Husband & I will be making our 1st ever trip to Seattle in mid-July for a conference. We are coming in from East coast 2 days early to allow for a bit extra time to enjoy the area. During the conference, we will stay at Fairmont Olympic downtown so I was thinking that our 1st 2 nights could be outside of the city....

We would fly in Friday afternoon/evening so it would need to be a relatively easy drive from airport (Seattle). ..maybe an area near wineries? or on the coast or a lake? I would appreciate any suggestions....thanks. I liked the looks of Willows Lodge in Woodinville but it was sold out....

There still ought to be a lot of water coming over Snoqualmie Falls, so have a look at the Salish Lodge - http://www.salishlodge.com/ . If you're old enough to remember the TV series "Twin Peaks" you'll recognize the hotel.

From the Salish you can take a day trip up to the Woodinville wineries, or up into the Cascades for some mountain scenery, or across the Cascades to the cute little town of Roslyn, where another TV show, "Northern Exposure" was filmed.

Also look at the Woodmark Hotel in Kirkland, on the shores of Lake Washington, a short commute from Seattle. That would be convenient to the wineries in Woodinville, and Kirkland itself is a great (suburban, upmarket) location for relaxation, shopping, food... http://www.thewoodmark.com/

Less fancy than those places, but in a great and relaxing location, have a look at the Silver Cloud in Mukilteo, http://www.silvercloud.com/mukilteo/ . Built over the water, it's very convenient for a day's exploration of beautiful Whidbey Island (search this forum for many references) and would be a great introduction to Puget Sound country.

Thank you! They all look like great options but I'm leaning towards The Woodmark....lake+convenient to wineries=perfect! How long of a drive would you estimate from airport? So if we rent a car for the weekend portion of our trip, would you think we would need it while we stay @ Fairmont & explore the City?

The Woodmark will be around 30 min. from the airport depending on traffic. Since there are two of you, you can use the HOV/carpool "diamond" lanes on the freeways. See the hotel's website for driving directions; it's a bit complicated.

I don't think a car is necessary in downtown Seattle; if you want to do a one-day excursion, then there are plenty of car rental offices downtown to use. Parking at downtown hotels is outrageously expensive.

Kirkland (Woodmark) is an easy drive from SeaTac, not much more than 30 mins (depending on traffic/time of day).

The actual "coast" is too far for your timeframe. It's a 3 hour drive from Seattle out to the Pacific ocean beaches.

I don't think you'd need or want a rental car once you're at the Fairmont and doing downtown things. You can easily get around on foot, Metro bus, Light Rail, streetcar, or taxi.