David Kerr and Members of the Puget Sound Chapter of the ASA

Seattle is an amazing city, both for those who live there and for tourists to the Emerald City. There are so many things to do; some are a bit cliché, while others fly under the radar. What follows are activities traditionally done by visitors (but still fun) complemented by activities better known to the locals. All are within one mile of the convention center and central hotel district.

Editor’s Note: Prices shown were found on the websites in March of 2015 and are subject to change.

SeaTac Transit

You’ll need to make your way into town from SeaTac Airport (short for Seattle – Tacoma) and you’ve got options.

Typical Tourist: A taxi from SeaTac is a fine way to go—unless you become stuck in the traffic on I-5 (which is often) or you’re on a budget. ~$50.

Savvy Seattleite: The light rail picks you up from the airport parking garage, with trains running at least every 10 minutes. It takes 38 minutes to get to Westlake Station, which is near most hotels. $3/person

Get on the Sound!

Seattle is located along Puget Sound, and it’s always a treat to get on the water and see the contrast of the downtown skyscrapers and working port compared to the picturesque Olympic Mountains.

Typical Tourist: Argosy Cruises runs many boats from the waterfront, including one boat that brings you to dinner at Tillicum Village on Blake Island where you can enjoy an authentic Native-American dinner and show. Harbor cruise $23, locks cruise $37, Tillicum Village cruise and dinner $80)

Savvy Seattleite: The Washington State ferry system serves thousands of visitors and commuters daily. Board as a walk-on passenger from the downtown Seattle terminal and take the one-hour ride to Bremerton to see the same sights as a private cruise, but for a fraction of the cost. Either immediately return on the same boat or take an hour to get a meal and explore theBremerton waterfront. Walk-on round trip to Bremerton $8

Microsoft Founder Dream Projects

Boeing, Amazon, Costco, and Starbucks all started or are headquartered around Seattle, but the company founded by Paul Allen and Bill Gates probably still wields the biggest influence in town.

Typical Tourist: Paul Allen’s EMP Museum (Experience Music Project) focuses on rock and roll, science fiction, and pop culture. Recent exhibits have included Jimi Hendrix’s guitars and Princess Leia’s gold bikini. (Paul also founded the Allen Institute for Brain Science and owns the Seattle Seahawks—Go Hawks!) $21.

Savvy Seattleite: The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation focuses on education, health, and poverty on a global scale. Located across the street from the EMP, the visitor center of the Gates Foundation allows for thought-provoking discussion about what our responsibility should be to others and where to focus priorities. Try your hand at carrying 16 pounds of water back to your village! Free.

Explore Seattle’s History

Pioneer Square shows off the history and architecture of the early days of Seattle.

Typical Tourist: Bill Speidel’s Underground Tour explores the tawdry history of Seattle. After the Great Seattle Fire in 1889, the city decided to regrade the streets one or two stories higher than the original. This tour lets you explore the original ground level, which is now hidden from view. $18.

Savvy Seattleite: There is a national park located in Pioneer Square—the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park. See the amount of goods prospectors were required to carry with them in the late 1890s and learn about their treacherous journey (many simply stayed behind in Seattle and helped found the city). Sometimes thought to be the smallest national park, it’s technically combined with the large Alaskan portion of the park. Free.

SAM I Am

The Seattle Art Museum showcases world-class art.

Typical Tourist: The Seattle Art Museum is located in the heart of downtown and has a large and varied permanent collection and rotating exhibitions, including local Native-American art. ($20, closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.)

Savvy Seattleite: It’s August in Seattle. No one should be inside any longer than needed! Walk through the Olympic Sculpture Park (run by the Seattle Art Museum), which is filled with sculptures, and toward Elliott Bay and amazing views of the waterfront and Olympic Mountains. Free.

Pike Place Market

Operating since 1907, this is Seattle’s heart—with fish, flowers, meat, vegetables, and arts and crafts. And don’t ever, ever, call it “Pike’s Place.”

Typical Tourist: The typical tourist goes to Pike Place Fish Market, sees the fish thrown from one employee to another, and leaves. Photos are free, but there are claustrophobia-inducing crowds.

Savvy Seattleite: Go downstairs to the quieter levels of the market and explore the quaint shops. And take a picture of the Market Theater Gum Wall on Post Street. It’s what it sounds like—an entire block with thousands and thousands of pieces of gum stuck to the walls of the alleyway. Take a photo and add your own piece of history.

Seattle Homegrown Treats

Seattle has a fine “foodie” tradition—buying local and innovative creations. Hopefully, you’ll be able to get out to a meal serving local seafood. Here are two local institutions at Pike Place Market.

Typical Tourist: The first Starbucks opened in Pike Place Market in 1971. The store location at 1912 Pike looks historic (but crowded with tourists), although it’s not really the first store. But you can get Starbucks coffee nearly everywhere in the world (and at hundreds of locations in Seattle), so do you really need to go to this one?

Savvy Seattleite: Go a bit down the street to Beecher’s Handmade Cheese. Watch the cheese being made, grab some samples, and buy some of their Flagship and the cheese curds—yum! www.beechershandmadecheese.com) And wander through the rest of Pike Place for more examples of tasty, homegrown food.

Adult Beverages Made Onsite

Along with our coffee craving, Seattleite’s enjoy “potent potables”—especially when they’re created and served at the same location.

Typical Tourist: There are plenty of brewpubs in Seattle, and Pike Brewing is one of the most well known and centrally located. Enjoy a pint of the Pike Kilt Lifter alongside ribs or bratwurst.

Savvy Seattleite: Distilleries are becoming more and more popular in town. Try Sun Liquor Bar & Distillery at 512 East Pike (at the edge of Seattle’s hip, but gentrifying, Capitol Hill neighborhood) and enjoy a cocktail mixed with their Hedge Trimmer Gin or Unxld Vodka.

Get High (no, not that high)

There are many great views to be had. But for the best, you need to elevate.

Typical Tourist: The Space Needle offers great views from 520 feet up. But locals only go up the Needle when relatives are in town. $21 The Seattle Great Wheel (a giant Ferris Wheel) on the waterfront admittedly is a bit touristy, but still fun. $13.

Savvy Seattleite: Nearly twice the height of the Space Needle, the Sky View Observatory at the top of the Columbia Center is right in downtown and has views from 900 feet, the tallest public viewing area west of the Mississippi. $13. About two miles from downtown is Kerry Park, which provides the prototypical Seattle viewpoint—including Space Needle, downtown skyscrapers, and Mt. Rainer. (211 W. Highland Drive ) Free.

P.S. For the other high, adults in Washington can now purchase marijuana from licensed stores. Be responsible and learn the rules!

Seattle Center

The site of the 1962 World’s Fair, Seattle Center is the home of the Space Needle, Science Center, and EMP. But there are plenty of other things to do.

Typical Tourist: Take the Monorail from Westlake Park to get to Seattle Center $2.25 and explore the Chihuly Garden and Glass, which features the innovative artwork of Dale Chihuly. Pretty amazing glass sculptures of all kinds are to be found. $18.

Savvy Seattleite: Enjoy your one-mile walk up 4th Avenue to Seattle Center and wander through the Armory Building for a quick, cheap eat. And then just lounge by the International Fountain and soak up the sun—like us sun-starved locals who know to enjoy blue skies when we can.