Get FREE email communications from Fodor's Travel, covering must-see travel destinations, expert trip planning advice, and travel inspiration to fuel your passion.
Seattleites are sometimes scorned for their fashion sense (polar fleece, sport sandals, and socks—oh my!), but as the city has grown and enough money has percolated through the ranks of retail, the city's style barometer has made a steady creep upward. Bibliophiles, foodies, wine aficionados, and design-centrists will also find plenty of shopping opportunities—Seattle is a hotbed of unique, independent shops stocking one-of-a-kind treasures.
Shopping in Seattle is something best done gradually. Don't expect to find it all in one or two days worth of blitz shopping tours. Downtown is the only area that allows for easy daylong shopping excursions. Within a few blocks along 4th and 5th Avenues, you'll find the standard chains (The Gap, Urban Outfitters, H&M, Anthropologie, Sephora, Old Navy), along with Nike's flagship store, and a few more glamorous high-end stores, some featuring well-known designers like Gucci . Downtown is also where you'll find department stores like Nordstrom, Macy's, and Barneys New York. Belltown and Pioneer Square are also easy areas to patrol—most stores of note are within a few blocks.
To find many of the stores that are truly special to Seattle—such as boutiques featuring handmade frocks from local designers, independent record stores run by encyclopedic-minded music geeks, cozy used-book shops that smell of paper and worn wood shelves—you'll have to branch out to Capitol Hill, Queen Anne, and northern neighborhoods like Ballard. Shopping these areas will give you a better feel for the character of the city and its quirky inhabitants, all while you score that new dress or nab gifts for your friends.
And don’t forget about Seattle’s culinary bounty, which includes the stalls at Pike Place Market; the flagship Sur La Table, which stocks every kitchen gadget known to man; and the city’s various weekly farmers' markets, where you’ll find enough locally made, artisanal offerings to fill a suitcase or two.
If you haven't been introduced to the wonders of Asian tea, you need to make a trip here, where the experience is as enriching as the tea itself. Helpful staff will walk you through the selection of oolong, pouchong, jasmine, and green teas. All the teas are available to try, and you can pick up a cute teapot while you're at it. They also offer bubble tea and ice cream (in tea flavors, of course).
Named after the Francis Hodgson Burnett classic, this cozy shop has delighted readers for decades. A favorite of teachers, librarians, and parents, it stocks a wide array of imaginative literature and thoughtful nonfiction for all ages; their children's section is particularly noteworthy.
If you have some serious cash to burn, the sleek, upscale Bravern might be the Eastside spot for you. With high-end shops like Moncler, Hermès, Prada, Gucci, and Louis Vuitton, it's tempting to empty your wallet—but save room for a spa treatment at the Gene Juarez Salon & Spa or a meal at luxury Chinese hot-pot spot the Dolar Shop. Valet and complimentary parking (with validation) are available.
If punk rock is more to you than anarchy symbols sewn on Target sweatshirts, then stop here. Punk and its myriad subgenres on CD and vinyl are specialties, though they also stock rockabilly, indie rock, and hip-hop. It's a nice foil to the city's indie-rock-dominated record shops, and a good reminder that Belltown is still more eclectic than its rising rents may indicate.
Need a brass-plated medieval French duck press? You've come to the right place. Culinary artists and foodies have flocked to this popular Pike Place Market destination since 1972. The chain's flagship shop is packed to the rafters with thousands of kitchen items, including an exclusive line of copper cookware, endless shelves of baking equipment, tabletop accessories, cookbooks, and a formidable display of knives.
When you're ready for a break from sightseeing, make a detour into this relaxing tasting room and wine store in the northern end of Post Alley. Several Washington State boutique wineries are represented; most of the bottles are handcrafted and/or reserve vintages. Taste the offerings, then buy a bottle or two—you can sit and enjoy your pick in the wine bar without paying for corkage.
Offering an art-forward take on gems and jewelry in a spacious contemporary gallery, Turgeon Raine employs only staff with a design background—you can work with them to create a one-of-a-kind piece, or pick from house-made items on display. It's also Washington's exclusive representative for Patek Philippe watches.
It's hard to miss this excellent used-book store: simply look for the six-foot neon cat waving his Cheshire tail. Inside, you'll find plenty more kitties winding their way through the maze of stacks. The specialties here are rare books and out-of-print treasures, but they've got a smattering of everything and the employees (feline and human) care deeply about finding you the right books.
