Things to do in Seattle

99 activities, venues and outings in Seattle, from theatres and live music to parks and tours.

Ranked with the travel guide's picks and well-known places first. Showing the top 40 of 99.

DoDowntown
5th Avenue Theatre
The main Seattle venue for touring Broadway musical shows; also hosts a number of original musicals that later head to Broadway.
DoUniversity District
Agua Verde Paddle Club
Hourly kayak rentals from Portage Bay providing access to the Arboreteum, Lake Washington and Lake Union.
DoWest
Alki Beach Park
Alki Beach Park is one of the best and biggest sandy beaches in Seattle. There's a rollerblade/bike/walking path along it for miles and the beach itself is always busy and fun. Great views of the city, the ferries and the Olympics. There are several great cafes and coffee shops right across the street. Good place for barbeque as well as many outdoor recreations. It has one of the best night view of Downtown Seattle and the city light.
Apr 15-Oct 1: 6AM-11PM daily, Oct 2-Apr 14: 4AM-11:30PM dailyFree
DoWest
Alki Kayak Tours
seasonal guided sea kayak tours for beginners and experts exploring the natural & human history of Elliot Bay and Puget Sound. They also offer a range of rentals along Alki beach – including stand up paddle boards, quad and inline skates, bicycles and fishing boats.
DoDowntown
Argosy Cruises
Offers special dinner and sightseeing cruises. The most common tour visitors take is the hour-long journey on Elliott Bay, which gives you an excellent view not just of the Space Needle and the Downtown skyline, but the freight harbor to the south as well.
Cruise times vary by seasonPrices vary according to your itinerary; $23.75 for harbor cruise
DoBallard
Ballard Commons Park
Ballard Commons Park features a playground, skate bowl, water feature, engaging public art, relaxing seating areas and lawns and ADA accessible walkways.
DoBallard
Ballard Seafoodfest
A parade, a salmon barbecue, local musicians and a lutefisk-eating contest. Most businesses along NW Market St participate by holding sidewalk sales.
Typically mid-JulyFree
DoDowntown
Benaroya Hall
An aesthetically and acoustically beautiful new concert hall. The official home of the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, it also houses other classical and performing arts roadshows.
Free tours offered Tue and Fri at noon and 1PM
DoPioneer Square-International District
Beneath the Streets
Groups are limited to 25 people for a more personal experience. Tours last 60 minutes. Spanish language tours available by appointment.
10AM-4:30PM, tours every 30 minutes$19
DoPioneer Square-International District
Beneath the Streets' Red Light District Tour
An adults-only tour with a focus on the "underside" of underground history: prostitution, gambling, drinking and vice. 18 and older. Tours last 90 minutes.
Thu-Mon 6:30PM$22
DoPioneer Square-International District
Bill Speidel's Underground Paranormal Experience
Search for ghosts and other paranormal activity at night. Tours last 90 minutes; arrive 15 minutes early to borrow and get trained on paranormal detection equipment.
Jun-Aug: daily 9PM, Sep: Fri Sat 9PM, Oct-Mar: Fri Sat 8PM, Halloween 10PM, Apr-May: Fri Sat 9PM$33
DoPioneer Square-International District
Bill Speidel's Underground Tour
The original Underground tour. Tours last 75 minutes, including a 15 minute introduction.
Apr-Sep: daily 9AM-7PM, Oct-Mar: daily 10AM-6PM. Tours on the hour; Jun-Aug: also on the half-hour daily 9:30AM-4:30AMAdult $22, senior/student $20, youth (7-12) $10
DoPioneer Square-International District
Bill Speidel's Underworld Tour
An adults-only tour with a focus on the red-light district. Admission include a cocktail. 21 and older.
Apr-Sep: daily 8 & 9PM, Oct-Mar: Thu-Sat 7 & 8PM, extra tours some holidays$27
DoWest
Blake Island State Park
West Seattle is a popular launch site to visit this island state park accessible only by boat that was the birthplace of Chief Seattle.
DoCapitol Hill-Central District
Central Cinema
A unique, smaller movie theater that shows older films as well as plenty of late night movie screenings of hilariously bad films. All seats have table in front of them so you can have excellent food and beer during the show. A couple times a month there are $1.99 movie nights for popular older or cult films.
$8
DoQueen Anne-South Lake Union
Climate Pledge Arena
The region's largest sports arena is home to the NHL's Seattle Kraken, the WNBA's Seattle Storm, and college men's basketball games of the Seattle Redhawks (Seattle University), as well as a major concert venue. It was built for the 1962 World's Fair. The arena's interior was completely gutted and rebuilt for the Kraken, but its original exterior remains intact, maintaining its historic listing. Tours not available; if you want to see the inside, you have to attend an event.
DoCapitol Hill-Central District
Club Z
On the other end of the spectrum, Club Z is a gay male bathhouse with no tubs and a lot of glory holes! Don't walk in if you expect to do any dancing or, um, bathing.
DoBallard
Egan's Ballard Jam House
A small intimate music supper club with mostly jazz (vocal and instrumental) and other styles of live music offered. Open mic (vocal jam) every other Wednesday evening.
DoUniversity District
Figure Drawing
