Seattle: Private Walking Tour with a Local Guide｜United States

Meet the guide, Bob Payne, downtown at your hotel or at a landmark. Then, find out the highlights and hidden gems about Pike Place Market — it’s not just fish mongers. Check out the newly redesigned waterfront area below the market and learn about the major structural change to the area that was completed a few years ago.

Get an inside tip on the cheapest way to get out onto Puget Sound for the best views of the city skyline. Learn about Seattle’s earliest history with exploration of Pioneer Square, including why the term “skid road” (later “Skid Row”) originated here. Hear about how the city exploded in population amid the Klondike Gold Rush.

Move next to the city’s International District, the “ID.” This is an excellent area to stop for a quick lunch and to explore an amazing international grocery store. You’ll also bear witness to a sad experience for Japanese-Americans in WWII. And walk by the site of one of Seattle’s most infamous crimes.

Optional: Take a 15-minute water taxi ride over to West Seattle. Do some beachcombing and try to spot local wildlife. Optional: Head back up to the north part of downtown to the Seattle Center, home of the Space Needle. Is it worth the cost to go up to the top? Discuss this with your guide. There’s more to the Center than the Needle though.

Optional: Take a 15- to 20-minute bus ride further north to Fisherman’s Terminal, home of the Pacific fleet of commercial fishermen, including the “Deadliest Catch” boats. Learn what the “Uncruise” line is all about and see the ships if they’re in port.

Not far from the terminal is the Ballard Locks, probably your guide's favorite Seattle attraction. Find out what happened when authorities tried to deal with sea lions that were gobbling up the salmon that were waiting to go up the fish ladder. Ever seen a heron rookery? That’s here too.

Optional: Next to the Locks is one of the coolest Seattle neighborhoods, Ballard. Originally a home to Scandinavian immigrants who worked aboard the fishing boats, it’s now an eclectic community with great shopping and incredible microbreweries. Perhaps stop in and have a pint.

A tour of the University of Washington campus can be an option. It’s always rated one of the most picturesque in the country. And it’s a great spot to rent a kayak or canoe to paddle either in protected wetlands nearby or among the floating home communities.

The tours will go on unless the forecast calls for constant rain. But in Seattle summers, that’s pretty rare (contrary to reputation). Oh and yes, we’ve got the free and clean restrooms plotted along the route.

About the guide: Bob Payne has lived in Seattle since 1989. He’s a world traveler who’s experienced walking tours in Vietnam, Germany and Spain. His professional career was in journalism, including 17 years working in online news at the Seattle Times. To dig deeper, find his website by searching “Sun Break Seattle Tours” on Google and clicking on the website link.