5 Things You Won’t Want to Miss in Seattle During Your Business Trip
You may be on a business trip, but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy yourself. Between meetings and events, there is plenty to visit and explore. If you manage to get a whole day off, you can even explore some of the surrounding natural areas and nearby towns.
Space Needle
One of the most iconic sites in Seattle is the Space Needle, and for a good reason. This architectural masterpiece was built for the 1962 World’s Fair. It is 605 feet tall. The elevator can get you from the ground floor to the observation level in as little as 43 seconds. The elevator is entirely glass, and the viewing levels have displays of Dale Chihuly’s “forever glass” with a revolving glass floor so you can really take in every sight.
While inside, you can learn more about the history of the Space Needle, including how it was designed and the napkin doodle that first brought the building to life.
At the observation deck, you can see beautiful and breathtaking views of the city, Elliott Bay, Mount Rainier, and the Cascade Mountains. There is even an option for an exciting virtual reality exhibit included with your ticket.
Chihuly Garden and Glass
If you finish exploring the Space Needle and have time to spare, you can check out Chihuly Garden and Glass. The center is right next to the Space Needle.
Dale Chihuly was born in 1941 in Tacoma, Washington. He was introduced to glass and glass art while learning about interior design in college. Interested, he decided to enroll in the first glass program in the country.
He went on to co-found a glass school and create more than 200 pieces that are currently displayed in museums. Some of his works include: “Cylinders,” “Baskets,” “Seaforms,” “Macchia,” “Venetians,” “Persians,” “Chandeliers,” and “Fiori.”
His art exhibition started in 1999 and continued to grow and become more popular. However, it wasn’t made into a long-term exhibit until 2012 at the Seattle Center. This exhibit is meant to show his work and the art style he created and inspire others to immerse themselves in art and maybe find their own passion.
Pacific Science Center
The Pacific Science Center, also known as PacSci, offers a variety of exhibits. However, these aren’t just exhibits you get to observe. There are many activities in the museum that give you hands-on experience.
Some of the science exhibits you can expect to see are ground-breaking virtual reality tools and tech, a butterfly house, and a planetarium. The center has been around for over 60 years and is constantly improving and growing with technology.
If you’ve been busy all day, you can relax and learn in the IMAX theaters dedicated to documentaries or interesting science pieces. The theater features the biggest screen in Washington, so you can see it all in intricate detail.
There is a laser dome as well, with immersive sounds and brilliant lights so you can feel and see the sounds and experience them with your major senses.
They also feature temporary exhibits such as information on the tides and beaches and mobile games.
The Seattle Center Monorail runs right next to the science center and only takes 90 seconds from Westlake Center in the heart of Seattle. If you plan carefully, you can get right on the monorail and be at your destination in no time.
However, if you have a narrow time slot or are coming in from an area where the monorail doesn’t go, you can look at a car service Seattle. They can pick you up from your destination quickly and take you wherever you need to go.
Pike Place Market
If you want an all-in-one place to shop, eat, and explore, Pike Place Market is a great option. Stop and grab a quick bite from numerous eateries with foods such as sushi, poke, crumpets, ice cream, chowder, pasta, frozen yogurt, burritos, donuts, fish and chips, and more.
Once you’re revitalized and ready to keep shopping, check out the numerous specialty food shops, retail shops, and crafts, or check out the farmer’s markets in the area. You can find gifts to bring home for your friends and family or a beautiful piece of art to display somewhere in your home.
You can even pick up foods you wouldn’t find anywhere else, such as hot sauce or chocolates, or make a quick meal with friends in the area using sausages, fish, and cheese from the local stores.
In the market, you can also find art, glass, pottery, music, toys, clothing, accessories, flowers, and honey to buy and take home, so you’ll always have a fun way to remember your trip instead of just thinking about Seattle as a place of business.
Seattle Aquarium
Want to relive your childhood, or just go and see your favorite animals? Spend a few hours in the Seattle Aquarium. They have a lot of aquatic animals, as well as animals you would see around the water, such as birds, otters, seals, fish, eels, octopi, cuttlefish, coral, clams, and many more.
The museum has a website where they feature all of their animals. So you can take a quick look and see if your favorite animals are there. The aquarium is broken up into six major exhibits: Window on Washington Waters, Life on the Edge, Pacific Coral Reef, Birds & Shores, Underwater Dome, and Marine Mammals.
In addition to showing off the animals, the Seattle Aquarium is dedicated to raising awareness about the animals and their habitats. The museum opened in 1977 and went through a huge expansion in 2007 that added 18,000 square feet, with some of that space being taken up by a 120,000-gallon exhibit.
A gift shop, cafe, and meeting space were also added during the expansion. The Aquarium is also working on a 20-year strategic plan to renovate and grow bigger. That plan started in 2013 with a harbor seal exhibit. So if you’re planning to have children, you can bring them year after year for a family holiday and watch the aquarium expand and change.
