Heading up that way from Hillsboro OR tomorrow. Plan to stay two nights…maybe the same place/area or a totally dif area. I’m inclined toward the latter so we (wife and I) can more easily see multiple parts of the metro area.
Any thoughts…particularly with regard to where to stay (in the mid-priced to cheap range)? What to do is welcome too.
TIA !!
Right next to the Space Needle, there’s a museum with a fantastic display of Chihuly glass art. I’d recommend going at night, because there’s an outdoor lighted exhibit.
Oh, and check out the Space Needle too.
The City of Seattle must be getting a helluva kickback from Chihuly. You can’t get away from the damned stuff!
Wander the waterfront. There’ll be a breeze, and good things to eat. Can’t help with the hotels, but check the usual travel sites for deals.
I see your two-night stay, and raise you moving there permanently. 
And no, I’ve never been to the area either, except for one day spent entirely in a job interview.
If What the … !!! doesn’t mind sharing the thread, I’d also love suggestions for things to do and places to see in the area – especially family friendly activities (kids ages 6 and 3), but also restaurants and such that my wife and I ought to try.
I move next month.
When we lived there I always enjoyed taking visitors to the Ballard locks, where boats get floated up to Lake Union. The Space Needle is worth seeing too. And the waterfront, as someone else mentioned. If you like baseball, the Mariners are playing at Safeco Field. You could ride the monorail if you want an underwhelming experience. Go to Magnuson Park and see the Soundgarden sculpture, from which the band obtained its name. One of my favorite things to do when I lived ther was people watch on Capitol Hill.
Seconding the Ballard Locks. Lots of fun, and there’s a nice little interpretive center there as well.
No problem…good luck with the move.
The space needle and the glass sculptures are on the list. Anybody know anything about EMP (music museum of some fashion I think…could be totally wrong). How does it compare to the one in Scottsdale?
Assuming you haven’t already booked a hotel room, I usually stay at a little place called the Mediterranean Inn when I have the occasion to overnight in Seattle. It’s located in lower Queen Anne about two blocks away from the Space Needle and kitty-corner from Dick’s. The rooms are usually just shy of $100 a night, and they charge extra for parking and Wi-Fi, but they’re spacious and comfortable, they come with a mini-fridge (and there’s a Safeway across the street), and the staff there has never been anything other than polite and helpful.
If money is no object you could probably go for swankier digs, but it’s a good deal for the price and it’s centrally located.
EMP is located right next door to the Space Needle. I’ve never been to Scottsdale, but I’ve been to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, and EMP is definitely its equal. There are permanent exhibitions on the history of the guitar and on the science of music production, and they currently have an exhibit on Nirvana running which I saw last year and found to be very interesting. Your ticket also gets you admission to the adjoined Science Fiction Museum, which is worth the price in and of itself.
Haven’t seen the one near the Space Needle, but there’s a glass museum in Tacoma (Chihuly’s actual hometown) that I enjoyed.
Another vote for this. I lived in Seattle for 3 years and before I went to the locks I thought it would be dumb but it became one of my favorite things to do when the salmon were running.
If you’re only going to be there a few days then you might as well do the tourist things: the Space Needle* and Pike Place Market. The original Starbucks is part of PPM so stop there if you’re into that kind of thing. I often advise visitors to take the ferry to Bainbridge Island; there’s not much on the island but the ferry ride is nice.
There is no better city in the US when the sun is shining and “the mountain” is out. Assuming you’re flying, be sure to look out the windows as you’re approaching Seatac–you can see potentially 5 volcanoes (6 if you count St. Helens) and it’s an amazing view.
Take a ferry ride for the best views in the region. The weather will be perfect this week.
ETA: If you’re a baseball fan, the Mariners are on a hot streak and in town. Safeco Field is a great place to watch a game.
Of course you should count St. Helens. In recent history, it’s the most volcanoish of the bunch! It’s just a bit shorter than the others, presently.
Eat seafood 3 meals a day.
Second (third?) the Ballard locks and fish ladder, to see the fish before you eat them.
The boats at the fisherman’s terminal at Salmon Bay, just down the road from the locks.
The Space Needle at sunset/night, if the weather’s clear.
Only because it doesn’t have the stereotypical cone. It is probably the most interesting of the six to visit, though.
My mother recently went up there to see the sculpture park on the NW end if Alaskan Way, which is pretty close to the Pike Place Market. I keep kind of wanting to visit the Boeing museum, but mostly just for a chance to see the inside of the Concorde they have parked across the street.
Try a couple of Tom Douglas’s restaurants like Etta’s for breakfast or Serious Pie for a pizza.
It isn’t actually affiliated with Boeing (last I checked, anyway), but it is located at Boeing Field.
There is also a Hendrix exhibit which was pretty cool and an exhibit about horror movies with a bunch of props and clips you could watch. I thought it was all worth the price of admission and I think we spent 4 hours there and could probably have stayed longer.