What's to do in Seattle?

[taco531]

NCL stays from 12PM - 1000PM. What things can we do on our own, other than a few ship tours?

[mommiemudd]

I wnat to know too! We will be there all day on a Friday before our ship sails on Saturday. What are the things that we should not miss in Seattle? We will be staying downtown. Also wondering if there is enough time to go to Victoria? How long does it take to get there from Seattle? and what is the best way? We will have a rental car so we are flexible. We have a 3 year old and my husband has trouble doing a lot of walking so walking tours are out! Any advice would be appreciated! Thanks

 

Norwegian Spirit Aug '04

Norwegian Sun April '03

[VickiVSN]

Oh there is so much to do in Seattle. Where to start?

 

<UL TYPE=SQUARE><LI>The cruise terminal is just a block from the famous Pike's Place Market where you can shop, listen to street musicians, watch flying fish, and eat. <LI>A few more blocks up hill and you are in the core downtown, Westlake Center and the Convention Center for even more shopping. <LI>There is lots to do and see on the water front. <LI>A taxi ride, or monorail from Westlake Center, will take you to the Seattle Center, home of the Space Needle, Experience Music Project (a must see for serious music lovers), and Key Arena - among other things. <LI>The Underground tour from near Pikes Place would be amazing to see. <LI>If you have time and means to get out of town, there is always the Museum of Flight on Boeing field complete with an old Airforce One and Concord jets. <LI> If renting a car, you can get out of town, head east on I-90 and visit the Cascade Mountains via Snoqualmie Pass. <LI>You could take a FERRY RIDE to a nearby island. However, Victoria is probably too much for one day. The ferry is a long ride in itself and there is a full day of browsing in Victoria to take care of. I would not recommend planning anything short of a full day for Victoria. Search the web for "Victoria Clipper" for more information on ferry runs to Victoria.

 

Well, that's a good start anyway

 

Vicki

Check out my guide for first time cruisers http://www.vsn.org/cruise

 

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[mommiemudd]

Thanks for all the great information!

 

Norwegian Spirit Aug '04

Norwegian Sun April '03

[c-cruise]

There are two cruise ship terminals in Seattle. Pier 66 (NCL, Celebrity) and terminal 30 (HAL, Princess). Pier 66 has much more to offer within walking distance than terminal 30. Pike Place Market, Seattle Aquarium, and waterfront shopping areas are all within easy walking distance.

 

Terminal 30 is a converted cargo pier and is not really within walking distance of anything interesting. I suppose you could walk to Safeco Field or Seahawk stadium and take a tour. However, your best bet would probably be to take a cab to Pike Place Market or the downtown shopping areas.

 

If you are in Seattle prior to your cruise and have transportation I would recommend visiting Snoqualmie Falls, The Museum of Flight and Woodland Park Zoo. Those are my three favorite places to take people who are visiting Seattle.

 

Next Cruise: 6/27/04 Sapphire Princess

[mommiemudd]

Yes, we will have a car. I think we are just torn between spending the day in Seattle or going over to Victoria. I think our toddler would love the zoo. But we are members of the Atlanta Zoo and go frequently. So I am not sure that it would be something different for us. Is getting to Victoria a pain? If we were to take the Victoria Express, are there sites within walking distance? Is there some kind of local transportation that we could use to get an overall view of the city?

 

Norwegian Spirit Aug '04

Norwegian Sun April '03

[c-cruise]

Getting to Victoria from Seattle is a fairly painless experience. The quickest way is to take the Victoria Clipper. It departs from the downtown Seattle waterfront and docks right in the downtown harbor of Victoria. The passage is about 2 1/2 hours and costs anywhere from $50-$100 per person depending on day of departure and season etc. If you aren't counting on seeing everything a day trip to Victoria is quite doable from Seattle.

 

Most of the main attractions in Victoria are within walking distance of where the Clipper docks. With the notable exception being Butchart Gardens. However busses to Butchart gardens are readily available. Last time I was on the Clipper (2 years ago) we were able to buy our transportation to Butchart Gardens on the boat. I believe that they also sell basic city tours etc. on the Clipper. You can buy tickets and find more info their website:

 

Victoria Clipper

 

I think you would be happy with either spending the day in Seattle or Victoria. What kind of things are you looking to do?

 

Next Cruise: 6/27/04 Sapphire Princess

[mommiemudd]

Not really sure what we want to do. I am a girly girl and would love to take my little girl to high tea at the Empress and to see Butchart gardens. Not sure my husband and sister-in-law/brother-in-law would enjoy that! I hate to be so close and not get to have tea. Anyway-We are the type that we can see a lot in a short period of time because we don't stay too long in one place. My inlaws are the active type while we are not so active. Only so much you can do with a toddler and my husband has had knee surgery twice and walking becomes difficult. We like to do the city tours, etc. Things that give a nice overview then if we have the time we go back to places we want to explore. I need to check with them to see what they really want to do. Their only request so far is to visit the original Starbucks! This is great information-I am forwarding it all to my sister-in-law so they can have some input.

