Extended Stay America Seattle - Northgate

I was surprised by how much you get for the affordable price, especially since I found the rate through a travel deal site. It was my first stay at an Extended Stay America, and I’d come back soon. Parking was free, and there was complimentary breakfast, though I slept too late to try it. The property was a little tucked away between two businesses, but it offered a free shuttle to the local mall shopping center. My room had a useful kitchenette with a full-size fridge, electric skillet with two burners, sink, and counter space for food prep. I would’ve cooked if I’d stayed longer than one night, and it would work well for families feeding more people. The room also had luxury vinyl floors, a relaxing chair, eating table, desk, closet, and a nice bathroom with a full tub. It felt fairly upgraded, and there was space for all my things. Check-in service was great, though I didn’t see anyone at the desk again. I may just have kept catching them while busy or on break.

We liked being able to bring our dogs, but the wood floors made it hard to sleep with their nails clicking around all night. The AC also acted strangely, and the sheets were stained. The room itself was okay. Staff were friendly enough and quickly moved us after we found we'd been given a full-size room instead of the king we'd booked. Fine for one night, but nothing made me want to return.

I stayed here about a month ago, and of all the extended-stay hotels I've tried, this was the worst. The night employee was nice and helpful, but the daytime staff were rude. I called three times about fresh towels and waited three hours; the front desk guy eventually got very snappy with me. The second floor smelled like dirty diapers, and I felt uneasy about some of the guests. Two different men harassed me as I walked to my car at night, even though there's a gate. My refrigerator didn't get cold, so I changed rooms, but the one in the new room didn't work properly either. I wish the owners would make guest safety and caring staff a priority. I've told a lot of friends to avoid this location. I've stayed at safer ones without a gate.

I didn't expect much from a cheaper hotel, as long as the place was clean and service was decent. My friend and I stayed two nights after reading the bad reviews, and gave it a try because she had been impressed by another Extended Stay. Those reviews turned out to be spot on. The Extended Stay America -Northgate felt dirty and the service wasn't good. It seemed more like the kind of place you'd pay by the hour than somewhere for an extended stay. The room looked all right at first, with a kitchenette and two beds, but there was a stale cigarette smell and stains on the walls that looked like something had run down them. A table had a crusty patch that took work to scrub off, and the chairs were covered in stains, some of them questionable. We used towels to cover the chairs before sitting down. One lamp had a broken bulb with part of it missing, not just a burned-out one. There were only two smallish towels in the bathroom, with no hand towels or face cloths. Nothing to dry our hands with, so we had to ask the front desk. We had to go back for towels a couple of times, and staff always seemed to be doing laundry with none ready. When they brought some out, they were badly folded or not folded at all. The kitchen wasn't stocked, though you could ask the front desk for things. We didn't use it, so I can't say how that would have worked. The tub had a long black hair in it, though neither of us has long black hair, and it drained slowly. The bathroom looked okay at a glance, but was questionable when you looked closer. The front desk staff didn't seem happy to be there or to help. They weren't rude, just not pleasant. After a while I stopped looking too closely because I didn't want to find anything else. I don't have high standards, but still wouldn't recommend it, even for one night. It isn't worth the money.