The Only Itinerary You Need for a Day Trip to Seattle

If you’re hoping to visit Seattle on a greater Pacific Northwest roadtrip, I have the perfect Seattle day trip itinerary for you!

I’ve visted Seattle multiple times with friends from the area that’ve let me in on all of the top things to do in Seattle along with a few hidden gems.

You can easily spend 1 full day in Seattle, however, if you want to make the most of limited time I recommend checking out this 3-hour Seattle Highlights Tour. You could even do this tour on a layover!

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🌲✨ IN A RUSH? CHECK OUT OUR SEATTLE FAVORITES!


GUIDED TOURS: 

🍰 Chef-Guided Food Tour of Pike Place Market: Eat your way through Pike Place market with a professional chef while learning the history of the market while you go!

👉 3-Hour Seattle Highlights Tour: A quick tour to see the top Seattle sights and learn some history of the city!

✨ Beneath the Streets Underground History Tour:See a side of Seattle that most tourists miss! Explore the underground pathways that were built in Seattle more than 120 years ago with stories of the Gold Rush and more! 

ENTRANCE TICKETS: 

🤍 Chihuly Glass Museum: Discover amazing glass-blown creations and learn about the process of blowing glass at the famous Chihuly Glass Museum.

✨ Chihuly Glass Museum & Space Needle Combo Ticket: Save money with this combo Chihuly and Space Needle combo ticket!

❗ Seattle City Pass:Save 46% of the top 5 sights to see in Seattle!


HOW WE SAVE MONEY ON OUR RENTAL CARS:

🚘 Economy Bookings Car Rental: Any bit you can save on your car rental is worth it. Our go-to is Economy Bookings.


OUR OTHER TRAVEL FAVORITES:

📸 Tours/Excursions: Viator & Get Your Guide
🚕 Airport Transfers with Car Seats in Multiple Locations: Welcome Pickups
👉 Travel Strollers: Zoe Traveler & Zoe Double
🍼 Baby Carriers: Tula Carriers, Wildride Hip Carriers 
📱 International Data Phone eSIM: Airalo
🚗 Cheap Rental Cars: Economy Bookings
🏠 Accomodations: Booking, Expedia, VRBO, Airbnb
🌎 Travel Insurance: World Nomads
We receive a fee when you get a quote from World Nomads using the above link. We do not represent World Nomads. This is not a recommendation to buy travel insurance.

Best Time of Year to Spend a Day in Seattle

The great thing about a one-day Seattle trip is you can go during any time of year, and you’ll have a great time. Because Seattle is known for rainy weather, it only makes it feel more like a local experience if you experience rainy weather as well!

Seattle winter temperatures range from 40°-50°F and very rarely will you experience snow (but it is possible a few days each winter).

Summers in Washington can be truly beautiful with highs from around 70°F-80°F and gorgeous sunny weather. You can choose when to visit, depending on whether you want the classic Seattle rainy weather or potentially sunnier weather.

I lived in the Pacific Northwest for 1.5 years and can recommend any time of year to visit.

However, if you plan to visit nearby national parks, I would aim for the warmer summer months.

How to Get Around Seattle in One Day

I have visited Seattle three times, and each time we’ve had a car because we were on a greater Washington road trip.

Some of the top things to see in Seattle are a little spread out, which can make having a car more convenient; however, you can generally get around by public transit or Uber.

About half of these stops on this 1-day Seattle itinerary are near each other, with the other half a bit spread out.

If you have a car, a good place to park is the Pike Place Market Parking Garage, which has reasonable rates and is a good, central location.

A Day in Seattle Itinerary: Quick Look

My itinerary fits quite a bit into one day, which is possible, however, you can easily drop 1 or 2 things to make it a shorter day.

Pike Place Market, the gum wall and the Great Wheel are right next to each other and the Space Needle and Chihuly Gardens and Glass are right next to each other. If you need to cut anything out, I’d cut out the Fremont Troll and Un Bien for lunch as those require a car for ease of access.

• Explore Pike Place Market
• Add some gum to The Gum Wall in Post Alley
• Ride the Seattle Great Wheel
• Snap a pic with the Fremont Troll
• Lunch at Un Bien
• Take in the views from the Space Needle
• See beautiful blown glass at the Chihuly Glass Museum

Map of the Best Things to Do in Seattle in One Day

*Use this interactive map to see the best things to do in one day in Seattle. Click on the full-screen icon in the top right corner to have this map open in your own Google Maps app or click on the arrow in the top left corner to see a pullout list of all points on the map*

One Day in Seattle In-Depth Itinerary

1. Explore Pike Place Market

One of the most iconic places in Seattle (and my personal favorite) is Pike Place Market. Pike Place was founded in 1907, making it one of the oldest, continuously operating markets in the US! It is just so cute and full of hundreds of craftspeople, farmers, small businesses, food joints, and shops.

I also love the many vintage (or vintage-inspired) neon signs lighting up stands or giving directions to the restrooms.

The market is located in a great, central location, making it a great start to your day.

If you really want to find the hidden gems at Pike Place Market, consider booking this Pike Place Market guided food tour. You’ll get to try delicious, local food and learn the history of the market while you’re at it.

✨ 🍰 Click here to learn about the Pike Place Market Guided Food Tour! ✨🍰

You’ve got to stick around the fish stand long even enough to see the ‘flying fish’ of Pike Place Market. When people purchase fish, the fishmongers throw the fist fast and hard from one employee to the next and into it’s wrapping. It’s so fun!

