Dog-friendly sightseeing in Seattle
Seattle was somewhere I'd always wanted to visit - but I was a bit worried that it might just be a big city that wouldn’t have much to see or do - but I shouldn’t have worried as it was great! The city was very vibrant, had a great food scene and there were lots of things that we could do with Beatle. I also loved that you can see the water from so many viewpoints and that there is always something happening in the harbour. If we came back, I would definitely want to visit some of the nearby islands by ferry.
THINGS TO DO
Pike Place Market
While dogs are not allowed into any of the indoor fresh food market areas, you can still get a great photo of the 'Public Market Centre' sign and clock from the corner of 1st Ave and Pike Place. The sign looks great anytime, but as the sun sets the neon really starts to pop. You can also sniff around for a photo op with the life sized sculpture, 'Rachel the Piggy Bank', a bronze pig who sits under the Pike Place Clocktower. There is a second pig, called Billie at the nearby MarketFront.
Pike Place Market is a must see in Seattle
The Gum Wall
Equal parts fascinating and gross, but something you’ll oddly want to see…. It can be tricky to find, but once you can see the 'Pike Place Market' sign from the corners of 1st Ave and Pike Place there is a sloping driveway to the left hand side (called Post Alley), follow this down and then take the first left. You'll smell it before you see it!
The Gum Wall - sniff it, but try not to touch it!
Space Needle and Space Needle City (see 'Getting Around' for a tip about the Monorail).
This area is good to explore by foot with your dog and is about a 30 min walk from downtown. While there are some buildings / museums here that dogs can't go inside, you can still see a lot from the pathways and park areas which makes it a great spot to visit with you dog for a few hours. Following is a quick summary the highlights to see this area:
Space Needed - dogs aren't allowed to go up the tower, but you can still get some great photos from the park below and have a nice walk around the area. There is also a big red sculpture, nicknamed 'Pasta Tube' on the lawn.
See the huge 'Sonic Bloom' futuristic flower sculpture outside the Pacific Science Centre. As you walk around the interesting building, from the outside you can peek through the fence to an inner courtyard where you'll spot a few dinosaurs.
Museum of Pop Culture - while dogs aren't allowed to go inside, the building itself is quite beautiful, so worth walking around it to have a look and get some good snaps. And if you are comfortable leaving your dog at your accommodation for a couple of hours, then it's definitely worth going back to visit!
International Fountain - this is a huge fountain (you can walk down into it if you dare…) that puts on quite the show, so a good spot to take a break.
As you explore this area you'll find small gardens and cute nooks, including one that is that is full of small animal sculptures that you'll definitely want a cute photo or two with. There are lots of shady spots and different vendors selling drinks and snacks.
The Seattle Space Needle and parklands
Here is a map of the key attractions listed above:
Olympic Sculpture Park
This nine-acre park is perfect place to visit with your dog as it has some awesome outdoor art and sculptures to check out while your best bud sniffs and explores the large open space and grassy areas. There are lots of spots to sit and take in amazing views over the water and plenty of shade. The park has two entry points, the first at street level off the corner of Western Ave and Broad St, and the other from the waterfront level at Myrtle Edwards Park (you can't miss this entrance as it has a giant head / face sculpture and a pair of very large eyeballs at it)! On weekends there is an open air market at the PACCAR Pavilion at the top that sells food. For more information about the park click here
The Olympic Sculpture park has great art and views
Myrtle Edwards Park
Along the waterfront (at the bottom of Olympic Sculpture Park) you'll find Myrtle Edwards park. This 1.25 mile paved path follows the waterfront and is a great walk on a clear day. There is plenty of access to the water if you have a dog that likes to swim (although the water looked very cold!), seating, picnic tables and grassy areas. We didn't walk the whole way, but it was really well kept and was full of happy doggos.
Seattle Waterfront
If you're on foot this can be a bit of an awkward place to get to but we approached it from Myrtle Edwards Park. When we visited there was quite a bit of construction going on, so I imagine this area will continue to improve with time. If coming from the city, i.e. Pike Place, you will have to wind through different stairwells / elevators o reach it.
Once you've reached the waterfront it has an old school amusement park feel to it, with a giant ferris wheel, themed shops and restaurants. There isn't too much you can actually do with your dog here, except dine at outdoor patio (which are quite touristy) and walk around the different piers, but its still a nice area to explore and there are plenty of places to get some good photos. It also feels quite removed from the hustle and bustle of the city.
