Seattle Highlights
Tourist Attractions
Pike Place Market
World famous public market, known for fish vendors throwing salmon, beautiful bouquets of fresh flowers, and other fruit, food, and souvenir items to buy. Make sure you check out Rachel's Ginger Beer for some refreshing drinks, Beecher's Handmade Cheese for some Mac & Cheese, Pike Place Chowder House for chowder and Piroshki Piroshki for Russian pastries. Other interesting things to see around the market is the original Starbucks store and the (very odd) Gum Wall in the alley
Seattle Center
Built for the 1962 World's Fair. Home to the iconic Space Needle. Also visit the Chihuly Garden and Glass for beautiful glass artwork and the EMP Museum if you like music. Kids will enjoy the International Fountain, where you can get soaked or the Pacific Science Center. There are always entertainers around the Seattle Center as well. There are concert performances at Key Arena. Sting and Peter Gabriel are playing on July 21st. Adele concert is on July 25-26. If you are staying in downtown Seattle, you can use the Monorail to visit the Seattle Center. Round trip tickets cost $4.50
Photo Spots
Seattle is one of the most picturesque cities in America. Check out the views from Alki along Harbor Ave SW, Kerry Park and Gas Works Park. You can also see nice views from the Seattle Great Wheel or the Sky View Observatory at the Columbia Tower, or the Space Needle but the best view is probably from Kerry Park or Alki, especially at night. On a clear day, you can see the Space Needle, the Puget Sound, the Seattle skyline and Mt. Rainier from Kerry Park. If you head over to Alki and not driving, you can take the water taxi from downtown Seattle to Alki. When you reach West Seattle, eat at Marination Ma Kai, then take a scenic walk along the shore to the beach (approx. 30 minutes).
Hiram M. Chittenden ("Ballard") Locks
Watch the boats go through the canal, learn how a fish ladder works and watch the salmon runs. In July, it is the best time to view Sockeye and Red Salmon go through the locks. You may see some Chinook and King Salmon as well. There is a Botanicial Garden in the park leading to the locks with free concerts during the weekends, starting at 2pm
Airplane Museums
Washington has a long history of aeronautical achievements. You can see the production lines of current Boeing 777, 747 and 787 airplanes at the Future of Flight near Everett. You can also check out old WWII planes that have been collected by Paul Allen at the Flying Heritage Collection Museum in Everett. Another option is a museum with planes throughout US aeronautical history at the Museum of Flight near Boeing Field in Seattle, which includes walking inside a Concord, an old Air Force One plane and the Space Shuttle trainer.
Farmer's Markets
Farmer markets are very popular in Seattle. The U District Farmer's Market is one of the best in the country. If you have a kitchen, pick up some vegetables and meat to cook or get some fresh fruit or cooked food from the vendors as well. Open every Saturday from 9am till 2pm at UDistrict. Another popular farmer's market is in Ballard and is open every Sunday from 10am-3pm
Festivals
Bite of Seattle, July 15-17
If you are in town July 15-17, The Bite of Seattle is an annual food festival at the Seattle Center where local restaurants sell food samples from their restaurants. There is also a beer festival, free concert and free movies projected at night. You can also check out the other things to do at the Seattle Center
Sequim Lavender Festival, July 15-17
If you are in town July 15-17 and want to go on a roadtrip, the Lavender Festival is an annual festival where you can walk in fields of lavender and cut your own fresh bouquets. There is also a street fair where you can buy handmade arts and crafts and get food to eat. The festival is located in Sequim. You can also check out other stuff to do on the Olympic Peninsula
Bremerton Beer Festival, July 15-16
The Bremerton Summer Brewfest occurs on July 15-16 and features 30 local breweries serving over 100 craft beers. The festival is located within walking distance from the Bremerton ferry and can be accessed from downtown Seattle by taking the Seattle-Bremerton ferry
Kirkland Uncorked, July 15-17
The Kirkland Uncorked food and wine festival celebrates Washington's wine history by having an extensive wine tasting event, in addition to a burger and grilling competitions. On Sunday, popular food trucks will be on-site. There is also a street fair, boat show and dog model contest at the festival. The festival is located in Kirkland. If you take the 520 bridge, there is a toll, so please take I-90 if you don't want to pay a toll. This toll is automated and changes depending upon day/time, so your car rental company might charge you later.
Dragon Fest, July 16-17
Dragon Fest is a festival celebrating the Seattle Asian community. The festival is located in International District/Chinatown, there will be drummers and dragon/lion dancers and martial art demonstrations on the streets. Many restaurants will have special $2 meals to try different Asian foods. Please be aware that it can get really crowded with long lines. The festival starts at noon. If you are staying downtown, you can take any bus in the tunnel South to the International District station
Alki Arts Fair, July 23-24
The Alki Arts Fair is a celebration of summer with art and music. There are 3 stages for live music, art booths, child art activities, and food carts. The fair is from 10am-6pm at Alki Beach (down the street from Salty's), but the live music continues until 8 or 9pm. This is occuring the same weekend as our wedding, so traffic could be backed up. You can always check out the fair beforehand and take a short taxi/uber/lyft ride to Salty's.
