Where to stay and what to do in Seattle

[sleepless]

I will be going on the Celebrity Solstice to Alaska in July of 2016, embarking from Seattle.

 

I am looking for suggestions as to where to stay in Seattle, and what to do in Seattle.

 

We will be coming in a couple of days before we depart, and do not plan on renting a car.

 

Any and all ideas will be welcome.

[Kamloops50]

I will be going on the Celebrity Solstice to Alaska in July of 2016, embarking from Seattle.

 

I am looking for suggestions as to where to stay in Seattle, and what to do in Seattle.

 

We will be coming in a couple of days before we depart, and do not plan on renting a car.

 

Any and all ideas will be welcome.

 

I would recommending staying in the core or near the Space Needle.

There is a lot to see in Seattle

Pike Place Market

Space Needle

Underground City Tour

Aviation Museum at Boeing Field

Tour of Boeing Plant in Everett.

Woodland park

 

There is probably even to see

[sleepless]

I would recommending staying in the core or near the Space Needle.

There is a lot to see in Seattle

Pike Place Market

Space Needle

Underground City Tour

Aviation Museum at Boeing Field

Tour of Boeing Plant in Everett.

Woodland park

 

There is probably even to see

 

 

Thanks.

[ontariocruiser2010]

Just back from my Celebrity Solstice cruise last week. I would recommend getting a City Pass..for $69 it gives you access to Space Needle, EMP, Argosy Cruise, Chihuly Glass Exhibit (Unbelievable!!) and the Aquarium. This is all downtown and you can take the Monorail to the Space Needle, EMP, Chihuly which are all in one area.

 

The underground tour is also fun, I have done that a few years ago also.

 

I was able to get a great deal at the Fairmont Olympic but would suggest hotwire.

 

We even took the Light Rail from the airport to downtown and walked to our hotel for a cost of $6 for two of us.

 

Enjoy!

[Flatbush Flyer]

Marriott Waterfront hotel

[Northern Aurora]

Several more ideas to add to the excellent list being assembled:

 

- a cruise through Ballard locks

 

- Seattle Art Museum (check their website for current exhibits)

 

- a visit to the Seattle unit of the Klondike Goldrush National Historical Park

[melody-s]

There is a restaurant at the top of the space needle. Spendy, but worth it for a special occasion. Ride the Ducks tour is fun. EMP/SciFi museum is interesting. Great shopping in Bellevue Square (Bellevue is a nice suburb of Seattle). Microsoft in Redmond has a visitor center and company store that is fun for computer nerds. Pike Place Market is a must see. Seattle Art Museum is very nice. Underground Tour in Pioneer Square is good. There is an aquarium that is decent, and a large Ferris wheel on the waterfront. Argosy has boat tours that are quite popular.

[Misskitty72]

I would stay at a hotel in the downtown area or waterfront area.

 

You'll find less expensive hotels out by the Space Needle, but it's a long walk to Pike Place Market and other attractions. There is a monorail that runs between the Space Needle and the downtown area. but it could get pricey if you use it every day. it's $2.25 each way.

 

There are tons of hotels in the downtown area. My favorites (and ones that I have stayed at) include:

 

-The Roosevelt Hotel. Moderately priced and great location.

-The Mayfair Hotel. A little more expensive, but it's a great location.

-The Westin. Good location. Equal distance between the Space Needle and downtown.

-Inn at the Market. Expensive, but right next to Pike Place Market. Very nice rooms and views of the Waterfront.

-The Edgewater hotel. Expensive, but right on the waterfront.

 

Avoid staying in the Pioneer Sqare area or stadium district. It's nice to visit during the day because of the historic buildings, but it's extremely sketchy at night.

 

Oh, and I love the argosy boat tours. A great way to see and learn about some Seattle history. You can't go wrong with either the Ballard Lockes tour (about 3 hours) or the Harbor Tour (1 hour).

Edited September 2, 2015 by Misskitty72
Forgot about the boats!

[urbanhawk]

I would stay at a hotel in the downtown area or waterfront area.

 

You'll find less expensive hotels out by the Space Needle, but it's a long walk to Pike Place Market and other attractions. There is a monorail that runs between the Space Needle and the downtown area. but it could get pricey if you use it every day. it's $2.25 each way.

 

There are tons of hotels in the downtown area. My favorites (and ones that I have stayed at) include:

 

-The Roosevelt Hotel. Moderately priced and great location.

-The Mayfair Hotel. A little more expensive, but it's a great location.

-The Westin. Good location. Equal distance between the Space Needle and downtown.

