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Hi All,

I was recently telling Stephanie Zimmerman of PA all the best touristy things to do in Seattle with kids without breaking the bank. (Stephanie's husband and daughter are Seattle bound too).

While most of you probably don't want to head to the Children's Museum, many of these other sites are worth seeing with or without kidos if you are coming into town early or staying after the Institute. Here were my recommendations for Stephanie:

The Seattle Center has both the Science Center and the Children’s Museum. Both cost $, but if it is raining it might be worth paying for the Children’s Museum. There is a great little monorail (circa 1962 World’s Fair) that runs from downtown to the Seattle Center. You catch it at Westlake Center on 5th and Pine. My kids love it. The Space Needle is at the Seattle Center too but it is pricey.

The Pike Place Market is free and should not be missed. It is full of lots of colors and smells. It is within walking distance of our hotel. Just head north to Pike street, turn left (west) and head toward the water. From there you can take the stairs down to the waterfront. There is also a nice Aquarium on the waterfront but it does charge admission.

If the weather is nice, you can catch a ferry on the waterfront that will take you to over to Brainbridge Island in 30 minutes. It is inexpensive to walk on the ferry and Bainbridge is very cute. It is also fun to see the city from the water.

The Olympic Sculpture Garden Park just opened this year. It is at the North end of the waterfront and totally free.

The other areas near downtown that we really enjoy with our kids are Pioneer Square and the International District. You can catch a free bus to Pioneer Square. Most of the downtown corridor north/south is a ride free zone. In Pioneer Square you can visit Elliott Bay Books – best book store in the city and the Klondike Gold Rush Museum. The Museum is free and it is the smallest National Park in the county. Waterfall park is also nearby and a fun stop for little ones. No trip there is complete for us with out stopping by Magic Mouse Toys. There is also a very good 90 minute tour of the Seattle Underground. Basically when the big Seattle Fire happened in the early 1900’s they just built the city on top of the old buildings. You can actually see parts of the original buildings. The tour is supposed to be very good and entertaining.

From Pioneer Square you can take a pedestrian overpass next to King Street Train Station (which is worth a look around too to see the renovation underway) to the International District. The Wing Luke Asian Museum is very interesting and there are dozens of good restaurants in the ID. No trip is complete with out visiting Umajimaya.

Laura Staley

I, for one cannot wait for some fresh seafood! Thank you for the restaurant postings. I didn't see anything on the wiki yet.

Oh, I have so many favorites! Definitely take advantage of the seafood - there's a great little restaurant in Pike Place Market called [url http://www.jacksfishspot.com/history.html ]Jack's Fish Spot[/url] that serves amazing cioppino (fish soup). There are a couple of bakeries in the market and I like to grab a baguette before I head in for my cioppino.
I have to put a plug in for [url http://tomdouglas.com/]Tom Douglas[/url] - who I had the honor of working with for five years as a pastry chef. Tom was one of the original chefs to put Seattle and "Pan Asian" foods on the map and you really can't go wrong at any of his restaurants.
My absolute favorite downtown restaurant is [url http://www.lepichetseattle.com/]Le Pichet[/url].
And don't forget Seattle's great coffee! Get yourself a cup of joe at [url http://www.espressovivace.com/retail.html/]Vivace[/url] while you're here - you won't be sorry!

Zola just recommended these, and I thought I would share her email:

I love being consulted for this kind of thing!

Although, I must confess that I am pretty new to the world of wine (when I worked in restaurants, I was very spoiled and just let people give me whatever was good!)

Here's a link to Seattle Area Wineries:
http://www.winesnw.com/puget2.html#Seattle-Area%20Wineries

I can definitely recommend the Pike & Western Wine Shop which is down in the Pike Place Market (easy walking distance) and they do have tastings:
http://www.pikeandwestern.com/

Also, there is a great wine bar in Seattle called Black Bottle - the food and wines are excellent:
http://www.blackbottleseattle.com/

Anyone know of quilt stores in the vicinity of our hotel?