Official Seattle information thread Updated 5/28/2014-Oso update

[Caropooh]

My hubby works for Boeing as well- flightline and probably works with yours. My take is that in our family the boys love going to Boeing. The girls put up with it and go every once in awhile.
Seriously my hubby gets to play with airplanes all day- perfect job.

Height restrictions on the tour also exist.

Regarding AG and Disney Store- both are even on the same end of the mall by Sears and Coldwater Creek. Not sure if the Mariner store is still there or moved.

Another Boeing employee chiming in! I'm down in Auburn in the factory!
Family and I are actually going on the Boeing Tour on Friday! I've only been in the Everett factory once and obviously the family has never been.

Note on the Disney store--while there is no Disney Store in Seattle proper, in addition to the Alderwood store there is a store at the Bellevue Square Mall in Bellevue, and it is quite easy to get to Bellevue by bus. The store is an easy walk from the Bellevue Transit Center. There is also a Lego store in the same mall.

There is also a Disney Store at Southcenter.

 

[trimix]

Shuttle vs the Link light rail line really depends on both hotel location and personal preference. If you have a hotel within block or two of a light rail station and don't mind hauling your luggage, the light rail will be the cheapest - but, of course, downtown hotels are expensive so if you are wanting to save money you'll probably want to get a hotel near the airport.

I don't know of any hotels that will shuttle you to the Smith Cove cruise pier, so just plan on a taxi.

And, as far as what to do in Seattle on Sunday, when do you get in? In your first post you said you want to visit the Pike's Place market; they close at 5 PM Sunday. The Seattle Art Museum will have an interesting Australian Aboriginal art exhibit this summer, but they also close at 5 on Sunday. I hate to say it, but most of the popular things I can think of in Seattle close at 5 on Sundays.

 

[eandesmom]

The American Girl Store is at the Alderwood Mall in Lynnwood. There is a Disney Store in this mall too. Alderwood Mall is north of Seattle and not in the city at all. It is best accessed by car and not by public transportation.

The Boeing Tour you are thinking of is at Paine Field in Everett and is one town over from Alderwood Mall--you could easily do both in one day. A word of warning though...the tour is VERY boring for children. My husband is an aeronautical engineer by training and works as a manager at Boeing and we don't take our own children (ages 6 and 8) on the tour at Boeing.

Maybe split your group? Have some go to the mall and the rest go to Boeing?

I posted a link in your other thread to eandesmom's great trip report from last year. http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2768852

I am not sure but think you can just do the Future of Flight museum portion and skip the actual tour. DH also works for Boeing. Some of our kids actually really enjoy both pieces but then again, they haven't been given much choice in the matter. The museum portion has some great exhibits that our younger kids loved at 5&6 and still enjoy at 11&12

 

[pixie08]

Is anyone familiar with pier 91? Are there cabs readily availble once you get off the ship? I will be using cabs a public transport for all legs, but not sure about from cruise to airport.

We have an 11:45am flight (Delta just informed us they changed our itinerary from our 12:45pm flight grr..) So I am wondering if i should just spend the $60 and use DCL transport from the pier to the airport. I know in Barcelona the cab line was crazy and few cabs, and we were glad we paid a little more and and did the DCL. Of course this is not Europe and we can save some $, but I know 91 is also not the more popular pier. TIA.

 

[Bunless]

Is anyone familiar with pier 91? Are there cabs readily availble once you get off the ship? I will be using cabs a public transport for all legs, but not sure about from cruise to airport.

We have an 11:45am flight (Delta just informed us they changed our itinerary from our 12:45pm flight grr..) So I am wondering if i should just spend the $60 and use DCL transport from the pier to the airport. I know in Barcelona the cab line was crazy and few cabs, and we were glad we paid a little more and and did the DCL. Of course this is not Europe and we can save some $, but I know 91 is also not the more popular pier. TIA.

Yes, plenty of cabs, however it's a bottleneck area and things get really blocked up. They have done a lot of improvements in the past two years, but if there are two ships at the same time it's a huge HUGE traffic jam. I didn't check to see if Disney is the only ship there that day. If they are, it won't be as much of a problem.

 

[Grumpymom73]

Is anyone familiar with pier 91? Are there cabs readily availble once you get off the ship? I will be using cabs a public transport for all legs, but not sure about from cruise to airport.

