Seattle what to do questions

So I have 2 1/2 days in Seattle. I land Saturday night and the cruise is Tuesday 6/23 out of Pier 91 which I plan on getting to the port around 1:00 pm as I scheduled our transfer for 12:30. So I have Tuesday morning and just have to be back at the hotel by noon to collect my bags and check out. I am staying at a hotel across the street from SeaTac. Hotel has free shuttle to Light Rail so that is how I will be getting into town. I'm going to have lunch at the Space Needle on Monday and at some point go to Pikes. We have been to the Chihuly exhibit when it was in St. Pete and as impressive as it was we don't have interest in going again(mostly my dad and this trip is for him). I'm not sure about the EMP and if he would enjoy that. I'm going to go to a couple local breweries as I love local craft beers(I'm a beer snob), and maybe a baseball game that Sunday afternoon. Other than that though I have no idea what to do with the rest of our time. I know Seattle is great city, and I've been reading lots on trip advisor, but it's really hard to get a sense of what to do, how far things are and so on. So I'm hoping some of you can help me out. I'm 27(m) and my father is 53. Any help and ideas will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance and really all ideas are welcomed. Also I'm open to renting a car/taking a train if something is a few hours away and really worth checking out!

Again thank you to those who respond for your time and input! It really is appreciated. My dads been so great to me my entire life with taking me around the world and not just being the BEST dad(IMO) when I probably didn't deserve it but for truly being my best friend who like any good dog or those who believe in God always has had and showed unconditional love! So I want to make this trip great from all aspects from our flight, precruise stay in Seattle, and all of excursions while on the cruise. So thank you for your responses!

We loved the Seattle Underground Tour:

http://undergroundtour.com/

If you and your dad are energetic, how about a nice bike ride along the beach? Take the Water Taxi from downtown over to Alki and rent a bike on the pier. There's a nice, flat boardwalk around the point to the lighthouse. There are lots of places to stop for lunch or a beverage along the way (I recommend Marination Ma Kai--Kalbi beef tacos, Spam sliders, and a fabulous view across Elliott Bay to the downtown skyline). They also rent kayaks at the pier, if you're even more adventurous!

Or ride the ferry over to Bainbridge Island. It's a beautiful trip, and the walk-on fare is cheap. On the island you can visit the Bloedel Reserve, an old lumber baron's estate now open to the public. The grounds are a mix of formal gardens and natural woodlands--a lovely place for a walk. You can get there from the ferry dock in a cab (they're always waiting outside), or on a Kitsap Transit bus. Or, walk up from the dock, into "downtown" Winslow, for lunch at the Streamliner Diner, or coffee and a pastry at Blackbird Bakery, or ice cream at Mora, or a beer at the Harbour Public House.

If you want to see some beautiful mountain scenery, you can visit Mount Rainier in a day. If you rent a car you can make the full loop around the mountain. Some years, the roads aren't open until July, but we've had so little snow this winter (I guess the eastern half of the country got all of ours!), there should be no problems by then. Of, if you prefer, there are several bus tours available from Seattle.

Otherwise...I definitely recommend a ballgame at Safeco Field--the afternoon game on Sunday with the Astros especially (June can still be a little chilly for a night game, especially since you're coming from Florida). Likewise Pike Place Market (no "s" on Pike), but try to go early in the day to beat the crowds. Lunch at the Space Needle is a great idea, more relaxing and civilized than the observation deck alone. The Underground Tour is great (do the evening Underworld Tour if you'd prefer a PG13-rated version) and the Ride the Ducks tour is good, stupid fun. There are lots of craft breweries to sample, and another nice excursion out of town is to Woodinville for some beer- and wine-tasting. If you or your dad are aviation fans or history buffs, I recommend the Museum of Flight in Seattle, and the Flying Heritage Collection (smaller and less flashy, but with some amazing, rare, historic aircraft, and easy to combine with the Boeing Future of Flight tour) in Everett.

That should give you some options!

If your dad likes music at all, the EMP is great. My brother has been playing a stand up bass for about 55 years. I'm not a musician in anything from - but when we went there - there was a wonderful display of string basses from beautiful concert ones to ones played in 20s & 30s jazz bands and some of the first amplified ones.they get new exhibits fairly often and the do a good job of something for everybody. Also the Seattle art museum generally has something going on. Besides baseball, the Seattle Sounders Soccer team is fun to watch when if they are playing (in the football stadium right next to the baseball stadium).

Thank you for all of those suggestions! This gives me a lot of ideas of different things to do then what the top things on TA are recommending to me.

I was thinking of going to Pike Place Market(I know it isn't Pikes Place, but it sounded/read kinda weird saying "at some point go to Pike" so I added the "s" onto it to read better) on Tuesday morning before the cruise starts because I have read to get there early to beat the crowds. It also seems like a nice way to end our stay in Seattle before heading off on the cruise. Is it open 24/7? I have read the train takes about 40 minutes into town and that the market is a short walk from Westlake Center. Does it seem doable getting there about 07:30, getting breakfast, exploring the market, maybe getting some coffee at the original Starbucks across the street, and making it back to the train to check out of the hotel by 11:45 or 12:00? Our hotel is directly across the street from the airport with a shuttle that runs every 15 minutes. Or should we go to the market on Sunday morning?

