Seattle - Oct 25 -30 - Advice Needed
 

hi:

the two of us willbe travelling with our 67 month old to Seattle for a conference. We'll be staying at The Westin. fo rthe first 4 days and plan to rent a car and see the surrounding areas the other two days.

What are some recommendations/opinions on the following:

- transportation from SEATAC to the Westin
- The WEstin
- renting a car (we heard it is better to rent when ready to go outside of seattle
- is it a walkable city? (we're from NYC so we dont mind taking public transportation or walking
- the must see things in the city and elsewhere
- is it a baby friendly city?
- restaurants/shops we should check out

suggestions/comments on anything else is appreciated also.

thanks

that's "7" month old kid - not "67"!

Seattle is indeed a very walkable city, and the Westin is in an excellent location right in the center of the city. Does the Westin not have an airport shuttle? If not, I think there's some kind of local shuttle service that services a few of the hotels to/from Seatac for maybe $10/person. I'd call the Westin front desk and ask for their recommendation.

Seattle has no subway; bus service is OK but probably not what you are used to in NYC. The monorail is a big joke (a mile long?) but does stop right at the Westin and will take you up to Seattle Center and the space needle. Buses are free during the day in the core of downtown Seattle (not after about 7PM for some reason). Do a Google search to find the transit site for Seattle busses and trains.

I hear the City Pass for Seattle is a great deal to see the art museum, aquarium, etc. I don't live in Seattle and have few restaurant recommendations. Though it is a small national chain, you might consider the Gordon Biersch brew pub atop the Pacific Place mall close to the Westin - actually a nice restaurant with pub-type food but a nice atmosphere.

Andrew

First, come prepared for rainy weather. It will probably rain at least once or twice during your visit, maybe more.

A car is an impediment in downtown Seattle; a good thing to remember is that in the downtown core (roughly from Pioneer Square to a few blocks north of your hotel, and from the waterfront to the I-5 freeway) all bus service is free - just jump on and off.

Many of the key downtown attractions are covered and reasonably weatherproof, especially the Pike Place Market and environs, which in late October will be a riot of color - mums, pumpkins, red apples, orange crabs... and worth as much time as you want to give it.

The city <i>is</i> walkable, but quite hilly, and east-to-west bus routes (like crosstown routes in Manhattan) are relatively scarce. That means you can become a mountain goat traveling uphill from the waterfront, so if the baby is in a backpack or a stroller, plan accordingly. There are various &quot;inside passages&quot; that allow uphill travel in the steepest areas through consecutive building-elevator use (where an office building has an entrance on one, lower, street, and another exit on a higher one) and similar tricks.

The Westin is a large, fine hotel, used frequently by Hillary's hubby when he was somebody. You can take a Grey Line bus from the airport to the door - $8.50 last time I checked; don't know about the child, probably $0. A cab will be around $30.

There are several car agencies located in walking distance from the Westin, probably a stand or two inside the hotel. A car is a must for exploring the countryside, plus you might want one for a day or two to see more of Seattle itself - we're having a late autumn and the city <i>ought</i> to be in the middle of a glorious fall when you're here. There are parks and beaches, neighborhoods and view points not in the downtown area where a car would be a great advantage. If you don't want to pay for overnight parking at the hotel, there are numerous lots or garages near the hotel where they won't charge you the $25 a day or whatever that the hotel will (it can make up the difference between regular and discount rates for rental cars.) Also look into Priceline for car rentals in Seattle - usually some excellent deals.

As far as out of town attractions go, the one thing I'd say is mandatory is a ferry ride across Puget Sound to Bainbridge Island. If you want to make a day of it, continue on to the Olympic Peninsula, but with an infant and shortening days, taking longish car trips will be your call. Going the other way, in October the flow of water over Snoqualmie Falls (45 min. east of Seattle) is usually fabulous, well worth a couple of hours. Continue from the falls up SR 202 and 203 to Duvall, through the beautiful Snoqualmie Valley, which in the fall is usually gorgeous, then back to Seattle via Microsoft country in Redmond. Makes for a fine day trip.

For restaurants and shopping, there's plenty - what's your pleasure? Coming from NYC there's probably not much you haven't seen, but you won't get better seafood or produce than you'll have in Seattle in October.

Whew.

The Westin is perfectly situated for sightseeing and conference attendance. You don't need (or want) a car in downtown Seattle. In the downtown area there is free bus service to the Pike Place Market, Pioneer Square, and other such points. You will be near the Monorail to Seattle Center--home of Space Needle, Experience Music Project, Opera House, etc. Plan the other two days in accordance with weather conditions while you are here. You could go to Vancouver if the weather is bad (make sure of auto insurance). An alternative to the Bainbridge Ferry is one of the Argosy Boat Tours of the area (half-price tickets usually available at Pike Place Market info booth). Have fun.

If you get caught in the rain while exploring the waterfront, take a horse drawn carriage back to the Westin. A great Thai restaurant close to the waterfront is Rama on Post. The baby might like the aquarium with the &quot;touch&quot; pool. The Pacific Science Center is great for kids but yours may be too young still. There's a big FAO Swartz on 5th somewhere I think.
Have fun!

Snoqualmie Falls is a waste of time. It is ok if you are staying in the area but a total wast to drive two hours back and forth (not 45 minutes. Take a drive to Everett to tour the Boeing plant or drive and take a tour of the Chateau St Michele and Columbia winery (across from each other in a town about 45 minutes northeast (name escapes me). The best thing I saw were the salmon ladders at the locks in north Seattle (about25-30 minutes from downtown. Vancouver is 3 hours away.