Seattle is Proud to Welcome You!

National magazines have lauded Seattle's livability in recent years, confirming what travelers suspected and locals always knew. This city on Puget Sound boasts a rare blend of cosmopolitan culture, scenic beauty and a welcoming spirit that embraces gay and lesbian locals and visitors alike.

City Scene
Seattle's downtown is walkable and energetic while its colorful neighborhoods unfold like an emerald necklace of parks and boulevards, 500-foot hills and scenic waterways. The Capitol Hill neighborhood is the traditional hub of gay and lesbian culture and entertainment and hosts the annual Gay Pride Festival. However, Seattle's sizeable, progressive gay and lesbian population pervades the entire city.

Classically Creative
According to Richard Florida, award-winning author of The Rise of the Creative Class, which chronicles the growing socio-political role of artists, scientists and other creative thinkers, Seattle ranks among the five most creative cities in America. Seattle invites you to "create" your own itinerary. Explore your inner Vulcan at the new Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame. Learn to play the electric guitar at the Experience Music Project. Conduct your own symphony at the Seattle Symphony's Soundbridge Music Discovery Center. Seattle is your stage!

A Mecca for Gourmands
Food is considered high art in Seattle. An array of sophisticated restaurants run by creative and sometimes daring chefs make the city a required stop for foodies. Menus showcase the region's bounty of wild salmon, Dungeness crab, oysters, mussels, fresh produce, strong coffee, craft beers and, of course, a wide selection of internationally-acclaimed Washington wines.

Renowned Retail
Seattle has been ranked among the top-ten gay shopping cities by Gay.com. Downtown Seattle's compact and easily walkable retail core allows you to hoof it between the Nordstrom flagship store and other local legends like Eddie Bauer. Shopping centers such as Pacific Place, Westlake Center and Rainier Square showcase international retailers such as Tiffany, Cartier and Montblanc. Just a few blocks east of downtown, Capitol Hill's Broadway Avenue East and the Pike/Pine corridor offer affordable couture, vintage collectibles, music and art stores and plenty of fun cafes and coffee shops to cleanse a shopper's palate. In the market for junk? Try the funky Fremont neighborhood in the city's north end.

Hip Hotels and "Alternative" Booking Services
Seattle hotels range from grand and luxurious to the sleek and trendy, cozy boutique inns to neighborhood bed and breakfasts. The Seattle Super Saver program, operated by Seattle's Convention and Visitors Bureau, offers an alternative to the mega online hotel bookers with a best available rate guarantee at more than 80 top Seattle hotels.

Book at www.seattlesupersaver.com or call (800) 535-7071 (from inside the U.S. and Canada) or (206) 461-5882 (from outside the U.S. and Canada). Phone reservationists personally inspect each property and can advise of hotel features and location, as well as make bookings. Reservation lines are open 8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m. (Pacific Time), Monday through Friday; and 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

It's Never Too Late to Get a Good Seat
Once in town, stop by the Citywide Concierge and Visitor Center, which offers one-stop shopping for restaurant reservations, sightseeing tours, performing arts and sports ticket arrangements, ground transportation and personal services. Operated by Seattle's Convention and Visitors Bureau and staffed by concierge professionals, the concierge center is located on the lobby level of the Washington State Convention & Trade Center at 7th and Pike in downtown Seattle.

Getting There is Easier Than Think
During the past three years, a wealth of new air service has strengthened the city's eastern connections, including hometown Alaska Airlines' non-stop service between Seattle and Washington, D.C., Boston, Newark, Miami and Denver, as well as new Chicago service from both Alaska Airlines and Southwest Airlines. Seattle-Tacoma International Airport is currently undergoing a $4.2 billion upgrade that includes construction of a third runway, as well as more than 100 other projects.

For More Information
Go to our Visitors area or call (206) 461-5840 for more information about visiting Seattle.

Ten Reasons to Visit Seattle!