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Seattle/Pier 91 Questions

Rainmn

By Rainmn,
in Princess Cruises

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Rainmn

Rainmn

Posted
Posted

I have been reading the Star vs. Golden thread and am also considering an Alaska Princess cruise this summer. Could those with experience help with...

  • Various methods of getting from SeaTac to the Seaport?
  • Central hotel recommendations for a one or two night stay between flight arrival and embarkation?
  • Knowledge of car rental drop-off at Seaport, if any?

Thanks for your time and input.

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SeattleCruiselover

SeattleCruiselover

Posted
Posted
I have been reading the Star vs. Golden thread and am also considering an Alaska Princess cruise this summer. Could those with experience help with...

  • Various methods of getting from SeaTac to the Seaport?
  • Central hotel recommendations for a one or two night stay between flight arrival and embarkation?
  • Knowledge of car rental drop-off at Seaport, if any?

Thanks for your time and input.

 

Taxi, town car, Princess transfers, and Gray Line Cruise Express from the airport.

 

What is your hotel budget and how many of you are there?

 

Not yet. It has not been decided yet. There may or may not be a new vendor this year for car rental. Thrifty is no longer the waterfront vendor.

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WillK

WillK

Posted
Posted

Fairmont Olympic is one of the nicest hotels in Seattle and I've seen summer rates below what you'd mentioned.

 

All of the major car rental companies have locations for returns in downtown Seattle. Then it would be just a 5 minute cab ride to the new cruise terminal.

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PRINCESS ELITE

PRINCESS ELITE

Posted
Posted

Princess, Holland America and Royal Carib. will be using

the new facilities at Smith Cove (Pier 91) this summer. It

is north of downtown vs. the old terminal which was south

of the downtown area. So - it is a longer trip to the airport and the downtown area. So far I haven't heard of any car

rental companies having facilities there. Actually, there isn't much there except a marina. I live north of Seattle and we were able to take the bus to the old Princess pier (had to walk a couple of blocks), but it's going to be an

adventure getting to Smith Cove. The best cruise pier is #66 where NCL and Celebrity dock - close to everything.

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gipper77

gipper77

Posted
Posted

Look into the drop fees of whatever car rental company you use. In the past, if you rented at the airport you could not drop at the pier. So you had to return it to Seatac and then take a cab to the pier. Also, many if not all hotel in downtown charge a fee to park your car. Parking in Seattle is expensive. It is easy to just stay downtown and use a cab.

 

I have used two different hotels last year. The first was the Marriot Fairfield suites. We are getting a $99.00 price and they include breakfast buffet. They also have a shuttle to various locations downtown and it runs until 9pm. The rooms are very nice, even if you are staying more that one night.

 

I have also used the 6th ave Inn. This hotel is 6 blocks from Pikes market, two blocks from the mall and tram. The lobbly is not much but the rooms are fine. The price for this hotel are a little higher than the other but you are near downtown, Big Mac is next door and all of the other dinning locations are near by.

 

The cabs are not that much more expensive and it is so much easier to use them than the Princess transfer. I understand that many of the cabs have changed from the crown vics to smaller cars. This means that only 2 people with luggage will fit in a cab.

 

This is a wonderful port to depart from, so enjoy you cruise.

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justplanecrazy

justplanecrazy

Posted
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Our party of 12 stayed at the Marriott Waterfront for 2 nights prior to our cruise on the Star this past August. Hotel staff offered to drive us to the Princess port upon our departure at $7 per person. They used a Town car and their shuttle and transported us and all our luggage to the port in about a 10 minute ride. The hotel was a bit pricey but was on the waterfront and close to lots of restaurants and attractions.

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bjrose

bjrose

Posted
Posted
I have been reading the Star vs. Golden thread and am also considering an Alaska Princess cruise this summer. Could those with experience help with...

  • Various methods of getting from SeaTac to the Seaport?
  • Central hotel recommendations for a one or two night stay between flight arrival and embarkation?
  • Knowledge of car rental drop-off at Seaport, if any?

Thanks for your time and input.

