Source : the age
As I gaze at the diminishing Seattle skyline from the deck of the Bainbridge Island car ferry, there’s a comforting sense of familiarity. The expanse of water, dotted with cheerful watercraft, horns a-tooting; the waterfront park with its colourful pop-up market stalls; even the Space Needle piercing the sky in the distance reminds me of home.
Seattle could, in many ways, double for Sydney. Both are harbour cities, surrounded by nature. Both share a love of great food, with an emphasis on fresh produce. Even Seattle’s coffee culture dares to rival Australia’s, being the original home of Starbucks (and before you stop reading in outrage, hear me out!).
It almost seems like fate that one of the most anticipated sporting matches of the year – the FIFA World Cup match between USA and Australia on Saturday – is in Seattle, easing Aussie soccer fans into a version of the United States that is arguably more liberal, progressive and welcoming than any other part of the country.
It’s a stunning spring day as I make the journey across Elliott Bay to artsy Bainbridge Island, a relaxing commute for many locals as well as a tourist trip as iconic as our own Manly ferry. The sky is blue, cherry blossoms create canopies of pastel pink, and there’s no hint of the grey skies and drizzle that have earned Seattle the nickname of “The Rainy City”.
Earlier, I walked through Pike Place Market – the oldest continually operating farmers market in the country – past singing, fish-throwing mongers and a disgusting wall of bubble gum to Beechers Handmade Cheese, home to its legendary “World’s Best” mac ‘n’ cheese.
Container of oozy, creamy deliciousness in hand, I then continue along the elevated Overlook Walk, grabbing a perch on the cascading amphitheatre steps to gobble my lunch and soak up the festive atmosphere.
To my right is the cruise terminal, a gateway to Alaska. Directly in front is the Seattle Aquarium, and to my right, kids crawl gleefully over a seven-metre jellyfish playground at the foot of Pier 58.
It all feels very Darling Harbour, albeit a little newer and shinier after Seattle Waterfront Park’s official opening in September 2025.
Gazing over the city from the observation deck of Seattle’s most enduring icon, the 184-metre Space Needle, I again experience a “where am I?” moment as I take in unobstructed views of the skyline, lapped by the busy waterfront.
Downstairs, the kitschy revolving restaurant – hello again, Sydney Tower – has been reinvented as a cocktail lounge called The Loupe, its lofty reservation fee a questionable price to pay for the privilege of views through a revolving glass floor, teamed with some small bites and curated drinks. Oddly, the lounge is closed during the summer months, perhaps to increase traffic to the tower during shoulder and low seasons.
Far more budget-friendly is the attraction directly beneath the Space Needle, the mind-boggling Chihuly Garden and Glass. A whimsical collection of glass sculptures and installations by Pacific Northwest glass artist Dale Chihuly, the exhibit includes a 30-metre floral sculpture within a glasshouse as well as a garden where vibrant glass blossoms, planted among natural garden beds, create a surreally luminous landscape.
A 10-minute walk back towards the waterfront leads to Olympic Sculpture Park, an offshoot of the Seattle Art Museum, which has transformed a 3.6-hectare former industrial site into an environmental showpiece and cultural hub. Connecting four distinct landscapes reflecting ecosystems of the Pacific Northwest, this open-air museum features 23 monumental modern sculptures, including Alexander Calder’s imposing red Eagle, the Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads by Chinese artist Ai Weiwei, and the white human head of Echo by Spanish artist Jaume Plensa.
Like Sydneysiders, Seattleites are obsessed with nature, repeatedly earning the city the title of the most outdoor-friendly in the US. Surrounded by more than 120 scenic forest trails, hiking and biking are both popular activities, while 320 kilometres of shoreline between saltwater Puget Sound and freshwater Lake Washington are perfect for kayaking, paddleboarding and recreational boating.
Meanwhile, Bainbridge Island, a 35-minute ferry ride from Downtown, is the home of pickleball, the global phenomenon that was invented in 1975 on a home-made court by sporty island dads.
With Washington State the second-largest wine producer in the US after California, it’s little wonder that the vineyard experience has trickled into the city, where a spate of urban wineries showcase handcrafted wines in accessible tasting rooms.
In the industrial SoDo neighbourhood, 10 Washington State winemakers have set up shop in one communal space called SoDo Urban Works, including the Rhone-inspired varietals of Cairdeas Winery, Latta Wines from one of the state’s leading vignerons, Andrew Latta, and Walla Walla Valley’s Sleight of Hand, where wine tasting is accompanied by the sound of spinning vinyl records.
Meanwhile, the most-consumed beverage in Seattle is coffee, with the city hovering in the top three cities in America for coffee obsession, consumption, spending and number of cafes.
We’re not just talking the rocket fuel that passes as a cup of Joe throughout the rest of the US – here, you can actually buy a decent, Aussie-style flat white, minus the ridiculous flavours and sizes of the ubiquitous green mermaid.
Independent local cafes include Storyville Coffee, Ghost Alley Espresso and Monorail Espresso in Pike Place Market, Caffe Vita and Victrola on Capitol Hill, and the “Australian-inspired” Bluestone Lane. Seattle also hosts several coffee festivals throughout the year, including Seattle Coffee Festival and the Coffee Rave at Black Arrows Coffee.
Of course, for the past 55 years, Seattle has been headquarters of the much-maligned Starbucks, with the iconic green siren logo very much part of the city’s DNA. But with an announcement in April 2026 that the company is establishing a new corporate hub in Nashville due to lower taxes, as well as the recent closure of five Starbucks stores in Seattle – including, shockingly, the $20 million Willy Wonka-esque Starbucks Reserve Roastery in Capitol Hill in September 2025 – could the days of iced ube coconut cream shaken espressos and caramel macchiatos be coming to an end?
Not if the line outside the original c.1976 Starbucks in Pike Place is any indication, with the opportunity to capture an Insta-moment with the original brown logo, or buy location-exclusive merchandise, attracting up to 15 million visitors annually.
It seems nostalgia trumps taste where icons are concerned, with no place for coffee snobbery among the souvenir mugs, specialty coffee blends and fridge magnets.
THE DETAILS
FLY
United Airlines flies daily from Sydney to Los Angeles and three times a week from Melbourne, with connections to Seattle. See united.com
STAY
Kimpton Hotel Vintage Seattle is a wine-themed hotel with nightly wine hours and guest rooms named after Washington State wineries. Priced from $US160 a night. See hotelvintageseattle.com
The writer was a guest of Visit Seattle.
Julie Miller scrapes a living writing about the things she loves: travel, riding horses and drinking cocktails on tropical beaches. Between airports, she lives in a rural retreat just beyond Sydney.
