Seattle: Space Needle, Starbucks, Salmon, Seahawks and Beer!

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The Emerald City, Seattle is known for many great things; from the iconic Space Needle built for the 1962 World’s Fair, the home of the original but now global Starbuck’s coffee house, the Superbowl XLVIII champions The Seahawks and of course the local delicacy of both fresh and smoked salmon.  But did you say beer?  Seattle is not home to goliath companies like Anheuser Busch Inbev, Heineken, SAB Miller, Asahi or Carlsberg, but did you know that Seattle has one of the world’s densest areas of microbreweries? 

Ballard, a lovely area in Northwest Seattle is home to 10 microbreweries.  From IVHE property 1134, you can create a great pub crawl to experience all 10 of these original brews as they are within a mile of this charming property!  While the beer is fantastic, you can also enjoy plenty of excellent restaurants, close to fifty (50) options, ranging from Vietnamese, Italian, Puerto Rican, Mexican, Chinese and one of my local favourites Chinook’s at Salmon Bay located at the Fisherman’s Terminal.  If you feel like cooking (take advantage of staying in a furnished home) the Ballard Farmer’s Market is a great way to get fresh ingredients every Sunday morning.  Of course for an even wider selection you can make the quick trip to the world famous Pike Place Market. 

Have you ever visited a working waterway lock?  Locally known as the Ballard Locks, the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks are at the entrance of the Lake Washington ship canal where you will see hundreds of working fishing boats, pleasure sailing boats and yachts throughout the year.  Catch the salmon run and you truly see how nature also uses these man-made water gates. Just up from the locks is Golden Gardens Park where the views of the Puget Sound are stunning.  From June to August seals visit the rocky shoreline and at the northern end of the park look for a beaver lodge.    

Also within a mile from this IVHE property is Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo.  Feel like stretching your legs a bit more?  Also nearby is Green Lake a local favourite for walkers and joggers.  The circumference is a easy 2.8 miles (4.5 kilometers) and offers lovely views with plenty of birds and people watching opportunities. 

We have only scratched the surface of what Seattle has to offer, best you plan your first trip, sit down and map out your full adventure while enjoying a nice local beer.  Cheers!