Seattle Info
Joined: 05 Jan 2007
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 Posted: Mon Jan 08, 2007 11:09 pm Post subject: SEATTLE TOURISM GUIDE / TOURISM IN SEATTLE |
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SEATTLE TOURISM GUIDE
The Waterfront
The city's most popular attraction is the Seattle waterfront, which lies along Alaskan Way between Yesler Way, in the south, and Bay Street and Myrtle Edwards Park, in the north. Yes, it's very touristy, with tacky gift shops, saltwater taffy, T-shirts galore, and lots of overpriced restaurants; but it's also home to the Seattle Aquarium, Odyssey Maritime Discovery Center, and Ye Olde Curiosity Shop (king of the tacky gift shops). Ferries to Bainbridge Island and Bremerton, as well as several different boat tours, also operate from the waterfront. And this is the best place to hire a horse-drawn carriage for a spin around downtown.
You'll find the Washington State Ferries terminal at Pier 52, which is at the south end of the waterfront near Pioneer Square. (A ferry ride makes for a cheap cruise.) At Pier 55, there are excursion boats offering harbour cruises and trips to Tillicum Village on Blake Island. At Pier 56, cruise boats leave for trips through the Chittenden (Ballard) Locks to Lake Union.
At Pier 57, you find both the Bay Pavilion, which has a vintage carousel and a video arcade to keep the kids busy, and Pier 57 Parasail (tel. 206/622-5757), which will strap a parasail on your back, hook you to a long rope, and then tow you around Elliott Bay. The view from above the water is almost as good as the view from the Space Needle, and, because you take off and land from the back of the boat, you won't even get wet. Rides are $49 to $54 for one person and $89 to $95 for a tandem ride.
Pier 59 is home to the Seattle Aquarium and a small waterfront park. If you continue up the waterfront, you'll find Pier 66, also called the Bell Street Pier, which has a rooftop park. This is the site of the Odyssey Maritime Discovery Center, which is dedicated to the history of shipping and fishing in Puget Sound. Anthony's, one of the best seafood restaurants on the waterfront, is also on this pier. At Pier 67 is The Edgewater hotel, a great place to take in the sunset over a drink or dinner.
Next door, at Pier 69, you can see the dock for the ferries that ply the waters between Seattle and Victoria, British Columbia. Just north of this pier is grassy Myrtle Edwards Park, a nice finale to a very pleasant waterfront. This park has a popular bicycling-and-skating trail and is the northern terminus for the Waterfront Streetcar, which can take you back to your starting point.
Pike Place Market to Pioneer Square
Pike Place Market and the Pioneer Square historic district lie at opposite ends of First Avenue; midway between the two is the Seattle Art Museum.
The Pioneer Square area, with its historic buildings, interesting shops, museum and Underground Tour, is well worth a morning or afternoon of exploration.
Seattle Center & Lake Union
Built in 1962 for the World's Fair, Seattle Center is today not only the site of Seattle's famous Space Needle but also a cultural and entertainment park that doubles as the city's favourite festival grounds. Within Seattle Center's boundaries, you find the Experience Music Project (EMP), the Pacific Science Center, the Seattle Children's Museum, the Seattle Children's Theatre, Key Arena (home of the NBA's Seattle SuperSonics), the Marion Oliver McCaw Hall, the Intiman Theatre, the Bagley Wright Theatre, a children's amusement park, and a fountain that's a favourite summertime hangout. Not far away, you'll find Lake Union, where there are a couple of nautical attractions.
The International District
Seattle today boasts of its strategic location on the Pacific Rim, but its ties to Asia are nothing new. This is evident in the International District, Seattle's main Asian neighbourhood, which is centred between Fifth Avenue South and 12th Avenue South (between S. Washington St. and S. Lane St.). Called the International District rather than Chinatown because so many Asian nationalities have made this area home, the neighbourhood has been the centre of the city's Asian communities for more than 100 years. You can learn about the district's history at the Wing Luke Asian Museum , where you can also pick up a walking-tour map of the area.
At the corner of Maynard Avenue South and South King Street, you find Hing Hay Park, the site of an ornate and colourful pavilion given to Seattle by the city of Taipei, Taiwan.
There are many restaurants, import stores, and food markets in the I.D. The huge Uwajimaya is all of these rolled up in one.
First Hill (Pill Hill) & Capitol Hill
Seattle is justly proud of its parks, and Volunteer Park on Capitol Hill at 14th Avenue East and East Prospect Street (drive north on Broadway and watch for signs), is one of the most popular. Here you'll find not only acres of lawns, groves of trees and huge old rhododendrons, but also an old water tower that provides one of the best panoramas in the city. A winding staircase leads to the top of the water tower, from which you get 360-degree views. On the observatory level, there is also an interesting exhibit about the Olmsted Brothers and the system of parks they designed for Seattle. To find the water tower, park near the Seattle Asian Art Museum if you can; then walk back out of the parking lot to where the road splits. The view from directly in front of the museum isn't bad either.
North Seattle (Including Ballard, Fremont, Montlake & The U District)
The Fremont District, which begins at the north end of the Fremont Bridge--near the intersection of Fremont Avenue North and North 36th Street--is one of Seattle's funkiest and most unusual neighbourhoods. Even livelier, though not nearly as eclectic or artistic, the University District (known locally as the U District) has loads of cheap restaurants and the types of shops you would associate with a college-age clientele. But the main attractions for visitors are the two excellent museums on the university campus and the nearby Museum of History and Industry, which is just across the Montlake Bridge from the U District. |
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