This year I was lucky enough to attend my first in person MVP Summit, an annual event where all active Microsoft MVPs have an opportunity to attend an exclusive event hosted by Microsoft and with NDA content delivered by Microsoft leadership teams and program managers (PMs). This year’s event was the first summit since the pandemic to offer a hybrid option of either attending virtually or in person at the Microsoft campus in Redmond, Washington.
Registration has recently opened for next year’s event and I am booked in to attend once again in March 2024. Having benefited from informative posts about the MVP summit, providing insights on what to expect and be aware of during my initial visit, I would like to share some valuable tips I gathered and offer a review of my experiences in the Seattle area. I hope this post will be of some benefit to any first timers attending next year.
Is the MVP Summit worth going to?
Absolutely. Everyone will have different circumstances but my advice is if you have the opportunity and the means to go then you should take it, as you never know if you will get another opportunity. As with any conference, the real value here is in the networking but in this case it will be networking exclusively with MVPs and Microsoft product teams – a truly unique and privileged opportunity.
Where to base yourself?
You really have two options here. Bellevue or Redmond. Seattle is too far from the Microsoft campus and too big of an area generally. Redmond is where the Microsoft campus is located but generally a very quiet residential area with few options for eating and socialising. If you want to just attend the summit and prefer to have quiet nights then this may suit you for the convenience.
Otherwise, Bellevue is the place to be. It’s a little further from the campus but close enough to commute easily via Uber or bus. This is where the majority of MVPs will be staying and where most of the evening social activities will be based.
Don’t worry too much about where you stay exactly as long as you are somewhere fairly central within Bellevue. The Regency Hyatt hotel and nearby Joey’s bar is traditionally MVP central so anywhere within walking distance of this is good.
Getting to the campus from Bellevue
Obviously the easy option here if you are not driving yourself is to call an Uber/Lyft and a great idea if you are car pooling with with others.
It is also pretty easy to travel to the campus by bus. Just take the RapidRide line B from Bellevue Transit Station to Redmond Technology Station. These buses are generally every 20 minutes and the journey takes about 25 minutes or so at a cost of around $3.
https://kingcounty.gov/en/dept/metro/routes-and-service/schedules-and-maps/b-line.html#route-map
Note: There will be a new option of a light rail service coming early next year but it may not be open in time for the MVP summit 2024.
What to do on campus?
Registration/badge collection is generally on the Monday (the day before the conference starts). You don’t have to collect your badge early but if you can I would recommend it. It will give you a chance to get your bearings (the campus is huge!) and you will get to meet a lot of MVPs who have arrived early and a chance to meet before the conference centre gets too busy.
This is also a great opportunity to get over to building 92 which is where the Microsoft visitor centre is located. Make sure to get your obligatory photo at the Microsoft sign and check out the museum and store inside!
During the conference itself, there will be breakfast available in the conference centre so get there early to get some food and coffee and meet up with friends before the sessions begin.
Don’t feel under pressure to attend a session at every slot. Plan ahead and attend the sessions that are most relevant to you but take some time out to just chat with other MVPs between sessions or just explore the campus – make sure to find the treehouses near building 31!
Things to do in the area
There’s not a huge amount to see in Seattle city itself and I actually did all of the below in one day but with an early start and lots of planning! If you have some time before or after the conference days to explore the area then the below are some suggestions based on what I did myself this year.
The Space Needle – if you’re a first timer then this is a must. It doesn’t need much explanation, you get to see a 360 degree view of the city and the nearby mountain ranges from 160 metres up. It doesn’t take very long but it’s just one of things that you have to do when in town for the first time.
The Underground tour – there’s a whole history behind how part of Seattle would regularly flood and after a massive fire in 1889 they decided to rebuild part of the city on a higher elevation leaving parts of the old city intact but now underground. This tour was interesting but I wouldn’t go out of way to do it – so time permitting only, the tour takes a little over one hour. There’s a couple of tour companies operating underground tours but I booked with this company – http://www.undergroundtour.com/
Visit Bruce Lee’s grave – this is a lesser known one. Bruce Lee lived in Seattle for many years and is buried here next to his son Brandon. The cemetery is located a little bit outside of the city centre so take an Uber there and back again but it’s really one for movie or martial arts fans. Here is the exact location: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Bruce+Lee+and+Brandon+Lee+Grave+Sites/@47.6337685,-122.315875,15z/data=!4m6!3m5!1s0x549014d8ec11959b:0xac6c348b38412c53!8m2!3d47.6337685!4d-122.315875!16s%2Fg%2F119v3ls5c?entry=ttu
Museum of Pop Culture – this one is highly recommended if you’re a music fan. Especially if you like the music of any of the several famous artists from the area, specifically: Jimi Hendrix, Nirvana, Pearl Jam or Soundgarden. There’s loads of famous memorabilia and exhibits here. Make sure to check out the top floor where you can play some instruments and record your own music! This museum is conveniently located right next to the Space Needle so you don’t have to go out of your way to visit. You could easily spend a few hours here depending on your interest level. https://www.mopop.org/
Pike Place Market – this one is generally considered a must see. Personally, I didn’t think there was much to see here, it’s basically a farmers market although apparently if you visit at the right time you can see the fishmongers throwing fish to each other to be wrapped after a customer purchase is made.
Nearby, you will also find the original Starbucks coffee shop (although not at it’s original location) and also the famous chewing gum wall which is exactly how it sounds!
Monorail – Yes, there’s a monorail but it only has two stops connecting the Westlake shopping mall downtown up to the Space Needle. You may have to go out of your way to find a reason to use this but again it’s something to tick off the list and they run every 10 minutes.
Keep an eye on sporting events and concerts that might be on during the week. I was lucky enough this year to see Muse play a rock concert at the Climate Pledge Arena during the week of the summit and it was a great experience. This arena is used by the Seattle Kraken Ice Hockey team and they will be playing there during the summit 2024.
I’ve heard the Museum of Flight and the Boeing Everett Factory / Future of Flight tours are both very good but both are located a little outside of the city center so again you may be looking at Uber/Lyft rides there and back again. I am hoping to do at least one of these next year.
Hiking. There’s an abundance of hiking trails and national parks to explore but you would really want a few extra days to do any of this. If you’re interested, the best thing to do is join up with some other MVPs who are interested in this sort of thing and plan the logistics between a group of people.
Useful mobile apps
Unless you hire a car (most don’t) then make sure that you have the Uber and Lyft apps on your phone. These are both essentially the same service but from different operators allowing you to get around pretty easily. You should generally find that you won’t have to wait very long for a driver and then you have the convenience of paying via your phone.
I also used the bus service quite a bit to commute between Bellevue where I was based and Seattle for sightseeing and even to and from the Microsoft campus in Redmond so you might want to install the Transit Go app for this. By doing so, you can pre-purchase your bus ticket on your phone and then just show the ticket to the bus driver when you enter the bus.
Final tips
Don’t be afraid to group in with other MVPs, even if you are just joining a WhatsApp group to keep informed of where people are going later for dinner or drinks so you can join up later on.
Make the most out of the conference days to speak to the Microsoft product teams, this is a unique opportunity to interact and give feedback in person.
Go up to other MVPs and Microsoft folks and introduce yourself, you will recognise names and faces and although it might seem daunting this is the best place to say hello to someone that you may have followed and looked up to for a long time.
For those of you travelling to the MVP summit next year, enjoy the experience and I hope to see you there.
azurealan.ie 