Residence Inn by Marriott Seattle University District — Hotel in Seattle

Overall nice facility on the outside but unfortunately it is only superficial. Stayed here for 2 weeks and had a number of issues. Of their 6 washer and dryers, none worked. One was supposed to work and after inserting my money and the machine resetting, it took the staff 45 minutes to give me my $2.50 back while I waited around while they poked and prodded the machine. They did give me a bag of chips and soda as consolation for waiting though. Also the whole "green choice" program is pretty poorly held together. They indicated to put the do not disturb tag on the door and that they would come every three days and I get some bonus points. As day three came around they saw the do not disturb sign and skipped my room. Front desk indicated i must remove the tag for them to come (that was never made clear). So i had to ask them to clean my room the following day and i removed the tag. The following week after 3 days passed I removed the tag but they did not come. Apparently they had me scheduled for specific days of the week (which they failed to tell me) since I elected the green choice but even though they missed one day, I was still on the original schedule. So I called and asked to have my room made up again the next day. They apologized and said they will put it in the system. Next day I come back and once again they did not come. They did offer to send a crew in to clean but after working all day and getting home at 4, I did not want to have a cleaning crew work around me with me in the room and said they can just come the following day. I am now going on 5 days without the room being made up. I would think there would at least be a safety policy where they need to come in and check the room but apparently not. That was the case at the marriot I stayed at one week prior to this location but maybe not a company wide policy. And even the green choice program says no room cleaning service to up to 3 days. They did however come in and drop off notes indicating they came by and need to check the internet but they never cleaned. I do not know where the failure in communication is occurring but it is very unfortunate. My room was made up only twice during my 15 nights stayed there and I had called down 4 days in a row the second week trying to get my room cleaned and everyday was the same answer and that is "we are so sorry, we don'tknow how that happened, we will make sure it gets made up tomorrow." I would also think parking would be included given I am paying $276 a night but I guess not. Thermostat can only be adjusted from 74 to 68. I rented a studio room with a kitchenette but it came with a single pot and lid and no pans. I called down and requested a pan. When i came back they had given me a second pot, and still no pan. I called back for a pan and the stewardess had brought pens. Simple miscommunication between front desk and the stewards so after the third try I was able to get a pan. Some cups were dirty with lipstick marks on the cups, old food left in cabinets from a previous party. Pillows are fluffy but stiff and messed up my neck multiple nights but that may be a personal problem. Other than that, facility is clean, staff is very nice and professional, free breakfast is nice, cups for water and juices are about 2.5 oz so you will need to fill up a few or make multiple trips. All in all I am not sure if I would recommend for extended stays. I am sure it would be different for a short stay but for an extended stay, it came with many frustrations. 2 stars is fair. The staff communication can...

The staff at this hotel are awesome and absolutely deserve five stars -- especially Sara who really went the extra mile to get me moved to a quieter room.||My only complaint has nothing to do with the staff or the management, but rather the renovation architect (it looks like this building was converted from an apartment complex). The windows on the rooms which face 12th Street and 45th Avenue are absolutely not adequately soundproofed for this hotel's location -- not even close.||I really don't know what they were thinking when they put them in. Facing such high-traffic streets, in an otherwise really-nice and new hotel, they just completely cheaped out on the glazing sound isolation. Considering what it must have cost to build/renovate the rest of the hotel to the quality level it's at, not going with vibration isolated triple-pane windows just seems crazy. I suspect that the windows were not replaced during the renovation -- probably the only thing not replaced, because everything else is brand new and really nice. But the windows are about as sound-isolating as the ones you'd find in an RV.||I feel kinda icky leaving a less-than-five-star review here, because the staff and management are doing everything they can. But I also want to let other guests (and Marriott's architects!) know about this issue.||When checking in, if you want a quiet room, ask for one which has no street-facing windows.||In most hotels I stay at, the majority of the noise comes from inside the hotel, so I tend to ask for the two-room corner suite at Residence Inns if it's available, because those rooms have no bedroom walls shared with the corridor. In this hotel the corner suites have huge windows with quite impressive views, but those windows face both 12th and 45th... basically the worst-case situation for noise. I could understand (loud) conversations people were having on the street corner... with the windows closed, of course.||Again, the staff are great; after my first night and they moved me to the back side of the building which was very peaceful and quiet; I really appreciate that.||It would be nice if the rooms with no-street-facing-windows were a separate booking category (like "two queen beds, no street windows") so you can be sure you'll get one when you book, and go to a different hotel if none are left available. Right now it's a bit of a roll-of-the-dice; you have to wait until check-in and try to get there early when the staff have the most flexibility. I visit UW pretty frequently and will definitely stay here again as long as I'm able to arrive early enough to have a good chance there. But if I'm going to be arriving late at night it's a much...

I am someone with limited funds who can only afford to travel once every 5 years or so. Needless to say, I do my research carefully before committing to a hotel because I simply can't part with my hard-earned money only to have a lousy experience. And I am thrilled to say that in a lifetime of travel, I have never had a hotel experience that comes close to the one we had at the Residence Inn-University District Seattle. Super-accomodating in the reservation process...professional,, polite, and charming in the check-in process...the room was perfect, with a separate living area with sofa bed for my nephew and a simple but luxurious sleeping area (with the most comfortable bed I've ever slept on) for me. Large, wonderfully laid-out bathroom, an amazing kitchen area with everything you need--cooking pots, utensils, plates, cups, glasses, silverware, even dishtowels! Everything was so clean it sparkled, and we were so comfortable and felt so pampered. Yes, there is street noise--this is the University District, right on 45th Ave but my opinion on that is if you want a silent experience, don't stay in a busy, active, exciting city...go stay at a mediation spa in the middle of nowhere. It was in no way an impediment or issue for us. The location is fantastic, close to I-5 and only minutes from everything we wanted to explore, including Gasworks Park, Fremont, Seattle Center, and of course the U of W. Sometimes it is the little things that come together to make a happy stay, and all the little things worked--plenty of towels, keycards that worked, safe easy to get to parking...multiple, swift elevators...and don't get me started on the breakfast! A stunning number of choices, and everything fresh and scrumptious. What better way to start the day than a bowl of rich, thick greek yogurt with a huge scoop of fresh, raw, peak-of-season fruit? Or a wedge of truly good brie with a croissant spread with nutella? The only thing missing from that buffet that I would have loved is bacon, but the pork and chicken sausages were way way too good. As previously mentioned, my limited finances make travel a rare thing for me, but I can guarantee that if I am able to return to Seattle anytime in the future, I will stay nowhere but at this facility. What a joy to have a completely flawless and restful and luxurious experience, what a joy to encounter such patient, professional, pleasant staff. SUPER kudos and already saving my pennies for a...