Seattle in September
 

Just starting to plan a trip to Seattle Sept 7-12. We are going up (from SF) for a wedding and to visit family but would like to spend two nights in Seattle. Prefer Sunday and Monday---is it reasonable to put a $200 a night cap on a nice, comfortable and peaceful hotel? If so, please suggest which! Lots of friends and family have given their opinions: Inn at the market, Inn at Harbor Steps, The W, the Westin, Edgewater and Hotel Andra. They all look nice in different ways, but none are in my budget. Really just want something that's a good value for what it is. It wouldn't hurt for it to be centrally located either! Never been to Seattle before and would like to do some of the touristy things and catch a ball game. We are a couple in our late 20's. Not sure that makes a difference, but just in case...

The Mayflower Park Hotel is that price range, very centrally located, and a great hotel imo.

September (weather-wise) is usually one of our best months here!

I second the suggestion of the Mayflower Park Hotel, although it may be just over $200 in early Sept.

Have a look at visitseattle.org (the Seattle visitors bureau site; put in your dates and see which hotels come up) which will give you a good overview of what hotels cost in Seattle. $200 is unfortunately just the starting point these days for downtown hotels if you want a place that's a step above the budget options.

Thanks Suze! This site actually allowed me to look up AAA rates, which push it under the $200 a night budget. I will definitely consider it :)

Nice tip NWW! That's what I'm finding in most bigger cities downtown. C'est la vie :(

Oh, probably should have mentioned that we will have a rental car---do most hotels offer parking, or is this going to be more of a hinderance than a convenience?

Also, does anybody have info on the Alexis? Looks nice enough...

I don't think the Alexis is any cheaper than those others, is it? If yes, it's a fine hotel. You'll have to pay the hotel for parking. Depends what you want to do if a car is a help or a hindrance. I you are just going to and from the airport and within downtown you don't need one. If the weddings in an outlying area, or you want to see the countryside surrounding, then you'd want one.

The Alexis is a lovely hotel and they just finished a renovation of their rooms. But it's probably going to be as pricey as most of the other ones you've mentioned.

And yes, all the hotels charge an arm and a leg for parking ($25-30 or so a night) so if you don't need a car the whole time you're here then either turn it in early or don't pick it up until you need it depending on your schedule. It's also less expensive to pick up a car downtown compared to the airport due to the higher tax rates there.

I second Mayflower Park Inn. Another one I thought of was Silver Cloud Inn, mostly because there is a brand new one right by Safeco Field.
Enjoy Seattle. It is a wonderful place and should be gorgeous in September.

Hmm, I only mentioned the Alexis b/c of the site NWW recommended. I will have to dig deeper for actual rates I guess. The hotel's link for reservations isn't resonding right now. Any comparisons between it and the Mayflower though?

melh, the Silver Cloud looks like another good option, thanks for mentioning it.

oh, and yes, the wedding is outside of Seattle and we will need a car to get out to Sumner as well. Maybe I should try to book the Seattle portion at the very end of our trip so that we can just return it before we check into the hotel. Is it really no problem to do the following w/o a car? Get to the ballpark, Experience Music Project, downtown shopping, waterfront, Pike Place market, Space needle...

Yep, you can walk or take the monorail to all of the above.

The CVB (visitseattle) site should show you the rates at all the hotels that are available for your dates--not sure why it wouldn't show rates for the Alexis, unless it's not available for your dates?

I'd rank the Alexis a bit higher in the "luxury" category than the Mayflower but both are nice hotels.

That's great, I wish we had such convenient public transportation in SF!

Actually, the CVB site did list the Alexis at $199 for a standard; it was the hotel's site that wasn't responding for booking. I thought maybe a package or my AAA discount could get us an even better deal...

I have stayed at the Mayflower, the Alexis and the Westin. I would say the Mayflower and Alexis are very equal, but the Mayflower is better for location. Not by far, but a bit. The Westin is nice, but not as plush as the others. The location is very good though.

Thanks MMS. I think the Mayflower may be the better option overall, but I like the look of the Alexis better. Doesn't mean it will be better though, right?

Either would be great. Our stays at the Westin were when we lived in the area and we would stay there for large group events. The other two hotels we have stayed at after we moved, but for when we go back to visit family. I would not hesitate on either one, but would have to give the nod to the Mayflower. We stayed there on Suze's recommendation just a couple months ago and loved it. Both the Alexis and Mayflower had beautiful rooms that were very spacious and comfy. We did not have a meal at the Mayflower, but the bar was very good. At the Alexis we did have breakfast in the Library and it was very good, as was their bar. The Alexis does have a stunning Dale Chihuly piece in the lobby which I could stare at for hours. All that said, we will be back at the Mayflower in Nov. for a stay.

I just like the Mayflower, it's one of those personal things. It's just a nice place. I think technically the Alexis may be considered a better hotel, but I don't care for the atmosphere as much (front desk service, etc.).

