Seattle/vancouver/anchorage

[petrolhead611]

Spending 2 nights in downtown Seattle, then 2 more in Vancouver half mile from the cruise port, September using public transport,prior to an Alaska cruise. Then 3 nights with a rental car in Anchorage. Suggestions of where to eat, things to do/see please.

[id10t]

Wife and I did the Alaskan cruise thing from Vancouver up the coast and back. Stayed in Vancouver for a couple of extra days, did Stanley Park, Victoria Gardens, the Aquarium

[Nordwest]

Pike Place Brewing for a beer and The Athenian for lunch or dinner.

Cheers,
Dave

[Ayles]

Depends on where you are in downtown Seattle. Polar bar is fun to grab a drink in a historic hotel, steer clear of the tourist traps and you will be rewarded. So much good food in the city.

http://thearcticclubseattle.com/dining-libations/polar-bar/

[TheMentat]

what time of year?

[varmint]

The wildlife sanctuary in girdwood. You will get disturbingly close to huge critters.

Club Paris, best steak house in town.

Rent a GS BMW.

There are jet ski tours out of Seward that will get you right up to the glacier and sometimes cruise by killer whales.

White water rafting on the Kenai.

Hunting, fishing, clamming, three days is nothing.

[Ayles]

Originally Posted by TheMentat

what time of year?

Cruise terminals are empty right now... I don't think the boats start showing up until late Spring.

[djmcmath]

Originally Posted by TheMentat

what time of year?

Critical question. In Seattle, it's cold and rainy for about 9 months of the year. It's warm and rainy for the other 3.

If you're in Seattle for two nights:
- Craft beer: Given the weather, we PNW folk occupy ourselves by brewing. It's tough to go wrong, but if you're really nuts, try out the Tap House. There's more beer than you can sample in two nights. Alternately, take a $15 Uber north into Fremont and sample the breweries there, on site. Totes McGotes, worth the trip.
- Wine: If you prefer wine, Washington is becoming well-known for their local wines. Purple Café always generates good reviews, though I'm not enough of a connoisseur to have made it myself.
- Seafood: It's right on the water, so the seafood here is pretty darn good. Ivar's is a historic site, and they do a mean fisherman's stew. Up a block is Nijo Sushi, which I've always enjoyed. That said, most of the local places are insanely competitive, so if they have seafood on the menu, it's likely to be good.
- Coffee: You'd be remiss not to have some coffee while you're here. The original Starbucks is in Pike Place, but I prefer Storyville, right upstairs -- better atmosphere, better coffee, and Storyville is really a front company for a non-profit that's working to abolish human trafficking.
- Food Tour of Pike's Place: There's a bunch of spots in the market area that do food. Grab a sample of chowder, a tiny grilled cheese sandwich, some hard pear cider, and a Turkish delight. Can't go wrong, seriously.

- Improv: If you like improvised comedy, Unexpected Productions (Post Alley, next to the Gum Wall) is a great local non-profit.
- Jazz: Dimitriou's Jazz Alley does really first rate live jazz music over dinner. If you catch a no-name show on a weeknight, you get great live music, front row seats, and a good dinner, all at once.
- Miscellaneous: We've got everything from local theater to opera to burlesque, from ACT Theater to the Seattle Opera to The Pink Door.

Outdoor stuff: I'll just put in one small plug. One of the great draws of this area is the mountains. If you have time, figuring out how to make a day hike would almost certainly be worth the effort.

Hope that clarifies Seattle, at least.

[Nordwest]

He is visiting in September....

[djmcmath]

Originally Posted by Nordwest

He is visiting in September....

Oh, right, for those of us who read the question. Sorry. #sheepish

September is hit-and-miss: plan on 55-65F and raining, but it could be 75 (and raining). Special bonus: after Labor Day, there are a lot fewer tourists in town, so things get a little more normal in terms of traffic in the popular things to see.

[scottmandue]

We were there for a wedding a few years ago (want to go back for a week or two).

So we were/are tourist, not sure if Pikes Place Market qualifies as a tourist trap but you could spend the better part of a day just checking out the market and surrounding shops/restaurants.

I poked my head into the Starbucks not knowing it was the first... I generally prefer small mom and pop coffee shops and found something further down the block, probably should have grabbed a cup just to say BTDT, by the time we wandered back by there was a line going out the door.

If you like glass sculpture there is the Chihuly garden right under the space needle.

[Laneco]

If I had 3 days with a rental car in Anchorage, I would LEAVE Anchorage. There isn't anything wrong with Anchorage, but there are just SO many things to see and do everywhere!

I would head north out of town - destination Denali National Park. If you are there EARLY in September, it should still be open. If you are crazy lucky, it will still be in "fall" (which lasts about two weeks) with spectacular golden leaves and possibly brilliant red fireweed. Book a bus tour into the park, it's worth every penny. You can only drive a few miles in but the buses go all the way to Wonder Lake.

On the way up or back, hit up Talkeetna. It's few miles off the main road, but it's good pavement/safe travel and is just a cool little town. Touristy, but also THE jumping-off place for those who are climbing Denali. You won't run into anyone actively prepping for their climb in September as that seems to run quite a bit earlier in the season. Great place to eat is Talkeetna Roadhouse. Great food, generous portions and a lot of fun group seating. Especially if you are up earlier in the year and get to eat with people prepping for a climb! They are SO jazzed up! Need a little more adventure? Get a plane tour of Denali - some of them even land on the shoulders of the mountain.

If you are out of the car, don't mess with the moose or the bears...

angela

[PetrolBlueSC]

The Alaska Native Heritage Center is a good place to visit. As well as some of the fur shops. There are great places to eat and plenty of breweries. The restaurants range from cheap places that have been operating for 50 years (that's a long time here), brewpubs, every kind of Asian food, steak houses and high end fancy restaurants. Going north is great, but it takes longer to get to the good stuff. Going south toward Seward gets you into great scenery sooner. A day cruise out of Seward can be spectacular. I am in Anchorage so feel free to PM me with questions. I saw that you are from UK, well my wife is a contractor at a large British owed oil firm with an office in Anchorage and often works with folks from your side of the pond.

[tevake]

I'm not much of a cruiser, but that trip tops the list as one of interest. I hope you got an outboard cabin with a balcony as just sitting and watching the sceenry/ wildlife go by seems so nice in the inside passage.

I spent a summer teaching sailing out of Seward, a truly beautiful area. A day trip by boat , as mentioned by Petrol Blue, to the coast, nearby islands and neighboring bay with glaciers is time well spent.

Also some accounts of Capt Cooks travels in the area may be of interest.

A couple of books based in AK may be of interest for the cruising time.

The starship and the canoe by Kenneth Brower.
and Handloggers by William Jackson

Have a great trip

Cheers Richard

[petrolhead611]

Thanks guys(and Angela) for all the interesting info. There will be so much to see and do.
A bit of rain doesn't worry us, being from northern England.