We have an 11:45am flight (Delta just informed us they changed our itinerary from our 12:45pm flight grr..) So I am wondering if i should just spend the $60 and use DCL transport from the pier to the airport. I know in Barcelona the cab line was crazy and few cabs, and we were glad we paid a little more and and did the DCL. Of course this is not Europe and we can save some $, but I know 91 is also not the more popular pier. TIA.

Delta also changed our flight times, but in the email we received it said if it changed your departure or arrival time by more than an hour you might be able to change flights at no charge. Our arrival time changed by an hour and 10 minutes....I called and they changed our flight no problem. Just a thought if you were worried about missing your flight. Who wants to stress on vacation!?

 

[queenbee99]

We really don't want to rent a car for that. I wonder if dh would be better doing a tour that offers transportation to Boeing. Anyone know of something like that and that isn't real pricey? DD and I could take the public transportation to AG. So let me ask this, it's possible but not easy to take public transportation to Boeing?

The American Girl Store is at the Alderwood Mall in Lynnwood. There is a Disney Store in this mall too. Alderwood Mall is north of Seattle and not in the city at all. It is best accessed by car and not by public transportation.

The Boeing Tour you are thinking of is at Paine Field in Everett and is one town over from Alderwood Mall--you could easily do both in one day. A word of warning though...the tour is VERY boring for children. My husband is an aeronautical engineer by training and works as a manager at Boeing and we don't take our own children (ages 6 and 8) on the tour at Boeing.

Maybe split your group? Have some go to the mall and the rest go to Boeing?

I posted a link in your other thread to eandesmom's great trip report from last year. http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2768852

I have taken public transit out to Alderwood--you have to do some planning, but it's definitely possible. Be sure to make reservations at the AG cafe before you go, though--it's always mobbed on weekends.

If you want to know how to get to Alderwood, use the Trip Planner--it's kind of like mapquest for public transit:

http://tripplanner.kingcounty.gov/cgi-bin/itin_page.pl?resptype=U

You definitely CAN do public transportation out to Alderwood Mall--but if you were also planning on doing Paine Field, there is no way I'd recommend public transportation. That would be a big pain to coordinate! Still, it IS doable--just not all that easy and it will involve transfers.

I grew up on that side of Puget Sound and my mom was a big believer in making me take public transportation. It is doable...it just isn't very good. Certainly not nearly as good as public transportation in other areas of the country.

My hubby works for Boeing as well- flightline and probably works with yours. My take is that in our family the boys love going to Boeing. The girls put up with it and go every once in awhile.
Seriously my hubby gets to play with airplanes all day- perfect job.

Height restrictions on the tour also exist.

Regarding AG and Disney Store- both are even on the same end of the mall by Sears and Coldwater Creek. Not sure if the Mariner store is still there or moved.

I am not sure but think you can just do the Future of Flight museum portion and skip the actual tour. DH also works for Boeing. Some of our kids actually really enjoy both pieces but then again, they haven't been given much choice in the matter. The museum portion has some great exhibits that our younger kids loved at 5&6 and still enjoy at 11&12

 

[Travelbee]

Is anyone familiar with pier 91? Are there cabs readily availble once you get off the ship? I will be using cabs a public transport for all legs, but not sure about from cruise to airport.

We have an 11:45am flight (Delta just informed us they changed our itinerary from our 12:45pm flight grr..) So I am wondering if i should just spend the $60 and use DCL transport from the pier to the airport. I know in Barcelona the cab line was crazy and few cabs, and we were glad we paid a little more and and did the DCL. Of course this is not Europe and we can save some $, but I know 91 is also not the more popular pier. TIA.

We have an 11:37 am flight and are also interested in knowing how do-able it is with a taxi. I guess we won't know how long debarkation will take until we get feedback from the first cruise in May. The itinerary said 9 am ashore so I'm hoping that's plenty of time to get to a 11:30 flight.

 

[Travelbee]

Having never used DCL transfer, can someone explain to me how it works? Do our bags get checked in by Disney and we won't see them until we get home once we leave them in the hall the night before debarkation? Do we get boarding passes on the ship and go straight to security and terminal at the airport?

 

[trimix]

Yes, plenty of cabs, however it's a bottleneck area and things get really blocked up. They have done a lot of improvements in the past two years, but if there are two ships at the same time it's a huge HUGE traffic jam. I didn't check to see if Disney is the only ship there that day. If they are, it won't be as much of a problem.

