Travel & Housing
Hotel Information
About Seattle
Airfare Discount
Ground Transportation
For International Registrants
This year's City of the Year has a lot in common with OD practitioners... Fast Company magazine named Seattle its City of the Year for 2009 because:
In a year like this, we need a city upon a hill. Seattle, Fast Company's City of the Year, not only sprawls across seven hills but also boasts the ingredients that we believe will bring our communities -- and country -- back to prosperity: smarts, foresight, social consciousness, creative ferment.
Since we think those are characteristics of OD folks as well, OD and Seattle are a match made in heaven--and we are pleased Conference 2009 will be there in October! Read the complete Fast Company article about Seattle and plan to join us there in October.
Hotel Information
© Sheraton Seattle Hotel
Sheraton Seattle [ Map ]
1400 Sixth Avenue
Seattle, WA 98101
Situated in the city's vibrant core, the Sheraton Seattle Hotel provides a gateway to the diverse sights and sounds of the Pacific Northwest. Simply step out the front doors to find gourmet food, exciting entertainment, cultural attractions and natural beauty. The historic Pike Place Market, the Seattle Art Museum, the Space Needle, Experience Music Project, and a host of other exciting attractions are right nearby. See a show at the Fifth Avenue Theater or the Paramount Theater. Experience the opera or ballet at McCaw Hall. Enjoy the Seattle Symphony at Benaroya Hall. All are just a short walk from the hotel.
At the end of the day, settle into the inviting comfort of one of the 1,258 smoke-free guest rooms, offering breathtaking views of the Emerald City. A peaceful night's sleep awaits you between the crisp sheets and plush duvet of our Sheraton Sweet Sleeper(SM) Bed.
For this year's event, the Sheraton Seattle offers OD Network Conference attendees the preferential rate of $199 per night single or double room. These rates are good until September 12, 2009 or until all rooms are sold, whichever date comes first.
For Reservations, call 888-627-7056. Ask for the OD Network Conference rate.
To register online, click here: OD Network Conference 2009
About Seattle
Seattle has it all- natural beauty, cutting edge culture, urban attractions, renown dining, shopping and architecture-- and more! Two of the world's foremost travel magazines, have placed Seattle among the top10 favorite cities to visit. Despite the city's relatively brief history, diversity and tradition fill the streets of Seattle. While this medium-sized urban hub is thriving economically, for many who live there the bright blue skies, abundant water, and picturesque mountain ranges are what make this beautiful city.
Seattle’s stunning natural setting and progressive, green-thinking culture have established it as one of North America’s most environmentally-committed cities. Nestled between three national parks, two mountain ranges, scenic estuaries, lakes and channels, Seattle features a vibrant city center that coexists beautifully with pristine nature. During the past two years, Seattle has ranked among the best U.S. cities for the size of its carbon footprint by the Brookings Institute and has been called one of the country’s cleanest cities by Forbes magazine. The city’s tourism slogan, metronatural, reflects the bounty of urban and outdoor attractions enjoyed by visitors and residents alike. How is metronatural defined?
Here are just a few places you'll want to visit in the city itself. To learn more, go to www.visitseattle.org.
Seattle is known as a great destinations for "foodies" too. Get information on restaurants at www.savorycities.com/seattle/.
International District - Enticing aromas drift from restaurants like Bush Garden and Sea Garden in this primarily Asian neighborhood. Specialty shops filled with unusual treasures line the streets. Check out the inner-city oasis Hing Hay Park, complete with a pagoda and the Wing Luke Asian Museum.
Pike Place Market - This is the heart of Seattle and the number one tourist site in the area, attracting frenzied crowds of visitors and locals. The oldest continually operating farmer’s market in the country, Pike Place features fresh fish, fruits and vegetables, and arts and crafts as far as the eye can see.
Pioneer Square –Seattle’s oldest neighborhood, this is where the term “Skid Row” originated. Lumberjacks skidded logs down Yesler Street, to a mill at the bottom of the hill, and saloons and brothels lined the street. The Underground Tour explores these now subterranean storefronts. Today the neighborhood is filled with art galleries, small shops, restaurants, and bars and clubs, many featuring live music.
Seattle Center – Part amusement park, part festival grounds, the center hosts The Bite of Seattle, Bumbershoot and many other popular festivals. Permanent fixtures of this 74-acre park include the Seattle Opera, Intiman Theater, Paul Allen’s Experience Music Project, the Pacific Science Center and the Space Needle.
Airfare Discount
Northwest Airlines and American Airlines offer OD Network conference attendees a 5% discount on their travel to Seattle. Some terms and conditions apply. To access the discount, please use these codes:
- Northwest Airlines group code: NM3NQ
- American Airlines group code: 27H9AI
Ground Transportation
In partnership with EnergyBuilt, Sea-Tac Airport opened Washington’s first natural gas station to fuel airport vehicles, shuttle vans and taxis. An underground hydrant system for aircraft has replaced diesel, and a new ramp tower reduces emissions by managing the movement of aircraft on the ground to reduce traffic and taxi times.
Once on the ground at Sea-Tac, there are eco-friendly options for transportation to the Sheraton Seattle Hotel. The Downtown Airporter is a carpool-style shuttle service that stops frequently at each of the downtown hotels and costs far less than an individual taxi cab fare. Seattle’s Metro bus system also can transport guests to and from the airport, and with over 200 hybrid buses in its fleet, riding the metro bus is an environmentally friendly option.
For International Registrants
New visa requirements, effective in January 2009, may impact conference attendees who have never had to worry about visas. Prior to January, travelers from ‘visa-waiver’ countries could come to the US without needing prior approval or paperwork for stays of 90 days or less. Visa-waiver countries include most of Western Europe and a few Asian countries.
According to a Department of Homeland Security press release about the new law, all travelers from these countries are “now required to obtain approval through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) prior to traveling to the United States.” The new system is supposed to ease travel for those from the waiver countries. This is a web based system and the process takes only a few minutes to complete, according to some of our international members. Unlike passport checks, the airlines will not be verifying ESTA registration prior to boarding. For at least the first few months of 2009, travelers who have not registered will only be “delayed” in processing on arrival in the US. How quickly the DHS will begin to implement the full provisions of the new law, which potentially include denial of entry into the US, remains to be seen.
OD Network will provide to our international attendees, because of this new regulation and generally heightened entry security and passport reviews, letters of formal invitation for the conference upon request. Please email Joselisa Cerda or Linda Sherman.
The new visa guidelines can be found at: www.dhs.gov/xnews/releases/pr_1231771555521.shtm
The ESTA registration site is: https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta/esta.html