stay in downtown seattle or bellevue?
 

will be traveling to Seattle area in July for a choice of two different conferences, one located in Bellevue at the Doubletree Hotel and the other at an unspecified downtown Seattle hotel.

Can you stay at both locations? I'd stay in Bellevue for the one conference and then Seattle for the other. Washington's traffic tends to be hurrendous, so I'd stay as close to your conventions as possible. If you're attending the conferences at the same time, I think I'd go with the Seattle hotel just for convenience.

I'd recommend Seattle.

That said, the commute is no big deal. Yes, you have to cross the lake on 1 of 2 highways/bridges. My drive from Capitol Hill (near downtown) to central Bellevue was 8 miles and took anywhere from 15-30 minutes (even 1 hour but only on rare occasion of an accident on the 520 bridge).

Seattle is a beautiful city. I hope you have some time to be a tourist after you conferences. I would recommend meals at the Dahlia Lounge, Salty's on Alki Beach for the coconut prawns and the views and the Flying Fish for an upscale, trendy-type place.

Also, check out the Six Seven at the Edgewater Hotel for their gorgeous interior and water views. ***kim*** :)

The first time I went to Seattle was on a Monday, by the following Friday I had found a job and an apartment. LOVE THAT CITY! I wish I could move back, but DH needs sunshine all the time.

Oh Calamari I loved Seattle too from the very first time I visited it when I was 18 years old. San Francisco, Seattle and Vancouver IMHO have a lot in common. Take good care.

The Bellevue conference is in early July (it's actually the better of the two), and the other is in late July, but based on the better location, in Seattle, guess I'll opt for that one.
Thanks for all the help and suggestions. I'll hold off bugging you guys for awhile, about must see attractions, etc!

I change my vote -LOL. If the Bellevue conference is professionally the better choice, do that.

I know from responses to this and one other post, people are making like it is an impossible grand voyage of some sort. People commute Seattle/Bellevue and Bellevue/Seattle ALL the time. These cities are 12 miles apart, max.

Re: the commute from Seattle to Bellevue......forget it!!!! At all costs! Stay in Blahvue (as we call it) when your conference is there and Seattle for that conference. There isn't much to do in Blahvue but the commute is terrible! 12 miles yes but 30 minutes to an hour any time of the day. Stop and go traffic on and on. Forget it! Stay out of your car and enjoy life.
Just my humble opinion.

While driving between Seattle and Bellevue can be hell, during rush hour if you take the bus (which I often do), it's not a problem. Driving is the problem. So, it depends on the times you need to be at the Conference.

From what you've said so far, IMO it would be best to stay at the Doubletree for the conference and then stay a few days more in Seattle.

While the location in Bellevue is not the best, there are some beautiful places in Bellevue (we live there and are a 5 minute walk from Bridal Trails State Park which has 52 miles of hiking trails and is all woods) and a few miles from the Bellevue Botanical Gardens--which are gorgeous. Also nearby are many parks along Lake Washington and Lake Sammamish as well as the best dogpark in the world at Marymoor Park in Redmond.

Seattle, on the other hand, is a fantastic city with its opera, ballet, symphony, Pikes Street Market, Seattle Center, some really good restaurants and other attractions.

Also, not far from either place is some of the most beautiful scenery in the world.

Come to think of it--could you go to both conferences and use the time in between to explore the area? That would really be the best solution I think!

Y'all are making me feel argumentative now, but I commuted from Seattle to Bellevue for 11-1/2 years (ending only last year). I think I am qualified to contribute about the state of traffic affairs. It would only take an hour if someone has an accident on the bridge, which fortunately is not a daily event. More typical is 25 minutes "downtown" Bellevue to downtown Seattle across 520 bridge.

That said, the best idea would be stay at the convention hotel, do some touring out around Redmond, Issaquah, etc. - it is pretty out that way. Then a few days extra in Seattle, stay downtown and tour on foot.

Just spent 5 days @ The Edgewater Hotel. Dining at the 6-7 was wonderful. Based on my limited experience, stay downtown. Great restaurants, terrific views, easy to get around.

Ok guys, I think I'll do the Bellevue conference, and then stay in downtown Seattle for a couple of days, so's to avoid the commute. That said, will I need a car, once I'm in Seattle proper? Come to think of it, it probably would be a good idea to have a car available, in case I want to scope out attractions within, say, a 60-90 minute drive.

Most of the hotels downtown charge $20 or so for parking daily. You might look at rates for one-day rentals vs. weekly if you don't need a car every day.

Yeah, you could always pick up the car downtown and have it for only a day or two and not have it all the time in Seattle. You won't really need a car most of the time being downtown. You can walk, take the bus, and take a cab once or twice and still come out ahead of paying for the car and parking, without the hassle.

Andrew

thanks,guys!

thedoctor49:

Which Doubletree would you be staying at in Bellevue? There are two and there's a big difference between them. Also, is the conference at Meydenbauer Center?

suze:

What's up with the word "downtown" in quotes for Bellevue? Dems fightin' words. :)

Scratch my post, thedoctor49. Apparently, Doubletree dumped their lower quality Bellevue hotel. I used to work in the accounting/reservations department for one and there was always confusion about the two from guests and vendors.

If you plan on exploring the area such as going to Snoqualmie Falls and whatnot, then you'll definitely want a car. However, if your conference is at Meydenbauer Center, you could easily walk there from the Doubletree and not worry about parking. It's only 4 blocks and I see conventioneers walking the route all the time.