According to the Port of Seattle cruise ship schedule the Wonder is the only ship in port that day, so crowds will only be 1/3 to 1/2 what they could be with another ship in port. There is still a bottleneck, but it won't be as bad as it otherwise could have been.

Having never used DCL transfer, can someone explain to me how it works? Do our bags get checked in by Disney and we won't see them until we get home once we leave them in the hall the night before debarkation? Do we get boarding passes on the ship and go straight to security and terminal at the airport?

We'll have to wait and see, but don't count on it. If I recall correctly, in Los Angeles and Vancouver passengers were required to take their luggage from baggage claim to the buses, and from the buses to the airport check-in. I may be wrong, and Disney may have been able to negotiate with the Seattle airport to get luggage directly from the ship to the airlines, so the best bet is to wait until the first passengers this May have the experience and ask them.

 

[pixie08]

Delta also changed our flight times, but in the email we received it said if it changed your departure or arrival time by more than an hour you might be able to change flights at no charge. Our arrival time changed by an hour and 10 minutes....I called and they changed our flight no problem. Just a thought if you were worried about missing your flight. Who wants to stress on vacation!?

Good heads up, I am just not sure any other flight even works into NYC because of the time change. I will check though. Thanks!

 

[pixie08]

According to the Port of Seattle cruise ship schedule the Wonder is the only ship in port that day, so crowds will only be 1/3 to 1/2 what they could be with another ship in port. There is still a bottleneck, but it won't be as bad as it otherwise could have been.

Thanks!

We have an 11:37 am flight and are also interested in knowing how do-able it is with a taxi. I guess we won't know how long debarkation will take until we get feedback from the first cruise in May. The itinerary said 9 am ashore so I'm hoping that's plenty of time to get to a 11:30 flight.

I think they may let people off before then. That has been my experience in the past with DCL anyway. 9am seems to be the latest time you are usually allowed to get off. If the ship arrives in port at 7am, they allow you off within 1/2 an hour of that USUALLY. Of course you have to plan for 9am in case of clearance issues, but they rather you get off sooner then later.

 

[mellers]

Ok, so I have been reading this trying to understand what I need to do.But.... I am confused.
So Disney goes out of Pier 91, so I want a hotel near that?
Here's our scenero? We fly in on Sun afternoon. Would like to do Pikes market.
Guess it's open Sunday afternoon? So we need to go from airport to hotel to,drop off luggage. Then to market, do the hotels take you to the pier?
Or since we don't leave till late Monday do we go to airport drop off luggage, then go,to market that day instead?
The light rail goes to the pier 91 hotels? Or close and then we walk a couple of blocks?
DH and myself 55, just trying to be simple. Not so complicated and wearing me out trying to decide which hotel is near the pier, how to get there and back and ??? Any experienced travelers here, want to give this confused brain a suggestion. At this point I just want to get to the hotel and wait till I need to get to the ship. But which hotel and how to get there and how to get to the pier?

There are no hotels close to Pier 91--there just aren't. If you get a hotel near Westlake Center, you should be well set to go to Pike Place Market, and could take the light rail to downtown. You can take a taxi, or reserve a car (I'd recommend http://www.eastsideforhire.com/ or http://www.seattlegreenlimo.com ) to get to the pier--you won't be that far away so it shouldn't be too expensive.

Alternatively, you could stay at an airport hotel, dump your stuff, go back to the airport and take the light rail to Westlake Center--it is an easy walk from there to Pike Place Market. At the end of your visit, walk back to Pike Place Market, take the light rail to the airport, and then take the hotel shuttle back to your hotel. Hire a car or taxi to take you to Pier 91 the next day.

Alternatively (although I cannot say whether or not the hotel is nice--I have never stayed there), the Quality Inn by Seattle Center has a shuttle to your cruise--double-check with the hotel that this includes Pier 91, but I think it should:

http://www.qualityinnseattle.com/park-cruise.html

If somebody has stayed there, perhaps they can give you a review.

 

[eandesmom]

We have an 11:37 am flight and are also interested in knowing how do-able it is with a taxi. I guess we won't know how long debarkation will take until we get feedback from the first cruise in May. The itinerary said 9 am ashore so I'm hoping that's plenty of time to get to a 11:30 flight.