I was thinking a baseball game(were not fubol/soccer fans) would be fun. It's too bad our cruise isn't two weeks earlier because our beloved hometeam the Rays will be finishing up a series on the 7th. Also how cold will it be at night if we decide to go to the game Monday night against the Royals?

I have read great things about the ferry system in Seattle and about Bainbridge Island, I just wasn't sure how it was on the island, but what you described sounded like it could be fun.

I really want to go to EMP and may just have to drag my dad there for 3 hours. I'm a musician and have been in numerous bands and it just seems like the coolest idea for a museum to me. It's not like it's close and something I can do whenever. Seattle is pretty far from, I don't think I could fly any further from where I am in the continental U.S. then to SEATAC.

So the loop around Mt. Rainier is that just a scenic drive or are there places to stop along the way to do things? I wouldn't mind driving there if there were things to do like stop at waterfalls, I believe I read a glacier is there, and nice sights too see that we wouldn't have to hike to far for. We have a lot of intensive excursions booked in Alaska and would like the beginning of the trip to be somewhat leisurely.

I'm still also open to other suggestions of things to do while in Seattle so please keep em coming.

Let me know what you think of this for a plan and if it's doable.

Sunday wake up early and take the link light rail to Westlake and walk to Pike Place Market to eat breakfast and explore for a little bit. After we leave there get our coffee at Starbucks we'll walk back to Westlake, take the train back to the Airport to rent a car and then head toward Mount Rainier to do the loop. After that we can go check out a brewery and try some local brews. Then go to the mall by SeaTac to get some last minute things and maybe have dinner.

Monday wake up return car and take the train into town. Take the ferry to Bainbridge Island. Get back into seattle around 12 or so to head to the Space Needle for lunch, explore city center(hopefully EMP), downtown and maybe another brewery or two. Grab dinner dowtown at Mortons(which I've read is great, but am open to suggestions and it can be any kind of cusine) and then take links lightrail train and/or cab to SafeCo for game.(I believe theres a station at the stadium if I'm reading the website correctly)

Tuesday just sleep in cause I just had two very long days plus a long late night flight and I'll still be adjusting to being 3 hours behind my normal schedule. I could also skip Pike Place on Sunday and go straight to Bainbridge that morning and do my original plan of getting breakfast at Pike Place on Tuesday and explore the market contingent on if I'll have enough time to really get to enjoy seeing the market on Tuesday and not feeling rushed because even if I'm tired I can sleep on the ship. The first day is a Sea Day and the Second day were cruising Tracy Arm Fjord so nothing to exhausting on those days.

Let me know if you think this is doable and if I would have enough time to get all of it done. Thanks for helping out. As you can see I'm a planner. I love to have free time on vacation, but I'm limited to only a few days so I'm trying to cram in as much as possible. Having said that I don't want to overdue it either and feel like I was rushed everywhere and not get to really enjoy what I'm doing. So please share your thoughts with me.

Also I'm still open to other suggestions of what my father and I can do while in Seattle for 2 1/2 days.

THANKS!

Mt Rainier is a full day trip, esp on a weekend. It takes about 3 hrs to get to the park entrance and once you're in the park you only travel about 25 mph. If that's your plan, you would need to go first thing in the morning, then see how your time goes. Is Mt Rainier a destination or do you just want to be in snow?

Info on things to do in or around Seattle from a city web site:

http://www.visitseattle.org/Home.aspx

We usually take out of town guests to the Market first, then take a water taxi to Alki Beach or ferry to Bremerton (shorter trip than Bainbridge). At Alki there are often seals lounging on the buoys near the pier and there are several resident bald eagles to watch for.

As Casagordita has said, this is a very strange year, so a lot of "conventional" advice might be out the window. But that said, let me add a couple of points.

First, June weather is often sub-par around here; the saying goes that summer begins on July 5, after a night of clouds back-lit by fireworks. But it's a sure thing that if it's cloudy or rainy in the lowlands, the drive and visit to Mt. Rainier almost certainly will be uninspiring. I've driven there and have been socked in the whole time. It's an okay drive, but if the mountain's invisible... well...

So rule number one is have a backup plan. Remember, you're going to Southeast Alaska for a week, so there's absolutely no shortage of snowy mountain vistas in your immediate future. If your Mt. Rainier day dawns cloudy (or, frankly, I'd just do this in lieu of Mt. Rainier and call it good) my recommendation would be to get the car early and drive north around 40 min. to the Boeing widebody factory and Future of Flight center for a tour of the plant where the 747s, 777s and 787s are built (biggest building in the world.) After the tour, drive a few minutes to Mukilteo and cross to Whidbey Island. Have lunch in the cute waterfront town of Langley, and/or or a piece of pie at Whidbey Pies in Greenbank, then continue up the island to Deception Pass, the narrow gap between Whidbey and Fidalgo Islands.