And be sure to visit Three Girls Bakery, which has been around since 1912 and was the first business licensed to women in Seattle💪!

You can even visit the very first Starbucks location, which is opened in Pike Place Market in 1971!

There used to be a delicious, humble Greek yogurt stand called Ellenos at Pike Place that had a massive following (still has).

However, after the yogurt exploded in popularity, they closed the stand and instead sell the yogurt at shops across the country. I highly recommend finding a jar of Ellenos yogurt while in Seattle.

At Pike Place, you can probably find it at the Pike Place Market Creamery or the Kitchen & Market Pike Place. If you don’t find it there, you can even find it at some grocery stores.

The owners of Ellenos have since opened a sister stand at Pike Place called Hellenika, which is a Greek creamery (so more like gelato/ice cream). I haven’t tried it yet, but if it’s as good as their first stand, Ellenos, I’m sure it’s amazing😍.

Pike Place is open 363 days a year, usually from 8 am to 6 pm. You could easily spend a couple of hours here (or more) wandering through all of the stalls and trying tasty food.

If you’re arriving by car, the market has a large parking garage here.

2. Add some bubblegum to the gum wall in Post Alley

The Gum Wall started in the 1990s and is, you could say, an art installation hidden very close to the main entrance of Pike Place. The wall is located in Post Alley, sort of under and to the side of the main entrance.

What started as just a few chewed pieces of gum is now both sides of the alley covered in colorful, chewed pieces of gum.

I’m sure that, to some, the Gum Wall is an entirely disgusting concept and not anything they’d be interested in seeing.

However, I find it kind of fun and cool (also a little gross). Be sure to bring some gum along with you to blow bubbles and add to the wall!

3. Take a ride on The Great Wheel

Just a 7-minute walk from Pike Place Market is Seattle’s Ferris wheel. I’m a sucker for a good view. So, of course, we also took a ride on The Great Wheel.

The Great Wheel is 175 feet tall and offers great views of both the city of Seattle and the Puget Sound.

The ride rotates around the circle 3-4 times and the seats are (thankfully) fully enclosed. I’m actually very scared of heights, but rode The Great Wheel (with only some trepidation😅). It definitely helped that our seats were enclosed, and I made sure my group didn’t excessively rock our cabin.

If possible, the views would be great at sunset or at night when the city is all lit up.

4. Pick up lunch at Un Bien (a local hotspot)

Un Bien is a fun Caribbean joint serving sandwiches, bowls, and salads with both meat-heavy options and some vegetarian options.

Un Bien is a down-to-earth establishment that started with the owner’s father’s original recipes. It’s a walk-up wooden stand with a cute and colorful pink and green exterior.

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Our friends who live in Seattle took us here as a special treat, and after checking the reviews, we realized they weren’t the only ones who love Un Bien! It’s a total hidden gem and a must-visit according to the locals!

Un Bien isn’t exactly on the route from The Fromeont Troll or Pike Place to the Space Needle; however, if you have time to go a bit out of your way, it’ll be worth it!

5. Say hello to the Fremont Troll

The Fremont Troll is an awesome piece of art that is located basically in a neighborhood under an unassuming overpass. In 1989, the troll was created as part of a competition to rehabilitate the area under the bridge that was becoming a little too dicey.

The artist, Steve Badanes, created this 18-foot-tall troll made out of ferroconcrete and rebar steel, inspired by the tale of Three Billy Goats Gruff.

This is mostly just a quick photo op while in Seattle, but it’s definitely fun and a cool thing to see. You would need to take a bus or an Uber to reach this area from Pike Place, as it’s a bit out of the way.

6. Take it to the top of the Space Needle

The Space Needle is obviously one of the most iconic things that come to mind when thinking of Seattle. The structure was created as part of the 1962 World’s Fair and is a great spot to go for lovely Seattle and Puget Sound views.

Again, because I love views, we also took it to the top of the Space Needle.

If you plan to visit both the Space Needle and Chihuly Glass Museum, I recommend purchasing this combo Chihuly/Space Needle entrance ticket or potentially the Seattle CityPASS which gives you entrance to 5 top sights in Seattle.

❗Click here to see what sights are included in the Seattle CityPASS. ❗

7. Discover Chihuly Glass Museum & Gardens

Discover the world-famous glasswork of Dale Chihuly. The Chihuly Glass museum has galleries full of gorgeous glass creations that you never would have thought were possible.

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My favorite is seeing the glassblowing workshop where local glass artists show the glassblowing process and explain how it works. It’s amazing!

You can learn more about the Community Hot Shop, where the demonstrations take place, here.

If you plan to visit both the Space Needle and the Chihuly Gardens and Glass museum, I recommend purchasing this combo ticket to save money.

❗Click here to see the money-saving Chihuly Gardens and Glass/ Space Needle Combo Ticket! ❗

Additional Things to See in Seattle in a Day

If you are lucky to have more than one day in Seattle or you just really like to pack in as much as possible to your one-day-in-Seattle itinerary, here are additional great things to do. You may consider purchasing the Seattle CityPASS if there are enough attractions you plan to visit.

• Gasworks Park
• Chihuly Glass Museum
• Museum of Pop Culture
• Ferry ride to Bainbridge Island to stroll and shop along the cute main street
• Seattle Underground Tour (I’ve never done this but I have *almost* booked it like 3 times)
• Capitol Hill Area
• West Point Lighthouse
• Golden Gardens Park and Beach

And those are my recommendations on what to see in Seattle in 24 hours! Please let me know in the comments below if you have any questions about other things to do in Seattle in one day.

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