Our day in Seattle started with the complementary breakfast offered at the Hyatt Place.  We all found something we liked for breakfast, along with lots of coffee. 

After fueling up at breakfast, we headed out for our first destination, which was the Space Needle.  During our previous visit to Seattle for our Disney Alaska Cruise, we didn’t get a chance to go to the Space Needle.  We didn’t want to let this trip go by without visiting the famous tourist attraction.

Our hotel was only a few blocks away, so we walked over.  Within about 5 minutes, we were standing at the base of the tower.  We looked for a ticket booth and found a number of automated machines available.  Pro tip: if the ticket machines in front are mobbed, just walk around to the back because there are a lot of machines with no one using them.  We purchased our four tickets for use at both the Space Needle and the Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum next door.  We had to select a time to enter the Space Needle.  Since there was an entrance time available soon (in the next ten minutes), we selected that option.

When our time arrived, we headed to the entrance of the Space Needle.  The enclosed entrance structure winds around the base.  It has an included ramp so as you walk forward, you go up towards the second floor. 

There is an entrance picture as well that you can take with your family.  I believe there is a way to get the picture for free if you download an app for your phone. After you get your picture taken, you are then directed towards the elevator.

The elevator took about a minute to get us to the top.  Once you reach the top and step off the elevator, you will find two floors you can explore.  The top floor has the observation deck, restrooms, and a cafe.  The bottom floor has a glass floor.  The thought of it made me nervous, I’m not a big fan of heights.

The views from the top observation deck are amazing, if you are into terrifying heights.

Here is the Pacific Science Center that we visited during a prior visit to Seattle.

We managed to find the cruise terminal port that we would be heading to tomorrow!

After enjoying the observation deck (and I mean Nancy and the girls enjoying and me hiding inside), we made our way to the glass floor level.  I actually did manage to go out on the glass floor to enjoy the view.  We stayed there for a while, then decided to head down and go over to the Chihuly Museum.

The only prior experience I had with Dave Chihuly’s work was the chandeliers onboard Disney Cruise Ships.  We had noticed the outside of his museum the last time we were in Seattle, but we didn’t go inside.  The experience at the Chihuly Museum starts on the outside.

The various galleries, once you are inside the museum, are stunning.  Each one is more stunning and beautiful than the previous.  We spent about an hour going through the various galleries.

This is the Persian Ceiling.

This gallery has an under the sea feel to it.

After going through the interior galleries, you can go outside to the gardens.  The first is more of a green house.

There is also a covered walkway that has some more sculptures hanging from it.

After touring the outside gardens and having a quick snack, we decided to head back to the hotel for a quick nap.  We walked back and rested for just a bit.  After we got up, we decided to take the hotel shuttle down to the area around Pike’s Market.  Our first stop was Cupcake Royale.  We watch a lot of Cupcake Wars, so we never pass up the chance to try a good cupcake!

We had stopped at Cupcake Royale on our previous trip and we were excited for a second visit.  We got a few cupcakes to share, then headed to Pike’s Market.

The Market was just a few blocks down from where the hotel shuttle dropped us off.  We walked down to the waterfront and decided to go from one end to the other.  We did stop along the way so the girls could see the first Starbucks location.  They both like drinks from Starbucks back home.

We spend the next two hours walking all over the market, looking at the various stalls and enjoying the sites.

We even stopped for a bit to see the fish toss as well.

After walking the length of the market a few times (we even went downstairs), we decided to find something for dinner.  We found a nearby Thai restaurant, Noi Thai Cuisine, that was a few blocks down from the market.  The food was fantastic, as were the views – we were able to sit outdoors and enjoy the beautiful late afternoon weather.  Following dinner, we walked back to the hotel, stopping at the first Nordstrom department store before continuing back to the hotel.

Once we got back to the hotel, we got our bags ready for the next day, when we would finally be boarding our first Royal Caribbean cruise!

Planning | Travel | Seattle | Boarding | Exploring | Sea | Juneau | Skagway | Glacier | Sea | Victoria | Disembarkation | Travel

If you have enjoyed this article, please be sure to check out our Disney Cruise Line information page or our Royal Caribbean Cruise Line Information page, which has useful hints in addition to our cruise trip reports!

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