Seattle/Queen Anne-South Lake Union

Northwest of Downtown Seattle, Queen Anne is a hilly residential neighborhood with marvelous views of the city's skyline. Magnolia, a wealthy residential neighborhood, sits on a peninsula west of Queen Anne, separated from Queen Anne by Interbay, an unexpected commercial and industrial strip in the valley between the two hilly neighborhoods. Seattle Center, at the southern base of Queen Anne Hill, was built to host the 1962 World's Fair. Today, Seattle Center is a park-like facility surrounded by many of Seattle's finest event venues and museums, as well as two notable survivors from the World's Fair: the Monorail and the Space Needle, both of which have become icons of the city.

Directly north of Downtown is South Lake Union, a former industrial neighborhood that is one of the oldest residential neighborhoods in Seattle. A wave of gentrification has made South Lake Union home to Amazon's new headquarters and a range of biotech organizations, and brought a lot of new housing developments, and a new streetcar line.

Get in
Seattle Center and South Lake Union lie within easy walking or bicycling distance of Downtown. Climbing up Queen Anne Hill, on the other hand, is more of a workout. Aurora Avenue (SR-99) is a highway that divides Seattle Center and South Lake Union and can only be crossed in a few spots.

Queen Anne Avenue is the dividing line between the "North" and the "West" roads. So don't be surprised if you cross 1st Avenue N, and then shortly thereafter find yourself crossing 1st Avenue W without having changed direction!

By car
Due to its geography, Queen Anne Hill can be difficult to navigate for the unfamiliar, especially by car. There are two simple ways to get to the center of the neighborhood: The first is via Queen Anne Avenue from the south (though take note: Queen Anne Avenue traffic is south-only when south of Roy Street). The second is by 3rd Avenue W from the north side, near Seattle Pacific University. Approaching by Dexter Avenue, Gilman Avenue, W Dravus Street or any of the numerous side streets should not be attempted unless you have time to kill.

Denny Way runs along the south side of Seattle Center. Parking is plentiful, albeit often expensive.

Dexter, Westlake, Fairview, and Eastlake Avenues pass through South Lake Union. Mercer Street is the primary east-west route and most convenient access from I-5, although it's amongst the most traffic-congested streets in the city.

To access Magnolia, from the north take Emerson Street Bridge over 15th Avenue towards the Fisherman's Terminal. From the south, take 15th Avenue W (Elliott), exiting at the Magnolia Bridge.

South Lake Union

 * Amazon have their headquarters in South Lake Union, including the visually-striking Spheres, a building made of three glass domes filled with lush plants. The expansive construction of Amazon buildings and new apartments and shops has made SLU practically synonymous with Amazon.
 * Amazon have their headquarters in South Lake Union, including the visually-striking Spheres, a building made of three glass domes filled with lush plants. The expansive construction of Amazon buildings and new apartments and shops has made SLU practically synonymous with Amazon.
 * Amazon have their headquarters in South Lake Union, including the visually-striking Spheres, a building made of three glass domes filled with lush plants. The expansive construction of Amazon buildings and new apartments and shops has made SLU practically synonymous with Amazon.
 * Amazon have their headquarters in South Lake Union, including the visually-striking Spheres, a building made of three glass domes filled with lush plants. The expansive construction of Amazon buildings and new apartments and shops has made SLU practically synonymous with Amazon.
 * Amazon have their headquarters in South Lake Union, including the visually-striking Spheres, a building made of three glass domes filled with lush plants. The expansive construction of Amazon buildings and new apartments and shops has made SLU practically synonymous with Amazon.
 * Amazon have their headquarters in South Lake Union, including the visually-striking Spheres, a building made of three glass domes filled with lush plants. The expansive construction of Amazon buildings and new apartments and shops has made SLU practically synonymous with Amazon.

Seattle Center




Buy

 * Once you get to the top of Queen Anne hill (about a mile north from Seattle Center and several hundred feet uphill) there's a few blocks with some nice window shopping. Check out Foundations Seattle and Willa for women's clothes, Queen Anne Book Store, Blue Highway Games for board games, and see what else you can find nestled between the numerous hair and beauty salons.
 * Once you get to the top of Queen Anne hill (about a mile north from Seattle Center and several hundred feet uphill) there's a few blocks with some nice window shopping. Check out Foundations Seattle and Willa for women's clothes, Queen Anne Book Store, Blue Highway Games for board games, and see what else you can find nestled between the numerous hair and beauty salons.
 * Once you get to the top of Queen Anne hill (about a mile north from Seattle Center and several hundred feet uphill) there's a few blocks with some nice window shopping. Check out Foundations Seattle and Willa for women's clothes, Queen Anne Book Store, Blue Highway Games for board games, and see what else you can find nestled between the numerous hair and beauty salons.
 * Once you get to the top of Queen Anne hill (about a mile north from Seattle Center and several hundred feet uphill) there's a few blocks with some nice window shopping. Check out Foundations Seattle and Willa for women's clothes, Queen Anne Book Store, Blue Highway Games for board games, and see what else you can find nestled between the numerous hair and beauty salons.
 * Once you get to the top of Queen Anne hill (about a mile north from Seattle Center and several hundred feet uphill) there's a few blocks with some nice window shopping. Check out Foundations Seattle and Willa for women's clothes, Queen Anne Book Store, Blue Highway Games for board games, and see what else you can find nestled between the numerous hair and beauty salons.

Eat
There are a number of food carts that typically cater to office workers at the South Lake Union complex. They generally open for lunch on weekdays, with tenants changing each day.

Splurge
Queen Anne is a relatively upscale neighborhood, and generally the restaurants rise to the occasion.

Drink
True to Seattle form, you need never go more than a few blocks without stumbling into a coffee shop. At the corner of Queen Anne Ave N and Boston St, for example, there is a Caffe Ladro, a tea shop called The Teacup, and a Starbucks.



If you're looking for something to balance out all that caffeine as a stimulant, Lower Queen Anne fits the bill.

Sleep
Much of this area is residential or light commercial, with lodgings few and far between; Downtown offers far more options. However, the Seattle Center area hosts several smaller hotels.



Connect
Nearly all coffee shops offer wi-fi.