Past Solstice Alaska Passengers...

[curtdesilets]

We have done Alaska several times and always fly in the same day and board quite close to sail-away. Risky business !!

 

This time we are playing it safer and flying in the previous night and staying at a hotel in Seattle.

 

Two questions:

 

1) Any recommendations for a good Seattle Hotel (mid-priced) ??

 

2) How early can we board? We are Elite so I was hoping to board fairly early and grab some lunch on board..

 

Thanks in advance !!!

Edited January 10, 2015 by curtdesilets
clarification

[ozark74]

We have done Alaska several times and always fly in the same day and board quite close to sail-away. Risky business !!

 

This time we are playing it safer and flying in the previous night and staying at a hotel in Seattle.

 

Two questions:

 

1) Any recommendations for a good Seattle Hotel (mid-priced) ??

 

2) How early can we board? We are Elite so I was hoping to board fairly early and grab some lunch on board..

 

Thanks in advance !!!

 

The hotels downtown Seattle are all high. We stayed at Inn at the Market in 2013 and we are staying there again in July. It is next to Pike Place Market and a couple of blocks from Nordstrom flagship store. They have a rooftop deck overlooking the market and the bay. Great views. It is a boutique hotel not mass market. Also about a 20 minute walk to the space needle and park.

 

We left the hotel at 1215 and on the ship by 1245. It was a 10 minute drive by cab. Walk right up to the check in counter no line at all. Don't like to get o/b to early since you can not get into the room until 1:15 or so.

[jsf]

We stayed at the Moore Hotel downtown, good pricing and near everything.

J.

[dkjretired]

We did Seattle in August and were one of the first cruises when Celebrity started using this new process of staggered boarding times. We were both Elite and in Aqua and arrived at the pier at 11:00A.M. We were on board in about 15 minutes.

 

Can't help you with the hotel as we used our points for a Travelodge near the space needle. That does point something out though, you don't have to stay close to the city as they do have great transportation.

Edited January 10, 2015 by dkjretired

[curtdesilets]

I do appreciate the advice. Sounds like location doesn't really matter as the transportation to and from the ship will be simple. We just want a place to sleep and have breakfast. Not choosy.

 

Based on your advice(s), we will head to the ship right around lunchtime, maybe an hour after the scheduled start of boarding.

 

I know from experience it can be a bit chaotic if you are too early.

 

Just want to be sure. Elite and concierge class should allow us to board quickly with this new staggered boarding policy ???

 

I saw that Princess really does stagger the boarding by class of room over several hours. There's been some problems here locally on some of the San Pedro embarkations on Princess.

[Cruise Raider]

We stayed at the Seattle Downtown Sheraton after our Solstice cruise last year. It was an amazing hotel. Everyone there was so friendly and accommodating, the location was perfect, the room was quite large and immaculate. I got a great deal on this hotel but booked it way out in advance. I would recommend this hotel to anyone staying in Seattle.

 

It was about a 5-7 minute walk down to Pikes Market, 2 minute walk to the light rail station and a 3 minute walk to the monorail -- and in a relatively safe part of town. I didn't feel at all unsafe walking around even at night.

 

There is a pick up in front of the hotel to take you to the airport - the concierge had all the info we needed on this as well as the light rail system.

There was an area in the lobby with complimentary use of their computers as well as a nice Chihouly (sp?) glass exhibit behind glass. It was gorgeous.

No resort fee and no fee for early check in either ...

 

I would say the only negative is that parking is a fortune -- but since we didn't have a car, that didn't affect us at all.

[dkjretired]

I do appreciate the advice. Sounds like location doesn't really matter as the transportation to and from the ship will be simple. We just want a place to sleep and have breakfast. Not choosy.

 

Based on your advice(s), we will head to the ship right around lunchtime, maybe an hour after the scheduled start of boarding.

 

I know from experience it can be a bit chaotic if you are too early.

 

Just want to be sure. Elite and concierge class should allow us to board quickly with this new staggered boarding policy ???

 

I saw that Princess really does stagger the boarding by class of room over several hours. There's been some problems here locally on some of the San Pedro embarkations on Princess.

 

I would suggest you read some of the threads on this board about the new boarding process. Some of the cruise Elites may not be the first to board but it also appears that many are just ignoring the whole thing. They appear to change it I guess based on various factors. I can't tell you what to do but suggest finding and reading some of the threads.

Edited January 10, 2015 by dkjretired

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

I second the recommendation for Inn at the Market. Great hotel! Back in the day when Celebrity used to leave from Pier 66, you could walk to the ship from there.

 

As for staggered boarding, it is a suggestion. They do not actually board by decks (at least not in Ft. Lauderdale in November and December).

 

Enjoy your cruise!

 

[frogsgirl]

We stayed at the Maxwell and got a taxi to the peir for @ $10 @ 10:30.

 

We will be staying at the Maxwell again this year as we enjoyed the hotel very much. When site seeing we grabbed their shuttle to Pike Place, 10 min drive, & then wandered back later via the sky train to the Space Needle, and then a 5/10 min walk to the Maxwell

 

We were in AQ & although we were checked in within 5 mins of arriving at port it was a bit of a "mob" when boarding started @ 11:00, although once on the ship people seemed to disappear and we had the the back of the ship bar to ourselves for quite some time...it was wonderful!

 

FG 😄

[curtdesilets]

We stayed at the Maxwell and got a taxi to the peir for @ $10 @ 10:30.

 

We will be staying at the Maxwell again this year as we enjoyed the hotel very much. When site seeing we grabbed their shuttle to Pike Place, 10 min drive, & then wandered back later via the sky train to the Space Needle, and then a 5/10 min walk to the Maxwell

 

We were in AQ & although we were checked in within 5 mins of arriving at port it was a bit of a "mob" when boarding started @ 11:00, although once on the ship people seemed to disappear and we had the the back of the ship bar to ourselves for quite some time...it was wonderful!

