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ADVENTURE
Nature walks, hiking, bicycling, mountain biking, canoeing and kayaking, river rafting, eagle floats, fresh or saltwater fishing, mountain climbing, llama trekking, skiing or snowshoeing; these and more are available from just a few minutes to half a day away. Need to get outfitted? Start by visiting three of the premier names in outdoor wear and gear, Eddie Bauer and REI (whose flagship store in Seattle even offers visitors a 65 ft (20 meter) indoor climbing wall and a "rain room" to test outerwear).

AVIATION/AEROSPACE
Boeing's first airplane was a seaplane that took off from Lake Union-only five minutes away from downtown Seattle. The Red Barn at the Museum of Flight, just south of downtown Seattle, was the original Boeing Airplane Factory. The museum today houses aircraft from the Wright Brothers to spaceships, and includes the original Air Force One used by three U.S. Presidents. Further afield in the city of Everett, 30 miles (48 km) north of Seattle, is the largest building in the world-assembly plant for Boeing's 747, 767 and 777 airplanes.

If you're looking for the exhilaration of flying off the water, you'll love seaplanes, and you can depart from Lake Union, only five minutes from downtown. Kenmore Air offers flightseeing, scheduled service to the San Juan Islands, British Columbia, the Inside Passage and other destinations. Special fishing, picnic, dining, hotel, other excursion packages and charters are yours for the asking. Seattle Seaplanes is also located at Lake Union and offers scenic flights, dinner and special occasion flights and private charters.

ART GALLERIES
Over 190 galleries are located in the greater Seattle area, with many more throughout the state and region. Exhibits of every kind abound, including a full range of framed art, sculptures, blown glass, jewelry, contemporary animation, pottery, Native American collectibles, clocks, antiques, handcrafted furniture and much more.

BREWERIES
Seattle and Washington State are well known for boutique beers and quality microbreweries. Some offer tours and tastings, including Redhook Ale Brewery in Woodinville as well as the Pike Pub and Brewery and Pyramid Brewery and Alehouse in downtown Seattle. Beers can also be sampled at Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant in Pacific Place and Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery at Rainier Square.

CRUISES
Whether the destination is Alaska, the triangle of Seattle/Victoria/Vancouver, the San Juan Islands, or anywhere around Puget Sound, there are opportunities to enjoy overnight cruises or cruise/land tours of 2-14 days or more. Seattle has been growing as a cruise port since the Bell Street Pier opened in 2000. Ships will now be departing from Piers 30, 66, 69 and other nearby locations. Seattle is a homeport to the following:
• American West Steamboats (Alaska)
• Celebrity Cruises (Alaska)
• CruiseWest (Alaska & Pacific Northwest)
• Fantasy Cruises (San Juan Islands & British Columbia)
• Glacier Bay Cruiseline (Alaska & San Juan Islands)
• Holland America (Alaska)
• Norwegian Cruise Line (Alaska)
• Princess Cruises (Alaska)

CULINARY
From Pacific Northwest cuisine to an extensive variety of ethnic specialties, local chefs are creative and skilled in delivering the magical combination of taste and presentation. Expand your gourmet experience in one or more of the following ways: Visit Pike Place Market with a local chef, then observe as your lunch is prepared. Take a class in the use of fresh herbs. Visit a local produce farm. Pick berries. Attend a wine and cheese tasting or a wine and chocolate tasting

GARDENS
Do you love gardens? Why not start your experience with February's annual Northwest Flower & Garden Show with 28 full-size gardens, over 400 exhibitors, more than 100 seminars and hands-on demonstrations, and top experts and horticulturists from around the world? Springtime brings the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival and Weyerhaeuser's Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden in full bloom. The Washington Park Arboretum and Bloedel Reserve are beautiful at any time of year. Enjoy parks designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, or the Tropical Rain Forest and the Rose Garden at the Woodland Park Zoo, and the Bellevue Botanical Garden. How about water gardens, a Pacific Rim Bonsai Collection, or fields of lavender for the picking in mid-summer? Ann Lovejoy's Garden School, Elandan Gardens, Lakewold Gardens, and the internationally known Heronswood are also close by. Explore for a day, or perhaps an entire week.

GLASS ART
Washington State is a mecca for glass artists. In fact, there are more hot shops in this region than anywhere else in the world, including Murano, Italy where the art of glass blowing began. The Pilchuck Glass School, founded in 1971 by legendary pioneer in the Studio Glass Movement, Dale Chihuly, and art patrons John and Anne Hauberg, is located about an hour north of Seattle. Each summer, students from over two dozen countries come to learn from the best and the brightest, as well as from each other. Become part of the glass experience by visiting local studios to watch artists in action. View displays in many area hotels and public buildings. Browse art galleries featuring the works of local, national and international artists.

Reflecting the importance of glass art, the Museum of Glass and the 500-foot long glass and steel pedestrian overpass, Chihuly Bridge of Glass, opened in Chihuly's hometown of Tacoma, approximately 40 minutes south of Seattle, in July 2002. The 75,000 square foot building contains galleries, a 180-seat theater, a museum store, a cafe, and other public spaces. New programs include "Hot Lunch" with glassblowing demonstrations, and "Night Blow" special evening activities that can be scheduled for groups. The Tacoma Art Museum opened in May 2003, housing among many other galleries a permanent display of the world's largest collections of Chihuly's early work.