Show up early to secure an easel and to find the host room. This nude figure drawing session is open to the public. Bring your own supplies, and cash for the model fee. Model is usually female. All levels welcome.
Sun 10:30AM-1PM$1-4 depending on number of attendees
DoBallard
Freakout Festival
An annual 4-day underground music festival held at various venues around the neighborhood each November.
Typically a Thu-Sun period in early November
DoBallard
Golden Gardens Park
A wonderful saltwater beach park in Ballard, past the locks and Shilshole Marina. Water around here is too cold to swim except for crazy and determined kids during the hottest months, but you can wade a little, walk the beach, make sand castles, claim a fire pit, and watch wind surfers and ships go by. On clear days there is a magnificent view of the Olympics on the other side of Puget Sound. Kids of all ages have endless muddy fun trying to dam up or re-route the fresh water stream flowing across one end of the beach.
DoNorth
Granite Curling Club
An excellent facility dedicated to curling, the loud ice sport with stones and brooms. They host regular open houses to teach people how to play.
DoBallard
Greenlake Park
The focal point of the Green Lake neighborhood. The 2.8 mi loop path around the lake is frequented by cyclists, runners, rollerbladers, and walkers. The lake is swimmer friendly; algae growth and closures were sometimes a problem before 2004, when the City of Seattle performed a comprehensive cleanup, and it is now one of the cleanest public swimming areas in the Seattle area.
DoBallard
Greenwood Classic Car Show
Outdoor car show with all types of cars and food vendors about 1 mile along Greenwood Ave North.
JunFree for spectators
DoCapitol Hill-Central District
Hothouse Spa & Sauna
A small urban women-only spa with an industrial/basement vibe. Great for a relaxing soak in the tub. Expect to be nude and quiet, and bring your own towels.
DoNorth
Jackson Park Golf Course
A decent 18-hole championship and a 9-hole executive golf course plus a driving range.
Championship course: $35 weekday, $45 weekend; Executive course: $8.50 9-hole, $14.00 18-hole (playing twice)
DoUniversity District
Jet City Improv
Improv comedy theater, with an emphasis on innovative improvisational formats.
DoBallard
Julefest
Discounted admission to the Nordic Museum and a large collection of food, drink, and craft vendors, with live music. A Nordic-inspired Christmas market.
Typically a Sat and Sun in late November or early December
DoNorth
Lake City Summer Festival and Parade
Lake City has a great street fair in late summer, complete with street vendors, food, music and a parade with local kids and performers on up to the SeaFair Pirates. It has a small-town feel while the streets are lined with all sorts of families and crazies from the neighborhood. Fun for all.
August
DoQueen Anne-South Lake Union
Lake Union Crew
A club boathouse for the local rowing community. If you have no rowing experience, classes are offered.
DoUniversity District
Laughs Comedy Club
Comedy club featuring both locals and nationally-known stars.
DoSodo-Georgetown
Lumen Field
Home to Seattle's beloved Seahawks American football team since 2002 and Sounders soccer club, plus the women's soccer club Seattle Reign, Lumen Field is an impressive open air sports arena with great views beyond the goal posts. It was also host to 6 matches during the 2026 World Cup. The stadium itself is notorious for being deafening while the so-called 12th Man cheers for the Seahawks. If you can't make it to the game, you can join a tour to see a glance of the history of the teams that call the spot home. Tours are held Fridays and Saturdays at 12:30PM and 2:30PM for $12, $5 for child ages 4-12, $8 ages 65+.
DoQueen Anne-South Lake Union
McCaw Hall
Home of the Seattle Opera and the Pacific Northwest Ballet, each considered among the best in the United States.
DoUniversity District
Neptune Theatre
Live music venue in a 1921 theater building, operated by the same management as downtown's Paramount and Moore.
DoCapitol Hill-Central District
Northwest Film Forum
A Seattle-based non-profit organization for film artists, showcasing American and international cinema as well as quarterly world premiere live performances.
DoUniversity District
Ravenna Park
Fans of comic artist Charles Burns might like to visit this park, the site of some of the creepier scenes in his book Black Hole.
DoCapitol Hill-Central District
Raygun Lounge
All-ages gaming bar with board games and pinball machines. The atmosphere is more like a dive bar: the beer, cider and wine are good, but the food is mediocre, and the TVs are usually playing B-movies (but sometimes have some good campy sci-fi like Doctor Who).
Mon-Fri 3PM-midnight, Sat-Sun noon-midnight
DoDowntown
SIFF Cinema Downtown
One of just three Cinerama theaters in the world, this cinema shows art, indie, and foreign films and documentaries.
Variable pricing
DoCapitol Hill-Central District
SIFF Cinema Egyptian
One-screen theater showing art, indie, and foreign films and documentaries.
Variable pricing
DoQueen Anne-South Lake Union
SIFF Cinema Uptown
Three-screen theater showing art, indie, and foreign films and documentaries.
Variable pricing

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Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Seattle (CC BY-SA 4.0).