MUSEUMS
The Klondike Gold Rush National Historic Museum
PIONEER SQUARE
The Gold Rush Museum is tucked away on a corner in Pioneer Square, and if you arenât looking for it, youâll probably pass it by. That is a major mistake. Everyone in Seattle should visit the Gold Rush Museum, which also happens to be one of the countryâs tiniest national parks. Many bigger-budget, higher-profile museums do a terrible job of presenting their artifacts, but thatâs precisely where the Gold Rush Museum shines. When you enter the museum, your first task will be to choose your character, RPG/Oregon Trailâstyle. Youâll then stock up on provisions and choose your route. Thereâs a lot to do in this small space, and the journey pairs particularly well with a pot lozenge. (SYDNEY BROWNSTONE)
Museum of History & Industry (MOHAI)
SOUTH LAKE UNION
The MOHAI is a must-see for both locals and visitors. The museum houses many stories, artifacts, and activities that help attendees connect with the region and its history, from the Great Fire to the birth of grunge music and technology that changed the world. Permanent exhibits include Maritime Seattle, the Bezos Center for Innovation, and True Northwest: The Seattle Journey. (On that journey, it is very important to watch the musical film about the fire, if only so you can hear the words âGLUE POT, GLUE POTâ ringing in your head for days.) Al Youngâs 1970 Dodge Challenger drag racing car is there through March 2024.
Museum of Pop Culture
SEATTLE CENTER
Museum of Pop Culture (MoPOP, formerly known as the Experience Music Project) is filled with interesting nerd matters about rock ânâ roll music (the only major art form that routinely denies being an art form), science fiction, games, and such like. In any other city, MoPOP would be a cherished weirdo sanctuary. In Seattle, itâs a problem because it was started by Paul Allen, who was a local billionaire. Donât be deterred. If you like that sort of thing, youâll like it a lot. (SEAN NELSON)
National Nordic Museum
BALLARD
The National Nordic Museum in Ballard is the only museum in America dedicated to the lives and cultures of immigrants and communities from the Scandinavian countries. Be sure to check their calendar, as they have great rotating exhibits (FLĂĂ by JĂłnsi of Sigur Ros is up through July). About a mile-and-a-half away is Scandinavian Specialties, which carries everything from clothes and household items to tasty gummy candy. (Swedish gummies > American gummies.)
The Wing Luke Museum
CHINATOWN-INTERNATIONAL DISTRICT
The Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience is more than an art museum, although you can often find art here. Itâs a living history museum filled with artifacts and objects that tell stories of Asian American and Pacific Islander experiences in Seattle, from the Chinese immigrants who began arriving in the 1850s to the diverse communities that thrive here today. The Wing is located in the heart of Seattleâs International District, with historic neighborhood tours happening almost every day. Plus, the best east Asian food in Seattle can be found in this neighborhood. Come hungry, leave inspired. (EMILY POTHAST)
TOURS
Bill Speidelâs Underground Tour
PIONEER SQUARE
Go and learn about how Seattleâs original streets were once literal rivers of human waste, how a benevolent sex worker created the public education system, and how a lazy Swedish immigrant started the fire that burned it all down in 1889. More importantly: As you lament the ongoing nightmare of Seattleâs transit imbroglios, it may come as some relief to understand that this city, like so many other pre- and postindustrial American conurbations, was founded and framed by thieves and idiots. (SEAN NELSON)
Seattle Architecture Foundation
VARIOUS NEIGHBORHOODS
Learn about windows, building materials, public parks, urban history, and other parts of Seattle you might not have noticed. SAFâs schedule changes often, but their unique 2-hour tour options include several downtown offerings, like âDiamonds & Gold: The Art Deco Skyscraper Northwest Style,â âGreatest Hits: Chart Toppers and Heart-Stoppersâ (which includes the impressive Central Library), and âThrough the Looking Glass,â which begins at the Amazon Spheres, the giant glass globes on the Amazon campus filled with more than 40,000 plants.
Stalking Seattle Tour
SEATTLE CENTER
These ârock & roll sightseeing toursâ play up the nostalgia for Seattleâs early 1990s grunge and rock scene. Stops on the 3-hour van tour include the Jimi Hendrix statue on Capitol Hill, the apartment building where Cameron Croweâs 1992 grunge rock rom-com Singles was filmed, the park next to the home where Kurt Cobain died, and more. Tours begin outside the Museum of Pop Culture (MoPOP).