-Inn at the Market. Expensive, but right next to Pike Place Market. Very nice rooms and views of the Waterfront.

-The Edgewater hotel. Expensive, but right on the waterfront.

 

Avoid staying in the Pioneer Sqare area or stadium district. It's nice to visit during the day because of the historic buildings, but it's extremely sketchy at night.

 

Oh, and I love the argosy boat tours. A great way to see and learn about some Seattle history. You can't go wrong with either the Ballard Lockes tour (about 3 hours) or the Harbor Tour (1 hour).

 

I'll be spending 1 night pre cruise and 2 nights post cruise, starting next week at the Moore Hotel; fairly good reviews for the hotel-how is the neighborhood near it? sketchy? if so, is it a little sketchy, or a lot sketchy?:eek: Thanks

[Marisha115]

We spent 2 nights pre-cruise at a price line purchased Executive Pacific hotel in downtown Seattle without a car; took the 35 minute Link ride from the airport. Downtown is very walk-able and the Space Needle area attractions are only a short monorail ride away.

 

We got the City Pass and did the Aquarium and Argosy harbor tour on day 1 and the Space Needle (day and night), EMP museum, and Chihuly Gardens on day 2. We could have spent a full day at the EMP museum, but both of us are into that kind of stuff. Last morning before boarding our cruise ship (at pier 66) we spent eating our way through Pike Place Market. We ended up there every day we were in Seattle and loved it!

 

Post-cruise we rented a car downtown early in the morning, grabbed a few munchies at Pike Place, and spent the rest of the day visiting a bunch of breweries and the Ballard Locks before returning the car to the airport and jumping on our flight home.

[Misskitty72]

I'll be spending 1 night pre cruise and 2 nights post cruise, starting next week at the Moore Hotel; fairly good reviews for the hotel-how is the neighborhood near it? sketchy? if so, is it a little sketchy, or a lot sketchy?:eek: Thanks

 

The Moore Hotel is in a good location...right smack downtown. It's within walking distance of a lot of attractions, like Pike Place Market.

 

The hotel is in a neighborhood known as Belltown. There are a lot of restaurants and bars in the area. It's totally safe. Just use common sense like you would in any big city. It can be a little sketchy late at night..but I'm talking really late..like after 2 am when the bars close. So, just don't plan on doing any sightseeing around that time. :p

Edited September 2, 2015 by Misskitty72

[goncruzn]

Marriott Waterfront hotel

 

I agree, the Seattle Marriott Waterfront hotel is a nice hotel in a great location. At the waterfront and minutes from Pike Place Market. I stayed there in June 2014 pre-cruise and had no complaints. This year I'm staying at the Warwick Seattle Hotel only because I got a good rate. I've heard it's also a decent hotel in a good location. I guess I'll find out for myself in a few days as I'll be there this Friday for my cruise on Saturday!

[Barwick Cruiser]

I agree, the Seattle Marriott Waterfront hotel is a nice hotel in a great location. At the waterfront and minutes from Pike Place Market. I stayed there in June 2014 pre-cruise and had no complaints. This year I'm staying at the Warwick Seattle Hotel only because I got a good rate. I've heard it's also a decent hotel in a good location. I guess I'll find out for myself in a few days as I'll be there this Friday for my cruise on Saturday!

 

We'll be at the Warwick Wednesday and Thursday before boarding the Solstice on Friday....large group of our roll call showing up on Thursday for their Happy Hour, we'll try to leave the hotel in decent shape for your arrival!!:D

[mateck810]

We just returned from this cruise with Celebrity. Wonderful time. We also arrived the night before and stayed for 2 nights afterward. On the front end of our trip, we stayed at the Mediterranean Inn near the Seattle Center. Very nice hotel. I really liked their rooftop access. On the tail end we stayed at the Travelodge near the Space Needle. Not so nice. Price is good, but that's about it. We used Seattle Town Car service to get us to and from the airport and they were fantastic. While we were in town and to get us to and from the pier, we used Uber with success. We visited Pike Place Market (how could you not?) but the crowds on a Saturday were overwhelming for us. We also visited the Aquarium and really enjoyed that. Instead of the Space Needle, we visited the Columbia Building and saw Seattle from their observation deck. A 360 deg. view and higher than Space Needle with less crowds. We chose to walk rather than use taxis or public transportation for getting around. We are a 49 and 50 yo couple and did just fine. Have fun planning and researching for this trip!

[Glaciers]

There are several areas that offer incredible views of the Seattle skyline like Kerry Park on Queen Anne Hill and Dr. Jose Rizal Park on Beacon Hill. Also the Columbia Center, as mentioned, and the Smith Tower.

