I live near Seattle for 6 months and it is an amazing city, with a lot of cool things to do. Even though it’s rainy a lot of the time, there is still plenty to do in the Emerald City! Here is a list of my favorite things to do!
- Go up the Space Needle
The icon of Seattle is in the middle of Seattle Center. We went up there at sunset and the view was stunning! It’s really pricey, but it is a once in a lifetime opportunity so I definitely recommend doing it. It was an amazing view but the day we went was very cloudy, so we didn’t see Mount Rainier but you still had an amazing view over the city. It is definitely a must to go before sunset, you will see the view by day and night, while only paying $5 extra to see both at once! When you’re done with the view outside and on top, head down to the glass floor. It’s pretty cool to see all the way down, but I must admit that it’s also pretty scary! And belief me, I’m not the only one who thought so. It was fun to see the other people around me getting on the as careful as possible! But fear not, the glass you’re standing on is designed to old 5 elephants, and there are 5 layers of it!
2. Boeing Factory Tour
Boeing Factory is for me definitely a must! It was so impressive, I’m still a bit overwhelmed. Unfortunately, I’m not able to show a lot of pictures of the tour because cell phones and cameras are strictly forbidden. It is amazing to see the hall where all the planes are in and it’s so big that it will fit 4 planes lined up! During the tour, we walked on the 4th floor so we had a view over all the planes and the few people who were working on the planes. In the main building is a small museum where you can enjoy after or before the tour.
3. Kerry Park
Kerry Park is a small park with an amazing view on the skyline from Seattle. It’s one of the coolest things in Seattle, it’s free and you can visit this (Queen Anna) Park any time of the day. Also a fun thing to do here: watch people getting the perfect shot, or find yourself the center of attention when you are trying to get that perfect shot. It is a 15 min walk from Seattle center, but you can also take the bus to bus stop 321 W Galer St and from here it is a 5 min walk.
4. Pike Place Market and The Gum Wall
Pike Place Market is another popular attraction of Seattle, but try to avoid Saturday mornings unless you like to be squashed between people. Here is also the famous fish throwing, everywhere fresh flowers and a lot of homemade things, clothing, food, jams, shampoos, honey, crafts, paintings, jewellery and much more.
Tip: Go down one level in Pike Place market and find all kind of little/weird stores or try to find the biggest shoe in the world!
Close to the Pike Place Market, we have the Gum Wall. It’s disgusting but quite impressive! The Gum Wall is over 27 years old! (people started this tradition around 1993). If you’re lucky, because sometimes they clean the Gum Wall. Take a selfie here and contribute to this weird tradition and join thousands of people by sticking your gum on the wall!
5. Go on a Ferry and Bainbridge Island
Take the ferry to Bainbridge Island and enjoy the view of Seattle’s skyline..It’s only 9 dollars and takes about 35 minutes to get to this peaceful island. I recommend spending as much time as you can on deck since the view is just stunning (and in case you want the perfect picture with the skyline, this is your shot!). If you spend multiple days in Seattle, go a day to Bainbridge Island. It’s the opposite of Seattle: as crowded as the city is, so peaceful is this island. It is a small place with some cute small stores and it is so quiet! Enjoy the little parks and the pretty houses.
Tip: Go to Pegasus coffee house, it’s the most adorable place and the coffee is the best!
6. Discovery Park
The park is a pretty far walk from Downtown (it’s an hour and half walking if you start at the Space Needle). So it’s best if you take the bus to bus stop W Government Way & 34th Ave W and from there it’s only a 10 minute walk.
This park is the biggest one from Seattle, so it’s easy to spend all day here, walking around and every time you discover new places. You have everything here: paved trails, rocky trails, beaches, forest, steep trails and flat trails, so it’s perfect for everyone! Me and a friend walked so long through the woods, that we had to hurry to the well known firehouse at the beach. There is a way leading al the way near the beaches to the firehouse. You can walk right next to the beach on your way to the firehouse, and I promise you, it’s just as calming as it sounds, with the waves crashing on to the beach and the wind blowing through your hair! The view from the firehouse at the beach is stunning and if you’re lucky you can see mount rainier!
You cannot only spot mount rainier, but also lots of different animals. Near the beach, it’s easy to see some seals. Furthermore, you can spot different birds throughout the park and apparently, there would also be deer living in the forest of Discovery park.
7. Pioneer square
Pioneer square is one of the oldest neighborhoods in Seattle, and you can still see it. In this neighborhood are a lot of things to do, like enjoying the little park itself or go to the waterfall garden. This is a really small park, it really feels like your in another place and the waterfall makes so much sound that you won’t hear anything from the city at all and it looks really pretty. You can walk around and see all the historic buildings, cute coffee shops, or see it all from above. for the best view, go to the Smith Tower Observatory, it’s one of Seattle’s oldest building and its most historic skyscraper.
Tip: Take an underground tour and learn more about Seattle’s history. The tour will tell you about how they built an entire city on top of the old one and how once drugs and prostitution was going on in Seattle.
8. Waterfront
Seattle is a city next to the water, go down the hill from Pike Place Market and you got plenty of things to do. From the great wheel, a lot of shops, coffee shops, restaurants to the aquarium. It’s easy to spend all afternoon at the waterfront with all those activities and you can take a boat to different islands, west seattle and all the way to Canada or go whale watching.
9. Sculpture park
Sculpture park has been open for 13 years now and it is amazing park with a few sculptures and has a view over the Puget Sound on the west and the Space Needle on the east. You can enjoy these big sculptures for free and it is walking distance from Pike place market and the Space Needle.
From Pike Place market it is 20 minutes walking over the waterfront to the north and from the Space Needle it is 15 minutes walking to the west.
10. Starbucks
The original Starbucks is like you travel through time, the inside really looks like a old coffee shop. You even can find special Pike Place Market Mugs to add to your collection. But there are a lot of tourist who want to stop by so most of the time during the weekends there is a long line outside, be prepared. I heard best time to visit is early in the morning around 7:30 should be fine without a line who is to long.
Another Starbucks you should go to is the one in the Sky view observatory in Columbia center. The Starbucks is on the 40th floor of this building and has higher views than the Space Needle, acces is to the starbucks is free and you can enjoy this amazing view while you are sipping your coffee. If you go up to the observatory deck it is 20 dollars. Unfortunately, they are closed in the weekends but they are open from monday through friday 5:30 to 5:30.
Transport
If you arrive at the airport SEATAC you’re already close to Seattle, it is only 25-35 minutes driving by car or you can take the Link Light Rail (train) to Seattle. The Price is about 5 dollars for a one way to downtown, or you can get a day pass for 8 dollars and you can go by bus or link light rail the whole day. Public Transportation is pretty good here in Seattle and an easy way to get to your destination.
Essential tips:
- In Seattle, many museums are free on the first Thursday of the month and some are even free all year round!
- Bringing a raincoat is always a good idea.
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JK Travel Adventures 