GOLF
Washington State is home to 300 golf courses, with over 120 public courses located in Western Washington. In 2002, Sahalee Country Club, one of the area's top private courses, hosted the NEC Invitational Tournament. Excellent golf and our cosmopolitan yet relaxed nightlife make Seattle a great destination for golf vacations. Many courses are open year-round, with challenges for every skill level. Try the Golf Club at Newcastle, the Washington National Golf Club which has a University of Washington Huskies theme, Druids Glen, Echo Falls, Gold Mountain, McCormick Woods, Trophy Lake and Willows Run. Resort golf is also available.

ISLANDS
Some of the most beautiful islands to be found are located in Puget Sound and northward into Canada. From the central islands of Vashon, Bainbridge and Whidbey to the spectacular San Juan Islands which are known for their beauty, natural resources and living history, each island offers a different experience. Camp, hike, bicycle, kayak, sail, or watch for whales, seals, otters, eagles, blue heron, fox, rabbits, and other marine and wildlife. Visit a llama or alpaca farm, or explore a formal garden, dive into the world of sea anemones and octopi, or watch local artists at work. Dine on upscale cuisine or rub elbows with the locals at a pub. Interested in history? Several islands offer historic buildings, sites and landmarks dating back to the early 1800s. The larger islands can be reached by Washington State ferries or by scheduled or chartered planes or boats. Consider island hopping by seaplane for a special treat. Some of the smaller islands are more remote, and are accessible only by private craft.

MARINE TOURS
Nature-based activities in the region are abundant. Seattle-based adventures include The Seattle Aquarium and Hiram Chittenden Locks and Fish Ladder; the North Sound offers the Everett Everglades, the Northwest Stream Center, Jetty Island, scuba diving in Edmonds, the Tulalip Fish Hatchery, and whale watching; island destinations include Camp Casey and Admiralty Head Lighthouse (Whidbey Island), Naval Undersea Museum in Keyport and the Marine Science Center in Poulsbo. It's not difficult to put together a two-day itinerary - or a five-day one!

MUSEUMS
The Seattle area is home to an excellent selection of art, historical, scientific and special interest museums. Choose from American, Asian, African and European art; aviation from bi-planes to space capsules; historic naval ships and wooden vintage boats; state and regional history and industry; craft and design; glass art; Asian, Native American and Scandinavian contributions to the Pacific Northwest; natural history and cultural heritage; children's interests and hands-on activities; rock and roll and other American music and memorabilia; historic trains; police exhibits; doll art; bonsai in woodland settings; and a one-of-a-kind Science Fiction Museum & Hall of Fame.

NATIVE AMERICAN
Learn about the cultural and historical heritage of the Pacific Northwest's early residents through visits to area museums, galleries and retail specialty stores, along with experiences like Tillicum Village's "Dance on the Wind" program, or by attending a special event or pow wow at the Daybreak Star Indian Cultural Center. Some Northwest tribal groups also welcome visitors to their reservations, offering the opportunity to meet with tribal members and perhaps experience a ceremony or other special event.

PERFORMING ARTS
Seattle boasts more theaters than any comparably sized U.S. city, and the number of total performances ranks second only to New York City. Increasingly, Seattle is gaining a reputation as a city that sends great work to Broadway, such as the mega-hit musical Hairspray. World recognition is given to the Seattle Symphony with its nearly 100 compact disc recordings, 10 Grammy nominations and countless other awards and kudos for innovation and excellence in programming, to the Seattle Opera for its Wagner productions, including the "Ring" cycle in summer 2005 which will draw ticketholders from 49 states and 17 foreign countries, and to the Pacific Northwest Ballet for its Balanchine works and annually acclaimed "Nutcracker." Teatro ZinZanni offers extraordinary European spectacle, circus arts and live music blended with theatrical hi-jinks as you feast on a five-course meal. Factor in more than 25 professional theatre companies, hundreds of semi-professional and 'fringe' companies, fifteen regional symphony orchestras, plus professional choruses, chamber orchestras, dance groups, traveling Broadway productions, and more than 80 clubs with live music for all ages and tastes, and you'll find there is never a shortage of things to do during your Seattle evenings!

TECHINCAL TOURS
Seattle is a major port and gateway where nature, technology and lifestyle meet. It's no wonder that we attract technical study tours from around the world. Some of the most popular interests include agriculture, construction, wineries, fishing, shipping, e-commerce, manufacturing and distribution, behind-the-scenes retail, health care, waste disposal and recycling, employment practices, and retirement living.

WHALE WATCHING & WILDLIFE
Whale watching is a popular activity in the Pacific Northwest, with the three local pods of orcas (currently 84) most often observed between May and September. Excursions are available from Everett, Anacortes, La Conner, Bellingham, San Juan and Orcas Islands and Sidney and Victoria B.C. Kayaking/whale watch expeditions are also available in the San Juans. In March/April, gray whales can often be seen in southwest Washington as they travel north to Alaska for the summer. Back on land, be sure to include Woodland Park Zoo, The Seattle Aquarium, Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium in Tacoma, and Northwest Trek Wildlife Park on the way to Mt. Rainier.

WINERIES
As the second largest producer of wines in the U.S., with five distinct appellations (Puget Sound, Yakima Valley, Walla Walla Valley, Columbia Valley and Red Mountain) and 400 wineries, Washington State offers abundant opportunities to explore and taste. Small companies offer wine tours around the state, and local retailers and individual wine specialists can arrange private wine classes, wine and food pairings, and other educational or social activities.