That said, I live here so my experiences are with visiting friends who have rooms (in both those hotels) and eating in their bars and restaurants.

Mayflower has a more central downtown location, but just by a few blocks.

Thanks suze and mms. I think the Mayflower has got my vote, now I just need to run it past my beau.

I asked about ease of getting around the city w/o a car, which sounds great, but how hard is it to get to and from the airport?

I always take a taxi myself. From downtown would be ~$28-3$5 and takes about 1/2 hour to SeaTac.

The Mayflower is great, and you also might try the Mediterranean Inn in the Queen Anne area. A little outside downtown but close to the Needle, the Monorail and the Experience Music Project. Stayed there in April and it was great. A fabulous rooftop deck with an amazing view, and a grocery store just down the block. Getting to and from the airport in a taxi is about the same as taking a shuttle, and much more convenient. Seattle is very walkable, and the monorail is great for getting to and from downtown. I also took the bus, easy, and free within the downtown area.

thanks indie, i'll check it out. could it be more feasible to keep the car rental at this location for less $ parking than downtown? we're finding that to return the rental car early is more expensive than keeping it for the entirety of our trip...

My friend stayed at Mediterranean recently and liked it alot. He had a car with him, I'm guessing he paid extra for parking but you can check with the hotel. It's a bit out of the way but not by much, and a better price than the downtown-proper hotels. Excellent 2nd suggestion, if the Mayflower doesn't work for you.

My beau vetoed to Mediterranean and isn't as sold on the Mayflower as I am. Does anyone have thoughts on the Andra Hotel (his contribution) or more info on Silver Cloud at the stadium? These are his top choices right now but a little pricier...

You'd think picking a hotel wouldn't be so difficult, but I guess that's life! We've had a few trips cancelled/put on the back burner because of a car accident I had earlier in the year and I think we're both being pickier about this Seattle trip since it's the first (and possibly last) trip we'll make 'til next Spring.

So thanks for all of the fantastic input!

I've never seen the rooms at Andra but we eat lunch at their restaurant (Lola) occasionally. Seems like a fun place and the location is great. If you are keeping the car, there are lots of public lots to the east, most about $8 a day, and on-street parking is free at night ( but be sure and pay or move the car after 8 am!)

Silver Cloud is way out of the way unless you are spending all your time at baseball games.

Did you consider Hotel Max?

The Andra's great. But it's going to be more than $200 unless you can find a discounted rate. Try looking on the visitseattle.org Lodging Guide page or email me.

I agree with Enzian's comment about the Silver Cloud Stadium--great location for a game, but not for seeing the rest of Seattle.

The Max is a cool hotel but the rooms are teensy tiny.

I don't think Hotel Andra is in your price range either.

I would not stay all the way down by the stadium. It's not really convenient to downtown propery and is in an industrial part of the city.

One other concern I'd have about Hotel Andra is there is a construction site directly across the street to the south at the moment.

I think Hotel Max is a good option. I used to like it alot when it was the Vance, yes I know the rooms are tiny.

The problem is your budget and your good taste aren't quite lining up
:-)

Thanks for all the info on Silver Cloud. I think that's enough to knock it off my beau's list. We'll probably end up at the Mayflower (I'm hoping at least) unless we get a great rate elsewhere. Seems like it's got the most bang for the buck, which is important since (as suze so aptly pointed out), our taste does not fit our budget. Give us another few years ;) enzien, thanks for the parking tips, and I will certainly look into the Max.

Thanks again to all!

P.S. Suze---thanks doubly for the heads-up on the construction across from the Andra, it will likely be the tie-breaker between it and the Mayflower...

ok, did a little leg work on the Max and the rooms do look tiny! But they have AAA rates and a package that includes the Experience Music Project, one of the "musts" on our list. Only problem is that they have both smoking and non-smoking rooms. I hadn't thought about this before (coming from CA), but I would much prefer an all non-smoking hotel. Does anyone know if any of the hotels we've been looking at fall under this catergory? If not, I guess I'll just have to do the research over :( Oh well, my mistake...

wow i'm surprised to hear that. i didn't know they let anyone smoke anywhere in the greater seattle area these days!

suze---is that subtle sarcasm or am I just super-sesitive ;) I know a lot of the hotels in Seattle are exclusively non-smoking, so I'm really not trying to be facetious!

No, I was serious. Things are really strict against smoking all around the city these days. I guess I just assumed most hotels had gone completely non-smoking.
:-)

The Silver Cloud Inn on Broadway has availability for your nights at $149. Excellent transit service downtown, convenient to cafes, pubs etc. on Broadway/Capitol Hill. New and nice place.

The Silver Cloud on Lake Union is also available for $179 or so, farther out but great views of the floatplanes and action on Lake Union; they also have a free shuttle downtown.

Oh, I'm glad to hear that (about the smoking); my beau has asthma and it really bothers him around smoke...Gardyloo, thanks for the info on the Silver Clouds and transit, I appreciate it!