MINI GUIDE
Offbeat Seattle
COMPILED BY LORNA PARKES, WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM BRENDAN SAINSBURY. PHOTOGRAPHS:ZURAIMI/GETTY IMAGES, RAIMUND KOCK/GETTY, TODD STRAND/ALAMY, MARK KLEBECK PHOTOGRAPHY, JASON TANG PHOTOGRAPHY, ANDREAS HERPENS/GETTYSeattle essentials The know-how
FURTHER READING
Lonely Planet’s
Seattle
(US$21.99) is a
comprehensive
guide to the
city, including
suggested walking tours,
itineraries and day trips.
Find Seattle in Lonely
Planet’s free Guides app
on iTunes. Stranger is
Seattle’s best (and free!)
newspaper for up-to-date
entertainment listings
(thestranger.com). For an
illuminating insight
into Seattle’s high-tech
boom, read Waxwings
by Jonathan Raban
(US$12; Picador), told
through the parallel
stories of two
immigrants.MUSIC TO YOUR EARS
Seattle’s musical heritage is
legendary: the jazz era produced
Ray Charles, rock delivered Jimi
Hendrix and then Nirvana brought
us grunge.
Crocodile Everyone who’s anyone
in Seattle’s music scene (including
Nirvana) has played at this
clamorous 525-capacity venue.
There’s also a pizza restaurant
(thecrocodile.com).
Tractor Tavern The premier venue
for folk and acoustic music, with a
gorgeous room that has top sound
quality (tractortavern.com).
Neumo’s A legendary punk,
hip-hop and alternative-
music venue that counts
Radiohead and Bill Clinton
among its former guests
(neumos.com).
Shorty’s This dive bar is all about
beer, pinball and punk and metal
music. It keeps the lights low and
the music loud. Pinball machines
are built into every table
(shortydog.com).(moorehotel.com; 1926 2nd Ave;
from US$80).
Hotel Five in Belltown mixes
’70s furniture with sharp colour
accents to produce something
dazzlingly modern. The reception
area invites lingering, especially
when free cupcakes and coffee are
laid out (hotelfiveseattle.com;
2200 5th Ave; from US$136).
Perched on a pier, Edgewater
was once the hotel of choice for
rock bands such as The Beatles,
The Rolling Stones and, most
infamously, Led Zeppelin, who
filled their suite with sharks
(edgewaterhotel.com; 2411
Alaskan Way; from US$235).WHERE TO STAY
Old-world and allegedly
haunted, the Moore Hotel is in
a prime location near the Seattle
Center. There’s a sweet café on
the premises and you can
practically hold your breath and
walk to Pike Place MarketTRANSPORT
The shortest flights are on EVA
Air from Singapore or Kuala
Lumpur via Taipei (from
US$1,012; evaair.com). The Link
Light Rail connects the airport
to downtown; trains run every
15 minutes (US$3;
soundtransit.org). Taxis are
about US$38 to downtown.
Public buses, streetcars, light
rail and water taxis are
good-value (single from US$1).
Bus schedules and maps are
available at metro.king
county.gov. Bike lanes are also
commonplace in Seattle and
many hotels offer free bikes; try
the scenic Burke-Gilman Trail,
which passes through Fremont.Hotel Five’s lobby, where guests
enjoy afternoon coffee and cakeShopping Sights Eating Sleeping