We stayed at a hotel near the airport. There are many online you can find for under $250 with either AARP or AAA discount or something else. Honestly the bus went from our hotel to the downtown area where we had the best tour of our lifetime. It was done by Seattle Tours, Elizabeth Fatur at 206-768-1234. This tour was breathtaking, reasonably priced and by far the best I've ever been on. I saw people with rental cars everywhere but opted for the tours as they picked us up at our hotel and no fuss or muss. Took a cab maybe for $20 to port. No problems at all. Loved the Golden too. I hear it's refurbished now so I am sure everything is gorgeous. We loved the shows, music in the lobby, the food (yum yum), the excursions up in Alaska (especially Mendenhall Glacier) and the whole experience. Don't miss out. Go for it on the Golden.

bjrose;)

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dpump

dpump

Posted
Posted

Live near Seattle and have a daughter who lives in downtown Seattle. To and from the airport, would recommend a shuttle, towncar, etc. Lots of hotels in the airport area with free shuttles to and from-Marriott, Doubletree. Use caution, some areas aren't nice and worth spending a few bucks more to be in a nicer hotel. Our traffic scares alot of folks and please take into consideration parking and/or the cost of per night parking at a hotel.

If I were a visitor, I'd recommend the Edgewater, the Marriott and for a special treat,

the Inn at the Market. Seattle isn't that hard to walk around. Fun city, actually.

There's plenty of options for tourists, our city bends over backwards to keep those cruise $$ coming in.

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Rainmn

Rainmn

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  • Author
Posted

Thank you all for the valuable information. I have booked August 22 on Golden, a mini-suite for what I believe is a great rate - $2,235 for two with taxes and port charges. Based on your info, we will go to Seattle a day in advance to sightsee a bit, stay in a hotel with airport access on the Gray Line shuttle, and cab to the pier from the downtown hotel.

If you have more hotel and transportation info, we would be glad to read it. We have plenty of time for that reservation.

Thanks again for your help.

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SeattleCruiselover

SeattleCruiselover

Posted
Posted
Look into the drop fees of whatever car rental company you use. In the past, if you rented at the airport you could not drop at the pier. So you had to return it to Seatac and then take a cab to the pier. Also, many if not all hotel in downtown charge a fee to park your car. Parking in Seattle is expensive. It is easy to just stay downtown and use a cab.

 

I have used two different hotels last year. The first was the Marriot Fairfield suites. We are getting a $99.00 price and they include breakfast buffet. They also have a shuttle to various locations downtown and it runs until 9pm. The rooms are very nice, even if you are staying more that one night.

 

I have also used the 6th ave Inn. This hotel is 6 blocks from Pikes market, two blocks from the mall and tram. The lobbly is not much but the rooms are fine. The price for this hotel are a little higher than the other but you are near downtown, Big Mac is next door and all of the other dinning locations are near by.

 

The cabs are not that much more expensive and it is so much easier to use them than the Princess transfer. I understand that many of the cabs have changed from the crown vics to smaller cars. This means that only 2 people with luggage will fit in a cab.

 

This is a wonderful port to depart from, so enjoy you cruise.

 

Sixth Avenue Inn is on its way out. There are going to tear it down for a skyscraper.

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mariakitty

mariakitty

Posted
Posted

To get an idea of the Seattle piers, go to Google maps and do a search for Pier 91, Seattle, Wa. From here, do "search nearby" and search for hotel. This will give you an idea of the pier vs. the hotels in the area. (This also works for Pier 66) You can also select the "street view" link in the white box that pops up to see an actual photo of the area. From the picture, Pier 91 is definitely "in progress" and actually it's disappointing that we won't be sailing by the Space Needle. I'm sure in the years to come there will be plenty of growth around the pier.

 

Maria

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SeattleCruiselover

SeattleCruiselover

Posted
Posted
To get an idea of the Seattle piers, go to Google maps and do a search for Pier 91, Seattle, Wa. From here, do "search nearby" and search for hotel. This will give you an idea of the pier vs. the hotels in the area. (This also works for Pier 66) You can also select the "street view" link in the white box that pops up to see an actual photo of the area. From the picture, Pier 91 is definitely "in progress" and actually it's disappointing that we won't be sailing by the Space Needle. I'm sure in the years to come there will be plenty of growth around the pier.

 

Maria

 

That picture on Google Maps is several years old.

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ivielane

ivielane

Posted
Posted

I was quoted $48 pp round trip airport to pier and back for Princess transfer. Going to go ahead and do it for our May 9th Golden Princess cruise. Seems to me it would save a whole bunch of hassle at the airport, as the rep. will be right there near the carousel when you arrive Seattle.

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Hulagirl

Hulagirl

Posted
Posted

Also check out Shuttle Express for transfers to and from Pier 91. I just looked at their web site and they have it set up to quote prices for the new pier. Even if it comes out similar to Princess transfers, it is just you and your family and not a bus load of people. At least it is another option. We use Shuttle Express all the time when we fly. It will be nice to just drive to the pier for this cruise and not have to fly for a change.

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