 

Norwegian Spirit Aug '04

Norwegian Sun April '03

[c-cruise]

The Victoria Clipper dock (Pier 69) is actually quite close to Pike Place Market (location of the original Starbucks). So you could grab your coffee and walk on down to the dock and catch the Clipper to Victoria.

 

Butchart Gardens is great, but it does involve a lot of walking around. My wife and I are going to the Gardens again this June as our Alaska cruise calls in Victoria. One of our other favorite things to do in Victoria is stroll along the inner harbor walk. There are always street performers and lots going on in the summer.

 

Next Cruise: 6/27/04 Sapphire Princess

[taco531]

Thanks for the great info. I sent away for the all day bus pass, so we plan on using the trolley service along the waterfront and transfer to the tunnel to the monorail and return. How long do you think this trip would take?

 

Has anyone been on the locks cruise from Argosy cruises? It sounds interesting and somewhere by pier 56.

[taco531]

Mommiemudd

We also plan to have tea at the Empress Hotel. I emailed the Hotel and made reservations direct with the dining room staff. They answered all my questions and all I had to do was set the time.

 

As for Buchart Gardens, Grayline has tours leaving the Empress to the gardens. Their price includes admission and transportation. This way you can do both and still have time for a little shopping.

 

Hope this helps.

[mommiemudd]

Thanks!

 

Norwegian Spirit Aug '04

Norwegian Sun April '03

[DALSAL]

Any suggestions for a trip to Mt St Helens? Tour bus,rental car,flighseeing? If we drove ourself,any suggestions on the route? Thanks, Dot

[SEATTLE CRUISER]

As the other posters have mentioned, Victoria is a relative quick trip [2 1/2 hours], but the CLIPPER, that goes to Victoria might be a bit much for a child. There is no room to move around the boat. Both a child and adults would enjoy our Chittendam locks, which moves boats from the bay to lake level. Also there is fish ladder at the locks with salmon going up stream. There is window viewing, so you see the fish jumping from ladder to ladder. The locks have benches, on which your husband could rest. If you want a quick trip out of the city, I recommend a trip to Mt. Rainier. Even though you are going to Alaska, Rainier is always a delight. My first choice is also the Museum of Flight, but your husband would need to be on his feet, or in a wheelchair.

[laurelgrove]

We were also planning to take the Clipper from Seattle to Victoria. But it was mentioned that you can't move around. How cramped will it be. We were planning to take all our luggage as well. Will that be a problem? It will be my husband and I and our three kids (11,9, and6) and my parents in their early 70's. Any information would be greatly appreciated.

[Cruisin' Lisa]

Going to Alaska on Sapphire in August.

 

Got one night at the Hilton Airport for $42 precruise as we get in at midnight the night before the cruise. We are also staying 2 days in Seattle post cruise and area wondering which area to stay in.

 

Would you suggest airport area (advantage:many have free hotel to airport shuttles) or downtown area (advantage: closer to the pier, Pike's Peak market, etc).

 

I think we are interested in seeing the flight musuem among other things. We are a family of 6 with kids ranging from 10- 16.

[chewap]

The best way and shortest way to get to Mt St Helens is to go to Morton and Randle- follow the Mt Rainier signs from Tacoma. At Randle turn right and go down the north side of Mt St Helens blast area. It is about 2 hours to Mt St Helens. Coming back at Randle-Head east to Paridise on Mt Rainier which is a 15 minute drive from Randle. Make sure that it isn't going to be a overcast day, because you won't be able to see the volcanos. They still have snow at Paridise, actually they had 20 inches of snow fall in the last 8 days, but by July 15th the snow at the 6,000 ft level should be gone and all of the wild flowers will be out. This is by far the best day tour you can take in the summertime. Driving time with stops can be done in 6 hours, but when I take out of town guests with stops for lunch and dinner, it averages 10-12 hours.

[Ellya]

In reading this thread, it occurs to me that many people just don't realize how far apart things are out here in Washington. From Seattle, a trip to Victoria is a very long day trip. You could definately not bring your luggage along, that would be a complete hassle. A trip to Mt. Rainier, similarly, is a very long day trip. Either of those trips are 2-3 hours each way just to get there. Once you are there, there is so much to do that you will feel very sad if you don't have time to really enjoy it. Unless you have a complete free day to do this, I would not do it. Mt. St. Helens is even farther away, and once you get to the park there is even more driving required if you want to see more than the visitor center. I don't consider this a doable day trip from Seattle if you really want to see much.

 

Seattle itself, however, has many great things to do. The waterfront offers harbor tours, a great aquarium, a trolley car, and lots of restaurants. You can also walk on a ferry and ride across Puget Sound to the small community of Bainbridge Island. Just a short walk from the waterfront is the Pike Place Market with all kinds of interesting shops. Beyond that is the downtown shopping area and the Seattle Art Museum. If you head south you will find the Pioneer Square area and China town. North is the Seattle Center with the Space Needle, Pacific Science Center, Seattle Children's Museum, and Experience Music Project. If you have a car, I recommend the Air and Flight Museum and the Woodland Park Zoo.

