8 Budget-Friendly Kid Spots in Seattle | One Day in Seattle Itinerary

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 Seattle is an incredible city with much to see and do.  With only one day in Seattle, we were able to see so many interesting and amazing sights for a very little cost.  Seattle can be a high-cost vacation, but if you want to travel there and not break the bank, there is plenty to do that won’t cost a cent!

Our one-day itinerary.  Every agenda item was free (unless you chose to buy food or souvenirs) except the Ferry as listed and parking fees.

1. Pikes Market Place
2. Gum Wall
3. Seattle Waterfront
4. Hiram Chittenden Locks
5. Discovery Park (Puget Sound beach and lighthouse)
6. Seattle Center and International Fountain
7. Ferry across the Puget Sound
8. BBQ at the Hotel

1. Pike’s Market Place

With only one day in Seattle, get an early start right as Pikes Place Market opens (9 am).  I must not have done enough research, because I expected only a fish market with workers singing and moving all over the place (‘FISH‘ book anyone?) But really it is a multilevel giant mall, with portions of it being in the open air on one side of it.  We entered from the parking garage on the waterside We wandered through the empty and un-opened mall struggling to find the center famous part of it.

TIP: Use the downtown parking website or app:  This helps you know the cost of parking and where to find close parking anywhere downtown.  It saved us at least $10!

This picture is a fun memory because the kids were so anxious about the fish here. They wouldn’t approach them and they kept asking if they were dead.  I assured them they were dead and told them to get in a picture with me.  They reluctantly joined me but kept their eye on the fish.  Then right before the picture, this fish in the background jumped up!  Scared the kids (and me) to death.  The kids went screaming and crying away as the stranger with the phone snapped this.  Turns out the fish is attached to a chain and can be pulled from the other side of this display.

We had all sorts of fun with it later on (after the tears were dried).  Then other families got their laughs and giggles as we pulled it and scared their kids… so pay it forward!

Once the day got going (around 10 am), the market was really crowded (and this was a Thursday morning!).  We had trouble staying together with so much to look at and so many people.  The kids were begging for lots of things and my husband stopped to buy Brats and Salmon (packed with lots of ice so it could last until dinner time). We ended up walking on the outside of the market and looking at the sculptures and bridges from the market to the other side of the street. Seattle was so interesting!  We found art pieces, waterfalls, sculptures etc all around the city.

2. Gum Wall

This really is just a part of the marketplace, since it is just down the stairs from the central fish market.  The gum wall was gross!

  I thought I would really like it, but I was grossed out.  Luckily, my kids are old enough to NOT TOUCH when I commanded it!

TIP: Bring gum or buy it before going down.  We left ours in the car and bought more in a shop upstairs.  BRING SANITIZER!

3. Waterfront

Behind Pikes Place, we wandered down to the waterfront.  It was beautiful! We found ping pong, the giant Ferris wheel ($13/adults $9/kids), the Puget Sound and the aquarium ($25/adults, $17/kids)  if interested.  There was also a really cool blue path that I thought would be fun to bike if the kids were bigger.

We  spent 30 minutes enjoying the sites and sounds of the area and didn’t spend a dime (except in our parking that went over by 2 minutes and we paid another $3.) Biking the waterfront trail would have been my choice if we had older kids!

TIP: Bring a Sack lunch and eat on the provided picnic table with a fantastic view and the kids can roam or play ping pong.

4. Hiram Chittenden locks

We parked at the ‘locks’ and realized the kids and I were really hungry.  We found a fish and chips stand right outside the locks and despite wondering how the kids would like seafood.They loved it!  It always makes me a little nervous to take my picky eaters to new towns so I pack a lot of snacks, but I love finding food they will eat!

We then headed to a nice little park to see the Hiram Chittenden locks where the ships enter and it fills up or lets out water to move them from one lake/canal to another.  We were there just in time to see a few boats rise within minutes.  The kids thought it wasn’t real, so it was fun to try to explain it.

Unfortunately, we missed the salmon swimming upstream season by a week, but there are windows into the canal so you can see the fish trying to jump up the stream to get back to their nesting ground.  We saw a few fish swimming around.

