Page 142 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Pacific Northwest

140  SEA T TLE

5 Pier 66 operational again. The route
has been replaced by metro
Bell St Pier Cruise Terminal, Pier 66,
Alaskan Way. Map 3 A1. @ 15, 18, 21, bus route 99. The buses
22, 56, 99. ∑ portseattle.org have been made to look
like streetcars.
One of the liveliest parts of the
waterfront is the Port of Seattle’s
Pier 66, also known as Bell Street 8 The Seattle
Pier Cruise Terminal. It is home Great Wheel
to a thriving luxury cruise ship
terminal, a pleasure craft Pier 57, 1301 Alaskan Way. Map 3 B2.
marina, a conference center, Tel (206) 623-8607. @ 15, 18, 21, 22,
and a handful of eateries. 56, 99. Open Jul–Sep: 10am–11pm
There is a constant hub of Sun–Thu, 10am–midnight Fri & Sat;
Sep–Jun: 11am–10pm Mon–Thu,
activity, with Bell Street Pier 11am–midnight Fri, 10am–midnight
Cruise Terminal and Smith Cove Sat, 10am–10pm Sun. & 7
Terminal (at Pier 91, north of ∑ seattlegreatwheel.com
downtown) together greeting
more than 200 cruise ships A lovely sunny day at Seattle’s The Seattle Great Wheel,
every year, most of which are Waterfront Park perched dramatically over
bound for Alaska’s stunning Elliott Bay, offers spectacular
Inside Passage (see pp278–9). is composed of a number of views of the city skyline and the
Pier 66 is also home to the Bell cubical structures. At its south Olympic Mountains. Built in less
Harbor Marina, a small in-city end is a large abstract statue of than a year, it opened in 2012.
marina for pleasure boats. Christopher Columbus gazing Standing 175-ft (53-m) tall,
For spectacular views of the out across the water. Other The Seattle Great Wheel is the
moored boats here, visitors can interesting sculptures, as well largest observation wheel on
gaze out from Bell Street Pier as coin-operated telescopes, the West Coast. Visitors can get
Cruise Terminal’s rooftop plaza. picnic tables, and benches, a ride lasting up to 20 minutes
On and around the pier is are dotted around the park. in 41 fully enclosed, climate-
a variety of restaurants, from The Waterfront Streetcar, controlled gondolas, each of
take-out fish and chips to more officially known as the George which can carry up to eight
comfortable and relaxed dining Benson Waterfront Streetcar passengers. There is a special
(see pp298–300). Line, began in 1982 and was VIP gondola as well, with leather
the first streetcar to run in bucket seats, a stereo system,
Seattle since 1941. It used and a glass bottom floor, that
6 Seattle Aquarium to be a great way to see can seat up to four people.
Seattle’s best attractions Each ride is accompanied
See pp142–3.
but was suspended in 2005, by a narration of Seattle’s
when the maintenance barn waterfront history.
and one of the stations were The Ferris wheel is lit up
7 Waterfront Park demolished to make room each night with white lights.
for the Seattle Art Museum’s For certain events, such as
Pier 57–59, 1301 Alaskan Way.
Map 3 B1. Tel (206) 684-4075. Olympic Sculpture Park (see Seattle Seahawks home
@ 15, 18, 21. Park: Open 6am–10pm p148). The track and other football matches, and on
daily. 7 ∑ seattle.gov/parks eight stations remain, but it is holidays, a special light
unclear whether it will ever be show is held on the wheel.
The Waterfront Park
com prises the area
between Pier 57
and Pier 59. The park
offers excellent views
of the Seattle skyline
and the waterfront,
and visitors have
even been known
to spot a seal. At
the north end of the
park is The Waterfront
Fountain, by James
FitzGerald and Terry
Copple. Made of
casted and welded
bronze, the sculpture The Seattle Great Wheel, extending over Puget Sound on Seattle’s waterfront
For hotels and restaurants see p288 and pp298–300

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