Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
the Seattle Seahawks football team, whose owner is . . . you guessed it: Paul
Allen. The new stadium is adjacent to the Seattle Mariners Safeco Field, which
is one of the few stadiums in the country with a retractable roof.
Despite Seattle's many downtown diversions, however, the city's natural sur-
roundings are still its primary attraction. You can easily cover all of Seattle's
museums and major sights in 2 or 3 days, and with the help of the itineraries
below, you should have a good idea of what not to miss. These itineraries will
provide a good overview of the history, natural history, and cultural diversity
that have made Seattle the city it is today.
ON THE WATERFRONT
The Seattle waterfront, which lies along Alaskan Way between Yesler Way in the
south and Bay Street and Myrtle Edwards Park in the north, is the city's most
popular attraction. 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 Seat-
tle Aquarium, the IMAXDome Theater, Odyssey-The 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. This is also the best place to hire a horse-drawn car-
riage 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, you'll find excursion boats offering harbor 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. See section 6, “Orga-
nized Tours,” later in this chapter, for details. At Pier 57, you'll find both the Bay
Pavilion, which has a vintage carousel and a video arcade to keep the kids busy,
and Pier 57 Parasail ( & 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 for one person and $89 for a tandem ride.
At Pier 59, you'll find the Seattle Aquarium (see below for details), the
IMAXDome Theater (see below), and a small waterfront park. Continuing up
the waterfront, you'll find Pier 66, the Bell Street Pier, which has a rooftop park.
This is also the site of Odyssey-The Maritime Discovery Center (see below),
which is dedicated to the history of shipping and fishing in Puget Sound, and
Anthony's, one of the best seafood restaurants on the waterfront (see “Where to
Dine,” earlier in this chapter, for a full review). At Pier 67, you'll find The Edge-
water hotel, a great place to take in the sunset over a drink or dinner (see “Where
to Stay,” earlier in this chapter, for details).
Next door, at Pier 69, you'll come to 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.
IMAXDome Theater The IMAXDome is a movie theater with a 180-
degree screen that fills your peripheral vision and puts you right in the middle
of the action. This huge wraparound theater is adjacent to the Seattle Aquarium,
and for many years now has featured a film about the eruption of Mount St.
Helens. Various other special features are screened throughout the year.
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