Christmas Staycation in Downtown Seattle, 2024
🤷♀️ ESTIMATED READING TIME: TWENTY TWO MINUTES
Disclaimer:
Everything below is a mix of what I observed and heard during the event. The goal isn’t to pinpoint "who exactly said what," but to share (usually) an outsider's view and overall perspective on these industries. I’m not here to act as a definitive firsthand source—readers should do their own research. I hope this inspires you to attend events, explore new industries, and hear what leaders are presenting. These notes combine my observations with thoughts on how things could run smoother and how ideas connect (IMO). I’m not an expert, you know? Just hanging out in the room with them. Enjoy!-
A chill, toddler-approved downtown reset. We stayed local, canceled half our plans, cooked in a hotel kitchen, walked to Pike Place, watched movies, dodged H Mart, and somehow made Christmas feel perfectly enough.
The studio room was cheaper and better than the 1-bedroom. Book smart.
Multiple items flagged with cancer warnings at H Mart - how are we okay with this?
We ditched the itinerary and still had our dream holiday.
Being near AMC kept us both entertained.
Topics Covered: Christmas, Downtown Seattle, Child-Friendly Activities, Holiday Schedule, Mother-Daughter Trip, Seattle Tourism, Holiday Travel
With a toddler, sometimes you just want to have a holiday - that’s a holiday! That means keeping it easy and hanging out just the two of you. And keep it super easy by staying close to home… the nearest happenin’ city (which I live 45 min from on foot!) With that, we headed out and back to the downtown wonders. Was it as good as our Thanksgiving Staycation? I wasn’t sure it could be. Let’s see…
Event Overall Ratings: Venue (5/5) - Food (5/5) - Speaker Content (5/5) - Networking Opportunity (4/5) - Likeliness to Return (5/5)… for details, see the end of the blog
Initial Conference Overview - Why go? Traveling is really exhausting. And it’s expensive to do anything out of the ordinary for the holidays. (And daycare only had one day off for the whole holiday!) So, I decided to just make a fun weekend out of the sorta-christmas-time and give my ex the time to himself too. My daughter and I headed back downtown to a hotel we’d been to once before. It was in a fantastic location and had kinda everything you need for the two of us. Downtown is way more safe than people make it out to be, too. I love walking around there and exploring the sights! Soaking up the energy and excitement and surprises.
Itinerary for Three Nights
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Straight from daycare, we headed to downtown. First we stopped by the gas station to get her a drink. She has this favorite drink that has like the head of Disney characters on them…. (okay, I’m just like. Dude. Disney is sketchy AF the more you look into their rabbit holes, of course they’re teaching people to be like cannibals-but-not, but - you have to ignore some of that stuff… but the Mufasa (and all) movie was packed with creepy innuendos and symbols and lines). Even so, we went to go see it cause she really loves it and I let myself like it too. I blur out the stupid stuff and enjoy it. You gotta.
So we went with her drink to the subway and then rode downtown directly to the hotel. From the hotel we went to the grocery store (my last time shopping there for real!) and then to a movie! haha. To see the lion king mufasa. -
We woke up and had breakfast at home. Later, we visited Pike Place for lunch and spent so much time there exploring. We also visited the nearby Target to go shopping for a helmet. Originally, I wanted to take her ice skating this day (they had a Kraken Skate & Watch) where you could watch the game and skate?! But we didn’t make it work. Instead we played in the mall and walked around by the water at night. Then we went to go see Mufasa again cause she really wanted to hahaha.
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We woke up later and took our time to get ready. We couldn’t be too cozy and carefree, though, cause we had friends to meet at the Aquarium. I have a membership there, so it’s free for us to go anytime + to bring a friend. So we had two friends join us and their daughter. BTW one of them totally agreed with me (she brought it up, too, not me, that the aquarium new section is a little underwhelming).
We did have an extremely good time, though - and all had lunch together after. I taught them about the 529 now rolling over to a RothIRA here in Washington, though they should double check with an accountant too. It was fun to hang out with friends and let my daughter have a buddy to travel with too. It was fun working together to keep moving through the museum and kinda match each others paces, while also having these toddlers who do whatever they want.
