Seattle trip

[pihwoah]

Hey all - please provide any suggestions as to things to do and places to eat near downtown Seattle that you would recommend.

Below are the places/activities I am planning:

Space Needle
Chihuly Glass
Pike's Place (w/ food tour)
Seattle Great Wheel
Sky View Observatory
Ferry to Bainbridge Island

I opted not to purchase the CityPass this time since we are going to forgo the aquarium and museums.

 

[audreyh1]

Elliot's Oyster House on the waterfront near Pike's Place. $$$ but with it if you like oysters, IMO.

 

[RetireAge50]

Ballard Locks, Red Mill Burgers, Seahawks game.

 

[RockyMtn]

Got to see the "Gum Wall". South end of Pikes Place Market.

 

[Meadbh]

Washington Park Arboretum
Gates Foundation Visitor Center

And if you change your mind about museums.....

Seattle Art Museum
Museum of Flight (Boeing Field)

 

[cooch96]

Got to see the "Gum Wall". South end of Pikes Place Market.

Gum got cleaned up last month, can't remember the exact tonnage. Residents are barely started in restoring it, so not very impressive at the moment, but you could have the rare occasion of adding to real, bare wall.

Fremont troll is neat. Real neat.

Underground tour is cool; couple that with the Museum Of History And Industry (MOHAI) and you get a real feel for the relatively short history of the city.

Crab Pot is wonderful, but I personally avoid it. I always gorge and feel ill for about two days afterwards.

Dukes is another great seafood place. The two best Dukes, scenery wise, are on Ruston, near the Chihully Museum in Tacoma, and on Alki Beach in West Seattle.

 

[Peter]

+1 on the Underground tour

 

[Souschef]

Brooklyn Steak and Seafood-Happy hour 4-6

 

[hurricane harry]

Museum of Flight is a must.


Be sure to bring plenty of change for the bums.

 

[anethum]

If you like chocolate, especially dark chocolate, you might enjoy a factory tour at Theo's in the Fremont neighborhood (which has some interesting shops & restaurants). The tour costs $10 and you should reserve it online. Or, you can simply visit the factory store for free, and there have been lots of free samples available to try when I've been there.

https://www.theochocolate.com/factory-tour

 

[Happyras]

Fremont troll is neat. Real neat.

Underground tour is cool; couple that with the Museum Of History And Industry (MOHAI) and you get a real feel for the relatively short history of the city.

I second the troll and the underground tour for newbies. Since we like wine l as well as micro brews, you should consider a wine tour in Woodinville, do the commercial district as well as the roundabout area. >120 represented I believe. Drive out I-90 to Snoqualimie falls and have lunch, or drive a little further up to the ski areas on the pass. If your active, do the 40+ mile Burke Gilman trail on bike or blades, it ties into the Sammamish River trail and ends in Redmond (Microsoft city)

Best Thai food-northern style Thai in Kirkland at Isarn, or have dinner on the lake at one of the good seafood places, much more fun than Seattle downtown, and a lot easier to park.

If staying downtown, check out one of Tom Douglas's restaurants, I think there are 5 of them each unique, or if you want culture, check out Capital Hill area for some higher end bistros.

Check out the Act Theater for current shows, great theater in the round with contemporary plays.

I could go one, but what interests you?

 

[haha]

Brooklyn Steak and Seafood-Happy hour 4-6

This is very good. Always a high energy, fun place. Another excellent happy hour is Blue Acre Seafood. It's at the corner of 7th Avenue and either Olive Way or Stewart, I always wander around until I see it.

Most of these downtown Happy hours are more fun during the week because they get downtown workers and business travelers. Another fun place is Shuckers Oyster Bar in the Fairmont Olympic Hotel. This is smaller and quieter, but also very nice. All of these mainly feature oysters, mussels, etc. There are good restaurants at all three, though Shuckers and Blue Acre feature seafood.

For steaks, I recommend El Gaucho. Downtown Seattle restaurants are not cheap.The poster above mentions Capitol Hill. An excellent Tom Douglas restaurant up here is Olives and Anchovies, on 15th near Madison. Really, there are many good restaurants around central Seattle, but none are cheap. You didn't mention price as an issue though.

Ha

 

[mystang52]

DW and I were there for a few days last summer. No need for me to echo some of the prior recommendations. But I will chime in, if you are in that area, to recommend Salty's at Redondo Beach.
We had Dungeness Crab (we picked it fresh from the tank) and wow was it delicious.

 

[haha]

I notice that you mention a ferry to Bainbridge Island. Whenever I have out of town guests we go on the ferry to Bremerton. It is a little longer, and a lot more scenic trip. In the winter though, you will likely stay inside because it is cold on deck! Usually there is a decommissioned destroyer open for a tour.

Both ferries leave from the main downtown ferry terminal.



Ha

 

[pullmyfinger]

If the weather is nice I recommend walking around the campus at the University of Washington. Not downtown, but not far by bus or car. If you change your mind about museums, my favorite is the Seattle Asian Art Museum, it is located in Volunteer Park, which is beautiful in itself.

