Part-day trips

Theo’s chocolate (tour the factory and get free samples too)

Chateau St Michelle winery (a few miles away in Woodinville). Do a tour, or just have a picnic in their grounds. 

Kayaking on Sammamish River or Lake Washington

Stand-up paddle boarding on Lake Union (or the Sammamish River in Bothell)

Vashon Island (charming artistic and rural island just 20 minutes ferry ride from West Seattle)

Alki Point (lovely beach with a gorgeous view of downtown Seattle in the distance).

Pike Place Market/Original Starbucks shop.  Touristy, but worth a visit on a rainy day

Fremont.  Artsy community that’s within Seattle, with a statue of Lenin, a missile pointed at Seattle city hall, statues waiting for a bus that never comes, and a large troll.

Seattle Center (Experience Music project, Dale Chihuly glass exhibit and the Space Needle)

Snoqualmie Falls (spectacular in the spring, summer or after a heavy rainfall)

Lake Sammamish (boating, sailing and SUPs).

Marymoor Park (large park with a dog area and an open-air concert area, on the northern end of Lake Sammamish)

Fort Casey, on Whidbey Island (explore the old guns installed to protect Seattle against an invasion, and great kite-flying)

Edmonds or Mukilteo (cute seaside towns nearby)

La Conner/Tulip festival (https://tulipfestival.org ). Check their website for the expected best times (roughly March or April).

Moisture festival (https://moisturefestival.org) (some shows are family friendly, others are Burlesque). Runs in the springtime.

Indian Casinos (no experience with these, but Tulalip Casino is 20 miles north and very popular)

St Edwards State Park (large hilly park with a fancy restaurant – this was a seminary for monks until about 20 years ago).

Bothell Main Street.  Good choice of restaurants and watering holes in the area. (don’t miss McMeneman’s too, which has 5 restaurants on-site, a small cinema and a swimming pool.)

Juanita Beach (great park with a fresh-water beach and swimming area, and a Farmer’s market every Friday)

Ballard Locks – lets boats pass from Lake Washington into Puget Sound. (https://www.ballardlocks.org/ )

Snohomish (cute local town that has lots of antique stores to browse).  Also home to the local skydiving school at Harvey Field).

Burke-Gilman trail system (https://www.traillink.com/trail/burke-gilman-trail ) was one of the original rails-to-trails projects in the US.  It connects Bothell with Seattle, and is both a walking and biking trail, linking many public parks and neighborhoods along the way.

Warren G Magnuson park, Sandy Point, Seattle. Large local park with lots of water sports, walking and sport fields.  Can also be accessed by following the Burke-Gilman trail system.