Before an early morning flight departing from Bellingham International Airport, we needed a place to stay. After evaluating several options, we ended up at the Springhill Suites Bellingham. The Springhill Suites Bellingham was the closest Marriott Bonvoy option nearest the airport. After a short drive down from Vancouver Canada, we checked ourselves in for a very short stay. The hotel fully met our expectations, along with providing a little extra room. Read on to see what a stay at the Springhill Suites Bellingham looks like.

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This post is one chapter on a winter trip to Alaska, United States. This trip was enhanced through Marriott Bonvoy Elite Status, Alaska Mileage Plan and Hertz Gold Plus Rewards. For parts of the trip, please see this index.

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Review: Springhill Suites Bellingham, Washington, United States of America

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“A spacious stay perfect for a family, or for those looking for dedicated relax, work and sleep areas situated a 5 minute drive to Bellingham International Airport”

My visit to the Springhill Suites Bellingham was as a result of an early morning departure on Alaska Airlines First Class Bellingham – Seattle. Given that our flight was departing at 5 AM, it simply made sense just to spend the night near the airport. Given that there was a Marriott Bonvoy double elite qualifying night credit promotion during our stay, and a rate of US$125 a night, the decision to stay was made easy.

Booking Springhill Suites Bellingham:

When looking at which hotel to book in Bellingham, they were a number of choices. There was the Springhill Suites Bellingham (this review), an adjacent TownePlace Suites by Marriott (actually in the same building), and a Four Points by Sheraton hotel that was the oldest hotel of the group.

We ended up at the Springhill Suites Bellingham as a result of a favourable rate. The hotel was also located within 2 miles of the Bellingham International Airport. In addition, the Springhill Suites Brand earns 100% points under the Marriott Bonvoy program, unlike the Town Place Suites by Marriott that only earn 50% points.

The Four Points by Sheraton Bellingham was located several miles down the interstate highway. Being the oldest hotel of the group, and that it wasn’t as convenient, we ended up passing on that option.

Our rate for the night was through a AAA Automobile Association Rate for $125 USD. Rates at this property vary from a low of $131 USD to a high of $269 USD.

I booked through the Marriott Bonvoy website, which as a Marriott Titanium Member, entitled me to a complimentary upgrade to the best available room, including select suites, complimentary access to the Marriott Executive Club Lounge (of which there wasn’t one at this property), and a complimentary late check out up to 4 PM.

It is worth mentioning that in the Springhill Suites branding, every room is a suite with a separate relaxation area that has a couch. Much like the aLoft model, the room configurations at this property are all the same. The only difference is the bed assignment between one king bed or two queen beds.

As a result, there is no likelihood in getting a Marriott Bonvoy upgrade into larger room category. The likely Marriott Bonvoy Elite upgrade offered will be a soft upgrade into a higher floor category, a better view or quieter area away from the elevator.

Marriott Bonvoy Redemption Opportunities:

The Springhill Suites Bellingham offers competitive room redemptions with the new variable redemption rates. Marriott Bonvoy rates were between 21,000 to 39,000, which represents value on some nights but not on others.

If you value Marriott Bonvoy points at $0.008 a point, you’d have to spend more than $168 USD room rate to come out ahead for a 21,000 point redemption, or $312 USD room rate if you happen to find a 39,000 point redemption. While this represents reasonable value under certain circumstances, you’ll want to make sure that your redemption is value based.

Arriving to Springhill Suites Bellingham:

Being residents of Vancouver – Canada, we self drove our vehicle down Interstate Five to get to the property. It was a relaxing 25 minutes drive after clearing the international border at Peace Arch border crossing, before we arrived to Springhill Suites Bellingham.

The Springhill Suites Bellingham is located in a mostly commercial strip mall area. There is a Costco located within two blocks of the hotel and there is a Fred Meyer Supermarket retail store just down the street. The neighbourhood itself does not have much charm, but it is functional and close to a lot of off property groceries and restaurants which can be accessed by car.

Our stay at this property was in advance of an early morning flight from Bellingham international airport. Bellingham International airport is located approximately six minutes drive or two miles away from the Springhill Suites Bellingham.

It is also worth mentioning that the Springhill Suites Bellingham is in the same building as TownePlace suites Bellingham. The two buildings are attached and operate separate lobbies, but share recreation and pool facilities.

Checking into the Springhill Suites Bellingham:

The Springhill Suites Bellingham lobby was brightly coloured in a pleasant way. Sometimes this can come across as looking a little over the top, however Springhill Suites Bellingham struck a nice balance with the decor by making the place feel lively but not garish.

There was no line to check in when we arrived at about 9 PM. We had a pleasant welcome and we were thanks for being a Marriott Bonvoy Titanium level member. We received a soft upgrade to a high floor. We are also offered 1000 Marriott Bonvoy points as a welcome amenity. Lastly, we were offered a late check out courtesy of the Marriott Bonvoy program. When we explained that we were leaving for a 5 AM flight, we were offered a breakfast to take away bag, which we ended up declining.

The Springhill Suites Bellingham offers a complementary breakfast in every room rate. The breakfast is served in the lobby between the hours of… As a result, the lobby had substantial space for breakfast service.