After that we explored Pike Place a bit more and then we went to go see the new Sonic movie. After we had some salmon for dinner, too, by the water (at a restaurant I like) which was very cheap, a great quantity, and delicious!! And then on the way home, we ran into her favorite playground by Pike Place and played there for over an hour!! (Her favorite playground in Seattle. Me too! I ended up literally playing with her almost the whole time. Cause I saw it influenced other parents to be crazy with their kids too.) and after coming home to wind down… I offered that we could go home and she liked that idea. Then she was hooked on the idea of returning to our house.
I packed us up within 30 minutes and we headed back via subway. -
The original plan was to wake up, make breakfast, then journey an hour back to daycare. However, since my daughter suggested we go home early (the night before) I said, “yeah… that’d make tomorrow morning easier”. I just wanted to book the extra night so we didn’t need to check out that day by 11am. I wanted the room for the day (and we used it up until 7:30pm when we left).
Photo Collage & Commentary
NOTES FROM THE EVENTS:
The Hotel
The hotel is incredibly well-priced, at least half the price of anything around. I don’t get it. It has an amazing kitchen, and twice now they’ve had super comfy beds.
This time the view was even better than last time. Last time I stayed in a 1-bedroom, and this time I stayed in a studio. The studio was cheaper but nicer!
They have other rooms that advertise “limited views”—I want to check those out.
I love staying in this hotel so much. It’s the best location and a home away from home.
This room had a great view of a commercial building. No one seemed to be able to see in, like no one was at work. I’m not sure if that’s because we are in holiday season or pre-economic depression where everything is empty in commercial real estate.
When we stay in the hotel, there’s so much extra time.
We ended up using the hotel more for free time this time. There was some rain, and my legs were really hurting. I recently had a bad injury for over a month; now my leg was locking up—what gives? I think it’s the weather.
I love how the hotel is a very intentional experience. It’s so close, so you can bring as much as you want, but also I’m traveling by stroller and on foot, so at the same time, it’s a bit limited. You just bring your favorites from home, and that’s it. Plus, you can get more there.
Groceries and Cooking
I am done recommending the grocery store called H Mart. Twice now, I’ve bought things from them and later brought them home only to find out they’re cancerous, with warnings that they can increase your odds of cancer.
I’m not sure if they’re just more honest than most grocery stores or using crazy ingredients. Either way, I don’t know how that store is comfortable selling those things to people.
I went to buy a lot there, enough for 2.5 days of meals, minus a few snacks and meals we had out. For the most part, we cooked food from there, but I regret it and won’t shop there next time.
I brought good food from home, but even at home, I was low on food. The best things I brought were my favorite teas. I have this amazing chai turmeric tea I got from the Gobble Up Seattle Fest and will need to order more soon.
We bought the perfect amount of food from the grocery store and had fun cooking together. I had her cutting and cooking a lot.
Downtown Adventures
We noticed that none of our plans for the day happened. We spent the holiday really going with the flow.
Target Adventures: Spent 30 minutes in the toy section. I just sat in her stroller and let her browse and look at all the toys. Eventually, we left with her new helmet.
We ended up at the playground on the way to the aquarium, then never made it to the aquarium.
Pike Place Market:
One artist at Pike Place Market yelled out to the police officers, “Are you guys in the mood for me to sell you something?”
He said by 3 PM that day, he’d made $240 in sales. It was a busy week.
Overheard the poet guys (who write poems for you on the spot) say they were struggling with sales, same as the flower guys. He said, “It’s everybody” with less sales.
Unique Moments
Heard the song “Here we are now going to the South Side” playing so loud in this little pocket area we found at lunch.
Saw a guy sitting alone about my age talking to himself. He was dressed in dirty, worn-out clothes and was watching the Looney Tunes alone on his phone. I heard him laughing aloud to himself about the episode, saying, “What!? Elmer!”
Someone shopping at Target with their kid later asked their kid if they wanted them to buy the exact same things for them on Amazon.com. Crazy times.
