Summer in Seattle

A Womantraveler in Seattle for a couple of summer (or early autumn) days ought to concentrate on two areas, especially if you're on business and have limited free time (or like me, plan to add 1-2 days to your trip) -- downtown Seattle and Bainbridge Island just 35 minutes away by ferry. Seattle and Bainbridge on foot are simply fabulous for pure shopping and eating. The weather can be in the 70s (or even hotter) by day and cool jacket weather in the evenings. Perfect West Coast summer temps.

Let's start with downtown Seattle, what I call "a good walk" and relatively compact. You can set out in several directions in the retail core, including high-end Fifth Avenue stores and boutiques and the home location of Nordstrom's. Art galleries and funkier stores become more prevalent down near the water, where Pike Place Market is a definite trip. Now eight blocks in size, with arcades and below-street corridors, it's a mesmerizing bundle of fresh foods, flowers, fishmongers, artists, one-of-a-kind shops (and off-limits to most chains). The smells of coffee, roasting nuts, fresh cooking and, of course, fish, pervade the air. A must-see is the fish-throwing at Pike Place Fish. And you'll walk away with the most beautiful bouquet of flowers, even if you don't have a place to keep them, because they are so irresistible. (The good thing about Pike Place Market is that it can be rainy and miserable and it's still entertaining.)

Where to stay: The Fairmont Olympic Hotel for elegance or The W Seattle for hip and cool.

Where to eat: The The Waterfront Restaurant on Pier 70 (outrageously expensive but expansive and on the water, and a short cab ride away from the center) and, right downtown, Union Restaurant on 1st Avenue, Palomino (a reliable upscale West Coast chain) and Shucker's at The Fairmont.

Now, take the ferry to Bainbridge Island...