Photo: Caitlyn.stark, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
The main Seattle venue for touring Broadway musical shows; also hosts a number of original musicals that later head to Broadway.
The 5th Avenue Theatre is a landmark theatre located in the Skinner Building, in the downtown core of Seattle, Washington, United States. It has hosted a variety of theatre productions and motion pictures since it opened in 1926. The building and land are owned by the University of Washington and were once part of the original campus. The theatre operates as a venue for nationally touring Broadway and original shows by the non-profit 5th Avenue Theatre Association.
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An aesthetically and acoustically beautiful new concert hall. The official home of the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, it also houses other classical and performing arts roadshows.
Seattle Central Library
A dramatic glass and steel structure in the heart of Downtown, designed by Rem Koolhaas. This is not an average public library and has become a tourist destination in its own right. A popular way to experience the unique architecture of the building is to take an elevator to the 10th floor, the highest observation deck in the building. From here you can walk down to the main floor through the Book Spiral; the core of the structure which organizes the library's books in one continuous path organized by the Dewey decimal system.
SAM
The museum displays a good assortment of art from the Pacific Northwest and around the world. Though the permanent exhibitions only occasionally delve deeply into a specific subject (such as the enormous variety of pieces in the porcelain room), extensive special exhibitions fill the gap. Tours available.
Seattle's longest running improv theater.
Columbia Center
This observatory sits on the 73rd floor of the Columbia Center, one of the tallest buildings on the West Coast and the tallest public observation deck in the Pacific Northwest, sitting 932 feet (284.2 meters) above the ground and more than 330 feet taller than the Space Needle. Great views are offered from the top and some people claim the view is better from here than from the Space Needle. Another advantage over the Space Needle is that this building isn't well known as a tourist attraction, so there's usually little to no line to get to the top. Tickets are available for purchase online ($2 less expensive or in the atrium at the Columbia Center). There is a cafe in the observation deck serving sandwiches and drinks (including beer and wine) and a food court at the bottom of the Columbia Center.
Offers special dinner and sightseeing cruises. The most common tour visitors take is the hour-long journey on Elliott Bay, which gives you an excellent view not just of the Space Needle and the Downtown skyline, but the freight harbor to the south as well.