[urbanhawk]

The Moore Hotel is in a good location...right smack downtown. It's within walking distance of a lot of attractions, like Pike Place Market.

 

The hotel is in a neighborhood known as Belltown. There are a lot of restaurants and bars in the area. It's totally safe. Just use common sense like you would in any big city. It can be a little sketchy late at night..but I'm talking really late..like after 2 am when the bars close. So, just don't plan on doing any sightseeing around that time. :p

 

 

Thanks for your feedback. I stayed at the Moore Hotel on Labor Day (pre cruise), and 2 nights last week (post cruise). The location was great-you're right- a lot of good restaurants in the area; felt safe in the neighborhood, as well-down by Pioneer Square would have been a different story :eek: (and I work with many homeless people every day:)

[Casagordita]

Thanks for your feedback. I stayed at the Moore Hotel on Labor Day (pre cruise), and 2 nights last week (post cruise). The location was great-you're right- a lot of good restaurants in the area; felt safe in the neighborhood, as well-down by Pioneer Square would have been a different story :eek: (and I work with many homeless people every day:)

 

Actually...Pioneer Square has a lot of homeless people, and definitely has its share of crime. But there's nothing down there that's quite as notorious as the open-air drug market and swap meet for stolen goods at Third and Pine, less than three blocks from the Moore! The police have been cracking down heavily all summer in this area, and I've been hearing that it's helped make these few blocks safer, and less scary to walk through. But in late August, just as police officials were making the rounds of local media, proudly reporting their success, there was a really scary robbery and assault on three visitors near Pine and Third. The victims were described as "battered, but not seriously injured" but they're not sounding likely to come back to Seattle anytime soon!

 

To be clear: much of the crime in downtown Seattle isn't violent, and the violence that happens more often targets homeless people, or people who were involved in some of those illegal transactions. Visitors to Seattle aren't very likely to be victims of crime, most especially violent ones. But it does happen, and it happens in the very area where you felt safe. And at least judging by recent anecdotal evidence, there's more of the truly scary stuff happening around the Moore Hotel/Westlake Park area than down around Pioneer Square.

 

The moral of the story is, you can't assume you're safe...well, anywhere, but especially in the urban core of a big city like Seattle. It will certainly help to use some common sense (like, not walking around in the vicinity of Third and Pine at 11:00 at night, like those folks did). And part of that is being aware that areas that look okay...might not be. Criminals who target tourists tend to make it their business to blend in and not look scary or dangerous, until they have to.

[VacationCharlene]

We really enjoyed the Roosevelt Hotel and often have Groupons available.

 

I highly recommend SeaTac Towncar Services while in Seattle. AJ is so nice, I know, because we have used him a few times for transportation needs while in Seattle. His number is (206) 697-5577. He is happy to give you a quote over the phone, he has a towncar that seats 4 comfortably that I think is $55 from the airport to Pier 91 or $45 to Pier 66 downtown...also hotels downtown. He has a SUV Chevy Suburban that is $65 from airport to Pier 91. I also think he has a 10 passenger van that is $12 per person (minimum 7 people). We have had him pick us up from Pioneer Square and also downtown Seattle for about $25 and was ALWAYS on time, friendly, and great competitive prices. Here is his website that I just looked up. www.seatactowncar.com You will be happy you gave him your business Hope this helps you and others looking for transportation reviews. Hello from San Diego!

[KCcruisin07]

We stayed at La Quinta which is above Bell Town. The rooms were nicely updated, and the front desk staff gave us printouts of maps and directions, and there were also "Ambassadors" around town who could help guide us to the nearest bus stop and so on.

We took a walking tour that went through Pike Place Market. It was really informative. We had plans to eat at a local seafood place, but two separate locals steered us to Anthony's, which was great!

Also saw:

-Space Needle

-Ferry to Bremerton (for the ride and views)-not much there but another Anthony's that overlooked the bay

-Fremont Bridge Troll (skip it!)

We did see a lot of homeless people, but as others have said, they were not aggressive.

[Traveller20074]

This will hopefully be figured out soon....

 

 

 

http://www.khq.com/story/30127854/washington-state-seeks-to-suspend-duck-boat-fleet

 

 

SEATTLE (AP) - Washington Gov. Jay Inslee says the state will seek to suspend the operations of Seattle's duck boat fleet pending the outcome of an investigation.

 

Inslee and Seattle Mayor Ed Murray said in a statement Sunday night that the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission will meet Monday to discuss its authority to suspend Ride the Ducks of Seattle until the review is complete.

