Seattle
Waterfront
At the Seattle waterfront, get out on the water - ride the green and white ferries, cruise around Puget Sound or Lake Union, take the boat to Tillicum Village or water taxis across Elliott Bay. On land, kids can explore Northwest aquatic life at the aquarium, go for a whirl on an old-fashioned carousel, or just watch the boats, from big container ships to fleets of sailboats in the harbor.
Washington State Ferries (Pier 52)
- Take the ferry to Bainbridge Island (35 minutes each way), for super views of the Seattle skyline and the Space Needle. Look for sea lions in the water, and of course, there'll be lots of boats out on the water.
Seattle fire boats
- Next to the ferry landing, check out the cool red and white Seattle fire boats, with big red nozzles mounted on the top.
Tip: From Pier 52 there's a pedestrian walkway to First Ave.
Ye Olde Curiosity Shop
- On bad weather days, step into this shop, stuffed to the gills with odd curiosities, soapstone carvings, masks, bean and teeth necklaces, whaler's brass gun, buffalo horn, a giant clam shell, and more, fun to browse.
Boat rides (Piers 54 - 56)
-
Elliott Bay Water Taxi
- Our favorite boat ride on Elliott Bay, the water taxi takes 12 minutes to cross to west Seattle. The water taxi docks at Seacrest Park, where you can pick up the free shuttle to Alki beach, or just ride the water taxi back to the waterfront.
Argosy Harbor Cruise
- Cruise around the harbor, close to the shipping terminals with big cranes loading container ships, with super views of the Seattle skyline. Harbor cruise is one hour, year round, rain or shine.
Tip: Free with
Seattle CityPass
.
Argosy Lock Cruise
- Two and a half hour cruise, from the waterfront, up Elliott Bay, through the Washington Ship Canal and Ballard Locks into Lake Union.
Miner's Landing
- All indoors, inside is an
old-fashioned carousel
, games arcade and food court. Also, stop in the Wooden Boat Shop to watch full size boats as they're made by hand.
Between Miner's Landing and Seattle Aquarium are free telescopes for close-up boat watching on the harbor.
Seattle Great Wheel
- Take a ride on the all-weather ferris wheel on the pier, panoramic views of Elliott Bay and downtown Seattle.
Seattle Aquarium
- Learn about marine life of the Pacific Northwest - touch pools with oodles of orange starfish, fluffy red and green sea anemones, spiny sea urchins, nubby sea cucumbers, tanks with adorable sea otters, northern harbor and fur seals, Puget Sound fish (cod, rockfish, salmon, wolf eels, sturgeon). Don't miss the feedings of a giant Pacific Octopus, plus kids can dress up like a diver, drape squid tentacles over their shoulders, take a photo on the wooden sea otter. Outside the aquarium are picnic tables.
Tip: Free admission with
Seattle CityPass
.
Rent bikes
- Rent bikes, take the Elliott Bay water taxi, and bike along to Alki Beach. This ride is perfect for kids of all ages. With older kids, bike up the Elliott Bay bike trail, goes all the way up the waterfront, and continues to Ballard Locks.
Olympic Sculpture Park and Myrtle Edwards Park
- The north end of the waterfront (Pier 70) is a wide open grassy park with sculptures kids can appreciate, such as a giant orange traffic cone or a big eraser. To stretch your legs, continue walking north along the trees and grass in Myrtle Edwards Park.
Tip:
Wondering how to go between the waterfront and downtown, with a steep hill and freeway in the middle?
At Pier 52, go up walkway to along Marion Street. Near Pier 56, follow the wide graceful Harbor Steps up to 1st Avenue. From within Pike Place Market, a stairway leads to steps down to the waterfront. If you're around Pier 66, the Bell Street Elevator (next to the Marriott) will whisk you up to Virginia St. (north end of Pike Place Market).
