Affordable hotels around Seattle/SEA

Affordable, not-scary hotels around the SEA/Seattle Amtrak station...

GO!

Depends how you define affordable. If you define like I do, I saw there are few, if any. Last July, I was in Seattle and wanted to stay near the station. I used points to pay for my hotel because the rates were through the roof.

In the past, I have stayed at a Kimpton Hotel, Courtyard Marriott, Renaissance and Doubletree - all walking distance to the station. All were fairly pricey.

Then perhaps I amend the question to: Hotels closest to the Amtrak Station in Seattle. (I'll look around for prices once I know what's close.)

I have stayed at the Marriott Courtyard Pioneer Square with my father in 2014 and with both my parents last September. It's not cheap, but it is comfortable and good quality with a cafe which is open for breakfast and dinner. It's walkable from King Street Station, although you might choose a cab if you have lots of luggage (we did) and it's just a short block and a half from the light rail system going to the airport. McCoy's Firehouse (restaurant & bar, open for breakfast, lunch & dinner) is just a couple of blocks away and I recommend it if you want a good casual meal in the area.

UPDATE: Booked 2 nights at a hostel about 1/3 mile from the station. (Private room.) Affordable, for sure.

Could be helpful to others in the future if you would list the name of the hotel....

The Best Western in Pioneer Square is within walking distance to the King St. Station and Pikes Place and pretty much everything else. They had a great breakfast and I want to say it was about $120/night. I signed up for their rewards program and got a free upgrade to a room with a view, which really meant a room with a window (they have interior rooms with no windows). Hotel was clean, staff was friendly, and it is registered as a national historic building. The neighborhood felt safe and it was quiet at night.

Long Train Runnin' said:

Could be helpful to others in the future if you would list the name of the hotel....

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Good thinking. It's the American Hotel Hostel, 520 South King Street, International District, Seattle, WA 98104. I opted for a single room (not shared) but with a shared bathroom. There is a coin-op laundry on the premises so I'll be doing laundry there too.

​Two nights cost a total of about $170, complete. I'm happy with that. I only need it for sleeping, showering, and doing laundry.

​It's walking distance to the station.

Once I've stayed there, I'll try to remember to report back here on how it is.

I'm booked into the same hostel. Website says sheets are included in the price, but no mention of pillows, blankets or towels. I'll be traveling with my own for use on the train anyway, but I do plan to call the hostel to get more clarification anyway.

In the old days of youth hostels, a sheet sleeping bag with pillow cover was required to be supplied by the guest. Pillows and blankets were always provided at the hostel.

Nowadays it is usual for sheets, pillowcases, blankets or duvet, etc, to be included by the hostel. Most hostels frown on folk using their own sleeping bags, as they have no idea how "clean" they are. Towels, where not included, are usually available to rent for your stay, at around $1.

I enjoy the communal atmosphere of such places very much.

Ed.

Several of us have stayed at the American Hotel Hostel in Seattle which is located within walking distance a few blocks across the tracks from King Street Station in the International District. ( if you have luggage you may want to use a cab to get there if you've not been in the area before)

As the name indicates, it is an old "Travelers Hotel" turned into a Hostel. Nothing fancy but clean, convienent,reasonable for Seattle, and includes bedding and a Continental type self serve breakfast in the price.

There are several cafes in the area as well as Chinese joints and if you want to prepare your own meals in the shared kitchen you can.

It's good to read that others have stayed there. It'll be my first experience with anything other than a proper hotel or motel, but the price was SO much lower than anything else and it is SO much closer than anything else. I had to book it. Part of the whole adventure.

For future reference, http://kevinkorell.com/hotels/hotels.htm lists hotels near many train stations, with "near" being generously defined. It usually includes many notes with useful information, including how to get to the hotel using local transportation.

@willem, thank you for posting that link! It's very helpful.

It's a little further from the station but we stayed at the Edgewater Hotel a few years ago and had a fabulous time. It's quite a bit cheaper than the downtown hotels as well. Right on the waterfront.

caravanman said:

In the old days of youth hostels, a sheet sleeping bag with pillow cover was required to be supplied by the guest. Pillows and blankets were always provided at the hostel.

