Seattle in the winter -- what to do?
 

Hi,

I'll be in Seattle the last week of Jan. Worth staying the weekend? Would the rain and cold be too miserable to enjoy? Some possible things to do:

1) Olympics National Park
2) skiing -- where?
3) what else?

Thanks for your suggestions!

I was in Seattle last January for a few days mid-month and will be going back this coming January.

Last year we got really lucky and one of the four days we were there it was delightfully sunny, so we took advantage and hopped on a ferry over to Bainbridge Island. We walked about for a bit and had lunch then jumped back on the ferry to Seattle.

If you're into museums the Seattle Art Museum is an option and if you like markets, we had a great time wandering about Pike Place Market.

I wouldn't recommend Olympic National Park for a January weekend. There is plenty of skiing close to Seattle. Snoqualmie Pass is the closest. Crystal (at Mt. Rainier) and Stevens Pass are drier, but farther.

Lots to do in Seattle. As mentioned, Seattle Art Museum - Picasso in Seattle closes Jan 17. It is a stellar exhibit from the National Picasso Museum in Paris which is being remodeled. Harry Potter is at the Pacific Science Center to Jan 30. Battlestar Gallactica is at EMP. Check out Jazz Alley for a great evening performance (good venue).

Seattle is often misty in the winter with occasional sprinkles. We don't normally get downpours or driving rain. It usually isn't very cold in winter, either - mid-forties. So, walking from here to there on foot is actually not so bad. Sometimes there are clear skies, as LowCountryIslander observed, and the views are stellar. The light comes in low and has a remarkable clarity. The other morning, for example, I saw a jaw dropping view. The sky was clear blue. The buildings of the city were shimmering in the sunlight - crystal clear - and the Olympic mountains, hovering above, were bathed in pink - the morning sun on the snow. It doesn't get much better than that.

Well I live here, so no I don't find the rain and cold "too miserable" to enjoy the city. I don't think I'd recommend going out to ONP though.

There's of course many great indoor things you could do in the city if you are interested... Pike Place Market, Seattle Art Museum, Seattle Public Library, EMP, Frye Museum, Pacific Science Center, Aquarium, Benaroya Hall, Paramount Theater, Fifth Avenue Theater, Triple Door, Jazz Alley, Tula's, etc.

Orcas already gave you the ski spots.

I like Whidbey Island in the wintertime. My favorite place to stay is the Captain Whidbey Inn.

suze is right, that there are so many things to do in the city. Weather would be perfectly superficial aspect, IMHO.

Here is a trip report from our trip last year if you are interested.

The Pike Place Market Food tour is exceptional.

http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...rip-report.cfm

How about Teatro ZinZanni?
http://www.zinzanni.org/

You can also look at seattleweekly.com or thestranger.com for events, gallery shows, concerts, museum exhibitions, etc.

If you are interested in outdoor activities besides skiing, you might consider a ranger-led snowshoe tour up at Paradise on Mt Rainier. Crystal Mountain (the ski area) has guided snowshoe tours as well. You can head up to the Skagit River to see the eagles (lots stop there on their way to Alaska); you can take a winter lowland hike; you can explore one of the many state parks in the Puget Sound area; or, you could just take a nice walk around Discovery or Lincoln Park, in Seattle.

Thank you, all, for the many great suggestions! Better than the guidebooks I've been looking at. :)

Orcas, love your lyrical descriptions.

Why is Olympics NP not recommended? Too wet to be enjoyable?

Snowshoe-ing on Mt Rainier sounds interesting. I'll look into that. Jazz, etc. Wow, lots of good stuff to look into now!

During the meeting, I'll be staying at the Fairmont hotel. I think it's near the Pike Market Place and also the museum of art. I'll be there the last week of Jan though, so will miss the Picasso exhibit. But I'd spent a great deal of time in the Picasso Museum in Paris before. Hopefully, there will be another interesting exhibit. Or I'll be contented just to see their permanent collection if it has some unique regional art.

If you think of more things to do in late January, please share!

Thanks, again!

Why not Olympic National Park? I think of it as being very overcast and wet in the winter. The coast is a rainforest. However, there is a lot of it that is in a bit from the coast (on the Strait of Juan de Fuca). You could check when you get here on the weather and make a decision at that time. It's not exactly prime tourist season, so I would think you could book a hotel there at the last minute.

I was surprised to read they are trying to keep the road to Hurricane Ridge open this year. They will be requiring chains in your vehicle, though, just in case. You could snow shoe there. It would be very deep snow.

Port Townsend is a nice little town on the OP and the Dungeness Spit is also pretty interesting, jutting into the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Again, weather dependent.

It's a ferry trip and a long drive and I think there is more to do closer to Seattle.

Another nice trip outside of Seattle would be to Whidbey Island or the San Juan Islands. I'd suggest the San Juans over the OP in winter, as they are more likely to have better weather. They are easier to wrap your arms around - smaller, but interesting.

Ditto. The coast and rainforest sections of ONP require an overnight visit, and will be numbingly cold and wet. If it's snowy mountains you want to see, Mt Rainier is closer and doesn't require ferry rides.

If you want to leave Seattle, I agree with Whidbey Island (oops, as I already mentioned). ONP is just too darn soggy and cold to be enjoyable imo in the winter-time.

Fairmont is a lovely historic hotel, closer to the museum than the Market, but we're talking a matter of blocks (not miles!) Everything's easy walking (and free Metro bus) within the central downtown core of Seattle.

If you want to become a geocacher, the world headquarters is in Seattle. (Groundspeak) Yes, there's an app for that.
There is also a HI Hostel about 2 blocks east of the train station.