Scarecrow Video is a Seattle institution—and after going nonprofit a few years ago, it’s been allowed to focus even more on its mission of providing access to films you can’t find anywhere else. This includes everything from obscure classics to Seattle public access archives. Its expert staff can probably direct you to anything you’re looking for, whether it’s picking up a new favorite genre or filling in your film history gaps. You can even linger and watch your finds in Scarecrow’s screening room.

Discovery Park, formerly a military base, is 500 acres of transit-accessible forested wonderland. A lighthouse along the water makes for a great destination as you explore, and its close proximity to city roads means you won’t get stranded if the weather goes south.

Discovery Park is also home to Daybreak Star Cultural Center, a Native American community space and art gallery, founded after a 1970 citizen occupation of the land.

A classic of Seattle architecture, University of Washington’s Suzzallo Library has the look of a much older library at a much older college, with Gothic arches and a bell tower—not a super-common look in the Emerald City. It was named for former UW president Henry Suzzallo, who, along with UW architecture program founder Carl Gould, established a directive to construct all new university buildings in Collegiate Gothic and encouraged local developers to do the same for the entire neighborhood.

On the other side of the park from the water tower, the Volunteer Park Conservatory is the perfect place for an all-weather nature walk. Located inside a temperature-controlled Victorian-style glass house built in 1912, the botanical garden features a wide variety of plants, including a couple of plants more than 75 years old: a sago palm and a jade tree.

While you’re in Volunteer Park, climb up the winding staircase to the top of the 1906-built water tower for a 360-degree view of the city.

MOHAI is the largest private heritage organization in the State of Washington, maintaining a collection of nearly four million artifacts, photographs, and archival materials that primarily focus on Seattle and the greater Puget Sound region, more traditional historical artifacts and neon pop culture signs from yesteryear alike. Located in the historic Naval Reserve Armory in Lake Union Park, highlights include Boeing's first commercial plane, the 1919 Boeing B-1; the Petticoat Flag, an 1856 American Flag sewn by women during the Battle of Seattle; and the Rainier Brewing Company's 12-foot tall neon “R” sign.

Pro tip: check their calendar for extra-special happenings.

There’s no better place to start exploring Lake Union than the Center for Wooden Boats. They’ve got boats powered by by sail, steam, electricity, oars, and paddles. You can go out on a scheduled trip or you can rent a boat yourself. You’ll probably learn a thing or two about local boat history while you’re there.

The Pacific Science Center has a little something for everybody: iconic arches leftover from the Century 21 exposition! A laser dome that plays everything from Pink Floyd to Beyonce! Motion-activated dinosaurs! A planetarium! Best to plot your course in advance or plan to spend the better part of a day here.

This is the easiest way to feel artsy in Seattle without needing to spend half a day inside a museum. The nine-acre park is full of both permanent and visiting installations. While there’s plenty of installations that locals know well (the jagged red “Eagle” stands out), but a chance visit anytime will likely reveal something new you’ve never seen before, all framed by the Puget Sound.

Weather crummy? View the park from inside PACCAR Pavilion.

This iconic bookstore used to be located in Pioneer Square, but it’s adjusted to Capitol Hill pretty seamlessly. If you want some bookish souvenirs to take home, this is your spot—in addition to giving local authors a lot of attention and great placement, they also have a selection of zines and other extremely-homegrown reading material. Hanging with bookish kids? Their children’s section is legendary, and features a little castle for holing up and reading inside.

The Hotel Sorrento is the oldest hotel in Seattle to serve continuously as a hotel since its construction—in this case, 1909. Even after a few restorations, it maintains a grand appearance, with an Italian renaissance exterior wrapping around a central courtyard. Inside, enjoy a cocktail or snack by the fire.

The Hotel Sorrento is also, according to legend, extremely haunted. The alleged ghost is that of Gertrude Stein’s partner Alice B. Toklas, and she appears to be benevolent; the fireside lounge is cozy and a great place for a few snacks or beverages.

Looking at otters is an incredible self-care activity, and the Seattle Aquarium has both kinds: river and sea. Look at those playful marine mammals and try to not feel good about the world—it’s impossible.

