4 Best Sights in The Waterfront, Seattle

The Seattle Aquarium ranks among the best in the country, sitting right on the water's edge and housing exhibits that highlight the beauty and biodiversity of the Pacific Northwest. Inside, darkened galleries and glowing tanks showcase everything from hypnotic jellyfish to clever, color-shifting octopuses. The Life on the Edge tide pools recreate Washington’s rocky shores, letting kids get hands-on with sea stars, urchins, and sponges. If you’re visiting in fall or winter, bundle up—the Marine Mammal area sits outdoors along the waterfront, where brisk Puget Sound breezes are part of the experience.

This aptly-named beach is a perfect spot to find some quiet among the energy of the city. Dip your feet in the refreshing water, skip some rocks across Elliot Bay, and take a seat on the fallen driftwood, where you can enjoy a snack and the sights of ferries and sailboats passing by.

Hop aboard the Seattle Great Wheel at the end of Pier 57 for one of the city’s most scenic rides. Rising 175 feet above Elliott Bay, this gleaming Ferris wheel—just steps from Pike Place Market and the Seattle Aquarium—offers a slow, 15- to 20-minute spin with panoramic views of the skyline, the Olympics, and Mount Rainier (on clear days, of course). Each climate-controlled gondola fits six comfortably (up to eight if some are kids), and most groups get a cabin to themselves. After dark, more than 500,000 LED lights transform the wheel into a glowing waterfront landmark with weekend light shows in summer. Advance tickets are worth it—you’ll still wait in line, but not for long.

The newly opened Waterfront Park—a 20-acre space stretching from Belltown to Pioneer Square—was completed in the summer of 2025, bringing a sense of unity and community to Downtown Seattle's formerly fragmented waterfront. Bike lanes, playgrounds, and native plants are all part of the new Waterfront Park, which provides a community space along the piers for events, social gatherings, walking along the water, and simply catching the sunset over the Olympic Mountains and Elliott Bay.