TIP: Research the weeks that Salmon are running and this would be more entertaining

5. Discovery Park

We headed across the canal to Discovery Park (Free)  I didn’t realize that during the week you have to check out a parking pass to go down to the beach and lighthouse (on the weekend there is a shuttle running).  There are only 8 parking passes!  One was expected back within 45 minutes so we decided to wait.  There was a small, but fantastic kids play area with puppets, tunnels and a few other things to look at and do.  It was a perfect downtime for us and the kids.  The parking pass came right as we were ready to go and we headed out to the Puget Sound for some tide pools.

TIP: Research when the tide goes out and get a parking pass early if possible.

The water was coming in.  I didn’t see much of anything in the tide pools, but the kids liked exploring.  We walked around the lighthouse and it was much colder and windier around the point.  There were some great views and the kids always love a beach.  With only 8 cars allowed in the area, this was a perfect get-away from a busy city.  Our kids loved exploring and running free.

6. Seattle Center: International Fountain

We headed back downtown to the Seattle Center.  Here you can find the children’s museum ($10/person), the Space Needle($22/adults, $14/kids), Chihuly glass garden($27/adult, $16/kids), the international fountain (free) and lots of art and gardens (free) to see and explore.

This International Fountain was amazing.  Look at the little people next to it, this gives perspective to the enormity of it.  Even though I had researched it I thought it was only a small splash pad.   The fountain is choreographed to music so it is unpredictable and exciting for kids and entertaining for adults: win-win!  On a particular song the fountain sent water spraying SO high I got wet sitting above it and a hundred yards away.  It was so entertaining and fun.  Despite the weather being mild (in our humble Texas opinion) the kids were delighted to get soaked and run and play.  Such a great time was had here.

TIP: Swimsuits and a towel on hand would’ve been great!  It worked out just fine since kids are resilient, but if you are more prepared, stash some suits in your pack.

The space needle was a bit underwhelming.  It wasn’t nearly as high as I thought it would be.  The cost was astronomical though, so we passed, under it and took some photos.

We went into a “Center of the center” Seattle armory to find a restroom and in the process saw a lunch area with a bunch of places to eat.  There were giant games set out to play for free.  Giant scrabble (complete with bean bags for participants, connect 4, chess, checkers and other games).  I wish we had time to stay and eat and play.  Looked like a blast (for free too!).  We met a balloon guy and left the center with happy kids, ready for a rest.

TIP: Eat lunch or dinner at the Armory while the kids can be free to roam and play games here.

 7.  Take A Ferry Ride across the Puget Sound

An hour ferry ride across the Puget sound takes 1 1/2 hours; driving all the way around the sound also takes 1 1/2 hours.  I was so glad we opted for the more expensive ferry ride ($32) because it was a fantastic experience.  Mariah fell asleep on our drive to the ferry and was able to stay asleep in the car while we waited.  The kids and I explored around the ferry waiting area and looked at motorcycles and different cars (and changed into dry clothes).  The ferry views were indescribable.  Seeing the Seattle skyline and then the amazing homes along the Puget sound were so beautiful.   We even got to chat with a local about how his experience was moving from California to Seattle.  I loved getting an insider’s perspective.

8.  BBQ at the Hotel

We called our hotel while we were in line for Brats at the Public Market to see if they had a BBQ grill.  They did! You’ll have to check with your hotel to see if they have a grill or eating area.

Without any intentional planning on our part, our hotel (we got free with Marriott hotel points) was only 3 minutes from the ferry port.  Once at our hotel, I  set up the hotel room and headed out to set up dinner near the grill. My husband headed to the grocery store to get some extra fixings.  We couldn’t visit Seattle without a little rain, so with no warning and beautiful blue skies, the rain started falling, moving our BBQ inside.

Salmon, brats, chips, grapes, pickles, and juice.  I LOVED having our own space to enjoy dinner together without having to get on the kids for perfect restaurant behavior.  This was the perfect end to our day.  We really wanted to swim, but it was late (and even later in TX) so we headed to bed with visions of Seattle city in our heads.

TIP: Use the hotels breakfast paper plates and utensils for easy and quick clean up!

In Seattle, there were many family-friendly venues we could’ve visited, but we felt like we got a great overview of this city in a full day of adventures.  We only spent money on a bit of food, a ferry ride, and parking.  With our hotel covered by credit card points, we only spent about $65!

You could fill many days in this city with a bigger budget, but we opted to head for Olympic National Park.  Get that 2-day itinerary here.

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