THREE DAYS IN SEATTLE WASHINGTON

Here's the thing. Before we travel my favorite source of inspiration is scouring Pinterest and reading blogs about travel. I love reading all the city guides and favorite spots and opinions and finding hidden gems because people have taken the time to share. I make lists of all the cool spots that interest me and these help guide how we build out and spend our days. You find things you normally wouldn't and I appreciate so much the time bloggers spend creating these guides. We recently spent a long weekend in Seattle and I'm adding my itinerary into the Seattle guide inspiration :)

An impromptu trip booked 6 days prior, a flight from Calgary to Abbotsford, renting a car and making the two hour drive to Seattle. Spending three days in Seattle with friends, a mix of playing tourist but also wanting to see the day to day in Seattle - here's how we spent our time..

Road trip underway, a google search for a great lunch spot ended us up at Train Wreck Bar & Grill. If I was a local this is a spot I would be visiting over and over. Located in Burlington Washington, the service was warm and welcoming, the food delicious and for Jen who needed gluten free options it was no problem to accommodate and by the sounds of it, their gf bakery options were 5 star. One thing to note - it is a 21+ restaurant/ bar.

First stop planned as we came into town was University Village. An hour stroll around to stretch our legs, pick up a treat for the kids from their favorite store and visit a few shops we don't have here locally in Calgary. I love the open air mall and the grounds are lovely.

As a long day of travel starts to set in, it's time to head to the hotel - Sheraton Grand Seattle - to check in and get settled before our dinner reservation. The hotel is fantastic, right in the middle of where you want to be downtown, a few minute walk from Pike Place Market, welcoming, spacious, comfy rooms, a Starbucks and wine bar in the lobby. We opted for the Club floor and had a pastry/ fruit breakfast each day as well as coffee, beverages and snacks available when you stopped in.

We had dinner reservations for Oddfellows, Matt & Jen have been before and I was looking forward to it - they're open breakfast to dinner, the energy there is kind of casual in a great way, low light and intimate at dinner time, good cocktails and wine. It's a comfortable spot you can sit in and linger - which we did! Elliot Bay Book Company was right next door and that was a great wander - Jen and I were amazed at the books we have never seen in our local book stores.

DAY 2 -

We're up early so we wandered down to Pike Place Market, an under 10 minute down hill walk from the hotel. It was fun to see the bustle of the market on a Saturday morning. We wandered through a lovely deli market and then past the fish mongers, florists and all the tourists doing the same. If we had the means Jen and I would have packed a suitcase full of the cutest market finds - seriously the packaging alone. As we headed back up towards the hotel a stop to see the gorgeous three level Anthropologie Store where we oohed and ahhed over the bridal department and had to pick out a little something to bring home. Matt noticed the Mariners Team Store was also near by which was perfect as we needed to pick up something for the game that night.

Afternoon plans - Visiting Woodinville Wine Country has been on my want to do list, and it was definitely a highlight of the trip. Woodinville is a short 30 minute drive from downtown Seattle. We took an Uber out to DeLille Cellars for a leisurely lunch and wine ( we did not visit the tasting room, but sipped some delicious wine with lunch instead). If you like a crisp white, I loved the DeLille Roussanne. It was a popular spot, the food, service and ambiance so great. After lunch we made our way over to Woodinville Whisky. The boys did a tasting while we had some afternoon rain showers. I loved the vibe of this town and this little afternoon stop so much and I look forward to exploring the area more another time. I think it would also be a great weekend trip to spend the weekend here at a slower pace.

Evening plans - We had the afternoon timed to perfection and after our wine and whisky tasting, an uber back to the hotel and 15 minutes to change and get in another uber for the trip to the ball game. The Seattle Mariners were playing the Minnesota Twins and it was so much fun. We saw Cole Young hit his first major league hit and first walk off. So so cool to watch an entire stadium rooting for him. We had a jumbotron appearance when the girl in front of us was chosen to play a matchmaking game and had to send the video to the kids haha. We brought home stadium cups and will plan an upcoming ball game night and it was a little chilly so a fleece Mariners blanket had to be purchased ;) Post game we headed to The Nest to take in the views, and while the views were incredible, it took about 40 minutes for drinks to arrive.

DAY 3- Sunday took us to Ballard to wander through the Farmers Market. Such a highlight. The four of us love a farmers market and this one did not disappoint. The sun was shining and this is a gorgeous market, probably the largest I've ever been to and if you are local I can only imagine how great it is to pick up weekly groceries here. It was so lovely to take in and wander through. We stopped for lunch at Stoneburner on a whim, sat outside on the covered patio in the sun and I had the yummiest Dutch Baby with rhubarb preserves. 10/10.

As it's nearing time for us to get back on the road to cross the border and get to the airport, we did a quick drive + walk through West Seattle - Alki Beach. It's truly like stumbling on the cutest little beach town - another area that needs a re visit! Narrow streets, charming homes, we couldn't get over how green and lush the gardens are, and the charm.. I would love a chance to wander the streets and admire all the homes and gardens.

And that's how we spent our three days in Seattle. There are places still on the need to visit list, but isn't that kind of the best.. another trip, another time. <3