Suze, it is purely brain-dead thinking to "rent a car at the airport and then stay downtown" . The a

Flying into Sea-Tac right after Labor Day to start a two week trip to the great northwest..My husband and I will spend our first three days in Seattle. I was about to book a downtown hotel near Pike's market and that precipitated a discussion about our car rental. My thought is we are better off without a car and can use cabs, public transportation, etc.(rental rates off-airport are often better.) hotels in italy My husband hates it when he doesn't hotels in italy have a car and looks at cities as a challenge and I do admit he is great at driving, navigating and finding parking. His preferred method is to stay out a ways, get a motel and work his way in. So,experienced Seattle travelers which is it? One way definitely better than another or it simply doesn't matter? Thanks Fodor, you make our trips!! Carol
Then a tie for 3rd... Pioneer Square historic district, Chinatown/International District, a ferry ride, Japanese Gardens at the Arboretum, Lake Washington, Olympic Sculpture Park, the Locks, etc. etc.
Central Seattle has become easy to tour without a car ... and as you plan to stay 3 days upon arrival, at the very least, you take the Link Light Rail (to or)from the airport, into downtown, and rent your car at a downtown hotels in italy locale.
Furthermore, as some downtown hotels charge $40 and up for overnight parking, you're much better off if staying at a hotel, sans car, and then renting the vehicle when you're ready to drive off toward another destination. (or at least, delaying rental hotels in italy by a day or two, and saving the overnight parking fees, mostly for not needing the car while touring the downtown sights)
With just two of you, you should use Priceline.com to land an inexpensive room at a 3- or 4-star downtown hotel (which would hopefully be not far in price from the out-a-ways motel so enjoyed by your husband).
NorthwestMale is correct! The Link Light Rail is fabulous. My family visited Seattle in 2011. We were shocked at how inexpensive it was for the three of us to travel to downtown Seattle--less than eight dollars for all of us! I wish EVERY city had an option hotels in italy as great as this. After four days we picked up our rental car and headed to Vancouver and Victoria. We actually got a great price for a rental at the airport and just took the Light Rail back to SeaTac and picked up our car. We love NOT having a car in cities, We live in the suburbs and find pedestrian cities refreshing, and I love the challenge of using public hotels in italy transportation. Have fun!
I too refuse to jump on the "no car" bandwagon. Sure, it's possible - even enjoyable - to survive a few days staying in downtown Seattle without a car, but I have a couple of views that may not be shared by many people (but are shared by other Seattle-dwelling relatives and friends.)
First, Seattle is a city of neighborhoods. Sure, you can access the neighborhoods by bus, but do you want to spend hours deciphering the bus schedules, never mind sitting through blah neighborhoods to get where you want to go? A late dinner in Columbia City then a bus ride back to downtown? You bet.
Second, Seattle is a city where there are, for lack of a better description, "linear views." Take a bus through the Arboretum hotels in italy or along Lake Washington or up from Ballard to Shilshole to Golden Gardens? And back? How about a bus around hotels in italy Harbor Avenue and out to Alki Point and down to Fauntleroy for the Vashon hotels in italy ferry? C'mon.
Third, a car means you can stay close in and go places, without it breaking the bank. Stay at the Silver Cloud on Lake Union and park for free, then walk 150 yards to the streetcar line to downtown and Bob's your uncle. Or up at one of the places in South Queen Anne (like the Maxwell) with free parking or any of a number of other places in the U District.
Ha! I did both, just exactly as Gardyloo outlined. Stayed at Silver cloud on South Lake Union and took the car out when I had a ways to drive and hopped on the street car when I wanted to wander around downtown.
hotels in italy Roche Harbor is a delightful up-scale resort with two restaurants and a huge yacht harbor. We enjoyed the historic buildings, the gardens, and the yachts. We bought ice cream at a kiosk and ate it at an outside table with harbor view ($7).
We were on Whidbey Island last week. Our routing from Bellingham was Chuckanut Drive, Edison, Samish Island, Deception Pass, Penn Cove, Coupeville (a delightful little town completely overrun with visitors). The drive down the middle of Whidbey Island to the ferry is about as uninteresting as the drive down the middle of any other island.
