Seattle was the first major American city I have visited. It was my first trip to the state of Washington and my first time flying with Alaska Airlines. So, all in all, it was a trip full of firsts! I was there for 2 days after flying in from Kelowna in Canada and so didn’t get to explore the entire city :( but it means I will definitely be back. I managed to fit in quite a lot on my trip but I realised that a lot of the time when traveling you only have one day to spend in a place so I decided to create the perfect itinerary to see as much of the city as possible. (This itinerary is pretty relaxed, it doesn’t aim to cram anything and everything into your trip, it leaves room for future visits)
Accommodation
Because I’m trying to rack up Marriott points for future stays I settled into the Seattle Marriott Waterfront Hotel at Elliott Bay during my trip. It was just Juliana and I travelling together so we had a room each with one king bed which was spacious but pricey. So instead I’ve compiled a list of hotels that would suit different people depending on budget:
Grand Hyatt Seattle $$$
Hampton Inn + Suites by Hilton Seattle/Northgate $$
City Hostel Seattle $
Four Seasons Hotel Seattle $$$
Itinerary
8:00AM: Enjoy a delicious American breakfast at the Hook & Plow, a gastropub style restaurant. I particularly recommend the buttermilk pancakes and brioche french toast!
9:00AM: Hop on the bus to explore Seattle with Tours Northwest.
They do a variety of 3-5hr tours of the city, the Boeing factory and Mt Rainier. We decided to just do the 3hr city tour so we could fit in some other activities too! The tour takes you everywhere in the city:
Pike Place Market
Waterfall Garden Park
Chinatown
Historic Pioneer Square
Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park
Queen Anne Neighborhood
12:00PM: Get of the bus and head into the Seattle Center and grab some lunch at the Armory. There are a variety of options from wood-fired bagels, to asian stir-fries and Mexican tacos. We chose to eat at Blue Water Taco Bar and Grill, enjoying a quesadilla with al pastor pork and pineapple.
1:00PM: We booked to go up the Space Needle at 1:00 and so we headed back to its base and started making our way into the building (I will be doing a separate post on how I felt about the Space Needle) They only permit a specific number of people at one time to go up the Space Needle for safety and overcrowding reasons so you have to wait your turn by the elevator until called forward. Enjoy the view for 20-30 minutes and then make your way to the elevator to go back down.
1:40PM: Head back across the Seattle Center campus to the MoPOP or Museum of Pop Culture. We didn’t have the time to enjoy the museum but did wander around the lobby and shop. However, for the full experience definitely get a ticket and visit the exhibits. Being a huge fan of fantasy films I would have loved the check out the “Fantasy: Worlds of Myth and Magic” exhibition, but there were plenty of other exhibits too if you’re not too keen on discovering more about the worlds of wizards and munchkins including:
A Queen Within: Adorned Archetypes (any fashion lovers or those with interests in contemporary art)
Prince from Minneapolis (anyone who wants to immerse themselves in everything Prince)
Scared To Death: The Thrill of Horror Film (for those who have no fear; not me :)
There is also an upcoming Minecraft exhibit which will reveal the secrets and stories of one of the world’s greatest video games coming in October 2019.
4:00PM: After immersing yourself in all things pop culture, hop on the monorail and head to the Westlake Center. The monorail was built for the 1962 World Fair in Seattle and is still a beloved landmark of the city today. The route is only one way and takes approx 2 minutes and so is much more efficient than taking a bus, cab or walking. For one adult its costs £2.50.
After arriving at Westlake Center. Head down towards the sea front along Olive Way and then Stewart Street where you should arrive straight in the middle of Pike Place Market. The walk should take roughly 10 minutes otherwise there is a bus you can catch, but it's such a short walk so not really worth it.
4:20PM: Stroll back through Pike Place Market and towards the sea front. If the hotel you’re staying at has a pool, go take a dip and wind down for a little while. If not head up to the viewing platform at Pier 66 and look through the telescopes. You can either book a table at one of the many fantastic restaurants in the area or you can start exploring Pike Place Market for a variety of treats. Head to Piroshky, Piroshky for perfect pastries and to Michou for the best deli food in the city! (I’m not joking, its THAT good!)
6:00PM: Head by either taxi or bus back to Seattle Center and enjoy an evening exploring Chihuly Garden and Glass. Tickets cost between $22-32 but appear to be cheaper in the evening and so that’s why I’ve recommended to do it after dinner.
It stays open until 9:30 and if you are not too eager to get some sleep then I seriously recommend staying the full time. I didn’t actually visit this attraction but I would love to and heard from a few people during the trip that it was something you can’t miss!
That’s it for our one day Seattle itinerary. As you can see there are so many more things to do in Seattle that I would have loved to explore but there’s only a limited number of hours in a day! I’ve compiled a list below of other incredible things there are to do in the city as well as the links to some of the places I mentioned in this post.
-Donny-
Pacific Northwest Ballet
Boeing Factory
Museum of Flight
Mount Rainier