Nowadays it is usual for sheets, pillowcases, blankets or duvet, etc, to be included by the hostel. Most hostels frown on folk using their own sleeping bags, as they have no idea how "clean" they are. Towels, where not included, are usually available to rent for your stay, at around $1.

I enjoy the communal atmosphere of such places very much.

Ed.

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I stayed in a hostel once. My bed had sheets and a bedspread. I didn't bring a towel though, and that cost me $1. One manager said that there was another male guest scheduled that day, but I think he cancelled. I had a room for 8 all to myself. The only other guests were a woman with her daughter, and they had their room to themselves.

I know of some accommodations where bedding isn't provided. Typically it's some sort of rustic experience. Yosemite has various tent cabins or other basic accommodations available where most bring sleeping bags or other bedding. Renting a sleep set can get pretty pricey relative the the accommodation cost. Quite a few guests have no idea that there's no bedding provided in the price. Same goes for KOA and their Kamping Kabins. I guess you could call what they provide beds, but the only thing they have other than a wood frame is a pad that's more like An athletic floor mat.

I stayed at the Belltown Inn last year. It's a quirky little hotel where you can rent a bike and peddle right out from the hotel's courtyard.

Austruck said:

It's good to read that others have stayed there. It'll be my first experience with anything other than a proper hotel or motel, but the price was SO much lower than anything else and it is SO much closer than anything else. I had to book it. Part of the whole adventure.

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I agree about hotels in Seattle,I have stayed in Bremerton and Bainbridge Island to get away from those crazy prices. But Seattle's a great place to visit. I'm wondering about luggage control in Hostels. I've also stayed at the Panama Hotel,its close to King Station. Cheap but sketchy.

Rails to Rooms is a great resource to rail available locations. There are quite a few budget hotels near the airport area, which would be backtracking if coming north (but you could transfer to the Sound Transit Tacoma-SeaTac express bus).

anumberone said:

Austruck said:

It's good to read that others have stayed there. It'll be my first experience with anything other than a proper hotel or motel, but the price was SO much lower than anything else and it is SO much closer than anything else. I had to book it. Part of the whole adventure.

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I agree about hotels in Seattle,I have stayed in Bremerton and Bainbridge Island to get away from those crazy prices. But Seattle's a great place to visit. I'm wondering about luggage control in Hostels. I've also stayed at the Panama Hotel,its close to King Station. Cheap but sketchy.

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I opted for the single room in the hostel, so I'll have my own room for sleeping but will share a bathroom. So the luggage thing becomes a non-issue for me at this point. Two nights in the hostel with this single room are going to be nearly $100 cheaper than two nights at the Metro Plaza in L.A. I'm happy about that.

anumberone said:

I'm wondering about luggage control in Hostels.

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With a private room of course it's not an issue. Shared rooms in most hostels, including the American in Seattle, have lockers in each room, generally big enough for a large suitcase. Bring a padlock or use one of theirs for a small fee.

My hostel experiences have all been in "Hostels International" affiliated places. There has always been somewhere to put luggage that is reasonably secure, either a luggage room, or a locker, as mentioned above.

Other independent hostels and camping cabins may well have their own linen and bedding arrangements.

Prices in HI hostels for a bunk bed in a shared dorm room are typically between $25 to $40 per night. I did pay more in New York, which was an exception.

Some hostels don't accept guests from their local area, so it tends to keep the accomodation for genuine travellers, rather than locals looking for a cheap bed.

As they say, "You pay your money, and you make your choice"

Ed.

Austruck said:

It's good to read that others have stayed there.

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You can also read what hundreds of other people have said about hotels on TripAdvisor. TripAdvisor has a map feature that allows you to see what's available close to any station: https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotels-g60878-Seattle_Washington-Hotels.html#MAPVIEW

Most travel sites have a similar feature. I was especially glad to hear that folks in this particular forum have experience with this hostel.

Austruck said:

I was especially glad to hear that folks in this particular forum have experience with this hostel.

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Especially glad? Really?? So far only a single forum member has posted anything at all about the hostel at 520 S. King St. The other 7 posters have either talked about other hotels or hotels/hostels in general.

But 269 reviews of that specific hostel are posted on TripAdvisor. Even though all 270 folks are unknown strangers on the interweb, I'd give some credence to what the other 269 reviewers said even though they may not be members of this forum.