I can't speak to how long it will take in Seattle but in Vancouver I swear people were getting off as early as 6:30 or 7. As were were just driving back to Seattle, we strolled off around 9:30 and but definitely took our time with things. Those with early flights will get off first though arguably it may be more crowded getting bags and such once off than it was in Vancouver. However, no customs to deal with so that should help I'd think. It is cutting a bit close if you ask me as SeaTac security can be super fast, or hideously slow and I've not yet figured out the rhyme or reason to it. In theory it's a 20-30 minute drive without traffic, maybe even less but with...can be quite a bit longer than that. If you are on the earlier side there may still be some rush hour traffic, tough to say. I have never done the DCL transfers but heard good things about them. Do they offer any kind of making your flight guarantee or is that only if you booked the flight through them?

We have done a few of the Seattle tourist things before. Space needle, pikes market. Not to sound boring but DH doesn't care if we don't do any of those things again.well, not this trip anyway. So would you recommend taking the shuttle to a downtown hotel or the light rail?
Then we can walk over to the market, but take a taxi to the pier? Guess no shuttles to the pier?
DH wanted to fly in the same day as the cruise to save on the hotel. We have done that before, but I like knowing I am already in the same town before the trip. I just feel better.
So any other suggestions from you wonderful northerners??? Thanks so much for the help. We Love Disney and Disney cruise, just don't need to do much sight seeing in Seattle this time around.

Not boring at all and I think the day before is smart in case the flights have issues. So much wonderful dining downtown, that would be how I'd spend my time unless seeing a show or live music is more your thing. Depending on the night there could be some fun stuff going on.

I think it's a matter of personal preference on shuttle versus cab versus light rail to a hotel. For me the light rail eats up too much time despite the savings so I'd do a shuttle or cab. But that's me. You'll want a cab from the hotel to the pier. I suppose there is a way to do it via bus but it would vary depending on what hotel you are at. Seattle is a lot of things, known for great public transportation is not one of them.

Ok, so I have been reading this trying to understand what I need to do.But.... I am confused.
So Disney goes out of Pier 91, so I want a hotel near that?
Here's our scenero? We fly in on Sun afternoon. Would like to do Pikes market.
Guess it's open Sunday afternoon? So we need to go from airport to hotel to,drop off luggage. Then to market, do the hotels take you to the pier?
Or since we don't leave till late Monday do we go to airport drop off luggage, then go,to market that day instead?

At best the market will be open until 5pm on a Sunday. Some of the vendors will start shutting down earlier. Dining probably only till 9. It's an early town.

The light rail goes to the pier 91 hotels? Or close and then we walk a couple of blocks?
DH and myself 55, just trying to be simple. Not so complicated and wearing me out trying to decide which hotel is near the pier, how to get there and back and ??? Any experienced travelers here, want to give this confused brain a suggestion. At this point I just want to get to the hotel and wait till I need to get to the ship. But which hotel and how to get there and how to get to the pier?

I know the question of how to get the pier and the lack of hotels nearby has been answered. One idea, since you leave late on Monday would be to select a downtown hotel location for lunch. Take a cab there, leave your bags with their bell services since you are dining there, have a lovely lunch and then hit the market. Then go back and get your bags and head to the airport. To me, the Edgewater Hotel would fit that bill nicely. It's a straight shot from the Pier so a relatively inexpensive cab ride and the restaurant is just lovely (and yummy!) and a short walk from the waterfront. If it's nice you can eat outside on the waterfront http://www.edgewaterhotel.com/

From there it's just stairs or elevator up to the market.

 

[trimix]

I can't speak to how long it will take in Seattle but in Vancouver I swear people were getting off as early as 6:30 or 7. As were were just driving back to Seattle, we strolled off around 9:30 and but definitely took our time with things. Those with early flights will get off first though arguably it may be more crowded getting bags and such once off than it was in Vancouver. However, no customs to deal with so that should help I'd think. It is cutting a bit close if you ask me as SeaTac security can be super fast, or hideously slow and I've not yet figured out the rhyme or reason to it. In theory it's a 20-30 minute drive without traffic, maybe even less but with...can be quite a bit longer than that. If you are on the earlier side there may still be some rush hour traffic, tough to say. I have never done the DCL transfers but heard good things about them. Do they offer any kind of making your flight guarantee or is that only if you booked the flight through them?

