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City in Washington, United States
Photo: Jelson25, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Bellevue is the largest city on the east side of Lake Washington, across from Seattle in Washington state. Bellevue is perhaps the most ritzy part of the Seattle metro area and the Puget Sound region, mainly due to the presence of Microsoft at nearby Redmond and other tech companies occupying the downtown office towers. The dense downtown has much of the region's upscale and luxury retail. It also has many neighborhoods comprised of large houses, and excellent vistas of the water for the lucky few. It is considered more pleasant and safe, if blander, than Seattle, though the influx of international tech workers has led to a vibrant Chinese community.
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A must-see, especially the Garden d'Lights in the winter with extended hours until 21:30.
Meadows with trails and barns with farm animals.
Museums for kids with curiosity, opportunities for hands-on learning abound.
Movie theater with many first-run films from both the US and Asia.
Has a convention center and a theater, with frequent live performances of music and theater
Venue for classical music and comedy shows.
Bowling alley, video arcade, and night club.
Cougar Mountain Regional Wildland Park (CMRWP) is a more than 3000-acre park with 36 miles of hiking trails (12 miles suitable for equestrian use). It showcases a variety of natural features from forests and waterfalls to meadows and cliffs. There are four primary trailheads, each offering a different experience.
A lush city park for unwinding between or after work, or a family time. Various playground for different ages, cascading waterfall in a circular loop with an adjacent path, and activities year-round in the circle.
Extensive park with a promise to see wildlife at its wetlands. Open space containing two lakes, blueberry farm (open summer only) and seasonal produce stand, and multiple walk paths. It is located along the Lake-to-Lake trail that connects Lake Washington with Lake Sammamish on the west and east, respectively.
Natural undisturbed wetland park with multiple trails. Some activities include boating to Lake Washington and blueberry picking along the Heritage Loop Trail.
This stretch of beach was once the landing site for passenger ferries that ran between Seattle and Bellevue until 1921. It now has views of Lake Washington, a 420 ft pedestrian pier, a kayak rental facility, a private boat dock, paved and unpaved trails, picnic tables, a playground, a restroom facility and a sand bank. This is the closest public lake access to downtown.
A beach playground park, one of the few places where you can dunk in Lake Washington on a hot day.
A pizza joint where you can pick your own ingredients and quickly baked in wooden ovens. Various lemonade flavors for the drink.
Cheap yet delicious Indian food, with the combos and biryani being the best seller.
If you are peckish for a Vietnamese fix, this is where you can get it cheaply.
Perhaps the most vegetarian-friendly restaurant of the bunch, with its lunch buffets and on-the-menu items at best containing fish for meats.
Cavernous restaurant offering Chinese delicacies and some Japanese, plus karaoke bar.
Casual restaurant with burgers, fries, and shakes
Home of the world renowned xiao long bao (soup in dumpling) complemented with dim sum and Taiwanese fares.
A cheaper variety of Taiwanese food, specializing in street or night market dishes, bubble tea and sweet desserts.
Gilbert's Main Street Bagel
Serves excellent breakfasts & deli sandwiches, wide assortment of bagel choices, and great coffee.
Chinese restaurant meant for communal enjoyment; delicious dim sum, noodles, and à la carte Cantonese dishes.
Located on the 21st floor of the Bank of America Building, with spectacular views of the Cascade Mountains and Lake Washington available from every table. Serves traditional steak & seafood dishes, exclusively uses USDA Prime Beef.
High quality beef (or the premium wagyu) or pork flame-grilled by yourself, which leaves a melting taste. A5 wagyu rib eye at $90 being the most favorite. Due to the small restaurant, reservations are highly recommended at least two days before & limited to 60 minutes per seating.
Fragrant exotic dishes primarily from Southeast Asia and seafood.
For those with a humongous appetite. All you can eat meat (including prime ribs & fillet mignon!) carved tableside, plus Market Table (fruits & salads, cured meats & cheeses, antipasti) and feiojada bar (rice with black beans stew & beef or pork)
Bellevue's first local brewery. Happy hour 3-6PM daily.
A decent restaurant and bar.
Large collection of wine, a couple drafts, and tapas.
Bar and restaurant with live music (usually jazz, blues, classic rock, etc) five nights a week.
Located just off the 520 freeway. Within the heart of the Microsoft Main Campus.
Suites with fully-equipped kitchen. Offers self-laundry and complimentary grab and go breakfast. Allows pets.
A budget accommodation just a short walk from the Microsoft campus. Colorful small rooms, but free breakfast & WiFi makes up the experience.
Basic business hotel just a five-minute walk from the Meydenbauer center. It may feel like a motel on the outside, but the lobby is chic & the rooms are spacious. Rooms have free WiFi and free buffet breakfast. Free shuttle within 5-mile radius.
Two blocks away from downtown. Adequate rooms with free WiFi. A few open spaces & gardens at the hotel's inner circle. Free shuttle service within 3 miles from hotel.
Simple hotel with small rooms & free breakfast.
A moderately priced hotel that is the closest to the Meydenbauer Convention Center. Some rooms offer whirlpool and ironing. Free WiFi at all places, restaurant and Starbucks on-site.
Modern and spacious rooms.peppered with a couple of suites.
Combination of suites and large deluxe rooms, with extensive fitness and dining facilities belonging to the Bellevue Club property.
Cavernous rooms with dedicated executive level. On-demand omelettes & buffet for breakfast or Starbucks coffee & pastries at the lobby for something light.
The most luxurious of the Marriott chain hotels in the area. All-suites with personalized & warm service, free WiFi and breakfast. Roomy lobby with 24-hour minimart. Leisure-friendly with swimming pool, social nights, and Xbox lounge.
All-suite hotel, spacious rooms with shades of white interior. Complimentary breakfast & happy hour.
Rooms have FeatherBorne Beds and full kitchens. Laundry facility, fitness room, grocery shopping.
Mid-range hotel just four blocks away from Bellevue Square. Moderately spacious rooms offering large TV, complemented with free breakfast, laundry, WiFi, and shuttle within 2 miles.
The 382-room hotel offers views of the Olympic and Cascade mountain ranges and is a part of the Bellevue Collection, a major regional shopping destination.
Luxurious option right across Bellevue Square on the busiest streets of the city. Rooms with multiple options of views and all can sleep at least 4. Amenities include spa & trademark fitness studio, lounge & bar with Friday night live music.
All suite hotel only a block from Bellevue Square. Rooms are old but have fully equipped kitchen. Wine nights on Wednesdays and free bike rentals for strolling.
Sleek hotel with eccentric decor around. Party at the noisy bar or sink into quietness in the library.
The flagship mall of the city, with department stores and clothing lines galore. Food options are mainly concentrated in the "Lodge" building on Bellevue Way, and Lincoln Square which is connected to it by a skybridge.
A 'cheaper' and livelier mall than Bellevue Square, with more options of food, live music and some eccentric shops with several arranged weekly meetups. Best option if visiting as a family.
European-inspired shopping destination with upscale retailers (the likes of Hermes, Louis Vuitton and Neiman Marcus) and restaurants.
By plane
The nearest airport is Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. To get to Bellevue, take eastbound State Route 518 and continue straight towards Interstate 405.
By car
There are tolls for the SR-520 floating bridge and the express lanes of I-405, with rates that vary by time of day and traffic levels. There are no toll booths.
By train
By bus
Almost every King County Metro and Sound Transit bus that runs through Bellevue stops at the Bellevue Transit Center on 6th Street between 108th Ave NE & 110th Ave NE in Downtown Bellevue.
By public transit
King County Metro operates local bus routes. Some useful routes are:
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