Retro Grouch 

How should Mrs. Grouch and me enjoy the day?

BengeBoy 

1. Take the ferry from downtown Seattle to Bainbridge Island. The ferry ride over and back is the best cheap tour of Elliott Bay, from the water you get a great view of Seattle and a good feel for how the city is laid out.

Walk up the hill to the little downtown area, have a roll and coffee at one of the local cafes and then visit the bike museum in the back of Classic Cycles. Then take the ferry back to Seattle.

https://www.classiccycleus.com/

2. Hang out with the tourists at Pike Place Market. Hard to visit Seattle without at least spending a half hour or hour at the Market.

While at the market, visit Elliott Bay Cycles:
www.davidsonbicycles.com
www.elliottbaybicycles.com

Great collection of vintage bikes, and they make custom bikes in the back. If you are nice they might show you the bike-making shop back behind the bike store.

3. If you like music, ride the monorail from downtown to Seattle Center and visit EMP (Experience Music Project).

4. If you're interested, one of the best ways to see the Lake Union area is by kayak. A lot of fun. You can rent by the hour or half-day. Obviously depends on the weather

https://www.aguaverde.com/paddle.shtml

https://www.nwoc.com/rental/

Other good things to do, depending on your interests:

- Pioneer Square / Underground Seattle (art galleries, antiques, old buildings). Underground Seattle is an interesting tour of (guess what) underground Seattle.
- International District (aka Chinatown - great food)
- If weather is nice, Seattle Arboretum (if you like gardens/parks)
- Visit Chittenden locks
- Take a walk in Discovery Park, nice views of the bay
- Wooden Boat Center, on South Lake Union


If you don't mind a drive, you could also drive about 30 minutes out of town and visit Snoqualmie Falls - gives you a feel for what the mountains around here are like, you see some pretty waterfalls, etc. Great place to have lunch or dinner right at the Falls (though $$$).

BillK

Some other ideas (from an ex-Washingtonian):

1. Talk a ride up the Space Needle (another way to get a good view of the city, although a little pricey)
2. Take a tour of the Seattle Aquarium (and it's right next to Pike Place Market, so its a two-for-one treat). While your there you can have lunch at Ivar's.
3. If the weather's not great, there's always the Seattle Underground tour.

stringbreaker

Don't come to Seattle you will hate it. The traffic is horrible and most of our bridges are ready to fall down come the next earthquake. It rains all the time and those are the good things about it. Now in all truth enjoy your visit and hope the weather cooperates for you.

DnvrFox

We sure enjoyed the great ferry rides as a pedestrian. Great ferries, beautiful scenery. For someone from a land locked like state (Colorado) it was a real treat..

Big Lew

Are you asking for a loaner? If so, I'm still laid up recovering from cancer surgery and my bike that I used riding the alaskan hwy. is gathering dust ...if you are near mission b.c. PM me.

Digital Gee

Have you considered staying in your room and ... well, you know?

Tom Bombadil

While drawing his inspiration from the Space Needle?

BigBlueToe

Go to the Hiram Chittendon Locks. They're worth a visit.

Tom Bombadil

I've been there a couple of times. If I had only 1 day, I'd hit the Pike Place Market, Pioneer Square, Underground Seattle, and try to ride a ferry. Then if it wasn't raining, go up in the Space Needle in the evening.

I really like that area. Good place to spend a week, when you can get out to to Olympia NP, Port Townsend, ride the ferry up to Victoria, BC, and more.

East Hill

I also really like taking people to visit the locks and Seattle Underground.

East Hill

ollo_ollo

+1 on the Bainbridge Island Ferry ride. If you want a longer & more scenic trip, take the Bremerton Ferry. It also departs from Colman dock. If you choose the Bainbridge ride, check out Classic Cycle https://www.classiccycleus.com/

Retro Grouch 

Since I'd like to spend the day doing stuff that I can't do in Missouri, so far the most enticing idea to me has been the Bainbridge Ferry + Classic Cycle museum. We might have 5 and 8 year old granddaughters with us so attention span limitations may be a factor. They might not be as into old bicycles as their grandad. How long is the ferry ride?

Another possibility is that we may split up for at least part of the day. I'd be very interested in seeing the bike frame shop at Elliott Bay Cycles and Mrs. Grouch is more interested in visiting the aquarium. Mrs Grouch and the girls have already witnessed the fish throwing.

Incidentally, Mrs. Grouch says that the only place you can get decaf coffee in Seattle is at the hotels. Made her feel like a criminal similar to when she tried to order farm raised salmon in San Francisco. Just going by Stringbreaker's avitar they have some strange looking people there too.

BengeBoy 

Answering your questions:

1. The Ferry ride is about 20 or 30 minutes (one way). If your wife and grand-daughters just want to ride over and back they ride off, get off the ferry, turn around and get back on for the return ride (while you walk up the hill to Classic Cycles).

2. The aquarium, Pike Market and Davidson Cycles/Elliott Bay cycles are all within walking distance of each other - they're all right in the same area.

If your grand-daughters are along, when you are on the water front visiting the aquarium or going to the ferry make sure you take them to Ye Old Curiosity Shop.. It's a tourist trap, but a very fun one. When my kids were little they loved it.

https://www.yeoldecuriosityshop.com/

Another fantastic kids' place is the International District (Chinatown). Right at the heart of the district is a big Japanese grocery store / bookstore / food court called Uwajimaya.

https://www.uwajimaya.com/

You wouldn't think a grocery store would be fun for kids, but it is - exotic foods, the *best* exotic candy and snacks selection you've seen, a very cool Japanese bookstore with great pens, stickers, stationery, etc. Plus a great food court with all kinds of Asian food + bubble tea + desserts + Asian bakery. And you're right on the edge of the International District. If you want a sit-down restaurant instead of a food court the Shanghai Garden, right across the street from Uwajimaya, is fun.

One other thing to mention if you're moving around downtown - lots of tourists miss the bus tunnel (because it's underground). Figure out where the bus tunnels are and you can zoom around the downtown district for free - you have to find the entrances, go down the stairs, and buses come along every 3 or 4 minutes. Or just grab a bus on the street. Downtown Seattle isn't that large and once you start grabbing the bus it shrinks even more.

https://transit.metrokc.gov/tops/tunnel/tunnel.html