 

FG

 

We will look into the Maxwell. Sounds like a winner.

 

I see that you are doing the exact same ship and itinerary as last year.

 

I take it you had a good time? Any other words of wisdom for our upcoming Solstice cruise??

[cruise kitty]

I booked my parents into the Arctic Club, they really enjoyed it.

 

Inn at Market was my first choice, but they were booked solid.

[Northern Aurora]

The last few years our favorite Seattle hotel has been the Mayflower Park. Love the ambiance, the staff and the location. The Mayflower is located beside Westlake, which is the terminus of the light rail so if you are so inclined you can take the light rail from the airport. Westlake is also where the monorail terminus is located so it is very easy to go to Seattle Center.

[frogsgirl]

Curtdesilets...we had a fabulous time, just going back to make sure it wasn't a dream😁. I posted the below on our roll call, you may or may not find some useful info., really hope you enjoy your cruise!:)

 

Tours we took:

 

*Ketchiken: Lighthouse Excursions. This was boat trip looking for Eagles, Totems & Lighthouse. Lovely trip were we saw a number of bald eagles, Totem Bright park from the water & then out to the lighthouse. Trip was approx 3 hrs & cost was $190 for the 2 of us. They have reviews on Tripadvisor.

 

*Skagway: Chilkoot Charters, took the bus up to Carcross, stopping at Emerald lake, lunch included...stunning scenery along the way! Train back down to Skagway. Trip was 7:30hrs but well worth it. $358 for 2, they have reviews on Tripadvisor.

 

*Icy Straight Point: Hoonah Whale Watching, amazing! we got up close & personal with 4 humpbacks. Small but very well equipped boat with space to move & get good photos. $330 for 2 they have reviews on Tripadvisor.

 

* Larrys Classic cars: picked up in port in an open top Pontiac Parisienne & taken to Buchart Gardens, spent time there & then a tour of Victoria by a charming gentleman called Del. $240 CD for approx 4/5 hours, reviews on Tripadvisor.

 

Amtrak: Business class seats, some delays on the way due to track issues but still arrived back on time. Very relaxing journey with lovely views & plenty of legroom. $124 for 2, we took the early morning train to pick up our flight from Seatac @ 16.30 hrs.

 

Transfers: we used Already There from Seatac to our hotel & again from King St to Seatac. Reliable, large car & courteous driver. $50 per journey exc gratuities.

 

Hotels used: Maxwell in Seattle, very nice & will be using them again this year.

St Regis in Vancouver, very nice also & would use again if staying in Vancouver, they stored our luggage after the cruise, early morning so we could go exploring.

 

Think that's about it!...oh did I mention we had wonderful weather & an amazing time

[fleckle]

We have done Alaska several times and always fly in the same day and board quite close to sail-away. Risky business !!

 

This time we are playing it safer and flying in the previous night and staying at a hotel in Seattle.

 

Two questions:

 

1) Any recommendations for a good Seattle Hotel (mid-priced) ??

 

2) How early can we board? We are Elite so I was hoping to board fairly early and grab some lunch on board..

 

Thanks in advance !!!

If you do not plan to do any sightseeing in Seattle, don't care about staying at a prestigious brand name hotel but only want a clean, comfortable room for the night before the cruise, you can save a lot of money by staying out near the airport.

 

The last time we arrived in Seattle late the night before our cruise, that is what we did.

We spent the night at the Hampton Inn out by the airport. Their price includes a free shuttle to pick you up from the airport, free internet, and breakfast the next morning.

 

It cost us $15 per person for the shuttle ride directly from the hotel out to the ship at Pier 91 the next day.

 

The front desk at the hotel signs you up for the shuttle to the pier if you let them know you want it when you check in.

We had a choice of 3 pickup times, and chose the latest one so that we could sleep in the following morning and have a leisurely breakfast with no need to rush. It worked out very well for us.

 

Edited January 11, 2015 by fleckle

[cruisestitch]

In answer to the question

 

"Just want to be sure. Elite and concierge class should allow us to board quickly with this new staggered boarding policy ???"

 

First, it's too early to know whether this staggered boarding will even be in place in Seattle, so this all may be moot.

 

The staggered boarding is an attempt to spread out the boarding, to keep people from rushing to the pier at 11, clogging up the boarding process.

 

So they ask that those on deck 8 come at a different time than those on deck 7, and deck 6 and so on.

 

But so many already have their travel plans in place, they can't really follow the suggested boarding times. Which, to repeat, are suggestions, not requirements.

 

When you arrive at the pier, you will still find the traditional differentiated queues for Suites, For Elites, for Concierge, for Aqua, etc. You mention being both Elite and Concierge. Sometimes the Elite line is the shorter, sometimes the Concierge line is shorter.

 

If there aren't many Elites on your cruise, that line might be the shortest. Pick the shortest line and don't worry about it.

 

You should be able to be through the process more quickly than the general passengers who have no loyalty status and didn't book Concierge, Suite or Aqua.

[JanineM]

We stayed at the Arctic Club downtown. Very charming hotel, walkable (hike able? It's a hilly area!) distance from pretty much everything - the Market, shopping, restaurants. But it was expensive to get to the hotel (taxi) and then we paid $20 to get to the Port. You'll have to decide if you want to have an experience in Seattle, or just hang out til you get on the ship. We hadn't been in Seattle for a few years so decided to spend a bit more and enjoy the city.

[suenterry]

We stayed at the Moore Hotel downtown, good pricing and near everything.

J.

 

Good to read that.. we're booked in there for this June.:)