kimamom

Has anyone stayed here since it changed over from the Four Seasons? We're trying to decide between this property or the Hotel Edgewater which we loved.

DD will be with us this trip (16) and she really likes the idea of the Olympic pool at the Fairmont since she is an avid swimmer. We will probably only be staying a night or two at best, since we will be traveling up to Victoria/Vancouver, CA to see that area for the first time.

I know when it was the Four Seasons it was the "grand dame" of Seattle, so to speak. Is it still considered that now being a Fairmont property? Also, how is the dining at the hotel? Probably just for breakfast. TIA!! ***kim***

uuhhhh

"....since we will be traveling up to Victoria/Vancouver, CA...."

please be advised that victoria and vancouver are two different cities, and are in canada, not california.

kimamom

uuhhh...I thought you were going to say I forgot the "t" in Fairmont!

Do you have anything else to contribute reagarding my inquiry? ***kim***

sk84fungirl

I stayed here in April/May of 2004 and absolutely loved it. Was there for a week. First visit to Seattle. Stayed on the 10th floor (I think) in a end room that I could see the Needle and part of the bay. Out the other believe I was looking at a Civic Center or something and looked down on the front entrance of the hotel. It was in walking distance to everything. Did not even need to use the free buses. I actually posted a trip report on tripadvisor.

The staff, room, and food were all awesome. Best corned beef hash I ever had

uuhhhh

i'm sure you'd be surprised to know that i actually have stayed there a couple times, kim, when it was four seasons.

imo, comparing the olympic to the edgwater is a lot like comparing mo's in cannon beach to whatever your fave restaurant of the moment is. i'm sure you know which of the two you'd rather dine in. the question is, where do you belong.......

uuhhhh

oh, and as for the food at olympic..... breakfast only, huh.... we had sunday brunch there a few years back. if you can think of it, it was somewhere on the buffet table. in spite of that, two in our party of four thought the hash browns were the best thing offered. disappointing for us, but no one else seemed to mind.... most seemed to have things other than dining on their minds.....

Gardyloo

It's a very grand, rather old-fashioned, premier hotel. Everyone is holding their breath to see if Fairmont will make the capital and operational investment needed to keep it at the top. Everything about the place is expensive, the restaurants are good but not the best in town. It's the anti-boutique hotel, but it's still Seattle, so one will see flannel shirts as well as suits.

Unlike the original Fairmont, however, it lacks a Tonga Room.

kimamom

Thanks sk8forfungirl and Gardyloo for your input. It sounds wonderful! I'll post a review if we decide to stay there.

Seattle to Vancouver about 2.5 hours, correct? Weather in June very different than August? ***kim***

Gardyloo

2 1/2 hours driving time at or above the limit, plus 15-120 minutes at the border. Most days you need to allow 4 hours city center to city centre; watch out for the RCMP on BC 99 through the Delta. when it says 100km it means 100km.

No the weather in June will likely be cooler, wetter. Way wetter. Might not be, of course.

kimamom

A lot to learn about Canada, now what is the RCMP? And yes, we have been known to get places very quickly, LOL! Not one speeding ticket ever, yet!

I'll probably surprise you in my trip report on how fast we get to and fro! ***kim***

Scarlett

Royal Canadian Mounted Police

I have heard how fast you get to and from Cannon Beach - Portland so Canada should be a piece of cake!

Orcas

Kim,
Try making a dash through the Eastside around Seattle. I found out why the cops are called "revenuers" by the local folks on Day 3 of my life in the Seattle metro area. I-5 is faster, but keep your eyes peeled.

Patrick

Isn't it funny how we read things differently? After the comments made about the Fairmont, I would have decided NOT to stay there. But others think those were good comments and decide they will.

kimamom

"The staff, the food, the rooms are awesome", yes Patrick those are pretty negative comments, LOL!

I'm sure we'll love our stay there! I probably won't want to leave. How is the spa? Has anyone gone there for massages? ***kim***

Orcas

I understand what Patrick is staying.

What was it Thumper's father said again?

uuhhhh

on 01/28/2005 you write you're trying to decide between olympic and edgewater, kim. 24 hours later you write you're sure you'll enjoy your stay at the olympic. really, what was it that tipped the scale towards the olympic? especially since it doesn't have the gorgeous water views you seem to cherish so much in pdx.

Patrick

Kimamom, what I meant was that we focus on different things, and then see them different ways.

What I focused on were comments like "grand rather old fashioned" and "anti-boutique hotel" great to some, not so great to me. "Everything is expensive" nice for you, but I like not to have to spend a fortune on overpriced valet parking, room service, and $3.00 phone calls which is what I assumed that meant. "restaurants are good, but not the best in town" coupled with everything being expensive, this is hardly a big plus in my book.

Don't get me wrong. It's fine that you want to stay there. I'm just saying those types of comments would make me look for a smaller, less grand, less expensive, less pretentious, less giant anti-boutique hotel. That's all. We all have different likes, and those comments reminded me how "over" huge old hotels I am. In other words, if I had a choice between the Andra and the Olympic at exactly the same price, I know in an instant which one I'd prefer. And it wouldn't be the Olympic! But maybe that's just me and my personal likes.

kimamom

It's rated #2 in Seattle on Tripadvisor, sk8forfungirl I just read your review. Thanks for your input and I'd enjoy more comments from others who have stayed there recently!

Patrick: thanks for your input, but I'm really interested in comments from others who have actually stayed at the property! ***kim***

uuhhhh

<<...but I'm really interested in comments from others who have actually stayed at the property!>>

absolutely.... i agree, posters shouldn't be recommending any place they haven't experienced first hand. think you can follow your own advice, kim?

why the sudden reliance on tripadvisor? does it work for seattle, but not for pdx?