Travel Guide: Seattle Weekend
Intro
When life hands you free plane tickets, you have to use them, right?! This is what happened to us when I was given vouchers for any Southwest round-trip flights across the country from my sweet grandmother. Since I was given them at the end of August and they expired at the end of September, we were pretty short on time to plan something. Also, because I work at a school and can’t take a week off in the middle of the school year, we decided to use them for a quick weekend trip. But to where? Where should we go on a quick weekend trip? It had to be a place with public transportation because it seemed like too much to rent a car for 2 days. Rebecca had been wanting to go to Seattle for a long time and I haven’t wanted to spend the money because I’d already been there. (I typically hate going to the same place twice on an adventure. I want to save my money for new experiences!) Because they were free tickets, it seemed like the perfect time to see Seattle.
We were given recommendations by the dozens by friends of what to do in Seattle and here is what we decided to do.
Are you going to Seattle for the weekend and need some ideas? Keep reading!
Real Talk: Halfway into our trip, I (Lindsay) started to experience some pain and I immediately knew it was a kidney stone. (I have had one before and people have told me it’s worse than labor pains. Thank goodness because it’s pretty unbearable!) I thought I could endure the pain, but a few hours later after throwing up 10 times from the immense pain, we spent 8 hours of our trip in the Emergency Room. So. I’ll talk about what we did and then tell you what we had planned to do. I would like to complain about this situation and how terrible it was… but honestly, I am so thankful this happened in Seattle and not in the Outback of Australia or in the no-man’s land of Iceland. Things can always be worse and we had a great sunny day and a half in Seattle!
Before You Go
A weekend trip does not feel like truly enough time to see all of Seattle, especially all the beautiful surrounding areas! If you have more time and can rent a car, I would definitely recommend exploring the city as well as exploring one of the beautiful National Parks close by. Like I said, we had just enough time for a quick weekend trip, so that’s what we did! We used public transportation, buses and light rails, and Ubers to move around the city.
Reservations
Trying to make this trip as budget-friendly as possible, we searched relentlessly for a cheap place to stay close to public transportation. Since we were booking about two weeks out, we did not have a lot of options. We ended up staying in a private room in a downtown condo complex and we were very happy with our experience. Our host, Alex, was a really nice guy and a welcoming host. He even stayed up until midnight to help us check in. We were able to walk to Pike’s Market in about 10 minutes.
We also really wanted to get out on the water, so we made a reservation for a sunset sailing adventure. We ended up being the only people on the tour and we loved it! The weather turned out perfect and we had a great time seeing Seattle by water. We also made reservations for The Underground Tour of Seattle. We didn’t make it because of our trip to the E.R., but I heard it’s awesome!
Depending on your interests in the city, the Seattle CityPASS is an option for you to buy to Seattle’s biggest attractions at a discount. You have entry to five of the top seven attractions in the city. Three of the attractions are included with every pass. Purchasers then get to choose two of the remaining four attractions, which is nice for people who appreciate some flexibility. We didn’t buy the pass, but if you’re interested in any of the attractions listed (especially the Space Needle), you need to consider buying this pass.
Weather
It’s Seattle — expect cooler temperatures and rain. We went in September and ended up having 1.5 beautiful sunny days with rain coming in that evening. Check the weather before you leave and while you’re there to keep up-to-date on the rain chances.
Packing
Seattle is a pretty casual place with most people not even dressing up for an evening out. 25% of the people I saw were wearing a Seahawks jersey (and it wasn’t even a game day.) I would say the two most important things to pack would be a rain jacket and waterproof shoes/boots. We also walked a ton, so make sure your shoes are comfortable.
Our Weekend in Seattle Itinerary
Day 1: Arrive in Seattle
We ended up leaving work and flying into Seattle late on Thursday night. We purchased the ORCA card (which is all you need to pay your fare on buses and trains in the Puget Sound region) at the airport and took the Light Rail to the Westlake Station and walked to our Airbnb.
Day 2: Explore Downtown
Real Talk: We didn’t really go by standard “meal times” during this trip. We just split things and ate all day as we passed by places on our list. Talk about the dream!
Get coffee at the original Starbucks
We were told how long this line could be, so we got there early. Rebecca was able to walk up to the counter and order her coffee immediately. Try to get there before 8:30 am to avoid a line out the door.
See the iconic Pike’s Market sign
We were able to see the sign and grab some pictures before the crowds started forming later in the day.
Grab the cutest donuts at Daily Dozen Donuts
They were tiny but also warm and delicious!
Blow a bubble at the Gum Wall
Kind of gross, but when in Seattle, blow a bubble and stick it on a wall.
