31. Show Me Seattle
City: Seattle, WA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Description: The claim of this tour is to see Seattle the way the locals see it. On a small shuttle bus, you will visit and learn about downtown Seattle, Pike Place Market, the Seattle waterfront, and Pioneer Square, and witness some outstanding views of the city. The tour passes through quirky neighborhoods and visits Chinatown, the Ballard Locks with ladders for the spawning salmon, the Giant Bridge Troll, and the famous Sleepless in Seattle floating home. “Mystery” treats are offered with each tour, and pickup at all major downtown hotels is included.
32. Shutter Tours
City: Seattle, WA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (425) 516-8838
Description: The ultimate tour for shutterbugs, these walking classes combine Seattle factoids with mini-lessons in photography—and some of the best subjects for film and digital shots. The award-winning, professional photographer guides give instruction in composition, without technical jargon, making the tours excellent for beginning to intermediate photographers. You must bring your own camera, and recording/video is not allowed. The interactive walking tours to some of Seattle’s most interesting out-of-the-way spots last about two hours, and are limited to eight participants.
33. Sub Seattle Tour
City: Seattle, WA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (206) 682-4646
Address: 608 1st Ave. (Central)
Description: Brought to you by the same folks who do the Underground Tour, this is definitely the tour for you if you like irreverence and the quirky bits of a place that typical tours don’t cover. The Sub Seattle Tour is advertised as “not your father’s bus ride” for rule-breakersand troublemakers. It’s a humorous 90-minute bus tour of offbeat neighborhoods and sights, starting in Capitol Hill and covering the city’s subculture, from the Wah Mee massacre in the International District in 1983, to the unofficial memorial to Kurt Cobain at Viretta Park (and Cobain’s house). The tour runs from Mar to Nov only, and is for 18 and older only.
34. Tours Northwest
City: Seattle, WA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (866) 584-1122
Description: Tours Northwest offers several sightseeing tours to top attractions in Seattle and around the Pacific Northwest. The most popular is the three-hour City Tour, giving an overview of Seattle in comfortable mini-coaches. Other tours include Mount Rainier National Park and the Boeing Future of Flight Aviation Center. Door-to-door pickup and dropoff to most area hotels is included.
35. Travel To Sketch
City: Seattle, WA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (206) 353-1687
Description: This has to be one of the most fun and unique types of walking tours anywhere. Sketch your way through the architecture, art, and interesting spaces of Seattle on this cultural guided tour that provides anyone ages “12 to 112” the tools to observe, and record, aspects of a city and its culture. No artistic or drawing experience is required, and the tours start in a variety of locations and neighborhoods. Some tours are combined with wine tastings or visits to cafes, and most are three- to six-hour custom classes.
City: Seattle, WA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Address: 3015 NW 54th St. (North)
37. Olympic Sculpture Park
City: Seattle, WA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (206) 654-3100
Address: 2901 Western Ave. (Central)
Description: This nine-acre former industrial site that was turned into a green art space makes for a great stroll dotted with contemporary sculptures by Alexander Calder, Richard Serra, and Mark di Suvero. The beauty of the Olympic Mountains and Puget Sound provide a dramatic backdrop to the permanent sculptures and rotating art installations, and a 2,200-foot Z-shape path leads from the steel-and-glass pavilion through the park and gardens. Best of all, it’s open daily to the public from sunrise to sunset, with no admission fees. Free public tours with a variety of topics are also held on an ongoing basis, so check the Web site calendar for dates.
38. Seattle Aquarium
City: Seattle, WA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (206) 386-4300
Address: 1483 Alaskan Way (Central)
Description: The Seattle Aquarium on the waterfront is not only a hands-on, fun marine experience for visitors, it’s also a major marine conservation initiative that aims to educate the public about the wonders of the waters. The aquarium welcomes more than 800,000 visitors annually, helping them become aware of the impact we all have on the marine environment. Exhibits include numerous small-to-massive tanks and ponds, with Washington water life, Pacific coral reef, ocean oddities, marine mammals, fish, and birds. A diver show and dome feeding happen several times a day, as do talks on marine mammals and octopi. Many educational and preservation programs are also in place at the aquarium, which is open daily.
City: Seattle, WA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Address: 801 Alaskan Way, Pier 52 (Central)
40. Benaroya Hall
City: Seattle, WA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Description: This gorgeous performance hall that is home to the Seattle Symphony offers free public tours, on Tues and Fri at noon and 1 p.m. at the Grand Lobby entrance. On select Mon throughout the year, you can get a real treat—Joseph Adams, the resident organist on the 4,490-pipe Watjen concert organ, gives a free 30-minute concert starting at 12:30 p.m., with tours before the performance (at noon) and afterward. For a complete schedule, go to www.seattlesymphony.org/benaroya/tour.
41. Blitz Art Walk
City: Seattle, WA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Description: This art walk is held in the creative Capitol Hill neighborhood, showcasing visual, literary, musical, and performing arts. Held on the second Thurs of each month from 5 to 8 p.m.
42. Burke Museum
City: Seattle, WA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Description: Free admission all day on the first Thurs of every month, and the museum stays open until 8 p.m.
43. Center For Wooden Boats
City: Seattle, WA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Description: Every Sun afternoon the center offers free boat rides on Lake Union. The rides take place at 2 and 3 p.m., weather permitting, and you can make reservations in person as early as 10 a.m. the day of (no phone or prior reservations allowed). The best bet is to get down there as close to 10 a.m. as possible, then tour the museum, do some wood carvings at the center, or have lunch in one of many nearby waterfront restaurants before your boat ride.
44. City Hall Lunchtime Concerts
City: Seattle, WA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Description: Throughout the year, Seattle City Hall becomes a concert hall on the first and third Thurs. Various free live music is presented at noon, from classical and orchestra performances to percussion, Latin grooves, rock bands, American and Celtic folk music, and children’s concerts. You can even get a card with a redemption code to download a limited-edition, digital music sampler featuring 12 Seattle bands. The card itself is eco-friendly; it’s embedded with seeds, and when you’re done with the card you can plant it and grow wildflowers! So Seattle. 600 4th Ave., (206) 684-7171, www.seattle.gov/arts/community/seattle_presents.asp.
45. Coast Guard Museum
City: Seattle, WA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Description: Interesting collection of Coast Guard memorabilia, uniforms, and guns, with Arctic icebreaker ships usually moored nearby. A slice of Seattle maritime history and the important role the Coast Guard plays in it. Open Mon, Wed, and Fri from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. 1519 Alaskan Way South, Pier 36, (206) 217-6993, www.rexmwess.com/cgpatchs/cogardmuseum.html.