I parked my car in the secured hotel underground. There were approximately 30 parking spots out front of the hotel. However, by 9 o’clock at night, all of them were taken. Parking was on a complimentary basis.

The Room: Studio – 1 King, Sofa bed.

We were assigned room # 450, which was located at the far end of the hallway as far away as possible from the elevators. It was also a corner room, although the design of the hotel did not take advantage of both walls to offer windows on both sides.

Springhill suites markets itself as a hotel that offers a little extra space. Their spaces are marketed as follows:

• Sleeps 1-6 people
• Airy beds with piles of pillows
• Dedicated workspaces
• Separate areas to sleep, work, and relax
• In-suite microwave and a mini-fridge
• Spa-like bathrooms

All of these features are terrific for travellers that tend to spend 4 to 5 days in a hotel.

The Living Space:

Immediately upon entering the room, we found ourselves in the studio suite living space. Springhill Suites has a current contract with West Elm furniture to provide their “in room” couches. However this particular couch was not a West Elm branded version, despite the advertising. Regardless, it featured a partial chaise lounger, which made things quite comfortable.

The living space featured a small desk area that was partitioned from the bedroom by frosted glass. The frosted glass could be adjusted to make the space appear a little more open.

The desk itself was rather small. For those that like to work watching television, the desk was not ideally set up to accommodate this, as it was at a 90° angle.

The studio suite featured a large 65 inch flatscreen television. The television was offset from both the bed, and the living space. This made for a little bit of “angled viewing”, which may or may not be everyone’s idea of comfort.

The Bedroom:

The bedroom featured a large king-size bed. With colours in light emerald green, the bedroom had a 70s-ish decor that reminded me of my parents kitchen. There was also sufficient space around the bed to move around in. The king size bed offered a comfortable night sleep.

The room itself offered some limited amenities. These included a Cuisinart coffee maker, an ice bucket, and individually wrapped plastic glasses. You won’t mistake the fact that you’re not in a full-service Marriott property at the Bellingham Springhill Suites. You’ll just have the basics when it comes to in room features.

The layout of the hotel offered a fairly straightforward design. Most of the rooms appear to be exactly the same size. Our room happen to be adjacent to a very large rooftop deck that was not accessible during our visit.

It’s worth mentioning that housekeeping is only offered every three days at this particular property. Those that are looking for a regular room service will have to go without.

The Bathroom:

The studio suite offered a single bathroom that had a single vanity sink. In a smart design, the sink and shower were in a separate room than the toilet.

There was a standup shower in the sink room.

The bathroom was a separate room, but also featured a small occasional sink.

Overall, we had no complaints about this type of configuration. It aimed to maximize space and functionality.

While it was dark through most of our short stay, the room had a view over a residential & commercial area towards the rear of the hotel. The hotel and room environment was quiet. We did not get disturbed with any noise throughout our stay.

Around the Hotel Property:

The Springhill Suites Bellingham had a few features consistent with a neighbourhood hotel of this size. These features were shared with the attached TownePlace Suites by Marriott hotel Bellingham.

Fitness Centre – Indoor Pool:

The Springhill Suites Bellingham offered an indoor pool and exercise centre. The pool is located on the ground floor just by the hotel lobby.

The pool was open between 6 AM and 10 PM.

The Springhill Suites Bellingham also offered an Exercise Room. The Exercise Room was open twenty four hours a day.

The exercise room contained a number of elliptical cycles. It also contains a number of treadmills. The best part of the elite the exercise room was the large floor to ceiling windows that allow lots of light into the exercise space.

While I didn’t use either the gym or the pool, it’s always nice to have an option available.

Food and Beverage:

The Springhill Suites Bellingham offered a sole restaurant and bar on the property that was open for dinner only. During our visit, the bar offered service between 5 PM to 10 PM.

Chuckanut Lobby Bar:

The Springhill Suites Bellingham offered a Chuckanut Lobby Bar as the local “in house” restaurant. During our Friday night visit, the Chuckanut lobby bar was in full swing with about 10 patrons enjoying themselves.

There are many other restaurants that are located within a 5 mile drive of this property. The Chuckanut Bar is a handy on property option for those looking for something that don’t have access to a vehicle.

Checking Out of Springhill Suites Bellingham:

We had a 2:45 AM wake up along with 3:30 AM departure from the hotel. We headed over to Bellingham International Airport for our Alaska Airlines First Class: Bellingham – Seattle flight, followed by Alaska Airlines First Class: Seattle – Anchorage that would take us up to Alaska.

We had no surprises on the bill with everything “as expected”. The check out was instant through the app and without incident.

My Marriott Bonvoy points posted to my account within 48 hours as promised.

The Bottom Line: Springhill Suites Bellingham

The Springhill Suites Bellingham met all our needs for an early departure flight from Bellingham International Airport.

The Springhill Suites Bellingham offered a comfortable room with extra space to stretch out in, a few hotel amenities for those staying a longer period of time, in addition to a comfortable environment. The room was priced right, and we couldn’t have expected more from a short stay near Bellingham International Airport.

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If you have stayed near Bellingham International Airport, which airport hotel have you used ?

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