Seattle

Two full days will give you a good overview of Seattle, but there’s plenty to do with more time!

Sites that we think are particular kid-friendly are marked with asterisks (*) and colored in red.We didn’t highlight breweries because these probably aren’t on the top of most kid’s lists, however most (almost all) breweries in Seattle are kid-friendly.

Seattle neighborhood map

 

In the map on the right, the neighborhoods listed below are circled in red. We did also circle West Seattle, because  we mentioned a few sites in this neighborhood. We wouldn’t recommend staying here, as it’s not that well-located (convenient) to see the rest of Seattle’s sites.

The Meisner Sisters’ Ultimate Seattle Spreadsheet

Click here for a world of spreadsheet and travel planning fun!

  • Food and drink are shaded in blue, other sites in peach, and hikes/outdoorsy activities in green
  • The first tab (sheet) are sites in Seattle, the second tab are sites very close to Seattle (1/2 day trips or shorter), the third tab are sites a bit further away (day trips or longer)

Top sights

Chihuly Garden and Glass

*Space Needle

  • Combo tickets with Chihuly Garden and Glass are handy
  • We strongly recommend you reserve your visit to the Space Needle

*Pike Place Market

  • Savor Seattle market tour recommended
  • Check out Pike Place Urban Garden, the Gum Wall (1428 Post Alley), and the *fish-throwers
  • Ellenos Greek Yoghurt–marionberry pie flavor–and the Crumpet Shop are favorites
  • Cloudburst Brewing is a great stop nearby, as is White Horse Pub
  • If you’re up for a busy day, you can take the monorail from Pike Place to Seattle Center (where the Space Needle, Chihuly and EMP are)

MoPop (formerly EMP Museum)

  • Pop culture museum, right near the Space Needle and Chihuly

Neighborhoods we recommend staying in

Air B&B strongly recommended!

Queen Anne

This is probably the ideal neighborhood if you’re traveling with children and want adequate room, but also want to be near the “top sights”.

Favorite spots:

  • Queen Anne Beer Hall
  • *Cederberg Tea House (South African tea house: get the caffeine-free Rooibos latte, a melktart, and a Malva pudding)
  • Kerry Park (great views over Seattle)
  • *Discovery Park is nearby 

Capitol Hill

Capitol Hill is Seattle’s “gayborhood” and party central. There are plenty of bars, cafes, and restaurants within a quick walk of any Air B&B option, however it might be a bit loud for some.

Favorite spots:

  • Victrola (cafe)
  • Sitka and Spruce (restaurant, $$$)
  • Volunteer Park Cafe (breakfast), Volunteer Park
  • *Hello Robin (home made cookies + Molly Moon’s ice cream = ice cream sandwiches)
  • REI Flagship store (on the fringes of Capitol Hill)
  • Tacos Chukis (Mexican)

Madison Valley and Madrona

Mike and Julianne live in Madison Valley, which is near Capitol Hill but much quieter.  The *Washington Park Arboretum and Japanese Garden are right at the northern end of Madison Valley.

Madrona is the next neighborhood over and is very quiet and nice. Central District is also adjacent to Madison Valley; we wouldn’t recommend staying in this neighborhood (it’s perfectly safe, just not very scenic), but there are some great spots to check out.

Favorites:

  • Cafe Flora (vegetarian, Madison Valley)
  • Belle Epicurean (Parisian-style cafe, Madison Valley)
  • Hi Spot Cafe (breakfast, Madrona)
  • Red Cow (dinner, Madrona)
  • *Molly Moon’s (ice cream, Madrona)
  • Chuck’s Hop Shop (tons of beer, nightly food truck; Central District)
  • Oola Distillery (great bourbon, Central District)

Fremont

Fremont is probably the quirkiest Seattle neighborhood, with an annual naked bike ride and a 16 foot high state of Lenin. Check out the *Fremont Troll, make a dessert out of the free samples at *Theo chocolate‘s shop, and stop by *Gasworks Park. Nearby Wallingford has a bit less going on, but is quiet and still interesting.

Favorites:

  • Paseo (lunch, Fremont- delicious Cuban sandwiches!)
  • Cafe Turko (Turkish, Fremont)
  • Fremont Brewing (no food, can get food delivered or bring in)
  • Westward (seafood, cocktails, great view; Fremont)
  • Canlis (expensive but incredible restaurant in nearby Queen Anne)
  • *Molly Moon’s (ice cream, Wallingford)
  • *Fainting Goat Ice Cream (goat’s milk ice cream, Wallingford)
  • Bodrum (Turkish, Wallingford)

Ballard

Ballard is a little more hip and a little less hippie than Fremont. The *Ballard Locks/salmon ladder are fun to check out with kids (pick up burgers and shakes from Red Mill and have a picnic), as is *Golden Gardens park (beach and hiking trails). On a clear day, the views at the end of *Discovery Park‘s loop trail are well worth the moderate trek.

Favorites:

  • Walking Ballard Ave NW between NW Dock Place and 22nd Ave NW
  • Sunday farmers’ market
  • Cafe Mox (consider reservations; bar/restaurant where you can borrow and play board games)
  • *Hotcakes (molten chocolate cakery, can be very busy late at night)
  • Peddler Brewing
  • Stoup (brewery)
  • The Walrus and the Carpenter (seafood)
  • *Full Tilt (ice cream and pinball)
  • *Center for Wooden Boats
    • You can rent canoes and pedal boats from the Center to take out on South Lake Union
  • Asadero Sinaloa (awesome Mexican food for meat eaters. Get there by 5pm if you don’t want to wait an hour or more!)

Other favorites

Restaurants

  • Il Corvo (lunch only)
  • Salumi (lunch only)
  • Local 360 (all menu items come from within 360 miles)
  • Serious Pie and Biscuit (pizza and biscuits)
  • Flatstick Pub (mini golf and beer)
  • The Butcher and the Baker (lunch)
  • Marination Mai Kai (over on West Seattle, easy ferry to get there)
  • *Portage Bay (breakfast-kids will love the breakfast bar!)
  • Off the Rez food truck
  • Macrina (for breakfast)

Parks/outdoors

  • *Kayaking in Lake Union
  • *Walking around Greenlake (or rent peddleboats)
  • *Carkeek Park (nice hiking trails, and views of the Puget Sound and the Olympics from the western end)
  • *Colman Pool in West Seattle
    • This pool (1) is heated, (2) is salt water, (3) has a giant water slide, and (4) is on the beach! Bonus points for kids: you can take the ferry from downtown Seattle (close-ish to Pike Place Market) to get to this neighborhood (about a 15 minute drive from the West Seattle ferry dock).
    • Details: https://www.seattle.gov/parks/find/pools/colman-pool

Other

  • *Seattle Electric Boat Company: rent an electric boat in Lake Union for $100/hour, minimum 2 hours. The boats seat 10 people, and you drive it yourself. You can bring food and drinks ($5 to rent a cooler + ice)
  • Seattle Cycle Saloon Tours: probably best to Google this, it’s tough to explain!
  • Seattle Underground Tours
  • Woodinville Wineries (Chateau St. Michelle is the most famous)
  • Klondike Gold Rush National Historic Park
  • Cinerama or Central Cinema (if the weather’s bad)
  • *Tour the Boeing facility in Everett (complete with the world’s largest building)
  • *Seafair Weekend is the same weekend as our wedding! If you’ll still be in Seattle on Friday the 4th, you can catch some Seafair events before heading to Crystal Mountain
  • *Tilikum Village

Georgetown/SoDo: