Seattle is an easy city to maneuver around and see all the sights within a long weekend. From going up the Space Needle, eating at Pike Place Market, walking along the marina, shopping downtown, enjoying Olympic National Park. These and more are all things to do in Seattle Washington.
Architecture
The architecture of this city is amazing. The vine-covered building has a great cafe, Tilikum Place Cafe, in the basement where I bought a croissant (my go-to breakfast while I travel). All morning I walked along the water and then back to the city and just took photo after photo of amazingly built buildings with incredible ornamentation at the top of them. How the heck does this building even stay standing with all the weight at the top. Rainier Tower built-in 1977 is an engineering marvel.
Pike Place Market
The Pure Food Fish Market was a hotbed of activity. I even saw them throwing the fish. Very smelly but, lots of fun to watch! I grabbed a snack from the market and did a little souvenir shopping. While walking through Pike Place I actually saw the very first Starbucks (1912). Not being a fan of coffee I didn’t go in, but everyone else was lined up to get in there and were more than ready to spend lots of money for a cup of coffee. If you ever want a fun city that is easy to maneuver around, this is the place to go. Lots of crazy people and places to experience, including the pig outside Pike’s Place where you can get lunch and the entire wall of a building in Post Alley covered in bubble gum! Pike Place Market is open Monday-Saturday 9 a.m.-6 p.m. and on Sunday 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
Seattle Aquarium
I had 30 minutes for lunch one afternoon and I really wanted to see the Seattle Aquarium. I heard that this was a must-see on the things to do in Seattle. Surprisingly, I did make it through the whole aquarium and still made it back to work on time. The fish were beautiful and quite colorful. I spent a lot of time outside the aquarium watching the otters play while enjoying the sunshine. The highlight of the Seattle Aquarium is the Giant Octopus and that is the one animal I didn’t see. I don’t know how I missed it. I must have turned right when I should have turned left. Bummer! Next Time! The Seattle Aquarium is open daily from 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m.
Space Needle
The Space Needle is a 605-ft tall observation tower that provides 365-degree views of surrounding Seattle, Washington. It only takes a quick 41-sec ride to the observation deck. Newly transformed in 2018 with unencumbered glass views of Mount Ranier and the Olympic and Cascade Mountains. No longer do you have the wires in your photographs as I did below. The Space Needle is open daily from 8 a.m.-12 a.m. 
Shopping
Walking to the Space Needle there are several streets to catch your fancy if you are in mind to do some shopping. The next two pictures were a window display for a clothing store I passed. Definitely caught my attention. My mom would have loved to see all these old Singer sewing machines all on display. This was like a blast from the past. We had one of the old tabletop sewing machines with the foot pedal while I was growing up. Not as old as these, but just as memorable.
Tacoma Narrows Bridge
The original Tacoma Narrows Bridge opened on July 1, 1940. It received its nickname “Galloping Gertie” because of the vertical movement of the deck observed by construction workers during windy conditions. The bridge became known for its pitching deck, and collapsed into Puget Sound the morning of November 7, 1940, under high wind conditions. Knowing the history, it was a bit discerning driving over this bridge.
Seattle Mountains
I didn’t get a chance to go hiking through the Cascade or Olympic Mountain ranges. I did though watch a beautiful sunset with the Olympic Mountains and Elliott Bay while on top of the Space Needle. Then when I was in a car with my workgroup I managed to capture a photograph of Mount Rainier.
Summary
I was only in Seattle for a couple of days but, I jammed packed everything I possibly could in every spare minute I had. I want to go back here sometime and actually walk through the city at a more relaxed pace than I did. The good thing is that this city is one of the easiest to get to from the airport. There is a train that drops you off right downtown for only a couple of dollars and everything is within walking distance. There are so many things to do in Seattle Washington that one trip won’t be enough! Do you have any suggestions for me to visit on my return to Seattle?
Booking.com
If You Enjoyed These Things to do in Seattle Post, Sign Up To Receive Posts By Email or…
Join us on Facebook for regular updates and related articles
Check us out on Instagram to see what we are up to in photos
Follow us on Twitter for links to great travel articles curated just for you
View and purchase your favorite of my travel photos on SmugMug. And if you don’t see the one you want on the site, send me a comment below, and I’ll add it.
Or share this “Things to Do in Seattle Washington” with others by pinning on Pinterest!
Further Reading
If you are coming out west for a visit, check out these posts for more travel inspiration:
- Breckenridge, Colorado – A quaint skiing village with lots of personality