Any *cheap* hotels in Seattle close to port? Question about airlines, too.

[SailawaySailaway]

Hi! Even though our cruise to Alaska on the Star isn't until next July 31, 2005, half the fun is in the planning! :p

I was curious about *cheap* hotels close to the port. Nothing fancy or pricey. Maybe one that will shuttle us over to the port that morning. We'll be flying to Seattle the day before our cruise. Since we won't be in a rush to get to the ship like if we flew the same day, we can take our time getting to the hotel. What is the best and most economical way to get there from the airport?

Also, which SAFE airline do you recommend with good prices to fly out of San Jose, CA to Seattle? I freely admit, I am freaked out about flying.:( I flew to NYC two years ago and it took me months to finally bring myself to step on that plane! I like inexpensive, but I prefer a strong safety record even more! By the way, how much is it to use air through NCL? I figure it must be a lot higher.

Well, I'm sure I'll have a BOATLOAD of questions before I'm done!:D

Lindsay

1988-----Carnival Tropicale -----Mexican Riviera-----7 nights
1992-----Carnival Jubilee-------Mexican Riviera-----7 nights
2000-----Carnival Holiday-------Baja---------------4 nights
2002-----Star Princess---------Mexican Riviera-----7 nights
2002-----Carnival Ecstasy------Baja---------------4 nights
2003-----Sun Princess--------- Mexican Riviera----10 nights
2005-----NCL Star-------------Alaska-------------7 nights

[Urban trekker]

Posting this thread on the Alaska Board - it is a lot more active and this type of question is asked frequently on that thread.

Cheers

Dennis

[SailawaySailaway]

[quote name='Urban trekker']Posting this thread on the Alaska Board - it is a lot more active and this type of question is asked frequently on that thread.

Cheers

Dennis[/QUOTE]
Thanks! Actually I had originally posted it in the regular NCL forum, but the moderator moved it here. :rolleyes:

I'll go over to the Alaska board!:)

[cruisingfromMN]

Hi SailawaySailaway, We are booked on this same cruise. I will be traveling with my husband, two girls (age 12 and 7) and my parents. Can't wait. I have the same questions as you do regarding hotels and I will go check out the Alaska board too. If you check back here and see this, let's chat, get a roll call going and such. I know it is far away but planning is fun too!

We will be arriving in Seattle by train on Friday morning!

[sodell]

SS...
what pier? 33 or 66?

Pier 66 is close to the Market & other sites.
33 (or 35???) is not in walking distance to anything, near the stadiums, & frankly not a great place to be.

[calikak]

sodell is right, it depends what cruise line you're on. There aren't really any hotels near Pier 33/35, it's in an industrial area south of downtown Seattle. HAL and Princess used that pier this year, and I bet they will next year too. If your ship sails out of there, you're going to end up taking a cab to the pier, so you can really stay anywhere in town.

Pier 66 is right in the heart of downtown and as used by NCL and Celebrity this year. It's got tons of great hotels near it, although it's downtown Seattle so none of them are very cheap. As a general rule, you want to avoid any non-chain hotels with an address on Aurora Avenue, Pacific Highway South, International Boulevard, or Highway 99, or expect the room next door to be occupied by prostitutes...or as they used to call themselves in old-time Seattle, "seamstresses."

If you're looking for a unique hotel, try the Edgewater. It's on a pier near Pier 66, and was recently renovated to give it a lodge feel. Supposedly, all the rooms have fireplaces too. But it's pretty pricey unless you can get a special deal somehow. There's a brand-new Marriott down on the waterfront too, although it's not on a pier so it's not quite as nifty as the Edgewater.

In downtown Seattle, I've stayed at the W, the Westin, and the Four Seasons. All are good hotels and I'd stay at any of them again, although of those three, the Westin is my least favorite.

While you're in town, don't miss the Underground Tour, in Pioneer Square. It's very fun-the guides are professional comics.

[calikak]

Oh, and for airlines: I like Alaska when I can fly with them. But I know nothing about their safety record, other than that they had that awful crash off the coast of California a few years back. Then again, lots of airlines have crashes, so who can say which airline is safe? I did just fly Alaska from Seattle to DC a couple of weekends ago and they have a defribrillator (sp?) on board, which made me feel fairly safe. And, I think they have maybe a wee bit more legroom than some other airlines. My DH is 6'3" and he was able to sit in the seat without his knees being entirely jammed into the seat in front of him the way they normally are on an airplane.

I also like Alaska's regional partner, Horizon Air, if you don't mind a prop plane. They give you free beer and wine on the shuttle flights to Portland, and I think on other flights too.

[Ellya]

I believe Alaska's safety record is as good as most other airlines, to my knowledge the crash you mentioned was the only one. They offer decent (for airlines) meals, which fewer and fewer airlines do. On long flights they don't have monitors for movies though and the only way to get a movie is to rent a "digi-player" from them for $10. I think that is a bit much compared to other airlines which charge only a very nominal fee for headphones.

[greatam]

[quote name='SailawaySailaway']Hi! Even though our cruise to Alaska on the Star isn't until next July 31, 2005, half the fun is in the planning! :p

I was curious about *cheap* hotels close to the port. Nothing fancy or pricey. Maybe one that will shuttle us over to the port that morning. We'll be flying to Seattle the day before our cruise. Since we won't be in a rush to get to the ship like if we flew the same day, we can take our time getting to the hotel. What is the best and most economical way to get there from the airport?

Also, which SAFE airline do you recommend with good prices to fly out of San Jose, CA to Seattle? I freely admit, I am freaked out about flying.:( I flew to NYC two years ago and it took me months to finally bring myself to step on that plane! I like inexpensive, but I prefer a strong safety record even more! By the way, how much is it to use air through NCL? I figure it must be a lot higher.