Torchlight Parade, July 30
The Torchlight Parade is a spectacle of randomness. From floats, dragon/lion dancers, drumming bands, clowns, pirates, to a beauty pageant, the Torchlight Parade has it all. It meanders from Seattle Center through downtown Seattle on 4th Ave starting around 7:30pm. There is also a Dragon Boat Festival on July 30th with a competitive dragon boat race at 8:30am at Lake Union Park. There will also be a market, live music and food trucks
Day Trips
Olympic National Park
Olympic National Park is a beautiful national park in the Olympic Peninsula with mountains, beaches, waterfalls, and rainforests. You can spend many days hiking around areas such as Hurricane Ridge, Ruby Beach, Sol Duc Falls, or the Hoh Rainforest. If you are into the Twilight series, Forks, WA is the town that the book is based upon. Kids might enjoy the Olympic Game Farm, which you can see wild animals along your driving tour. They are known for the bears that will wave at you.
On July 15-17, the Sequim Lavendar Festival is taking place where you can walk amongst fields of lavender and cut your own bouquets. To get to the Olympic Peninsula, you can either take the Seattle-Bremerton ferry if you are staying downtown, the Fauntleroy-Southworth ferry, Edmunds-Kingston ferry, or you could take a very long drive around the Puget Sound and check out the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, which replaced the original bridge known as Galloping Gertie
Mount St. Helens National Park
Mount St. Helens is most famous for its eruption on May 18th, 1980. From the Johnston Ridge Observatory, you can learn more about the volano's history and get a close view of the crater. You can still see the distruction from the eruption. It is an approximately 3.5 hours drive from Seattle. Mt. St. Helens National Park also has a 2.7 mile lava tube cave, called Ape Cave. For the adventurous, the long trail is fun, requiring climbing over large boulders in the complete dark, so a good flashlight or headlight is necessary. It does get cold in the tunnel, 42 degrees, so a jacket is recommended.
Mt. Rainier National Park
Mount Rainier is a 14k ft. volcano that is a constant backdrop around Seattle. There are many hikes in the park, but the most popular is at Paradise. Along your hikes you can see waterfalls, glaciers, wild flowers and animals. Another popular hiking area is at Sunrise. It is approximately a 2.5 hour drive to Paradise and a 2 hour drive to Sunrise. Timing when wild flowers are in bloom can be difficult. Here are some other popular hikes to see Mt. Rainier and wild flowers.
Berry Picking
A fun family outing would be a day out picking berries. In July, blueberries should be in-season and there are many blueberry farms that you can visit to pick your own. Other berries could be in-season, such as blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, depending upon the weather. A list of berry farms can be found here
Food
RockCreek Seafood & Spirits
RockCreek is a high-end seafood restaurant with wonderful combinations of tastes on a single plate. They are located in Freemont and their menu changes frequently depending upon what is fresh.
Din Tai Fung
Din Tai Fung is a popular dumpling house, originating from Taiwan. The most popular dish is the juicy pork dumplings. The closest one is located in UVillage near the University of Washington. They are opening a restaurant in downtown Seattle at Pacific Place mall in the summer, but I am not sure if it will open before the wedding
Kukai Ramen
Kukai is a popular Tokyo chain serving Japenses-style Ramen. There are 2 restaurants in Seattle, one in Capitol Hill and the other at Northgate
Shiro's Sushi
Shiro's is a popular sushi restaurant located in Belltown. Shiro (unfortunately doesn't work there anymore) was trained in Japan under the famed sushi chef Jiro. If you're willing to splurge, their Omakase is wonderful, but be sure to sit at the bar to get the full experience. There can be long waits for the bar seats though (no reservations)
Drinks
Rob Roy
Rob Roy is a popular bar featuring pre-Prohibition era drinks in Belltown. They make a great Old Fashioned and focus on the classic cocktails. Happy Hour is from 4pm-7pm daily
Tavern Law/Needle & Thread
Tavern Law is a speakeasy-style bar in Capitol Hill. Happy Hour is from 5pm-7pm. There is a secret bar upstairs called the Needle & Thread that you can only access by a random phone on a wall to request entrance. There is no menu at the Needle & Thread, the Mixologist will make a drink from whatever flavors you enjoy. Reservations recommended
Toronado
Toronado is a bar in Ravenna with over 40 beers on tap, 60 Bourbons, 25 Mazcals, 40 Tequilas and a farm to table menu. Happy Hour is from 4pm-7pm daily. Next door to Pies & Pints, an Australian bar with good Austrialian meat pies
