time was not published at this check.
A ticket for every guest, six per graduate
This is the rule that shapes the crowd. UWEC’s fall commencement page for December 2026, and its spring page: “Tickets are required for all guests, including infants and children.” And: “Graduates may register for up to six tickets for their guests.” Doors open 75 minutes before the ceremony. Read on 14 September 2026; the ceremony weekend logistics page tracks the 2027 version. Six guests per graduate is also a rough ceiling on how many rooms a class needs.
Chippewa Falls, and a town with its own graduation
Chippewa Falls, 26 minutes northeast, the nearest separate city, with branded lodging. Menomonie, 35 minutes west on I-94, has an interstate hotel strip and is home to UW-Stout, which graduates the same season; a family planning on Menomonie should check UW-Stout’s dates first. River Falls, 79 minutes, and New Richmond, 86, are the far edge.
Drive times are off-peak road routes to the Sonnentag computed on 14 September 2026, not measured journeys.
Not claimed here
No availability count, no graduate count, no room counts. No commencement rate at any hotel; UWEC’s list is a visitor list. The spring venue is not explicitly assigned on UWEC’s pages; December’s is.
Verified hotel rules
| Hotel | Min. stay | Prepayment | Cancellation / forfeit | Typical rate | How to book |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SpringHill Suites by Marriott Eau Clairesourcecheck rates | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Online, hotel’s own site |
| Hampton Inn Eau Clairesourcecheck rates | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Online, hotel’s own site |
| The Lismore Hotel Eau Clairesourcecheck rates | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Online, hotel’s own site |
- SpringHill Suites by Marriott Eau Claire: 1111 Menomonie Street, next to the Sonnentag Event Center; about a minute by car and a short walk. On UWEC's visitor page. A room count was not confirmed in an English-language directory, so none is stated. No commencement-specific minimum stay, prepayment or cancellation policy was found, and none is claimed.
- Hampton Inn Eau Claire: 2622 Craig Road, about a mile and four minutes from the Sonnentag. On UWEC's visitor page. Room count not confirmed; none stated. No commencement-specific policy was found.
- The Lismore Hotel Eau Claire: 333 Gibson Street, downtown, about two miles and five minutes from the Sonnentag. An independent hotel on UWEC's visitor page. Room count not confirmed; none stated. No commencement-specific policy was found.
Opens live availability around campus via our partner Stay22. Several of the properties above take graduation bookings only by phone, mail-in form, or lottery, so treat this as a price check against the rules in the table, not a replacement for them. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
The ring
| Town | Drive time | Typical availability | Rate vs. epicenter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chippewa Falls, WICheck rooms in Chippewa Falls, WI → | 26 min | Not measured for this cluster. The nearest separate city, with branded lodging. | Not measured. |
| Menomonie, WICheck rooms in Menomonie, WI → | 35 min | Not measured for this cluster. An I-94 university town with its own hotel strip. | Not measured. |
| River Falls, WICheck rooms in River Falls, WI → | 79 min | Not measured for this cluster. A university city on the Minnesota border with hotel inventory. | Not measured. |
| New Richmond, WICheck rooms in New Richmond, WI → | 86 min | Not measured for this cluster. A small regional centre with lodging. | Not measured. |
Drive times are off-peak road routes to the Sonnentag Event Center computed with OSRM on 2026-09-14, not measured journeys. No matched-window availability series has been run for any town in this ring.
“Check rooms” are partner links (Stay22), and we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Live availability near campus
Map and booking links are provided by our partner Stay22. We may earn a commission on bookings made through this map at no extra cost to you.
Frequently asked questions
Which hotel is closest to the ceremony?
The SpringHill Suites by Marriott at 1111 Menomonie Street, next to the Sonnentag Event Center at 1075 Menomonie. About a minute by car. On UWEC's visitor page. No room count is stated because none was confirmed in an English-language directory.
Will Eau Claire sell out?
No matched-window availability series has been run for Eau Claire, so this page publishes no count. A city of 70,000 with a real hotel base and one property beside the venue is the structure; the class size was not verified. The SpringHill will go first.
Which night do we need?
The Friday. December's ceremony is at 10 a.m. on Saturday 19 December 2026; the Spring 2027 time was not published, and a morning start makes the Friday night unavoidable.
Where is the overflow?
Chippewa Falls, 26 minutes northeast, with branded lodging. Menomonie, 35 minutes west on I-94, has a hotel strip but hosts UW-Stout's commencement in the same season; check its date first. River Falls and New Richmond are 79 and 86 minutes.
Does UWEC publish a hotel list?
Yes. UWEC's "Plan Your Trip" visitor page lists eight hotels including the SpringHill Suites, Hampton Inn and The Lismore. It is a general list, not a commencement block.
Do we need tickets?
Yes. UWEC's fall and spring commencement pages both state "Tickets are required for all guests, including infants and children" and that "Graduates may register for up to six tickets for their guests", as read on 14 September 2026. Doors open 75 minutes before the ceremony.
What about December?
Saturday 19 December 2026 at 10 a.m. in the Sonnentag Event Center, per UWEC's fall commencement page. Same hotels, the Friday night, the week before Christmas.
How we verified this
Last verified:
- UW-Eau Claire, fall commencement ceremonies ("December 19, 2026 | 10 a.m."; "at the Sonnentag Event Center"; tickets required for all guests; parking and shuttle at 201 Water Street; doors open 75 minutes before)
- UW-Eau Claire, Commencement ("May 15, 2027")
- UW-Eau Claire, spring commencement ceremonies ("Tickets are required for all guests, including infants and children."; "Graduates may register for up to six tickets for their guests."; "Free parking and shuttle are available on campus"; "Both ceremonies will be broadcast live")
- UW-Eau Claire, plan your trip (the university's visitor lodging list)
- UW-Eau Claire, academic and registration calendars ("May 13 | UWEC - Barron County Commencement; May 15 | UWEC Commencement")
This page is verified in two stages. Every fact is checked against the primary sources listed above, then the page is reviewed and signed off by our editor, A. Hassan. Corrections and enquiries: hello@graduationstay.com