The latest travel suggestion thread: Seattle

Got two weeks vacation, and getting ready to leave with my Dad on Wednesday for a trip up the coast to the Seattle area. (We're following my sister up as she reports for her Navy hitch in Bremerton).

You know the drill: Obviously the Space Needle and Pike Place Market are in my plans, but any other suggestions from those of you a little more familiar with the area would be welcome.

 

Perfect. I'm making my first trip to Seattle at the end of August for "work." FYI, there's an old Seattle thread you can dig up with all kinds of good information as well.

 

OK. Just found out I'm staying at The Edgewater. Anyone ever stayed there? Looks kinda silly.

 

The EMP up by the needle is a neat place if you like music.

And ride a ferry somewhere.

My brother-in-law live in Port Orchard, so we take lots of ferries. I just enjoy it.

 

Sorry, I thought the EMP was a waste of time and I'm a huge music fan. Best part was the gift shop. But I've been to the Rock 'N' Roll Hall of Fame. No comparison between the two. Take the Duck Tour. My wife and I did and loved it. She said she was surprised how good it was. Takes a couple hours and you see the entire city from the land and water. Tour guides are fun, too. I went to Pike's Place Market about six times in four days. Crab Pot on the water was awesome for dinner. We went twice. Bring comfortable shoes and be ready to walk UPHIILL a lot. I was surprised how hilly Seattle was. Seemed worse than San Francisco to me. Busses in the downtown area are free during the day, which I thought was very cool.

 

Take Highway 101 around the Olympic Peninsula, and head into the park. Great time, though it's more than a one-day trip if you do it properly.

Go see Mt. Rainier.

 

I was let down by EMP too. It's ok if you have plenty of time, and maybe it would be a must see in another city, but I thought it was only so-so.

(Though, I also didn't think the RRHoF was that great either, and as a former sponsor, I've been there a bunch of times. Seemed like a glorified Hard Rock Cafe without the overpriced burger.)

And, if there's anywhere an espresso jack is appropriate, it's on a Seattle thread. Lots of great places in Seattle.

Very cool city.

 

Led Zeppelin did. They loved it.

 

Is that the place with "the shark incident? Check out the Boeing Museum, drive through the University of Washington (you'll realize that the area was actually covered with trees at some point). The Duck tours are good for an overview of the area. They are very touristy - the water portion is on Lake Washington (not the waterfront) and tours are great for kids. Take a ferry ride. Check to see if you'll be there doing SeaFair.

 

Again, can't recommend the Duck Tour highly enough. Takes you past both stadiums, the studio where Nirvanna recorded, along the skyline on the water, past a couple of Deadliest Catch boats, etc. My wife thought she wouldn't like it and still talks about how cool it was a year later. And in the 4-5 days we were there, it never rained. Duck Tour guide said the rain stuff is overrated, that cities like NY and Boston get more rain than Seattle. I'd take the tour early in your visit and you can see a lot of places you might want to visit.

 

The Edgewater is where The Beatles stayed too. About 50 Ride the Ducks vehicles drive by me every day where I work. There's little "in between." People are either having a great time or miserable. I think it depends on the tour guide. You'll be staying on the waterfront where there is a lot to do. The Aquarium is there, a lot of cool shops and restaurants, the ferry terminal. If you walk east up the hill you'll hit the Market, and then east of that is downtown. If you walk south, you'll get to Pioneer Square (a lot of history there) where you could try the Underground Tour to see a bunch of old Seattle. South of that is the two stadiums. You're staying in a good spot around most of the touristy stuff. If you want to go to the Seattle Center (where the Space Needle, EMP, Science Center is), you should walk to Westlake Center in downtown (5th Ave) and take the Monorail, which runs between Westlake and the Seattle Center. I think it's like $4. Send me a message if you have any other questions, it's supposed to be a warm, beautiful week here.

 

I took the Monorail to the Space Needle, which I also enjoyed. Got some great photos up there. There was a Hawaiian fesitval at the base of the Space Needle when I was there and that was pretty cool too. Had some of the best clam chowder I've ever had but the name of the place across the street from Pike's Place escapes me. Was also surprised by how bland the original Starbucks was.