 

The company says it has already temporarily halted its operations while it assists investigators looking into a crash last Thursday. One of the company's vehicles collided with an oncoming bus on a Seattle bridge last Thursday, killing five people.

 

The commission says it wants to inspect each amphibious tour vehicle in the company's fleet and review the records of every driver.

 

(Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

[Misskitty72]

This will hopefully be figured out soon....

 

 

 

http://www.khq.com/story/30127854/washington-state-seeks-to-suspend-duck-boat-fleet

 

 

SEATTLE (AP) - Washington Gov. Jay Inslee says the state will seek to suspend the operations of Seattle's duck boat fleet pending the outcome of an investigation.

 

Today the state officially suspended the Ride the Duck Tours in Seattle.

 

Here's a link to an article in the Seattle Times if anyone is interested.

State Suspends Ride the Ducks

 

This story makes me so sad because it didn't have to happen. (at least in my opinion) I don't know who's at fault, but I drive across that bridge every day on my way to work and it is extremely narrow!!! The Ducks had no business being there. The vehicles never fit in one lane. They always slowed down traffic and cars would gun it to try to pass them on the bridge. Add to that the fact that there's no median on the bridge!!

 

While I get the novelty of the Ducks, a vehicle that goes from land to water to land every day just does not seem safe to me. Anyway, I'm getting off my soapbox now. Thanks for listening to me vent.

[Misskitty72]

Actually...Pioneer Square has a lot of homeless people, and definitely has its share of crime. But there's nothing down there that's quite as notorious as the open-air drug market and swap meet for stolen goods at Third and Pine, less than three blocks from the Moore!

 

This is very true. I forgot about 3rd and Pine. But it's right in the heart of downtown and Pike Place Market, I don't see how a visitor can really avoid it.

 

I think what makes that area feel safer than Pioneer Square (to me anyway) is that no one seems to bother you. People who hang on that corner don't usually pan-handle ...because they got money coming in from their customers! :p They just want to deal and left alone by the cops.

 

Also, I kind of feel like the cops herd them down to Pioneer Square after 10 p.m. But that could just be me.

 

Any city can be dangerous if you don't use your head. A homeless guy approached me in San Francisco on a Sunday morning and wanted a sip of my tea! I said no and he flipped out. Go figure.

 

Anyway, good point and something for visitors to our city to be aware of.

[Traveller20074]

Today the state officially suspended the Ride the Duck Tours in Seattle.

 

Here's a link to an article in the Seattle Times if anyone is interested.

State Suspends Ride the Ducks

 

This story makes me so sad because it didn't have to happen. (at least in my opinion) I don't know who's at fault, but I drive across that bridge every day on my way to work and it is extremely narrow!!! The Ducks had no business being there. The vehicles never fit in one lane. They always slowed down traffic and cars would gun it to try to pass them on the bridge. Add to that the fact that there's no median on the bridge!!

 

While I get the novelty of the Ducks, a vehicle that goes from land to water to land every day just does not seem safe to me. Anyway, I'm getting off my soapbox now. Thanks for listening to me vent.

 

well, it sounded as if the Ducks never got the memo (that's what they say anyway) to fix the axle :( yep, they said the Ducks took up both lanes. Which would not have been a problem had the axles been fixed...sigh

[Traveller20074]

This is very true. I forgot about 3rd and Pine. But it's right in the heart of downtown and Pike Place Market, I don't see how a visitor can really avoid it.

 

I think what makes that area feel safer than Pioneer Square (to me anyway) is that no one seems to bother you. People who hang on that corner don't usually pan-handle ...because they got money coming in from their customers! :p They just want to deal and left alone by the cops.

 

Also, I kind of feel like the cops herd them down to Pioneer Square after 10 p.m. But that could just be me.

 

Any city can be dangerous if you don't use your head. A homeless guy approached me in San Francisco on a Sunday morning and wanted a sip of my tea! I said no and he flipped out. Go figure.

 

Anyway, good point and something for visitors to our city to be aware of.

agree with you....it can happen anywhere if you don't think...

 

I was born in Seattle, and have been down there so many times, I love the waterfront, and Pioneer Square is fun too. I never have felt scared there for some reason, but probably would be a little leary at 3 am.

Edited October 13, 2015 by Traveller20074

[toosaxykk]

Why is the Moore Hotel such a bargain for a downtown hotel? It looks nice from the pictures and seems to be a perfect place to stay if you are wanting to see all the good spots in Seattle.

 

DH and I are currently booked to stay at Comfort Inn and Suites by the Airport but I am very intrigued with The Moore. Is it worth the change or not because of the crime and location? HELP please!