Last week we traveled on Alaska Airlines down to Seattle for a fun-filled three days. I’ve said it before but I’ll share one more time for those in back: I’ve been traveling as a tourist to the Emerald City since the World’s Fair in 1962. Yup.
Part of my focus was to use public transit as much as possible, since it’s ridiculously expensive to park your car overnight downtown.
Below, the view from our room at the Astra Hotel:
We got to the hotel from the airport by taking the light rail. Then, from the Westlake Center stop we walked down to 5th & Olive Street…took about three minutes.
Then we boarded the South Lake Union streetcar. It goes right by the front door of the hotel. I snapped this picture from the room:
The Astra Hotel has a futuristic space theme (“Astra” means space in Latin). There are pictures of space and astronauts all over. There’s even an in-house robot “Sparky” that will bring stuff up to your room. Crazy. Sparky was happy to pose for a photo, below:
Since the weather was perfect, we made a couple of early stops on our way to the Space Needle and the Chihuly Garden & Glass exhibit (next door). I couldn’t help but stop and take photos of the amazing flowers in bloom.
I recommend getting an ORCA card. It’s easier that trying to cobble together bus fare, etc. Consider getting a $6 daypass if you’re moving around town. ORCA works on buses, on streetcars, on the Monorail and on the light rail from the airport. I used the ORCA card to ride the Monorail!
Before going up the Space Needle, we visited the Chihuly Garden & Glass exhibit. It’s amazing. How Dale Chihuly and his team turn and weave strands of glass is amazing. MUST SEE!
The Space Needle is fantastic. Mind you–it’s not only place to get a bird’s-eye view. The tall Columbia Center downtown has a higher view deck. You actually can look down on the Space Needle from that vantage point.
For dinner, we went to Aerlume, near the Pike Place Market. The restaurant has a stunning view of the water.
Everyone else at the table ordered the scallops. I chose the black cod . I was n-o-t disappointed.
The next day, we spent some time exploring Pike Place Market….where it appears there’s something for everyone. The flowers were especially pretty.
The market is at the top of the all-new Waterfront Steps. Since Seattle took down the freeway which blocked the view (they moved it underground), the transformation is nothing short of spectacular.
The steps go right right down to the Seattle Aquarium. Plus, the aquarium has added a new “Oceans” exhibit which is tucked in under the stairs. There’s a tank in there with 550,000 gallons…enough for some sharks, stingrays and an occasional diver. You can actually talk to the diver when they’re in the tank and ask questions about the sealife. WOW!
For an “AvGeek”, no tour of Seattle is complete without a visit to the Museum of Flight at Boeing Field. I took Metro Bus #128 directly to the front door in about 40 minutes. The museum has incredible displays featuring the Space Shuttle “trainer”, Air Force 1 (a Boeing 707), the Concorde SST, an SR-71 “Blackbird” (fastest plane), plus lots of WW1 and WW2 flighter planes. Don’t miss it. My favorite display is outside the museum: a Lockheed Constellation.
We only covered about half of what I wanted to see–so we’ll have to come back and take in a Mariner’s game!
MORE INFO available at Visit Seattle
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