Otters not your deal? The Aquarium is still a mandatory visit if you want the closest thing you can get to an inside tour of Puget Sound. A huge underwater dome surrounds you with local sea life, and an in-depth exhibit teaches you about the life cycles of the salmon, which is a big deal here. Also, they try to feed the octopus every day at noon and 4 p.m.

The Frye Art Museum in First Hill is always free, but not at any detriment to programming. The museum’s rotating exhibit varies, but its founding collection was willed by founders Charles and Emma Frye to the city in perpetuity—what the Frye’s current staff calls “a living legacy of visionary patronage and civic responsibility.”

Past exhibits have included works by Andy Warhol, Isamu Noguchi, Jim Woodring, and others.

The Arctic Club Hotel is a hard building to miss—it’s lined with terra cotta walruses and features a colorful façade. It’s also a city historical landmark with a colorful history dating back to the gold rush (although the building itself didn’t come up until 1917). The main entrance used to feature a huge polar bear towering above. Even if you’re not a hotel guest you can peek inside—it has bars (with snacks!) above and below, including the gorgeous Polar Bar.

There’s no easier way to get out on the water than riding one of Washington State’s many ferries, and Colman Dock is the largest terminal in the state. From here, you can catch a ferry for an hour-long ride to Bremerton or about 35 minutes to Bainbridge Island. There are plenty of open-air decks for taking in the sea air, and most ferries feature covered sundecks that shield from the weather while still allowing for a great view of the outdoors. (Or you can just watch the landscape pass by from inside.)

Keeping a tighter Seattle sightseeing schedule? The nearby Water Taxi will take you straight to Alki Beach in about 12 minutes.

The Smith Tower is a prime example of neoclassical architecture. Its outer skin is granite on the first and second floors, and terracotta on the rest. Designed by Edwin H. and T. Walker Gaggin and built in 1914, it was the tallest building on the West Coast of the United States when it was built.

Smith Tower is one big monument of white, ornamented terra cotta wrapped around steel. The quality of the material was so good, it didn't get its first detergent wash until 1976.

It’s also one of Seattle’s architectural marvels that’s easy to get inside. Unlike the Seaboard Building, Dexter Horton, and other historic Downtown office buildings, the Smith Tower has a whole program built in, and after a recent renovation, the top-floor observatory now even features a speakeasy-inspired bar. It was also recently awarded LEED Platinum status, which is no small feat for a building more than a century old.

The Wing Luke Museum tells the story of the Asian Pacific experience in Seattle throughout its history—a huge part of Seattle’s story. It’s also the only community museum in the entire country devoted entirely to the history of pan-Asian Americans. The building itself was funded and constructed by Chinese immigrants in 1910.

Through 2020, Wing Luke is showing  “The Excluded, Inside the Lines,” an exhibit that explores Seattle’s history of redlining. It’s also a starting point of Chinatown Discovery Tours.

Seattle is a pinball town, and the Pinball Museum in the International District spot has one of the largest pinball selections in the city. It started out as a three-month activation project through empty-storefront-activation program Storefronts Seattle in 2010 and has been running ever since.

This place is so Seattle it’s almost a joke—but a really good one. This popular indoor climbing gym has day passes, in case some outdoorsy plans get thwarted by unpredictable weather. After you’re done, a cafe inside serves craft beer, including growlers to go, and healthy eats. They also have the occasional DJ night for some late-night sweatin’. If you’re looking for more of a child-friendly outing, there’s a whole section devoted to climbs for kiddos.

Not only is NAAM a great museum to visit, the building itself has an interesting history. Originally built as Colman School in the early 1900s, it became the Northwest African American Museum after an eight-year occupation by activists—said to be one of the longest-running acts of civil disobedience in the country.

Fujitaro Kubota was a highly sought-after gardener and landscaper in the Northwest, and Kubota Garden, which uses Japanese gardening concepts to showcase Northwest plant life, was his home base.

In 1987, 14 years after his death, the 20-acre garden in Rainier Beach opened as a public park. It features not only beautiful botanicals, but walking paths with multiple water crossings and bridges, reflecting pools, and waterfalls.