Sometimes I had to walk backwards down hills with her stroller. It was good exercise and a fun experience. Things like that make life more exciting, even though they add a little challenge to your day.
Movies and Free Time
This hotel is only five minutes from AMC. We go to lots of movies when we stay here because they’re free for us to see.
I noticed a couple at the hotel with a newborn. This hotel is good for couples with newborns, toddlers… you have everything you need.
The sink clogged the first night, but maintenance was there in an instant. The maintenance guy was my age.
I love that the hotel has a firework screensaver on the TV when you turn it on. We don’t have a TV at home and don’t use many screens (just share the Nintendo Switch sometimes and go see movies). I like how here the TV still “doesn’t work” for our family.
Reflecting on the Holiday
Make plans, but “canceled plans are the best plans,” so no matter what, you’re having the best-case scenario.
We did a lot: toured Pike Place, had a healthy lunch, played at the playground, walked by the water, had a great nap, and saw a movie.
It was mission accomplished: she was happy, my energy was maintained, and my sanity and good mood stayed intact.
I had fun recharging and took a break.
I had time to schedule and think through my work without actually doing any work.
Lessons Learned
Make plans, but don’t be afraid to let them go. Sometimes the best moments are unplanned.
Skip H Mart—time to find better grocery options.
Staycations are perfect for recharging, even when life throws in unexpected challenges.
Event ‘Overall Ratings’ Further Explained:
Venue (5/5) - Food (5/5) - Speaker Content (5/5) - Networking Opportunity (4/5) - Likeliness to Return (5/5)…
Venue (5/5) - Food (5/5) - Speaker Content (5/5) - Networking Opportunity (4/5) - Likeliness to Return (5/5)…
VENUE:
Allow me to Elaborate: This ‘Oxford Hotel’ is fantastic. I was nervous to return because my hopes were so high from the last time. I was worried to try a “downgrade” (but from the pics, it looked like it’d be just fine if not better) - and I was right! The studio is just as great as the 1br (and the view was even better. Next time I may try their penthouse luxury suite. It’s only a bit more expensive (each room ranges only a little in price) so, it may be fun to see. But, if they’re all basically the same, I am happy to find these amazing studios for a small price. When you pay small prices for your needs, you can continue to afford your needs.
The city is amazing, too. I love downtown Seattle and there is still so much to explore even after living her 4+ years.
FOOD:
Room for Improvement: H-Mart, why are you over there selling numerous cancerous items? How do you sleep at night? I don’t get it. There are some grocery stores downtown to look out for, at least one. Certainly that’s in all of our foooddddddd -but, reading it on labels for a second time from that grocery store is unsettling. This is a family holiday, people! (Also go visit Michou when you’re in Seattle. There’s no better bang for your buck. Amazing food, every person can find something they want to eat there, and it costs such a fair price!! I love that place and this hotel is like one block and a half from there —- but it’s down/up a super steep hill… it’s okay, worse case, walk back through pike place and then back to the hotel up 1st ave… break up the walk. You got this!!
SPEAKER CONTENT:
Room For Improvement: I’m sorry, but there can never be too many events (at least so far, we have a LOT of room to keep ‘em coming). This city need to keep planning and promoting a million events, especially in the holiday season. That being said, it was as lively as could be! We had the best time going to all of our favorite spots doing all of our favorite things. Downtown is so fun.
NETWORKING OPPORTUNITY:
Room for Improvement: It’s hard to meet people downtown, which is mostly okay, but sometimes it’d be nice to have more places for kids to play and parents to chat or something. OR places to just chill and do work. I had a great time, even so, with my friends who came to visit us. This is a great city for hosting friends - and certainly meeting people. Everyone here is from out of town (over 50%) so it’s often you meet people from chatty states 😂
LIKELINESS TO RETURN:
100%! I love it here.
Until next time, I wish you the motivation and success to search for opportunities around your area. Search and explore: Who is out there giving talks? There are new things happening all of the time.
Find relatable or interesting topics you like and check them out! Maybe even something hosted at a cool venue, if there’s no other reason to go. Let’s see what you can learn and discover not too far from home. 😊