Deception Pass has spectacular views from the bridges or beaches, old growth forest, hiking trails, and if you're lucky enough to be there when the tide is changing, the water rushing through the channel is spectacular.

After Deception Pass, visit the cute town of La Conner back on the mainland (bridge this time, not ferry) and then head south back down I-5 to Seattle and Sea-Tac.

This is a terrific all-weather route that will show off the variety of this region - lovely little waterfront towns, pastoral islands, spectacular coastal scenery, the big jets, a ferry ride... really a fun and full day.

Thank you for all of those suggestions! This gives me a lot of ideas of different things to do then what the top things on TA are recommending to me.

 

I was thinking of going to Pike Place Market(I know it isn't Pikes Place, but it sounded/read kinda weird saying "at some point go to Pike" so I added the "s" onto it to read better)

Try "the Market"--that's what the locals call it, and everybody knows which market you mean. "Pike's" is kind of a nails-on-a-chalkboard thing hereabouts--like "Frisco" to San Franciscans.

on Tuesday morning before the cruise starts because I have read to get there early to beat the crowds. It also seems like a nice way to end our stay in Seattle before heading off on the cruise. Is it open 24/7? I have read the train takes about 40 minutes into town and that the market is a short walk from Westlake Center. Does it seem doable getting there about 07:30, getting breakfast, exploring the market, maybe getting some coffee at the original Starbucks across the street, and making it back to the train to check out of the hotel by 11:45 or 12:00? Our hotel is directly across the street from the airport with a shuttle that runs every 15 minutes. Or should we go to the market on Sunday morning?

That might be a little tight, but it probably works. It's maybe a 10-15 minute walk from the Westlake light rail station. You can get breakfast as early as 7 am at any of several places (Lowell's, the Athenian, Le Panier, or the oldest Starbucks--but be prepared for a line there, even that early!), then walk around and watch the Market wake up for the day. Most of the vendors are open by about 9 am. The crowds are getting pretty thick by 11 am.

I was thinking a baseball game(were not fubol/soccer fans) would be fun. It's too bad our cruise isn't two weeks earlier because our beloved hometeam the Rays will be finishing up a series on the 7th. Also how cold will it be at night if we decide to go to the game Monday night against the Royals?

It will most likely be in the 50's, maybe even the high 40's. If it's raining they will close the roof, but that doesn't keep the wind out, and it can whistle through and make it feel colder. I have a collection of sweatshirts, hoodies, blankets, even Mariners Snuggie that I've bought at games because I was freezing my a** off!

I have read great things about the ferry system in Seattle and about Bainbridge Island, I just wasn't sure how it was on the island, but what you described sounded like it could be fun.

 

I really want to go to EMP and may just have to drag my dad there for 3 hours. I'm a musician and have been in numerous bands and it just seems like the coolest idea for a museum to me. It's not like it's close and something I can do whenever. Seattle is pretty far from, I don't think I could fly any further from where I am in the continental U.S. then to SEATAC.

Even if you dad isn't music fan, EMP is pretty interesting. Does your dad like scifi? There's a whole big section focused on scifi and fantasy. It's a pretty eclectic museum--it started as a place for Paul Allen (he co-founded Microsoft with Bill Gates) to put some of his collections of cool stuff. If he's just not interested, and you don't mind splitting up, there's also the Pacific Science Center nearby (more aimed at kids, but a good interactive science museum), and the Chihuly Gardens and Glass, and the Ride the Ducks tour leaves from near there.

So the loop around Mt. Rainier is that just a scenic drive or are there places to stop along the way to do things? I wouldn't mind driving there if there were things to do like stop at waterfalls, I believe I read a glacier is there, and nice sights too see that we wouldn't have to hike to far for. We have a lot of intensive excursions booked in Alaska and would like the beginning of the trip to be somewhat leisurely.

There are plenty of vista points, pristeen meadows, alpine lakes, etc. There may still be snow--some years it's all you'd see--but like I said, this year, not so much! There are a lot of hiking trails, from easy to more challenging. There's Northwest Trek, a wildlife park, if you want some close encounters, and the Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad if you like old steam trains.

Mr Rainier is beautiful! Lots of easy hiking trails, water falls, animals. Usually at Paradise, there is still some snow in late June, but probably not this year. There is an old fashioned railroad out of Elbe, WA that takes you through some really pretty country. Information on the Web about it if you Google Mt Rainier.

Oops - duplicate

Thanks for all the info, luckily i have some time to digest this all and figure out what to do. I appreciate all of the input.

Even if you are not a soccer fan, going to a packed stadium for a game is a great experience. (I went to a couple in Colombia a few years ago and it was a bucket list type of thing.). Last time I was in Seattle and went to a Mariners game the Sounders were playing a game at the same time...they had fireworks and you could hear the crowd next door during the baseball game. :eek: