Seattle Closes at Night?

[dmacleod]

I assume this is poor information, but I'm checking to make sure. We are staying a few nights at the end of May before a cruise. We will be at the La Quinta in downtown Seattle unless we find something we like better between now and then. (It was the least expensive decently rated hotel I could find when we will be there) One of my wife's coworkers was up there a couple months ago and said everything closed at 4pm and they weren't able to get dinner, due to the homeless issues. This can't be right. Any who lives there or has been there recently have input on this? 

[Ferry_Watcher]

It's close to office buildings like Amazon and other offices, so it's kind of sterile - so not a bustling part of town.  I believe the upscale grocery store Whole Foods is nearby, and they would have some very decent foods-to-go.  You could  use Uber/Lyft to get back to your hotel after sightseeing or dinner, as it is a bit of a walk from the downtown/waterfront core.  It should be daylight until about 8:30 PM by the end of May when you are in Seattle - so that is positive. The affordable hotel price is probably due to it's distance/location from the DT core - so price v location is a trade-off.

[Prost Seattle]

Head on up to Capitol Hill, lots of activity and restaurants, also the lower Queen Anne neighborhood.  You won’t go hungry. 

[Ferry_Watcher]

@psuboater, my friend, don't you work in this area, or are fairly familiar with the area?  Can you help this person?  Thanks!

[Glaciers]

Consider and compare prices with the Mediterranean Inn, Belltown Inn and the Mayflower. They are in much better locations with many restaurants nearby so will be much more busy in the evenings.

[9tee2Sea]

13 hours ago, dmacleod said:

I assume this is poor information, but I'm checking to make sure. We are staying a few nights at the end of May before a cruise. We will be at the La Quinta in downtown Seattle unless we find something we like better between now and then. (It was the least expensive decently rated hotel I could find when we will be there) One of my wife's coworkers was up there a couple months ago and said everything closed at 4pm and they weren't able to get dinner, due to the homeless issues. This can't be right. Any who lives there or has been there recently have input on this? 

I have never been to this place, but at the top of Smith Tower ( in Pioneer Square) , there is a Bar/restaurant that doesn't open until 4pm.  I hear the view is amazing.  There are lots of restaurants along the waterfront that are open, some even have happy hours.  The light rail is an excellent way to get around most areas.

[psuboater]

19 hours ago, dmacleod said:

I assume this is poor information, but I'm checking to make sure. We are staying a few nights at the end of May before a cruise. We will be at the La Quinta in downtown Seattle unless we find something we like better between now and then. (It was the least expensive decently rated hotel I could find when we will be there) One of my wife's coworkers was up there a couple months ago and said everything closed at 4pm and they weren't able to get dinner, due to the homeless issues. This can't be right. Any who lives there or has been there recently have input on this? 

 

18 hours ago, Ferry_Watcher said:

It's close to office buildings like Amazon and other offices, so it's kind of sterile - so not a bustling part of town.  I believe the upscale grocery store Whole Foods is nearby, and they would have some very decent foods-to-go.  You could  use Uber/Lyft to get back to your hotel after sightseeing or dinner, as it is a bit of a walk from the downtown/waterfront core.  It should be daylight until about 8:30 PM by the end of May when you are in Seattle - so that is positive. The affordable hotel price is probably due to it's distance/location from the DT core - so price v location is a trade-off.

LOL funny you should mention that because I'm working downtown all week so my work put me up at a hotel, and my husband joined me for dinner at Butcher's Table(VERY close to La Quinta) and we were there  at 8:30pm 🙂 

 

We're not NYC, the return to office hasn't been fully formed yet, so restaurants here Monday-Wednesday will close around 9pm. Thursdays-Saturdays you'll get better hours until 11 or 12. This is also our non tourist season, so by the time the cruises start, you'll have more late night options.

 

Momji, who has an original location in Capitol Hill, looks like they opened in South Lake Union and is open until 9. It's my favorite sushi place in the city. The Butcher's Table, as I mentioned, has great steak, and if you're adventrous, the bone marrow appetitzer is a must. We just learned last night to ask for a "luge" - where after you finish the bone marrow, you pour a bourbon down the bone as a drinking vessel, definitely a flavorful eperience.

 

Our consulting team confirmed that if you're really looking for night life, Capitol Hill has a ton of late night options. It's a quick uber ride away. They were out until at least 1am last night. 

 

South Lake Union/Downtown is not an urban waste land. Even before the pandemic, I recommend staying away from 3rd when you can (It is a bus only street so the homeless tend to stay there), but it's not any different than any major city. Be aware of your surroundings, and have fun!

Edited February 29 by psuboater

[Ferry_Watcher]

@psuboater, thanks so much for for all the info on the area.  I knew you were the right person to ask!  It really great that so many of us in the Seattle area will come together and share what we know with our fellow Cruise Critic posters.  Thanks again!

[dmacleod]

Thanks for the information everyone. We are going to look around, but hotels further from the area the La Quinta is in are running $3-400 more. For that much money we may be fine there are three nights. And as a bourbon fan, the Luge sounds fantastic.

[Gardyloo]

While we don't know your exact nights, a quick look on Expedia for the nights of 5/28 - 5/31 shows that there are several hotels in the "real" downtown area (as opposed to a fringe one like the La Quinta) that are priced pretty comparably to the La Quinta, and in a couple of cases, cheaper.

 

First on the list is the Warwick Hotel, which offers good value in a significantly better location than the La Quinta, in terms of walkability, distance to restaurants, etc.  Likewise the Crown Plaza and the Hotel Max are a few bucks cheaper than the La Quinta but IMO way better value given location.  There are also a number of hotels that are around $40 - $50 per night more expensive than the La Quinta but which would be very comfortable and way more convenient.  The Mayflower Park is in this group, along with a couple of the Hyatt properties (including the Grand.)

 

I'd definitely keep shopping. This whole thing about the city "closing" at night is baloney.

[dmacleod]

23 minutes ago, Gardyloo said:

While we don't know your exact nights, a quick look on Expedia for the nights of 5/28 - 5/31 shows that there are several hotels in the "real" downtown area (as opposed to a fringe one like the La Quinta) that are priced pretty comparably to the La Quinta, and in a couple of cases, cheaper.

 

First on the list is the Warwick Hotel, which offers good value in a significantly better location than the La Quinta, in terms of walkability, distance to restaurants, etc.  Likewise the Crown Plaza and the Hotel Max are a few bucks cheaper than the La Quinta but IMO way better value given location.  There are also a number of hotels that are around $40 - $50 per night more expensive than the La Quinta but which would be very comfortable and way more convenient.  The Mayflower Park is in this group, along with a couple of the Hyatt properties (including the Grand.)

 

I'd definitely keep shopping. This whole thing about the city "closing" at night is baloney.

Thanks Gardyloo. I appreciate you doing some research and giving specific suggestions. That's that kind of thing that, as a new cruiser (this is only our second), makes me love this forum. Not knowing Seattle at all, these posts have all been very helpful. I'll check these out.

[martincath]

In case it doesn't work out finding an alternate OP @dmacleod, we've stayed at that LaQ a couple of times and found that it was actually a great hotel for us - the lack of pubs/clubs/restos very close by meant it was the quietest Seattle hotel we ever stayed in!!!

 

Yeah, you might need to do a bit of walking or cabubering around - but a $10 ride gets you to a shedload of nice places in the 'hoods already mentioned above and it sounds like you'd have to spend a lot more than the price of some cabs to swap hotels!

[jeromep]

My wife has to visit the home office in Seattle three or so times a year.  They usually put her up at the Mediterranean.  It is nice, not 4 or 5 star nice, but it has nice rooms, is clean, and has a very nice roof deck with great views.  It is located in the Lower Queen Ann neighborhood, and there is generally a decent amount of food available in walking distance in that area.  The La Quinta is on the edge of Belltown.  And as others have correctly stated, it is an office tower neighborhood, so it is sterile and caters to a day crowd.  It has been a while, since I've hung out in Belltown, but my impression was that Belltown kind of folded up at night and didn't have a lot of food choice as the evening got late.  It was more of a brunch/lunch neighborhood.

 

That said, I always recommend staying farther south, closer to the airport.  The hotel prices are much more reasonable and food is easily found, either in hotel restaurants, or some of the more notable restaurants in the SeaTac area.  I'm a huge fan of 13 Coins and they are open very late.  I think the SeaTac location is 24 hours, but I could be wrong.

 

Seattle is not an inexpensive city, in fact it has become very expensive in the past 10 years.