HAL Seattle pre-cruise hotel option for 9/2/06 Oosterdam cruise

[newcastleunited]

I've always wanted to know ahead of time what hotel I will be staying at, and it makes me nervous with HAL that I was told only that it would be a downtown area of Seattle and $135.00 per person which includes the transfers from the airport on Friday night to the hotel.

 

I was thinking I would be better off taking a taxi to downtown and booking a specific hotel for that one pre-cruise night. Any comments or ideas? That also means taking another taxi from the hotel on Saturday to the port, so I realize the costs add up (last taxis to/from Seattle's airport without tips for a Celebrity cruise last October ran $35. or $40 each way.

[Stevesan]

Westin - central area, walking distance to restaurants and Pike's Market, and one block from monorail station and Nordstrom's.

 

Most Importantly, it's a four star hotel with heavenly beds and an excellent concierge.

 

http://www.starwoodhotels.com/westin/property/overview/index.html?propertyID=1055

[mfanderso]

We recently stayed at the Westin pre-cruise. It was a great hotel in a good location. We were able to get it through Priceline for $110 per night.

[Krazy Kruizers]

To go from SEATAC to the Sheraton downtown we have booked "Already There Town Car" - costs is $45.

[grannynurse]

The HAL hotels in Seattle are the Fairmont Olympic and the Seattle Sheraton. We were given a room at the Fairmont as part of our cruise package but since we moved from an S to an SS we don't know which hotel we'll be in, but we know it will be one of the above and that it includes transfers from the airport to the hotel and from hotel to the pier.

I know we'll find out once the docs arrive so I'm not overly concerned not knowing which hotel it is.

We changed rooms because our kids can't go with us. When the latest promos came out we found we could save 60% by booking the SZ guarantee with possible upgrade back to the S. If we don't get it we'll still be very happy with the price break. We found out last summer that an S on Maasdam for 7 days was a little extravagant for us (we did love it though) The S we had on the Zaandam for ourselves and 2 adult daughters for an 11 day New Years's cruise worked out perfectly as will the 7 day Westerdam to Alaska in an SS. We're truly blessed.

GN

[lardan]

To go from SEATAC to the Sheraton downtown we have booked "Already There Town Car" - costs is $45.

 

Krazy;

 

What is "Already there Town Car"? I have looked into the cars, and have found seattlecitycar.com and seattletowncar.com. Can you give me insight into "Already there town car?"

 

Also, what time do you tell the driver to be there when you get off the ship??? I figure I'll tell them 9:00 am; I have a 12:30 flight, and figure I'll linger on the ship as long as I can.

[Stevesan]

Krazy;

 

What is "Already there Town Car"? I have looked into the cars, and have found seattlecitycar.com and seattletowncar.com. Can you give me insight into "Already there town car?"

 

Also, what time do you tell the driver to be there when you get off the ship??? I figure I'll tell them 9:00 am; I have a 12:30 flight, and figure I'll linger on the ship as long as I can.

 

Via Google search:

 

http://www.alreadytheretowncar.com/

 

You're welcome.:D

[missygirl]

HAL had a special on their site for a pre-cruise hotel and transfers in Seattle that we purchased for our May 20-27 cruise to Alaska. The hotel was Fairmont Olympic and it was beautiful. We were picked up at the airport and taken to the hotel and we a a very nice room. The only gripe I had was that the restaurant was so expensive. The afternoon we checked in they had a letter for us telling us to check into the lobby the following morning to a HAL rep. It also told us when to have our luggage ready and when the bus would be there to take us to the pier. It all went very smoothly and we were on the ship by 12:30 heading to the Lido.

 

Missygirl:)

[InvestiGator]

Last month, we stayed at the Edgewater on Pier 67. It is next to Celebrity's pier and about a mile north of HAL's pier 34. IMHO, the Edgewater accomodations were worth the cost of cabfare from Sea-Tac to the hotel and from there to the HAL pier. The Edgewater isn't cheap, though.

[hammybee]

Regardless of where you stay, make sure to hit Pike's Market the morning of your cruise and pick-up a giant and ceheap boquet of flowers for your cabin. Tell the sellers you are cruising and they will pack it to go. It's a great way to start your vacation.

[TudorSue]

We're traveling on Zaandam, Seattle R/T, September 8th and have booked in to Crowne Plaza downtown, which is in good central location for sightseeing. Last time I checked their website, rooms were running $139 + taxes if you're AAA or AARP.

[Scrumpy]

We've never used HAL's hotel, but the price you got sounds reasonable and other posters have said the hotels are very nice. We stayed at the Residence Inn Lake Union pre-cruise and the Marriott Waterfront post-cruise. I would go back to either of those in a heartbeat. The Marriott Waterfront was a slightly more convenient location for spending time downtown (which may not interest you), but the Residence Inn was within probably 10 minutes' drive of the pier and had a wonderful breakfast buffet. We left a few minutes after 11AM and were checked in and on the ship before noon. We used SeattleBestLimo and the trip from airport to hotel, and then from hotel to pier (including 20% tip) was about $120. Not a huge difference between taking taxis when you take into consideration the convenience factor - and having someone else deal with your bags (which often doesn't happen when we use a cab). We did not have a limo, however. We had a Navigator and the same driver (Vladimir) for the evening and morning. He was very nice and helpful.