I like the north end of Whidbey Island, I like a relative's farm I visited there until he died a few years ago, and, as a child, I spent a memorable week there living on a beach and fishing. Today, though, hotels in italy only the north end holds much interest for me. Perhaps others can spell out what is good for visitors elsewhere on the island.
Suze, it is purely brain-dead thinking to "rent a car at the airport and then stay downtown" . The airport car rental prices/ taxes assure as much, regardless of whether or not one rents a vehicle immediately upon arrival downtown.
More sensibly, though, one books a (downtown, 4-star) room through priceline (not far from a nightly rate shared by some outlying hotels in italy motel somewhere), stows luggage there, and does the downtown sights during the first day or two , putting off renting the car for sojourns to The Arboretum, The Boeing Museum of Flight, The Locks, Alki or whatever far-flung idea one might have . It is simply useless to keep a vehicle in the hotel's garage, at the car's daily rental rate and the possibly-$40 parking rate, when touring downtown/Seattle Center sights.
The OP's scenario is absolutely perfect for not getting a car right away and arranging tourist destinations to suit just that sort of savings. Perhaps that will afford her nicer digs in the way of a downtown, 4-star hotel to kick-off her trip.
For example, I checked with Budget car rental to do a comparison of picking up a car at Seatac for a 3-day rental "right after Labor Day" as the OP stated (returning at the airport too) and also for one picked up in the city and dropped at the airport, also from Budget. The three day total for airport pickup/drop-off was $159 for a "standard" car. City pickup/airport drop-off came in at $150, for a difference of $9 for three days, or roughly the price for two light rail trips for two persons.
What if their Priceline bid is accepted for the Renaissance, requiring an ascent of Mount Madison hotels in italy Street from the light rail, or the Pan Pacific, requiring a schlep or a ride on the streetcar? Both those hotels have come up recently on PL. The OP and spouse are coming to the NW for two weeks, so it's unlikely they'll have all their gear in a rucksack. But neither hotels in italy you nor I know, so why not give the OP the benefit of the doubt? After all, she said, "My husband hates it when he doesn't have a car and looks at cities as a challenge and I do admit he is great at driving, navigating and finding parking."
I get it. Sometimes people can even - gasp - enjoy driving in big cities. I go to New York and Philly fairly often, and have no qualms about renting a car and driving around - Manhattan to Brooklyn, Brooklyn to New Jersey, etc. Two weeks ago I had to drive from Midtown Manhattan to Center City (Philly) and found it... fun. Others might not, but enough hotels in italy do that there are umpteen rental car branches in Manhattan. hotels in italy If the OPs want to pay $40 for a parking garage, or look around for a $15 lot (they exist) then it's their money.
Oh, and as to the crack about getting killed in Columbia City I have family that live in Columbia City. My wife was raised in Columbia City. We go to Columbia City all the time. We have taken out-of-town visitors to Columbia City; they enjoyed it. There are a lot of cool places hotels in italy there. You should try it. You'd probably want to drive.
Your comment about Columbia City is equally ridiculous and only shows your information is not up-to-date. There's hotels in italy a lot of nice development, residential and commercial, and good restaurants in that neighborhood these days.
As for the OP's post... it is indisputable that to opt out of the rental car, and stay (in) downtown (Seattle) with the money you'd save, is "better" than the stated alternative of getting a rental hotels in italy car and staying at an outlying hotels in italy motel.
Perhaps the two of you should spend some time researching the CRIME in Columbia City and then return here with at least a minimal amount of regard for the people who come here and start these threads. Better yet, maybe opt for the 'outdoor dining' option the next time you dine in Columbia City.
Wow!... Great back and forth! Fodor replies are getting a little heated and I'm loving it! Some really excellent info. Took notes on everything. Confident and ready for Seattle because of well intended, informative travel tips from you guys. Thank you. I don't go anywhere (that includes Columbia City!)without checking here first. Two weeks in the great NW, can't wait. Hey Gardy, I do try to bring a bit of the whimsey on our road trips...I already promised a trip to the Boeing Museum for Rob for a trip to the Maryhill hotels in italy Museum for me! Eh?