Shop at some retail
We walked down the streets to see some local stores like The Paper Hammer (Rebecca’s favorite) and Metzger’s Maps, as well as some commercial stores like The North Face and Fjallraven.
See the pier
We walked up and down the pier. There are lots of things to do here like ride the Ferris wheel or see the aquarium. We ended up eating fish and chips at Ivan’s Fish Bar and it was delicious.
Walk back to Pike’s Market
From fresh flowers to fresh fish, you will be able to see all the sights and smells of Pike’s Market. We didn’t see any fish being thrown (bummer), but we had a great time browsing the food stalls.
Eat mac & cheese at Beecher's Cheese shop
If Oprah says it’s her favorite mac & cheese, it must be the world’s best! We had wanted to try clam chowder at Pike Place Chowder, but the line was 50 people deep and we had already eaten about 5 things that morning.
Try ginger beer at Rachel’s Ginger Beer
Option: See the REI flagship store
If there were two retail options that define Rebecca, it may be Starbucks and REI. We saw the original Starbucks, so we couldn’t pass us seeing the REI flagship store. If you are even remotely interested in the outdoors, you will find the store very impressive. We loved walking around it and seeing what they had to offer!
See the iconic Space Needle
Is a trip to Seattle complete without even a close up look at the Space Needle? I had already been to the top when I came years ago, and Rebecca was fine with not going to the top (for $60), but it is definitely something iconic to see on your first trip to Seattle.
Eat at Din Tai Fung (Pacific Place)
This meal might have made our entire trip worth it. After I posted a picture, I had multiple people message me and tell me how this was their favorite place in Seattle. Ask the waitress what she recommends or just get one of everything. Amazing Dim Sum and even their dessert dumplings had us drooling.
Take a sunset sailboat cruise
We had an amazing time on this sailboat ride. From the sound, you will see great views of the Seattle Skyline, Mount Rainer and Mount Baker Volcanoes, and the Olympic Mountain range.
Late night pizza at Downtown Romios Pizza
We were hungry after our sailboat ride, so we decided to stop at the pizza place close to our AirBnB. Probably not the greatest pizza in Seattle, but it was good and hit the spot!
Day 3: Parks and more
Eat breakfast at Biscuit Bitch
The line was already out the door when we got there 15 minutes after it opened. It was totally worth it! We split a savory and sweet biscuit and they were delicious!
Take a bus to Fremont
We enjoyed taking public transportation, but I will say almost every bus we took was delayed 10-15 minutes. I guess that’s big city life?
See the Fremont Troll, Fremont Rocket, Lenin Statue, and browse shops
We didn’t spend too much time in Fremont, but I am really glad we got to see the iconic Fremont Troll and explore a neighborhood of Seattle.
Walk around Gasworks Park
This is a really unique city park in Seattle with great views of the skyline.
Look at flowers at Volunteer Park Conservatory
We enjoyed exploring the inside of this beautiful greenhouse. We were there the first Saturday of the month, so it was free admission!
Get another iconic view at Kerry Park
This park is known for having the best view of the Seattle skyline.
Get a kidney stone, refuse to go to the hospital, lay on the E.R. floor, writhe in pain
I will spare you more details about the E.R., but the rest of our trip was definitely interrupted by this event. The rest of this document is what we had planned to do.
Eat lunch at Salumi or Delicatus
We hadn’t decided which one, but they both looked really good.
Take the Underground Tour
My mom had told me this was her favorite thing she did in Seattle when she was younger. Most people give really good reviews of this tour.
Eat donuts at General Porpoise Coffee & Doughnuts
Explore Pioneer Square and walk around the shops
Eat dinner at Ramen Danbo
We love trying Ramen on our trips and we were excited about trying ramen in Seattle.
Have dessert at Cinnaholic
I am obsessed with cinnamon rolls and Rebecca found this perfect place for us to have dessert. I cry a little when I think of what might have been.
Day 4: Grab your last cup of coffee and head home
Go to Starbucks Reserve Roastery
Rebecca was excited to get a flight of coffee and try the different flavors offered.
Eat Breakfast at The Crumpet Shop
Head to the airport and go home
We had planned to take the Light Rail back to the airport and I still wanted to, but Rebecca insisted we take an Uber to the airport in my condition. I really just wanted to save some money after spending a paycheck at the Emergency Room.
That’s it!
Even if we hadn’t spent most of our time attending to my medical emergency, I don’t think we scratched the surface of all that Seattle has to offer. We will have to go back to explore the natural beauty the surrounding area has to offer, but with some free plane tickets, Seattle felt like the perfect quick getaway.
Do you have any questions or comments? Comment and let us know.