Seattle in 4 Days: a guidebook for getting the most out of your visit

Having to choose between things to see and do in Seattle can seem complicated if you have to manage your activities on a relatively short visit, just like one that spans only 4 days.

However, you will be surprised to realize that this time is more than enough to take with you a good number of memories of some of the most iconic sites of this city.

The Seattle Center is an area of the city that was created in 1962 for the celebration of the World's Fair that same year. It covers a geographic area of approximately 30 hectares and within it are many of the most important cultural establishments in the city.

With that in mind, I can affirm that touring this neighborhood and its surroundings on the first day of your trip is a very good decision. You should also consider that Seattle' s tour buses take this route as part of their regular route.

Ride the Seattle Monorail

The first monorail in the United States was created in Seattle because of the need to connect Downtown Seattle with the Seattle Center, which had been renovated for the 1962 World's Fair.

Over the years it has become an emblematic means of transportation in this community, despite the fact that it only runs between two stations.

Its aesthetics, which are clearly inspired by the trends of the 1960s, and the minimal electrical consumption that make it an environmentally friendly means of transportation, have also contributed to the appreciation that the locals feel for this striking suspension train.

You can catch it from the Westlake Center station or from the one at Seattle Center, just outside the Space Needle. It runs daily from 7:30 or 8:30 am to 11 pm.

Tickets for a one -way trip are €3.25 per adult and approximately €1.50 is the allocated price for admission for children and senior citizens.

Visit the Chihuly Garden and Glass

The Chihuly Garden is a space that combines a wide variety of plants in the style of a botanical garden, along with another excellent collection of abstract glass sculptures.

All of these elements are displayed together to create a rather magical and unreal impression.

This sort of natural gallery spans across 8 permanent exhibits and the real star of the site comes to be a glass greenhouse that features a 100 foot long sculpture inside in a palette of colors ranging from orange to amber.

The site is named after the visual artist to whom so many glass sculptures pay homage, Dale Chihuly. It is open every day of the week and regular admission for adults usually costs about 30 to 35 euros per person, children between the ages of 5 and 12 pay between 19 and 21 euros and seniors pay about 29 euros per admission ticket.

The Seattle City Pass is a tourist pass that you should investigate before you start paying for tickets for this and the rest of your travel days, as it is a one-time expense that offers you a lot of discounts for the purchase of tickets to attractions as important as this one.

Have family entertainment at the Pacific Science Center

Very close to the previous place, just a 3-minute walk away, is the next point of this day's tour.

If you and your family like things that are related to science, then you have to visit the Pacific Science Center. This is a non-profit organization that was created with the intention of making science more accessible to a much more diverse public through a fun approach to these subjects.

In this modern museum you will find a planetarium, a tropical butterfly house, technological and intuitive exhibits. There are a couple of activities that incorporate virtual reality and overall it is a very educational experience.

It is open every day of the week from 10 am to 5 pm. Tickets range from 23 euros for adults and about 18 euros for children between 17 and 3 years old.

Undoubtedly, this is a plan that is part of the things you can see or do with children in Seattle during your visit.

Take in the sunset at the top of the Space Needle

Closing the itinerary of your first day in Seattle with a visit to the most emblematic element of the whole city is logical if you've been walking around the Seattle Center.

I'm talking about the Space Needle, and this tower with such a peculiar structure offers a 360-degree panorama of the city and its surroundings.

When you visit it you will find yourself in an elevator that takes you up to the circular observation deck in less than 1 minute. Which is impressive considering that this is a tower of 184 meters high.

Up there you can learn a bit about the creative and conceptual process that led the architects to design something so impressive. It is open every day of the week from 9 am to 11 pm and tickets are $39 for adults and about $29 for children between 5 and 12 years old.

If you feel like it, you can also have a drink at the world's only revolving bar with glass floors, located up there on the tower's observation deck.

After recharging your batteries to continue your discovery of the city, it is advisable that you choose Downtown as the epicenter of your sightseeing for the second day of your trip.

This is the business and cultural heart of the city, as these streets are home to most of Seattle's skyscrapers and many of the most important institutions when it comes to the identity of this progressive and modern community.

Note that many of Seattle' s boat tours depart from the docks located in this neighborhood of the city. Since they are located in a privileged area, geographically speaking.

Enjoy panoramic views of the bay at the Seattle Great Wheel

If you were left wanting to continue enjoying the panorama of Seattle under the morning illumination, then you have to start your second day of the trip by visiting the Seattle Great Wheel.

This 175-foot tall Ferris wheel is among the tallest in all of North America and although it was built in 2012 in a short time it has become a staple of this city's skyline.

There are 42 climate-controlled cabins that will keep you cool during the summer and warm during the winter, allowing you to focus fully on enjoying the once-in-a-lifetime urban views.

Adults pay approximately 16 euros for a ticket and children between the ages of 11 and 3 pay1. There is a VIP cabin with glass floors, stereo sound and leather seats with €50 tickets and is somewhat favorable if you are looking for a luxury experience.

Tour the Seattle Aquarium

Right next to the Ferris wheel, at Pier 59, is the Seattle Aquarium. It is one of the most important on the entire West Coast and certainly the most institutionally respected in the northwestern part of the country.

It has a very large repertoire of marine creatures in a state of conservation and protection belonging to the Pacific Ocean, such as sharks, otters, giant clams, seals and sea lions.

Ticket prices depend on the season and the day of the week chosen, but adults almost always pay between $25 and $35 per ticket.

It is open every day of the week and is therefore a good alternative to occupy the mid-afternoon of the second day of your trip.