 

[haha]

This is very good. Always a high energy, fun place. Another excellent happy hour is Blue Acre Seafood. It's at the corner of 7th Avenue and either Olive Way or Stewart, I always wander around until I see it.

Most of these downtown Happy hours are more fun during the week because they get downtown workers and business travelers. Another fun place is Shuckers Oyster Bar in the Fairmont Olympic Hotel. This is smaller and quieter, but also very nice. All of these mainly feature oysters, mussels, etc. There are good restaurants at all three, though Shuckers and Blue Acre feature seafood.

For steaks, I recommend El Gaucho. Downtown Seattle restaurants are not cheap.The poster above mentions Capitol Hill. An excellent Tom Douglas restaurant up here is Olives and Anchovies, on 15th near Madison. Really, there are many good restaurants around central Seattle, but none are cheap. You didn't mention price as an issue though.

Ha

I misspoke. Olives and Anchovies ownership is Ethan Stowell.

 

[Fermion]

Do the Argosy locks cruise from downtown Seattle to Lake Union. Worth the money IMO and you get to experience going through the locks.

 

[pihwoah]

This is great! Thanks for the suggestions. There were a couple options that we were considering like the Argosy and Underground Tour, so will have to look into those again.

 

[pihwoah]

I notice that you mention a ferry to Bainbridge Island. Whenever I have out of town guests we go on the ferry to Bremerton. It is a little longer, and a lot more scenic trip. In the winter though, you will likely stay inside because it is cold on deck! Usually there is a decommissioned destroyer open for a tour.

Both ferries leave from the main downtown ferry terminal.



Ha

Bainbridge seemed the most popular when researching since many people mentioned it in their reviews. They have a crepe establishment that I would like to try too.

 

[Brat]

Bainbridge seemed the most popular when researching since many people mentioned it in their reviews. They have a crepe establishment that I would like to try too.

But it is only 35 minutes long!! FWIW there is an indoor seating area on the top deck that is 'silent', seriously silent. Dare not use a phone or turn up your IPod such that it can be heard by your seatmate. The top deck outdoor is used as a fast walking track by those who want exercise. The cabin on the main deck is very social. The ladies room on the main deck works miracles in the morning Seattle bound..

The scenery on Bremerton Ferry ride is much more interesting.

Same price for both rides. Pay westbound only.

My favorite salmon house is near the U Dub: Ivar's, 401 NE Northlake Way, Seattle, WA.

 

[34rlsa]

Jimi Hendrix exhibit at the EMP Museum

EMP Museum - Music + Sci-fi + Pop Culture

 

[growerVon]

Jimi Hendrix exhibit at the EMP Museum

EMP Museum - Music + Sci-fi + Pop Culture

+1 for the Experience Music Project museum, very near the Space Needle & Chihuly glass museum. If you like old war planes and tanks, consider heading north to Paul Allen's warbirds museum: Flying Heritage Collection - Home

As mentioned, come out to Woodinville wine country and see the Hollywood School House, where DW and I were married

 

[supernova72]

Gum got cleaned up last month, can't remember the exact tonnage. Residents are barely started in restoring it, so not very impressive at the moment, but you could have the rare occasion of adding to real, bare wall.

Fremont troll is neat. Real neat.

Underground tour is cool; couple that with the Museum Of History And Industry (MOHAI) and you get a real feel for the relatively short history of the city.

Crab Pot is wonderful, but I personally avoid it. I always gorge and feel ill for about two days afterwards.

Dukes is another great seafood place. The two best Dukes, scenery wise, are on Ruston, near the Chihully Museum in Tacoma, and on Alki Beach in West Seattle.

I live in West Seattle and wanted to chime in there is a water taxi that will take you there from DT Seattle pier (12 minute trip). From there one of the cool restaurants is Salty's just 500 feet south of where the water taxi docks. Cheers.

 

[tulak]

I live in West Seattle and wanted to chime in there is a water taxi that will take you there from DT Seattle pier (12 minute trip). From there one of the cool restaurants is Salty's just 500 feet south of where the water taxi docks. Cheers.

I'd skip Salty's and go to Marination instead, which is right at the dock. (http://marinationmobile.com/#about).

The water taxi is a nice ride, especially when the weather is nice. There's also a free shuttle that goes from the pier to either Alki or West Seattle (opposite directions).

Alki can be a nice place to visit and there are a few good restaurants there. If you go to Alki, I'd recommend Cactus, which serves Southwestern/Mexican food and somebody else mentioned Duke's, which is also on Alki.

I don't recall when you'll be here, but Alki also has beach volleyball at times, which can be fun to watch. Not to mention great views of the city, especially at night.

 

[pihwoah]

I live in West Seattle and wanted to chime in there is a water taxi that will take you there from DT Seattle pier (12 minute trip). From there one of the cool restaurants is Salty's just 500 feet south of where the water taxi docks. Cheers.

That's great. I checked it out and this is very doable!