OverviewLocated about an 8-minute drive from Seattle's city centre, and a 4-minute drive from the nearest Interstate 5 on-ramp, the SpringHill Suites Seattle Downtown is suitable for business or vacation travellers who prefer a hotel with extended kitchen amenities, a free breakfast and easy highway access.
This smoke-free hotel has 234 air-conditioned suites, each offering free Wi-Fi, cable TV, a kitchenette, a separate living area with a sofabed, an iron and ironing board, a hair dryer, an iPod dock and a desk. The hotel is wheelchair accessible and pets are not permitted.
Hotel amenities include an indoor pool, a hot tub, a sauna, a fitness room, meeting/banquet facilities, a business centre, guest laundry, a gift shop, vending machines and a free breakfast (both on site and to-go). On-site parking is an additional $22 per day and a free area shuttle to nearby attractions is also offered (please contact the hotel for details).
Guests are also offered free access to a 24-hour gym facility across the street.
Bistro on Yale is located on site and serves dinner daily.
Harvard Market is about a 6-minute drive southeast of the hotel, while Amazon's head office is roughly a 12-minute walk northwest. The Space Needle can be found found 13 minutes west via public transit and King County International Airport (BFI) is about a 15-minute drive south. (All distances and travel time estimates: Google Maps)
Verified with a front desk agent: Free Wi-Fi, free parking, pets not permitted, wheelchair accessible. (Call Date: August 15, 2013)
The GoodThe majority of the reviews sourced for this analysis were positive, with much praise going to the hotel's staff, location, rooms and breakfast.
Numerous guests complimented the hotel's staff, characterizing them as friendly, helpful, efficient and informative. One patron remarked, "The desk staff gave us excellent information on how to use the public transportation and do all of the activities and find all of the restaurants on our list".
The hotel's location was praised by many reviewers. They found it to be close to downtown, highway access, the Space Needle, Pike Place Market, Seattle Center, restaurants, bars, shopping and Convention Place.
Several lodgers were pleased with their accommodations at the hotel. They described their rooms as clean, spacious, well equipped, well maintained and quiet, with comfortable beds and fast Internet. However, there were also some complaints about rooms (see below).
The hotel's breakfast was also praised by several patrons, who described it as delicious, fantastic and plentiful, with several hot and cold choices. One guest noted, "The complimentary breakfast was above and beyond what we've come to expect in a property like this: pancakes, sausages, fresh scrambled eggs, ham, bacon, toast and tortillas as well as the ubiquitous waffle maker, yogurt and cereals".
The Bad
While the majority of reviews consulted for this analysis were positive, there were a few common complaints about the parking fee and the rooms.
Some guests were disappointed with the parking fee. They described it as excessive and expensive, and felt it should have been included in the room rates.
Although the majority of reviewers enjoyed their clean and well-equipped rooms, a few lodgers had complaints. They reported small-sized rooms, traffic noise and uncomfortable sofabeds.
Expedia.ca guest reviews rated the hotel 4.3 out of 5 with a 94% recommendation rate from 626 reviews.
TripAdvisor.com guest reviews ranked the hotel #44 of 92 Seattle hotels with an average rating of 4 out of 5 from 353 reviews.
Booking.com guest reviews rated the hotel 8.4 out of 10 from 90 reviews.
The author called the hotel on August 15, 2013 to verify some information.