Well, I'm sure I'll have a BOATLOAD of questions before I'm done!:D

Lindsay
[/QUOTE]

For inexpensive hotels, I would try Priceline. Everything mentioned on this board is in the $100.00 and up category. I wouldn't exactly call that "cheap".

As for air, why don't you drive, if you truly don't like to fly? About 14 hours straight up I-5. Beautiful drive, if you have never done it. Leave early afternoon, take a rest break in the Rogue River Valley (about 7 hours), and drive the rest of the way the following morning. Otherwise, any of the regularly scheduled airlines between San Jose and Seattle have about the same safety records. Alaska would be my choice on that route.

[GottoCruise]

Lindsay -
We are staying 1 night Post cruise and have an early flight in the AM.
I surfed around and found a cheap $42 rate at the Rodeway INN (2930 S. 176th St.- SeaTac.) [b][i]w/ cont. b'kfst[/i].[/b]
Their site says they have a free airport shuttle - (good for our early morning departure!) - & also a free shuttle goes to the South Center Mall and the King County Metro buss stop is (on International Blvd.) right in front of the hotel.
We plan to take the Shuttle bus at the Pier to the hotel at disembarkation - about $10 I think.....
Let us know how you "make out"....GotToCruise (aka Renee)

[calikak]

Renee-I wouldn't recommend waiting at that bus stop at night. That particular road the is called the SeaTac strip and is known for its prostitution (back in the days of the Green River Killer, he picked up a lot of his victims in that general area). I don't mean to scare you, because during the daytime, or when you're in your hotel room at night, you should feel perfectly safe, and that hotel is very handy to the airport. And most of the prostitution arrests actually happen a bit further south on Highway 99, so where you are, it won't be that bad. But I'd still probably feel a bit uncomfortable walking around the neighborhood at night. I'd say the same thing if you were staying at any of the other airport hotels on the strip-it's a great, handy place to sleep, but I wouldn't be wandering around the streets at night. Since you've got an early AM flight, though, I doubt you'll be out that late anyway, right?

[GottoCruise]

Thanks for that info Beth -- I was a bit wary of the Rodeway Inn - so bid on Priceline and got the Doubletree for $37 --I feel more comfortable w/Doubletree - Hope I did OK??

GotToCruise (aka Renee)

[calikak]

Wow, that's a great price! I assume you're talking about the airport Doubletree, which is a nice hotel and in a slightly less seedy spot than the Rodeway. I attended a conference there a few years back, and even took the bus to get there, so I can say that it's pretty convenient and the bus stop there is much less seedy than the one by the Rodeway. There's a Jack-in-the-Box (like Burger King but with more variety) across the street and it couldn't be any more convenient to the airport. The 194 is the fastest bus route down there, and since it's an express bus, it'll have less weirdos on it. :)

[GottoCruise]

Thanks Beth - My first experience w/Priceline turned out Great! - I guess I am hooked....... :D

[Sailaway...Sailaway]

Thanks. :) I just booked with Southwest yesterday. I've been visiting a "fear of flying" forum and the nicest pilot captain from Southwest posts there regularly. He also wrote a book about flying. Anyway, I feel good about this airline, so I went ahead and booked it. It's "no frills", but we'll only be in the air for 2 hours. I can handle that.:)

Thanks for your tips and advice.:cool:


[quote name='greatam']For inexpensive hotels, I would try Priceline. Everything mentioned on this board is in the $100.00 and up category. I wouldn't exactly call that "cheap".

As for air, why don't you drive, if you truly don't like to fly? About 14 hours straight up I-5. Beautiful drive, if you have never done it. Leave early afternoon, take a rest break in the Rogue River Valley (about 7 hours), and drive the rest of the way the following morning. Otherwise, any of the regularly scheduled airlines between San Jose and Seattle have about the same safety records. Alaska would be my choice on that route.[/QUOTE]

[stan wood]

I used to be the same way when flying. I was sure the plane was going down and I spent the whole time fearing the flight.

Then I tried a valium. Most doctors or dentists will give you a prescription if you tell them you're afraid to fly. I get a bottle of 3 (one for each leg of the flight and one in case there's delay at the airport or a cancellation. I hate pills of any kind but---this has been my answer. You quickly obtain a "who cares" attitude and I don't ruin my vacation worrying about the flight. I used to drive to Reno to avoid flying-but I wouldn't think of it anymore.

[Sailaway...Sailaway]

Hi Stan,

The time I flew cross country to NYC my doctor gave me a low dose of Xanax. Same with you, just a few of them. I'm not sure if it worked or not...but I didn't panic or anything on the plane. I also had my little dog in the cabin with me, so that helped to get my mind off of it. I'm going to ask him again. I wonder if Valium is stronger. I certainly didn't feel "out of it" or woozy.

[quote name='stan wood']I used to be the same way when flying. I was sure the plane was going down and I spent the whole time fearing the flight.

Then I tried a valium. Most doctors or dentists will give you a prescription if you tell them you're afraid to fly. I get a bottle of 3 (one for each leg of the flight and one in case there's delay at the airport or a cancellation. I hate pills of any kind but---this has been my answer. You quickly obtain a "who cares" attitude and I don't ruin my vacation worrying about the flight. I used to drive to Reno to avoid flying-but I wouldn't think of it anymore.[/QUOTE]

[stan wood]

I wouldn't say I was out of it or woozy, but it certainly gives you a relaxed attitude and I certainly don't care a whole lot about what's going on with the plane