I have to dispute part of this. Since the ship will be coming from Victoria, there's no way CBP is going to let the passengers off without hassle.

That being said, I would be surprised if you can't go ashore before 8 am. Smith Cove is less than 70 nautical miles from the cruise terminal in Victoria, so even at a very slow 10 knots they can be tied up before 6 am.

 

[eandesmom]

I have to dispute part of this. Since the ship will be coming from Victoria, there's no way CBP is going to let the passengers off without hassle.

That being said, I would be surprised if you can't go ashore before 8 am. Smith Cove is less than 70 nautical miles from the cruise terminal in Victoria, so even at a very slow 10 knots they can be tied up before 6 am.

Hmmn. I didn't realize that on a closed loop cruise you would have to go through CBP here. I thought that would only apply if you'd left from Vancouver (and not sure which cruise the OP is on). At any rate my point was simply that for the 2011 Vancouver itineraries we were tied up well before 6am and folks getting off quite early. I can't speak to how fast or slow customs were at the earlier departures. If they are truly ashore at 9am...an 11:30 flight is a little close. Doable certainly but I'd hope for no traffic and fast security. As long as it isn't an international flight it would probably be ok.

 

[minniemoms]

I know the question of how to get the pier and the lack of hotels nearby has been answered. One idea, since you leave late on Monday would be to select a downtown hotel location for lunch. Take a cab there, leave your bags with their bell services since you are dining there, have a lovely lunch and then hit the market. Then go back and get your bags and head to the airport. To me, the Edgewater Hotel would fit that bill nicely. It's a straight shot from the Pier so a relatively inexpensive cab ride and the restaurant is just lovely (and yummy!) and a short walk from the waterfront. If it's nice you can eat outside on the waterfront http://www.edgewaterhotel.com/

From there it's just stairs or elevator up to the market.

That sounds good. I think it is a marvelous idea.
Thanks so much. And I think we will do either the shuttle or the taxi...do you have any idea which ones is less expensive?? The taxi however would be quicker than the shuttle I am sure.

 

[mellers]

That sounds good. I think it is a marvelous idea.
Thanks so much. And I think we will do either the shuttle or the taxi...do you have any idea which ones is less expensive?? The taxi however would be quicker than the shuttle I am sure.

You can usually get a quote from http://www.eastsideforhire.com (taxi) and from http://www.shuttleexpress.com/ (shuttle)--that should tell you which is cheaper, given the number of passengers.

 

[Deb in IA]

Ground transport questions:

We are staying at the Warwick for 3 nights before our cruise. We plan to use the ShuttleExpress to get to the hotel. I checked on Mapquest, and it looks like the hotel is 3 1/2 blocks away from the Westlake light rail station. We are getting in at 6 pm, and we don't want to be lugging our suitcases through an unfamiliar downtown at night.

What is the best way to get from the Warwick to Pier 91? Taxi, I suppose?

And is a taxi the best way to go straight from Pier 91, after debarkation, to the SEATAC airport?

We have a 1 pm departure on the day we return. That should not be a problem, should it? We will be able to make it to the airport on time?

Thanks!

 

[mellers]

Ground transport questions:

We are staying at the Warwick for 3 nights before our cruise. We plan to use the ShuttleExpress to get to the hotel. I checked on Mapquest, and it looks like the hotel is 3 1/2 blocks away from the Westlake light rail station. We are getting in at 6 pm, and we don't want to be lugging our suitcases through an unfamiliar downtown at night.

What is the best way to get from the Warwick to Pier 91? Taxi, I suppose?

And is a taxi the best way to go straight from Pier 91, after debarkation, to the SEATAC airport?

We have a 1 pm departure on the day we return. That should not be a problem, should it? We will be able to make it to the airport on time?

Thanks!

A taxi is almost certainly the best way to get to Pier 91. I use http://www.eastsideforhire.com/ -- they are usually the least expensive taxi service, and they take reservations, which I appreciate.

As to coming from Pier 91, it depends upon how many passengers you have going. It might be less expensive to hire a car if you have a lot of people, or you might also want to look into a private van from Shuttle Express http://www.shuttleexpress.com/ . I've used car service from http://www.seattlegreenlimo.com as well, and their service is also good.