 

If I had my heart set on visiting any of the locations farther from Seattle, I would stay one or more extra days in town to really make it enjoyable.

[laurelgrove]

We are actually spending 2 days in seattle and then planned to take the high speed ferry to Victoria for three days and then a ferry to Vancouver and spend three days there before our cruise. That is why I asked about taking luggage on the high speed ferry. For anyone who is familiar with the area, does this seem feasible. I wasn't going to rent a car until I got to Vancouver, because it just seemed like it would be a hassle and we would need two for all 7 of us. Any help would be appreciated.

[CruisySuzi]

Dear Anybody,

 

I'm trying to plan a cruise in October on Celebrity's Mercury out of Seattle. We'd be flying in to the main Seattle/Tacoma airport on Frontier. I plan on renting a car from the airport, (probably Hertz),then returning it to a Hertz location that would be able to drive us to the CELEBRITY cruise ship port the next day, but I can't figure out what it's called. The Hertz lady said that Hertz is 2 miles from the "Port of TACOMA", but is that Celebrity's port??? Or a different one?

 

Thanks SO much for any help you can give me,

Susan

Saaass@aol.com

[DALSAL]

The pier terminal is Seattle Bell Street Pier #66.Ive never heard of Port Of Tacoma (but Ive only been to Seattle once for my May 27th cruise on Mercury).You didnt say how long you were going to be in Seattle.But,you really dont need to rent a car unless you are going to be there long enough to travel out of the city.Where are you staying??? Dot

[CruisySuzi]

Thanks for the pier info, Dot. I don't know where to stay in Seattle. Not familiar with the town at all. I think it would be great to stay in a fun, active part of town. If you have ANY suggestions please let me know. It would just be hubby and self.

 

Thanks,

Susan

[Orbiting Seattleite]

Just resurrecting this post from the dead in case anyone else still has these questions: the Port of Tacoma is not anywhere near where someone cruising out of Seattle wants to be. The main cruise lines in Seattle operate out of piers 66 and 91 (not Terminal 30 any more), which are a minimum 1 hour drive from the port of Tacoma. In bad (read: typical) Seattle traffic, the travel time can be closer to 2 hours.

 

These days, Norwegian and Oceana cruise lines operate out of Pier 66, while Celebrity, Princess, Holland America, and Carnival operate out of Pier 91.

 

If someone were to rent a car to get around the Seattle area, picking up said car from anywhere within about 20 miles of the Port of Tacoma is probably not the best idea. The "main Seattle/Tacoma airport", otherwise known as SeaTac airport, is about 24 miles north of the Port of Tacoma, fwiw. An exception would be for those who want to take a day trip to see things in the Tacoma area, like America's Car Museum, the Museum of Glass, or the most echoic place I've ever been, Tacoma's Union Station. Frankly, though, there's plenty to do in Seattle, and visiting both Seattle and Tacoma would be a distinctly less efficient use of one's travel/vacation time.

 

I think it's also worth mentioning that a taxi, Uber, or other local transportation sources might be better than renting a car if one intends to spend much time in the central/downtown Seattle area. Though there are sites for making it easier and faster, parking in central Seattle is often time-consuming and expensive. This may not have been as much the case in 2006, but it's definitely gotten worse since then.

 

Dear Anybody,

 

I'm trying to plan a cruise in October on Celebrity's Mercury out of Seattle. We'd be flying in to the main Seattle/Tacoma airport on Frontier. I plan on renting a car from the airport, (probably Hertz),then returning it to a Hertz location that would be able to drive us to the CELEBRITY cruise ship port the next day, but I can't figure out what it's called. The Hertz lady said that Hertz is 2 miles from the "Port of TACOMA", but is that Celebrity's port??? Or a different one?

 

Thanks SO much for any help you can give me,

Susan

Saaass@aol.com

[Kitty LaRue]

thanks for bumping this up again. We will end our cruise in Seattle on Tuesday 8/18 and were trying to figure out best way to see Seattle.

 

Honey wants to rent a car at the port and drive to Boeing then continue on to a campsite in Sultan, about an hour north of SeaTac, using that as our base of operations for the week. I'm concerned about parking downtown being expensive, would commuter parking and light rail be better?

 

At the end of our trip, our flight leaves at 11 pm so I figured we could spend the day in Seattle, again with the car. Any ideas on fun stuff to see before we leave?

 

Thanks in advance.

[crzndeb]

I don't think a 10 year old thread needed to be resurrected when there are plenty of threads to read about what to do in Seattle. We are lucky to have some very helpful local posters on this board, who have given very detailed answers to all things Seattle.

 

Do a little reading on the thread and you will find a lot of recent info.