Thomas & Rebecca: What to do while you’re here

What to do while you’re in Seattle…

Sights and Sounds

Pike Place Market — Be sure to check out Beecher’s Cheese, where you can watch them making cheese and eat some amazing mac and cheese. Market Spice is one of our favorite shops at the market. If you haven’t tried authentic crumpets before, try one at the only crumpet shop you’ll probably run into outside of England (and then try to resist a second).
Olympic Sculpture Park — modern, playful sculpture with a great view of the Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains all in a public park
Discovery Park — huge park with plenty of walking trails, access to the pebbly beaches of the Puget Sound, and meadows for picnicing with great views of Mt Rainier
Gasworks Park — laze on a grassy knoll as you watch sailboats and float planes against a backdrop of the Seattle skyline
Burke-Gilman trail — a rail trail that’s great for walking, running, biking
U-District Farmer’s Market — open year round every Saturday, abundant produce, food, and music. Two other markets, the Ballard Farmer’s Market and the Fremont Sunday Market are open every Sunday during the summer and are fun to explore as well. The Fremont Sunday market is primarily a flea market.
Take the ferry to Bainbridge Island as a foot passenger, even if you turn right back around once you get there! On a nice day, it’s a great way to see the Puget Sound and surrounding mountains.

Drink

Zoka Coffee — rest your feet and grab a chai or espresso (or drip, or pourover, or …)
Oliver’s Twist for cocktails and piping hot truffled popcorn
Wine tasting in Woodinville — Washington wine is quite good and there’s over 100 wine (and some spirit) tasting rooms in Woodinville near the Willows. Not sure where to start? Try Januik / Novelty Hill, Vortex, DeLille, or Woodinville Whiskey (go for the rye).

Food

Serious Pie / Serious Biscuit — great pizza either downtown or in South Lake Union (SLU) and great biscuits only in SLU
Roti — delicious Indian in the heart of Lower Queen Anne, close to downtown, Seattle Center, and South Lake Union
Staple & Fancy Mercantile, for high-class dining in a relaxed atmosphere. The tasting menu — the chef’s whim — is a must.
Paseo, for Cuban-style sandwiches — don’t be a tourist, call ahead to avoid the lines!
Belle Epicurean — best French macaron in the city, and baker of our wedding cake! Enjoy a coffee and pastry at the Madison Park location after a walk through the arboretum.

Happy Hour

Mamma Melina — great happy hour all day Sunday and Monday, plus late afternoons every other day
Toulouse Petit, but get a seat at the bar early as it gets crowded quick

Music & the Arts

MOHAI — A fun museum designed to play, situated right on Lake Union. Don’t miss the working periscope on the top floor (it goes through the roof!), salvaged from a decommissioned US Navy submarine!
Chihuly Museum of Glass — go after dark! Located in Seattle Center.
Bumbershoot, an art and music festival right in Seattle
There’s a number of good live music venues all over the city, too many to list here. Drop Tom an email for a recommendation.

… or the greater Pacific NW!

Mt Rainier National Park and Olympic National Park are spectacular places within less than a day’s drive of Seattle. They offer gorgeous scenery and many options for walks and hikes of all levels. Even the views from your car are often jaw dropping!

Mt Rainier

Mt Rainier is a long but very doable day trip from Seattle if you’re willing to pack a lot in (we’ve done it several times in all seasons). You’ll be able to see more if you stay nearby the park at least one night, so you might consider making it a destination before or after the wedding. If you’re coming from Seattle, we recommend the Nisqually Entrance to the park. Don’t miss the drive to Paradise, WA and all the pullouts along the way.

The Olympics

The Olympics really require a few days since it is a longer trip out to (and around!) the peninsula. You can reduce the driving time by taking one of the frequent ferries from Seattle across the sound to Bainbridge Island or Edmonds. The ferry ride is only about 40 minutes, and the viewing decks are a beautiful way to see the Puget Sound, Mt Rainier, and on a clear day Mt Baker to the north. When you’re in the Olympics, be sure to visit Hurricane Ridge (see photos from Tom’s trip there). You’ll also want to make it around to the Pacific Coast side and wander the rough and tumble beaches amid towering sea stacks just past the surf and old growth cedars just inland.

The Cascades

If you want to strike out to the mountains outside the parks, the Cascades offer lowland and mountain forests criss-crossed with trails and away from the bustle of the city. If you’re willing to hike to them, the alpine meadows are beautiful in the summer. When a weekend day hike is in the cards, the Cascades are our go-to place, with many trailheads within 1½ to 2 hours of our front door. The Snoqualmie Pass area offers many popular walks and hikes within an hour from Seattle along Interstate 90. Quieter scenery with a vast array of hiking options are available west of Stevens Pass on State Highway 2. There are too many options to list here, so email us and we’ll help you find a favorite hike or two! The Washington Trails Association also has great resources for finding trails, including recent trip reports.

The San Juan Islands

Water view from Lopez Island in the San Juans

The San Juan Islands are a world apart from Seattle. Peaceful, quirky, and friendly, the islands offer scenery and relaxation all within a few hours of Seattle by car and ferry. If you just want to get away from it all to read a book and explore the flora and fauna of rocky shores, the islands are for you. Rebecca and Tom are partial to Lopez Island, where Tom proposed to her!

We’re happy to give you specific suggestions for any place you’re interested in, just drop us an email!