Visit the city's public library and art museum

Two of the most important public buildings in Seattle Downtown are the Public Library and the Seattle Art Museum. The former is a site worthy of your visit for its architectural beauty that is embodied in a modernist building that has enough glass on its facade to cover about 5 soccer stadiums.

The art museum is the oldest in the city and has an artistic curatorship that seeks the points where the past and present meet through the visual arts.

Access to the bookstore is completely free and in fact at the admission ticket office you can check if there are guided tours through the facilities that same day.

On the other hand, ticket prices for the museum are around $23 per adult and $16 for teenagers between the ages of 15 and 18. Children under these ages are free.

See Lumen Field and T Mobile Park

A short walk through the Downtown area following a route that would take you to the corner where Lumen Field and T Mobile Park are located is a good way to close your second day's itinerary in Seattle.

Both are the big stadiums of this city and the former hosts all kinds of concerts and is home to the Seattle Seahawks and Sounders FC.

T Mobile Park, the second stadium, is considered one of the most beautiful baseball fields in the country and historically is a very important point for the identity of the city.

Depending on the time of year you visit, you can enjoy them in two different ways. One might be to buy tickets to a game if it is the middle of the soccer, soccer or MLB season. The other is by requesting a guided tour of the facility, but these are given when there is no other activity scheduled.

Booking a transfer to the Seattle airport is also a good idea for the end of your day, as it is preferable that you have secured the car that will allow you to arrive on time for your next day's flight.

By the third day of your trip it is logical that you are interested in taking a much more intimate look at the city, since it is in the places that are far from the typical mass tourism that you will find the true essence of a community.

Booking some of the best food tours in Seattle can be an excellent idea, but the following activities are also other complementary plans that may surprise you in a pleasant way.

The Chinatown District

At the allegorical gates of the Chinatown District you will find yourself entering one of the most authentic and interesting neighborhoods in all of Seattle. This is only logical, as this city is home to one of the largest Asian communities in the entire United States.

For that reason, in its streets you will be able to enjoy an excellent gastronomic offer for breakfast and also learn about the history behind the migrant communities from the Asian Pacific to the extreme northwestern United States.

South Lake Union waterfront

A little further north is the neighborhood of South Lake Union. Over the last few decades it has become home to all kinds of technology corporations just like Amazon, which was born in this city.

Getting to know this area can be an excellent opportunity if you are interested in the field of technological innovation, as this neighborhood is known as the Silicon Valley of Seattle and in general it is quite a nice area to spend your mid-afternoon.

There is a dock called Center For Wooden Boats where you could rent a Kayak to navigate the shores of the small lake on which this part of the city extends.

Actually, a simple stroll along the shore of this lake is a spectacle worthy of being part of the things to see and do in Seattle in summer because of the amount of tourist movement there is.

Capitol Hill's nightlife

Capitol Hill is Seattle's quintessential LGBT neighborhood and over the decades has transformed into a commercial and residential area that offers the best of the nightlife when it comes to partying in this city.

The area is quite beautiful and the offer of restaurants and bars can be just as entertaining for those looking for a quieter and more family-friendly plan.

In fact, it is a fairly gentrified neighborhood and therefore you should not be surprised by the magnitude of luxury apartments that are located among its streets, especially among those closest to South Lake Union and Seattle Downtown.

Clearly, touring Capitol Hill is one of the best things to see or do in Seattle at night no matter how long you stay.

Tour Volunter Park

An alternative plan in the Capitol Hill neighborhood that has less to do with partying is Volunter Park. It is located at the north end of this area of the city and has a pond and a greenhouse that are a pretty nice scenery during the spring, summer and fall season.

This park is also home to the Seattle Asian Art Museum and just a couple of meters away is the Water Tower Observation Deck, a very old water tower that has a spiral staircase that allows you to access a panoramic viewer.

There are other activities that are worthwhile, but have not been able to fit into the itinerary of the other days due to lack of time. So it is an excellent idea to finish them in your last moments in the city.

Some are among the best things to do in Seattle in spring while others may be more one of the activities to do in Seattle in winter.

So it's up to you to decide whether an outdoor plan is something viable for your resistance to the cold or the heat.

Join a hike to Mount Rainier

Mount Rainier is one of the most beautiful national parks in all of the United States and at the same time is one of the most studied volcanoes by the scientific community around the globe.

Signing up for an excursion to Mount Rainier on the last day of your 4-day trip to Seattle is an excellent idea if you want to get a close-up look at one of the most important natural wonders of this entire region.

This type of excursion can last for a full 10 or 11 hours and includes a professional guide who will accompany you on the hiking trails of the national park, as well as the entrance fee to the visitor center and the entrance tax to a protected area like this.

The trip takes place in an air-conditioned minibus, which can be extremely comfortable for resting on the way back. You must keep in mind that children under 5 years old are not allowed to join the excursion.

As for prices, the most common rate for a trip with these characteristics is about 150 euros per person and with meals you have the benefit that the minibus has a refrigerator in case you want to bring something. You can have lunch either in the cafeteria of the visitor center or at any other stop along the route.

In Seattle there are multiple public transportation options that can help you with mobility within the city in a quick and easy way. The light rail is one of them and is responsible for crossing the city from south to north and downtown Seattle is one of the sections that benefit from it.

In turn, the King County Metro is a network of buses with very diverse routes that mobilize the largest number of passengers within the most urbanized area of Seattle.

Note that most routes operate 24 hours a day and that the cost of a trip on both alternatives is usually $3 per adult and $1.5 for children. Children under five ride free and, if you want, you can purchase the reloadable ORCA card so you don't have to pay cash.