Seattle: Places to Explore

Ballard is Seattle's sweetheart. This historically Scandinavian neighborhood doesn't have many sights outside of the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks; you'll spend more time strolling, shopping, and hanging out... Read more

Belltown is Downtown's younger sibling, just north of Virginia Street (up to Denny Way) and stretching from Elliott Bay to 6th Avenue. Not so long ago, Belltown was home to some of the most unwanted real... Read more

The Hill has two faces: On one side, it's young and edgy, full of artists, musicians, and students. Tattoo parlors and coffeehouses abound, as well as thumping music venues and bars. On the other side... Read more

The predominantly residential Central District, or the "C.D.," lies south of Capitol Hill and northeast of the International District. Its boundaries are roughly 12th Avenue on the west, Martin Luther... Read more

Except for the busy areas around the Market and the piers, and the always-frenetic shopping district, a lot of Downtown can often seem deserted, especially at night. Still, while it may not be the soul... Read more

The suburbs east of Lake Washington can easily supplement any Seattle itinerary. The center of East King County is Bellevue, a fast-growing city with its own downtown core, high-end shopping, and a notable... Read more

Smack between Downtown and Capitol Hill, First Hill is an odd mix of sterile-looking medical facility buildings (earning it the nickname "Pill Hill"), old brick buildings that look like they belong on... Read more

For many years, Fremont enjoyed its reputation as Seattle's weirdest neighborhood, home to hippies, artists, bikers, and rat-race dropouts. But Fremont has lost most of its artist cachet as the stores... Read more

The neighborhood of Green Lake surrounds the eponymous lake, which is 50,000 years old. It was formed by the Vashon Glacial Ice Sheet, which also gave Seattle, among other things, Puget Sound. Green Lake... Read more

Bright welcome banners, 12-foot fiberglass dragons clinging to lampposts, and a traditional Chinese gate confirm you're in the International District. The I.D., as it's locally known, is synonymous with... Read more

Phinney Ridge, above Fremont, is almost entirely residential, though it shares the booming commercial street of Greenwood Avenue North with its neighbor to the north, Greenwood. Although not as strollable... Read more

The Pioneer Square district, directly south of Downtown, is Seattle's oldest neighborhood. It attracts visitors for elegantly renovated (or in some cases replica) turn-of-the-20th-century redbrick buildings... Read more

The islands of Puget Sound—particularly Bainbridge, Vashon, and Whidbey—are easy and popular day trips for Seattle visitors, and riding the Washington State ferries is half of the fun. There... Read more

Just west of the Seattle Center is the intersection of Queen Anne Avenue N and Denny Way. This marks the start of the Queen Anne neighborhood, which stretches all the way up formidable Queen Anne Hill... Read more

Seattle Center is the home to Seattle's version of the Eiffel Tower—the Space Needle—and is anchored by Frank Gehry's wild EMP building, the acclaimed Pacific Science Center, and the dazzling... Read more

South Lake Union, on the east side of Seattle Center, is a destination in itself. Though it's still in transition (construction is underway in many areas), Amazon's new headquarters here have brought more... Read more

The U-District, as everyone calls it, is the neighborhood surrounding the University of Washington (UW or "U-Dub" to locals). The campus is extraordinarily beautiful (especially in springtime, when the... Read more

The laid-back neighborhood of Wallingford is directly east of Fremont—the boundaries actually blur quite a bit. There are several lovely parks and residential streets are brimming with colorful Craftsman... Read more

Cross the bridge to West Seattle and it's another world altogether. Jutting out into Elliott Bay and Puget Sound, separated from the city by the Duwamish waterway, this out-of-the-way neighborhood covers... Read more