You can get great views of the city from the waterfront area
The Amazon Spheres
Whether you're a fan of Amazon or not, these sphere shaped buildings are pretty darn cool to look at and are located on Lenora St, between 6th and 7th Ave. While you can't get inside, there are ample photo ops and the surrounding area is an open plan plaza with plenty of spots to sit. At the rear of the plaza is a small, but nice dog park - perfect for a quick sniff and pee break.
The Amazon Spheres
Pioneer Park
Pioneer Square is surrounded by some cool looking buildings and also has a great Native American totem in it. Its about a 20 min walk from Pike Place Market.
OTHER THINGS TO DO
Ice Cream Cruise
I really, really wanted to do this but unfortunately we weren't in town over the weekend…. But if you are, then your pup can join you for a 45 min cruise around Lake Union while you enjoy ice-cream (or other snacks) and it looks like a bucketload of fun. The tours are run by Seattle Water Tours and go between March and September. You can get more info on the schedule and pricing here
Fremont Troll
The Fremont Troll is a giant sculpture located under the North end of the George Washington Memorial Bridge, which is about a 10-15 min drive from Pike Place. If you're going to make a special trip to see it then spent some time exploring the Fremont area which is home to some great boutiques and vintage stores. And Norm's Eatery and Alehouse is only a 7 min walk from here (see ‘Eats’ for more info).
State Ferries
If you want to visit any of the nearby islands, dogs can travel on the Washington State Ferries with some restrictions. While dogs can travel ok in vehicles, if you're a walk-on passenger then small dogs in carriers can travel inside the vessel, while larger, leashed dogs need to remain in exterior passenger areas (shelter decks, promenade decks and/or sun decks). So if this is something you're interested in doing, then I would recommend doing it in warmer weather or make sure you check the forecast first! For more info visit the official website here
GETTING AROUND
If you don't want to walk to Space Needle Park you can catch the Monorail which is inexpensive, quick and something a bit different. Dogs are allowed to travel too - provided they are on leash. The Monorail travels between the Westlake Centre, downtown and the Museum of Pop Culture.
We didn't use any of the other public transport options here as we found the city to easy to navigate by foot and we were able to walk from one side of the city to the other quite easily, however if you want to travel out a bit further, a car would be required as the public transport system seems to only allow small pets in carriers.
EATS
If you're a foodie, you'll also love all of the options and different price points in Seattle (from high end restaurants to cheap eats. We found it to be very dog friendly and almost every patio seemed to have a dog on it! Here were a few of our fave eating spots - that were all close to Pike Place Markets.
Old Stove Brewing Co - we stopped here after a long day of walking and they have a large outdoor deck and area located off Pike Place (entrance is to the right of the Market). We got a table outside with Beats and sampled one of their beer paddles. The views over the waterfront area and out into the harbour are fantastic, but get even better as the sun starts to set.
El Borracho - located close by Pike Market, this small vegan Mexican spot is great for a quick lunch and had ample outdoor seats. Beats didn't even know she wasn’t eating meat, it was that good.
The Crumpet Shop - being originally from a country that quite enjoys crumpets, we wanted to see what the US take on these would be… an the verdict is - pretty darn good (though they were a bit light on with the Vegemite!). The crumpets are made fresh each day and the are sold until they run out, so get in early - especially if you want to nab one of the few tables outside. Your best bud will definitely be begging for a taste.
We're not coffee drinkers, but we did take some time to find the original Starbucks, its just a pretty plain shopfront - but if you're a fan of the brand then it would be worth seeing (you'll find it at 1912 Pike Place).
Every dog friendly website mentions Norm's Eatery and Alehouse which is extremely welcoming to dogs, allowing them inside and even has a special 'Puppy Menu'…. While it does look amazing, it was a bit far for us to get to - but is definitely on the list for another time.
There are lots of great places to eat and drink in Seattle
IN SUMMARY
Seattle is a big city and so has some of the obvious things to be aware of when visiting, such as large numbers of beggars and unhoused people. The cruise ship season also brings large numbers of tourists which can mean the main tourist attractions can be really busy at times, and we also found accommodation to be quite expensive.
But, we also loved how much there was to see and do in Seattle and how vibrant it was - as we’d visited some other major cities and they felt boring and empty in comparison. Seattle was also incredibly dog-friendly, and not just in the cookie-cutter way, but in the variation of things that we could see and do with Beatle. This meant we were able to spend a lot of time together exploring, and based on that, I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for an exciting city break with their best bud.