I found many tips about interview process itself, but just a few notes about accommodation and the time before the interview. So I would like to share my experience

I stayed at Fairfield Inn (Marriot) quite close to Microsoft campus. There is a free wireless Internet access in the hotel – which is very great. Contrary, trivial phone service is VERY expensive. The rate for long distance calls within North America is about $4/min! So, make sure you know the rates before touching the phone. Also it’s a good idea to bring your VoIP phone (like Vonage) with you.

Time shift – be aware of it! In my case it was 3 hours (I’m from Toronto) and it played a bad joke with me – I woke up exactly at 4:00am (as I use to wake up at 7:00am) and could not sleep anymore. So keep this in mind if you want to be well rested before the interview.

Way to building 19 - My hotel was just 5 min away from the campus. So allowed myself 30 min in the morning to get there and was 10 min late  because of two things: rush-hour and construction on the road I chose. I suggest checking the route to the building 19 in advance in order not to get surprises in the morning.

White boarding – during the interview you’ll be asked to write the code on the white board. It is good to practice white boarding before the interview. Personally I bought one and hanged on the wall at home . Be creative, use different colors, etc. 

If anyone has other tips about accommodation and time before the interview please share them - I think they would be valuable for those who are heading to Redmond for the interview.

Best of luck,
Andriy