Experience Seattle with the Seattle CityPASS

What to see in Seattle Thanks to the Seattle CityPASS, you can visit five of Seattle's most beautiful attractions and save even more on admission. When you buy the pass, you will receive a small booklet containing the tickets for the sights. So all you have to do on site is show your ticket booklet. This saves you long waiting times when buying tickets. Here we present the five attractions included in the Seattle CityPASS.

Seattle CityPASS – Chihuly Garden and Glas

An exhibition about glass, well, that's what we thought at first. But if you miss it, it's your own fault. Artist Dale Chihuly has arranged hundreds of glass works of art in an impressive and exciting way. From simple bowls, flowers and plants to chandelier-like structures. The many colors, patterns and motifs, sometimes you can't believe that it's all really made of glass. Each exhibition room has a different theme and each of them enchants the visitor in its own unique way.

You can watch glass art being created several times a day. In the courtyard of the exhibition, two employees show how glass blowing works and explain step by step what has to be done so that the glass can be shaped into the respective shapes.

The Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum is located next to the Space Needle. However, on-site parking is too expensive and there are only a few parking spaces available. A parking ticket just one block away costs 1.50 USD/h. You can simply pay with your credit card or coins.

Seattle CityPASS – Space Needle

The Space Needle is Seattle's landmark. Built in 1962 for the Century 21 Exposition, it's as futuristic today as it was then. Like a UFO that just landed. The revolving restaurant was the first of its kind in North America when it opened. With a height of 184 m, the Space Needle is the eighth tallest structure in Seattle. Seattle CityPASS includes two visits within 24 hours. We drove up to the viewing platform once in the morning and once in the evening.

Even the staircase to the elevators is a journey through time. Not into the future, as one might think of the futuristic building, but into the time of the 60s. An exhibition shows the construction of the Space Needle and the cultural, social and political peculiarities of the time. The elevators that go to the observation deck are on the outside. So you have a wonderful view of Seattle already on the way up. Once at the top, you can enjoy a 360° panoramic view of the city, the bay and the surrounding residential areas. With really good weather and clear visibility, you can even see Mount Rainier. In the evening we had a wonderful view of the illuminated Seattle. Slowly, a mysterious cloud of mist formed over the city, which settled as fog the next morning.

You should always keep one thing in mind: When you are on the Space Needle, you have a great view over the city. But you're standing on the landmark that you might want to photograph. THE great motif of Seattle, with the Space Needle in the foreground of the skyline, which everyone knows, you can only take from Kerry Park.

By the way, the same applies to parking as to Chihuly Garden and Glas: It's better to park one street away, it's cheapest there and you don't have to walk far.

Seattle CityPASS – MoPOP (Museum of Pop Culture)

Designed by American star architect Frank Gehry, this unmissable Museum of Pop Culture can be found right next to the Space Needle and the Chihuly Garden and Glass. The modern and colorful building is jokingly called “The Blob” among the population, but it is definitely expressive. Just the right building for an exhibition on modern music and pop culture. There is a huge hall called the Sky Church with an HD LED video screen over 18m high. Concerts and light shows are held here throughout the day. Individual exhibitions on the subject of fantasy, horror and science fiction even show original pieces from selected films. I especially liked the horror section.

To stars such as B. Nirvana or Jimi Hendrix, there were extra exhibitions, but we found them relatively small. In general we had hoped for more from this huge museum. The only two interactive rooms we can recommend are "Indie Game Revolution" where you can play various computer games, and the "Sound Lab" where you can play and record instruments such as guitar, drums and keyboard yourself according to instructions. Great fun and in a good mood!

You can also park here just one block away for only 1.50 USD/h. Everything is close by and not far to walk.

Seattle CityPASS – Seattle Aquarium

In Pier 59, right on the harbor, is the Seattle Aquarium. Quite inconspicuous from the outside, it has many a surprise in store. We arrived with what felt like 100 school classes and were overrun by small children. The large entrance hall is dominated by an oversized aquarium. During our visit, a diver was feeding the fish. Right at the beginning there is an exhibition about anemones, which you can even pet in the shallow water. A nice idea to get to know the underwater world better. But somehow I felt sorry for the anemones, with all the children's hands that touched them. The individual exhibitions inside show the different oceans and their inhabitants. If you look closely, you will even find Nemo.

Outside, you'll find the wildlife of Puget Sound (the bay off Seattle). Here you can experience the underwater world in the Underwater Dome, a huge dome. You can also marvel at seabirds, sea otters and seals. We were there with the sea otters at feeding time. Here, especially the children were explained what these animals can do and how to teach them little tricks with feeding. This is very important for the correct posture during examinations and treatments.

Parking is unfortunately quite expensive on site. For 4.00 USD/h you can park right in front of the door. Unfortunately, there are not many alternatives.

Seattle CityPASS – Argosy Cruises Harbor Tour

If you want to experience Seattle from the water, we recommend a harbor tour. During the one-hour drive you will experience a beautiful view of the skyline, the Olympic Mountains and the Cascade Mountains. Of course only if the weather is right. Passing the Seattle Aquarium, the Olympic Sculpture Park, the Washington State Ferries ship terminal, the Alki Coast and the industrial and container port, you will enjoy the tour with so many historical stories as well as funny anecdotes. Our “tour guide” for this lesson was young and totally fearless about the weather. When the outside temperature was just 10 °C, he was wearing a short-sleeved shirt. Seeing this, we pulled our hats even lower over our faces in the stiff breeze. But we were also lucky with the weather, because despite the low temperatures, the sun was shining and the sky was only a bit cloudy.

In summer, the tours are probably always quite crowded and you should take one of the first tours of the day. We were in Seattle in the winter. There are three trips a day on weekends and two trips a week. These are not overcrowded even in good weather and you will definitely find a place. You have the best view on the entire route if you sit on the right in the direction of travel.

Parking is also expensive here. As with the aquarium, you have to invest 4.00 USD/h. But it's worth it! This harbor tour is truly top notch and informative.

Finally, instead of the MoPOP, you can go to the Woodland Park Zoo and instead of the Chihuly Garden and Glass to the Pacific Science Center. The choice is entirely yours. We presented the sights we visited.

More information about the Seattle CityPASS

Which travel guide can you recommend for Seattle?

Travel guides especially for Seattle are rarely available in German. Whether for a weekend trip, a business trip or a family holiday – the Top 10 Seattle* Paperback is a perfect companion for an exciting stay in the fascinating metropolis.

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The Seattle CityPASS was kindly provided to us by Visit Seattle. At this point we would like to thank you again for the cooperation. This post represents our free and independent opinion. You can find more information on journalistic independence under the point Cooperation.