Campus bookstores are usually rip-offs to be endured only by students clutching syllabi, but the University of Washington's store is a big exception to that rule. This enormous resource has a well-stocked general book department in addition to the requisite textbooks. Author events are scheduled all year long. Check out the bargain-book tables and the basement crammed with every art supply imaginable. They also carry a good selection of UW Husky gear if you need a souvenir and plenty of local gifts.
Make a beeline here for fabulous upscale shopping and good restaurants in a pretty, outdoor, tree- and fountain-laden shopping village. You can have your fill of chains like Williams-Sonoma, Banana Republic, L'Occitane, Crate & Barrel, Sephora, Aveda, Warby Parker, H&M, Madewell, Apple, Anthropologie, and Kiehl's. If you get enough of that at home, however, there are a few unique gems among the batch, including the excellent Village Maternity Store, candy wonderland The Confectionery, and local artsy chain Fireworks. Note that parking here can be tough, especially in the holiday season, and the atmosphere is slightly snobby. If you're in the mood to walk a bit farther, go immediately to one of the free parking garages.
Venue is the chic version of the Made In Washington stores: it stocks only goods made by local artists (some of whom have their studios in the sleek bilevel space), but you won't find any tacky souvenirs here. Watch the designers at work, chat with the staff (most are artists taking shifts), or just browse through artisanal chocolates, custom handbags, handmade soaps, baby wear, and colorful prints and mosaics.
If you're on the hunt for Japanese avant-rock on LP, antiwar spoken word, spiritual reggae with Afro-jazz undertones, or old screen-printed show posters, you've found the place. They carry new and used CDs and LPs of all sorts, specializing in the kinds of things you probably won't find anywhere else.
This small store in the courtyard of the Inn at the Market is worth a visit just for how heavenly it smells. With a lovely line of artisanal jewelry, luxurious bath products, and enticing—and often aromatic—gifts, it makes for a relaxing stop in the Pike Place tour. A standout favorite is Seattle-based fragrance brand Antica Farmacista—you'll want every scent of their luxury reed diffusers. Watson Kennedy's sister store is located on 1st Avenue and Spring Street ( Watson Kennedy Fine Home, 1022 1st Ave.) and includes vintage furniture, tableware, gourmet foods, and its own line of beeswax candles.
Taking cues from the neighborhood's Scandinavian history, this boutique brings the minimalist mindset of modern Scandinavian design back to Ballard's streets. High-quality and timeless home goods, art in mostly neutral tones, and useful gifts fill the shelves in the store, which itself embodies the same principles, making shopping a delightful and calming experience.
Many of the city's best chefs get their herbs, spices, and salts at this aromatic shop under Pike Place Market. Many teas are also available.
Try the cupcake of the month or flavors like the peppermint patty and the tiramisu, made with Stumptown coffee.
Before you buy a teenage relative—or anyone else for that matter—an oversize T-shirt that says "Seattle!" head up to Fremont's Destee-Nation for one that's a lot more distinctive.
At one of the city's original kings of coffee, the espresso is as pretty as it is divine.
View one of the largest collections of vintage prints by the Western photographer Edward S. Curtis, along with Native American antiques, traditional carvings, baskets, jewelry, and tools in a historic space that's as interesting as the store's wares.
One of only a couple of poetry-only bookstores in the country, this serene space is conducive to hours of browsing; when you're ready to interact, the owners are always happy to answer your questions, make suggestions, or chat about the titles you've selected. There's also a good selection of magazines as well as chapbooks; the emporium also hosts readings.
The Seattle Team Shop has your Seahawks, Sounders, and Mariners needs covered.
Yep, it's a Portland import, but Seattleites have swallowed their pride with this one, as the coffee is just too good to ignore.
One of the first travel-only bookstores in the country, Wide World Travel Store has been outfitting the adventurous since 1976. This is a great place to grab hard-to-find travel guides to just about anywhere, along with trip essentials by Eagle Creek, Klean Kanteen, and more. From travel journals to sporks (a handy cross between spoons and forks), to voltage transformers for overseas trips, they'll either have it or know where to get it.
Sign up for Travel Tips & News
Thank you for your interest!
