You’ve heard of hotels renting out bikes and even luxury cars to help guests better see a destination, but sneakers? When you share a city with Brooks Running Company – a leading designer and manufacturer of running shoes with its headquarters in the Emerald City’s neighborhood of Fremont – it actually makes a lot of sense. Which is precisely why The Edgewater Hotel recently partnered with Brooks to offer a fitness program, where guests receive complimentary sneaker rentals. All you have to do is reserve them through the concierge, and they’re yours for 24 hours. Sure, it’s a perk not having to pack your sneaks, but even better is being able to test the brand’s all-new Brooks Glycerin 15, said to be the ultimate soft ride with midsole cushioning that instantly adapts to each runner.
But, where to take them? Here, we list five trails through Seattle – three of which start at The Edgewater and are listed on the curated map the hotel provides when guests participate in the program.
Run #1: The Edgewater Hotel to Seattle Great Wheel
Level: Easy
Distance: 1.6 miles round-trip
This quick trek follows a portion of the Elliott Bay Trail, a seven-mile paved path that hugs the shoreline from Century Link Field in the south to Smith Cove Park in the north. Starting from the hotel, it’s essentially a flat straight shot alongside Elliot Bay, where you’ll pass landmarks like Pier 66 (Seattle’s main port where the cruise ships dock), the Seattle Aquarium, and Waterfront Park, before arriving at Seattle’s Great Wheel – the 175-foot Ferris wheel offering fantastic views of the city, Puget Sound, and mountains.
Run #2: The Edgewater Hotel to Howe Street Stairs
Level: Moderate
Distance: 5.2 miles round-trip
From the hotel, you’ll head northeast into the bustling neighborhood of Belltown before hitting the welcoming green plot of Denny Park around the one-mile mark. From there, it’s a moderate incline through the neighborhood of South Lake Union and beside the southeastern portion of Lake Union to your final destination: Howe Street Stairs. Straddling Seattle’s Capitol Hill and Eastlake neighborhoods, Seattle’s longest continuous stairway is a popular place for local runners to work on their own endurance training, with 388 continuous steps and a 160-foot elevation.
Run #3: The Edgewater Hotel to Discovery Park
Level: Difficult
Distance: 9.8 miles round-trip
This is another run that tackles a portion of the Elliot Bay Trail, but instead of heading south from the hotel toward downtown Seattle, you’re going to head north, through two waterfront parks, Olympic Sculpture Park and Centennial Park. Once you veer inland, at the 2.5-mile mark by the Balmer Rail Yard, you’ll begin a slight incline and continue to run parallel to the train tracks until reaching Discovery Park, a 534-acre park (the largest in Seattle) perched on Magnolia Bluff and overlooking Puget Sound.
Run #4: Cheshiahud Lake Union Loop
Level: Moderate
Distance: 6.37 miles round-trip
Start at Gas Works Park at the north end of the lake and head east, where you’ll hook up with a portion of the Burke-Gilman Trail, before winding your way through the neighborhoods of Eastlake (don’t worry, the route is marked with “Cheshiahud Lake Union Loop” red directional signposts). From there, at the 3.5-mile mark, you’ll be running around the southern tip of the lake on Westlake Avenue all the way to where the trail crosses the Fremont Bridge. This last leg of the run rejoins the Burke Gilman Trail and passes the iconic Fremont Troll sculpture and Fremont Brewery before depositing you back at Gas Works Park.
Run #5: Alki Beach Trail
Level: Easy
Distance: 4 miles round-trip
Set on a broad, multipurpose paved pathway, this flat-as-a-pancake route wraps around West Seattle’s Duwamish Head that juts into Eliott Bay. Start at Seacrest Park and head north, while taking in views that expand across Elliott Bay toward the Seattle skyline and the Cascade Range. At the half-mile mark, at a small seawall-surrounded square that was once home to an amusement park, you’ll round the tip of Duwamish Head, and begin to head south, this time with views extending across Puget Sound to the Olympic Mountains. The route ends at the sandy stretch of Alki Beach, one of the few beaches on the Sound and punctuated by a 37-foot-tall lighthouse built in 1913.
The Edgewater Hotel
