I made the mistake of booking a room at Hotel Max for 10 days. I should have gone with another hotel. 10 days was too long. The Hotel Max is good for a 1 or 2 night stay. It's funky and in a good location. The service is good and the attached restaurant is also very good. The rooms are small, the walls thin, and unless you get a room at the back (like I had to request after settling into my first room at midnight) buses will be rolling by your window well into the night. The Hotel Max is a good choice, but for the price, the Fairmont or the W would be a better choice.

The hotel was clean and conveniently located within four or so blocks of the convention center. The bed was comfortable and there were plenty of pillows (and pillow choices). As a single woman traveling alone, the hotel felt very safe. The bellmen were helpful with luggage, etc. A Seattle Times was provided every morning at my door.

The rooms were small, but I was happy that my window opened to let in the cool, fresh evening air.

No vending machines, but a deli a half block away was convenient (snacks provided in the room were a bit pricey for my pocketbook; the other in-room convenience items were, well, facinating).

I stayed in the hotel a week. My shampoo and conditioner were not replaced until I asked the cleaning staff to provide more. She provided two shampoo, two conditioner and two lotions.

My husband and I spent one night at the Hotel Max this past week during a long-weekend-getaway to Seattle, and now, I'm terribly afraid we will never, ever be able to stay at another hotel EVER without feeling longing for "The Max." From the endearingly welcoming response to my reservation email from manager Chris Bebo, the "Max Daddy", to the stunning lobby, to the phenomenal staff who managed to be extremely cool and yet adorably warm at the same time, to the absolutely, utterly one-of-a-kind rooms with their intensely modern yet somehow still fabulously cozy decor, to the fun-and-fast parking valets, each and every detail was designed to delight, and delight it did.

To the traveler who is looking for a bed-and-breakfast, Laura Ashley decorated flowerfest of chintz and ruffles, or to the mom-and-dad-and noisy-kids-where's-the-pool family, or to the hard-to-please AARP traveler who insists on a shower cap and a Cracker Barrel restaurant next door, this may not be the be-all end-all of hotels. But to the curious, adventurous, hip traveler with an expanded consciousness and a taste for pure originality combined with streamlined luxury, this could well be the ultimate in hotel nirvana. From our two-queen room on the outside wall, we had a marvelous view of this most fascinating of cities; and we could, as well, hear the sounds of it, a blended symphony of traffic and life itself that for us, was pure bliss; for others it may be somewhat less enchanting but I would plead with anyone who has issues with street noise here, or anywhere, to open yourself to it as part of the glorious experience of travel. Absolute quiet is for the bathtub in your own bathroom; if you are traveling to a never-stop city like Seattle, by all means, immerse yourself in all that it has to offer every one of your senses!

It was with incredible reluctance that we checked out after our one night at the Max, vowing and bowing and praying and promising that we will be back, soon and often. A supremely luxurious experience that was, at the same time, so cutting-edge that it gleamed...a place where art and thick towels somehow do not seem incongruous, where you can order spiritual tracts from the room service menu, and where you can cuddle down into the most comfortable bed ever to nestle your jet-lagged butt. Rock and pillows and art and towels..seamlessly presented, lovingly shared, with a wink and chuckle and gleaming red elevator. Someday they will write about the things that happened, the minds that met, at the Hotel Max in Seattle at the turn of the millenium...go, be part of it.

Could the rooms be bigger? Yes. Could their be a small restuarant on site? Yes. Was the staff most receptive? Absolutely. I travel a lot and tend to rate my hotels by the staff first, and this staff was overwhelmingly accomodating. They are there to help as much as possible. Would be nice to have internet included, but their business center was excellent and most accomodating.
kb, ohio