Seattle Shopping and Districts

(Seattle, Washington - WA, USA)



Seattle is home to many national retail stores, open air markets and shopping malls. Designer boutiques line the downtown streets, while vintage collections and hip fashion stores are scattered throughout the city's various bohemian neighborhoods.

Pike Place Market on the Seattle waterfront is an open air shopping venue featuring local goods and handicrafts, as well as a surplus of gifts and souvenirs, with coffee, salmon and wine being favored purchases.



Opening Hours

Most shops in Seattle open seven days a week and tend to be quite busy on the weekends. The downtown district is typically open from 10:00 to 20:00; however, opening hours are extended during the summer months when it doesn't get dark until 22:00.
Many of the larger shopping venues containing popular restaurants and breweries remain in business late into the evening, while smaller boutiques in Seattle often close around 20:00 or earlier.

Shopping Centers


Capitol Hill and Broadway Shopping District
Address: Broadway Avenue East, Seattle, Washington WA, 98122, USA
Capitol Hill features some of the most eclectic shops in Seattle, strongly influenced by both the city's youth culture and the large gay community in the area. Broadway is lined with vintage clothing and record stores, bead shops, coffee houses and great lunchtime fare. Broadway Market is the main plaza at Capitol Hill, offering many small boutiques and jewelry stands, as well as a small theater featuring avant-garde films.

Downtown District
Address: Seneca and Fourth Avenue, Seattle, Washington WA, 98101, USA
The downtown district comprises of several city blocks featuring nationally recognized brand names, upscale fashion boutiques and high scale vintage connoisseurs. The central shopping scene is situated on the corner of Pine Street and Fifth Avenue, and includes Rainier Square and Pacific Place. Upscale urban malls, connected in areas by a sky bridge, spread outwards east and south. The district is elegant and sophisticated, with international companies and mega-stores encompassing entire buildings and streets lined with cherry blossom trees adorned by twinkling lights year round.

Fremont and Wallingford Districts
Address: Seattle, Washington WA, USA
Attracting fashion savvy shoppers hunting for brand name designers without the chaos and mature attitude of downtown Seattle, Freemont is a compact center. With bargain items ranging from vintage clothing and record stores to mid-20th century furniture and collectibles, this district also has a nice selection of eateries for lunchtime satisfaction. Just a few kilometers east of Fremont is the Wallingford neighborhood which offers similar arcades selling crafts, hip couture and unique gifts.

International District
Address: Maynard Avenue and Weller Street, Seattle Washington (WA), 98104, USA
For a taste of worldly flair, the International District hosts a shopping area roughly eight-city blocks south of Pioneer Square. This multi-cultural area, also a great spot for traditional dim sum, offers diverse retail venues from a fortune cookie factory to specialty candy stores, herbal pharmacies, Asian bookstores and fresh food markets.

Pike Place Market
Address: First Avenue and Pike Street, Seattle, Washington WA, 98101, USA
As a popular and vital aspect of the city's economy, Pike Place Market is the oldest continuously operating farmers' market in the USA. The open air venue features nearly 600 businesses offering local agricultural goods, freshly caught seafood, various food bars, cafés, restaurants, handmade crafts, fresh flowers, work by native artists and some of the best Boston Clam Chowder. The original Starbucks is located here, as well as the famed local seamen, known for tossing daily catches and shouting at the passers by.

Pioneer Square
Address: Yesler and First Avenue, Seattle, Washington WA, 98104, USA
Resting on top of old Seattle, Pioneer Square is a beautiful historic district offering shoppers an eclectic choice of arts, antiques, home décor shops and fantastic bookstores. Also home to a wide selection of quaint restaurants and lively bars, this area is known to be somewhat precarious after dark and general caution is advised.

Queen Anne District
Address: Queen Anne and West Dravus, Seattle, Washington WA, 98109, USA
Queen Anne is characterized by young, trendy professionals and many of its businesses cater to this clientele. Populated by unique boutiques offering jewelry, home accessories and stylish clothing lines, this area also offers great dining opportunities overlooking the Seattle skyline.

University Shopping District
Address: University Way NE and NE 45th Street, Seattle, Washington WA, 98105, USA
The University District has a youthful, collegiate atmosphere. 'The Ave' (45th Street) is a long stretch of vintage clothing stores, eclectic music shops, quiet bookstores and cheap restaurants for lunch or dinner. Just beyond, the University Village is a more distinctly upscale plaza with chain stores and independent boutiques catering to both students and serious shoppers alike.

Westlake Center
Address: 400 Pine Street, Seattle, Washington WA, 98101, USA
Westlake Center Plaza, connected by monorail to the Seattle Center (Space Needle and Experience Music Project), is home to many jewelry stalls, clothing stores, international home designers and a food consortium. Surrounded by cobblestone streets in the heart of downtown, the area just outside the plaza teems with locals and street musicians.