View All Upcoming Events Book your tickets online for the top things to do in Seattle, Washington on Tripadvisor: See 208,988 traveller reviews and photos of Seattle tourist attractions. 55 Best Things to Do in Seattle (Washington) The biggest city in the Pacific Northwest has a diverse population, a surplus of public parks and leafy residential neighbourhoods on surrounding hills. USD Things to do in Seattle, WA range from the culinary to the adventurous, and everything in between.
If you want to enjoy panoramic views of Seattle, you are spoiled for choice. Just inside the 4th Avenue entrance, take a peek at a piece of the automated materials handling system whisking books up to Level Two.The Faye G. Allen Children’s Center is a wonderland for kids where they can browse books, use games and puzzles and attend story times and other programmes.On Level Three is the Norcliffe Foundation Living Room, an inviting public space with cosy seating areas, a cafe and indoor garden and sunlight issuing through the diamond-pattern windows.Most of the computer terminals are on Level Five at the Charles Simonyi Mixing Chamber, while the Red Floor on Level Four has 13 different shades of red on its floor, ceiling and walls.Before the Space Needle the tallest building in Seattle was the Neoclassical Smith Tower, the city’s first skyscraper.This 38-storey building on Pioneer Square was the city’s first skyscraper, 148 metres high and one of the tallest towers outside of New York City at that time.The Smith Tower is named for its financier, Lyman Cornelius Smith, who made his fortune in the typewriter business.The Smith Tower may have been overtaken almost 60 years ago, but a visit to the observation floor 35 storeys up is something you have to do in Seattle.For one thing, this is one of the last buildings on the West Coast to still employ elevator operators.The tower is rich with period fittings, like latticed doors on the brass-coated elevators, banisters fashioned from onyx and the carved teak ceilings in the observation floor’s bar, which reopened with a speakeasy theme in 2016.At 295 metres to its tip, the Columbia Center is the tallest building in Washington State.When it was topped off in 1985 this skyscraper was the tallest building on the whole West Coast, though it has since dropped down to fourth on the list.In the 2010s the Sky View observatory on the 73rd floor has been modified to give you a 360° view, while two new express elevators and a new lounge have also been modified.Although the Columbia Center doesn’t share the Space Needle’s cachet, the view is on a whole other level but less frequented.It’s not hard to lose all track of time watching the Olympic Mountains, Mount Rainier and the boats plying Puget Sound from this height, while tasteful murals will fill you in on Seattle’s past.Can you really say you’ve been to Seattle if you haven’t crossed the Puget Sound on a ferry? Using plenty of interactivity, the exhibits document the impact of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation around the world, as it aims to improve lives and tackle the big challenges facing the world.In the Global Challenge gallery there’s an interactive computer generated map, making clear how issues like malnutrition and poverty affect populations, while “Get Involved” lets you get hands on and help with projects, putting together winter kits for the Northwest’s homeless and making menstrual kits for girls across the globe.The center also collaborates with other major institutions like the American Museum of Natural History, for special exhibits.“Countdown to Zero” for example, mapped out the fight to eradicate forgotten tropical diseases.Right on Puget Sound, the Golden Gardens Park has knockout views over the water and across to the Olympic Mountains.The park’s story goes back to 1907 when it was developed as a spot at the end of the new electric car lines where people could take day trips for walks, picnics and bathing at the beach.Those activities attract Seattleites more than a century later, even if the Puget Sound water can be on the chilly side.There are pieces of rugged coastline, grassy areas, woodland for walks, two wetlands, a pier for fishing, a boat launch and fire pits for campfires.As with Alki Beach, there’s no better way to watch the sun slipping behind the Olympic Mountains than from the warmth of a beachside campfire.Hailed as the cradle of grunge rock, The Crocodile opened in 1991 and is up there with the best places to watch live music, not just in Seattle but across the United States.The venue’s pedigree has a lot to do with that, as all the bands that came out of the city during the grunge era, like Nirvana, Mudhoney, Pearl Jam and Tad played here.If you’re a fan of the genre then a trip to The Croc will be a long-term ambition, but it’s also a great place to catch some live independent music, whether you’re sampling the local scene or catching your favourite act on tour.Added to that there’s a good bar, a balcony if you want to avoid the pit, and you can get a personal pizza with any toppings for a flat fee of $7.If you only have a day to spend in Seattle and want to condense as many things into as little time as possible then a tour with a local guide is the way to go.You’ll take in the Romanesque Revival architecture of Pioneer Square, the cosmopolitan streets of the International District, the Waterfront, Seattle’s colossal sports arenas, the towers of downtown Seattle and the bold architecture of the Seattle Center.From there you’ll climb to Kerry Park where Seattle is laid out before you, while at Ballard Locks you’ll find out about the lifecycle of the Northwest salmon and watch the flotilla of commercial vessels passing through.In 1990 the Fremont Arts Council commissioned a piece of public art for space below the north end of the George Washington Memorial Bridge, as it had become a haunt for antisocial activity.Their pick, by a team of four local artists, was the Fremont Troll, a now iconic sculpture, 5.5 metres tall and composed of 6 tons of reinforced concrete.As a witty touch the troll holds an actual Volkswagen Beetle in its left hand, as if it has just snatched it from the road.The work is designed to be climbed on, and in 2005 the stretch of Aurora Avenue North under the bridge was renamed Troll Avenue in its honour.Also unconventional, the Gum Wall is a gum-coated section of Post Alley, down a flight of stairs from Rachel the piggybank at Pike Place Market.From the early 90s, audience members on their way in or out of the Unexpected Productions improv theatre would stick used chewing gum on the wall and decorate it with a coin.Over time people have become creative, spelling out their name and composing little artworks with the gum.The wall has been cleared three times, most recently in 2015 as chemicals in the gum were damaging the brickwork in the alley.At that time the Gum Wall was several inches thick and estimated to have more than a million pieces.This was just a temporary measure as the Gum Wall has been recognised as a tourist attraction since 1999 and has picked up a new coating already.This thriving fast food chain is a local staple but has never expanded beyond the Seattle area.It’s easy to love Dick’s Drive-In, whether it’s for the pared-down menu (no substitutions are allowed), or for the way the chain treats its staff.The employee benefits are the best in the fast food industry, with 100% employer paid health insurance and a $22,000 college tuition scholarship after six months of employment.As of 2019 there were eight locations, the first of which opened in Wallingford in 1954.