We made our reservation through Hotels, last minute, and with taxes paid over $200 for our room. You can get free coffee or hot chocolate only if you request a wake-up call. I have stayed in similar boutique-style hotels in other cities for less and they had in-room coffee, fan in bathroom, and non-chipping tiles in bathroom. Personally, would not recommend this hotel even though the front desk personnel were helpful, and reasonably friendly. The bell personnel, however, left us waiting in 90+ weather for half an hour when they said, "we'll be right up with your car".

Just come back from Seattle and stayed at the Renaissance for one night. My friend and I were totally impressed by the service offered by the front desk and concierge staff. Due to delays with our travel companion's flight in, we were able to extend checkout by 2 hours with no problems at all. On the evening of our stay, the concierge booked us a table at a local restaurant which had a courtesy shuttle bus. As the traffic was terrible, this was half an hour late in picking us up. When we got to the restaurant, the waiter surprised us with an appetizer "courtesy of the concierge at the Renaissance". This more than made up for the delay. Overall the room was spacious, clean and the free morning coffee and paper were lovely touches.
Will definitely return.

I got the room through Priceline for $70/night...which is not bad. Here is my take on the hotel and room:

Room - I called the hotel a week before my stay to request a king bed and a quiet room based on the feedback I got from other folks on Tripadvisor. When I got to the hotel, I asked them again for the same requirements. I was given a king bed and a room not directly facing the freeway but still within viewing distance. In addition, the room was on the 6th floor so you can still hear the freeway noise. I requested for another room, but they could only give me one floor higher but still within viewing distance of the freeway. So, it didn't make sense to move. At this point, I was very upset since I've made my request ahead of time. However, I must admit the room was quite big for the price we paid and the bed was pretty comfortable.

Wake up call w/beverage - I thought this was a great service the hotel offered. I got the hot cocoa and it was delicious. This sort of made up for my disappointment of the room.

Parking - Parking in the hotel is expensive ($21/day). You can go to other garages for a bit less but you would need to move your car early in the morning. Also, you can park in the street at certain times for free but not the full 24 hours. So, I suggest not renting a car. However, we did find parking up the street past the freeway on 8th avenue which was free for the whole day, but availability is very limited.

Late night cravings - the hotel is a bit of a walk from the main shopping/restaurant area...so not much choices nearby. However, we did find a pub that opened late and cheap too which was on 4th avenue... i can't remember the name. The pub was recommended by the concierge...so definitely take advantage of that service...they are very helpful.

Hotel Staff - I have to say I was impressed with the hotel staff...bellstand, concierge, maid service...they were very helpful. One day during our vacation, it was raining and we didn't have an umbrella. I called housekeeping to request one and they made sure I got one.

So, initially I was going to give a rating of 2 due to the problems I encountered with requesting a quiet room. But based on the customer service I received from the hotel staff...I changed it to 3.

However, if you are paying full price...there are other alternatives you want to consider which are closer to the public market.

I love hotels in general and have made it my hobby lately to stay in as many Seattle Hotels as possible. Here's my list: Fairmont Olympic, Inn at the Market, Inn at Harbor Steps, the Paramount, the Sheraton, the Warwick, Courtyard Marriott, and the Renaissance. This is in the past month. Of all these places the only two that I would want to give my money to again are the Inn at Harbor Steps and the Renaissance.

I did go through Priceline and got a good deal. The staff was very welcoming and polite, I didn't get the feeling that I was the 'discount' customer. Everybody went out of their way to be nice and friendly, especially the person who took my room service order. I don't remember her name but she was outstanding, I wanted a very specific type of pasta and it wasn't on the menu but she really tried to accomodate me, I ended up getting something else that wasn't on the menu and it was terrific! (I ended up with rigatoni with crab in a cream sauce) It was delivered by her as well. That's always pleasant, to be able to thank someone personally. So, yeah the food was really good and reasonably priced. I think we got two complete dinners and drinks and a dessert and it was still less expensive than the Sheraton for two cheeseburgers and two desserts.

The window opened which I always like. It was a smoking room but that's what we asked for, we had originally been assigned a non-smoking room. It was on the fllor that is just underneath the club floor, so it was pretty high up. We did have a view of the 'freeway' but it also included a wonderful view of the St. James Cathedral, which is my favorite building in the city. I didn't find the freeway to be noisy, nor was the hotel noisy. The bed was comfortable, the bathroom was clean and had very nice smelling bath products. Sunflower something, I saved some of the shampoo and just washed my hair with it today at a different hotel because I didn't like their product.

Also, pretty good deal on tv internet $10.00 for 24 hours, I think it's a free hookup if you have a laptop but I don't so I enjoyed the reasonably priced webtv. I was very tired when I was there so I didn't have a chance to go swimming but I did go and check out the pool and gym. It was the first hotel that I've been in and actually seen people cleaning the equipment, how refreshing! So, the pool is on one of the top floors, with what looks to be a quite hot-hot tub next to it. It rivals the Sheraton's pool in terms of nice settings for a pool, plus it's open till 11:00, not ten, take that Sheraton! (Can you tell I've had a bad experience with the Sheraton?)
I hope anyone that chooses the Renaissance has as lovely a time there as I did. I will definitely be going back, to swim at night and see the city lights and the stars.

P.S. I recall them having a small fridge but not a minibar so you may want to bring drinks.