Money-Saving Tip -- The Ticket/Ticket booth under the big clock at Pike Place Market sometimes has boat-tour tickets available at discounted prices. If your schedule is flexible, be sure to check here first.

Walking Tours

In addition to the walking tours mentioned here, there are Pike Place Market tours offered by the market itself.

If you'd like to explore downtown Seattle with a knowledgeable guide, join one of the informative walking tours offered by See Seattle Walking Tours (tel. 425/226-7641), which visit Pike Place Market, the waterfront, the Pioneer Square area, and the International District. Tours cost $20 and can last a half-day or a full day, depending on how much stamina you have. There have to be a minimum of six people signed up before these tours go out.

You can also learn a lot about local history and wander through hidden corners of the city on the 2-hour tours run by Duse McLean/Seattle Walking Tour (tel. 425/885-3173). These tours wind their way from the International District to Pike Place Market, taking in historic buildings, public art, and scenic vistas. Tours are $15 per person, are offered year-round by reservation, and require a minimum of three people to go out.

For an insider's glimpse of life in Seattle's Chinatown/International District (I.D.), hook up with Chinatown Discovery Tours (tel. 206/623-5124). On these walking tours, which last 1 1/2 hours, you learn the history of this colorful and historic neighborhood. Rates (for four or more on a tour) start from $17 for adults and $11 for children ages 5 to 11.

A Cook's Tour

Foodies, take note. You're probably already aware that you should spend lots of time in Pike Place Market, sampling all the great foods and eating in the many excellent restaurants. If you want a real behind-the-scenes look at how local chefs utilize the market, take a Chef's Tour of the Market. On these tours, local chefs (often from some of my favorite area restaurants) lead you through the market stalls to select ingredients. Once you've learned the ins and outs of shopping the market, you get to watch as the day's chef prepares a meal with the ingredients purchased that morning. Best of all, you get to eat what's been created. The tours, which are only held once a month, last about 3 1/2 hours, and cost $70. For information and reservations, contact the Market Foundation (tel. 206/774-5249).

Chef Kerry Sear, of Cascadia Restaurant, also offers tours of the market several times during the summer. His tours run from 11am to 2pm, include a three-course lunch, and cost $75. Contact Cascadia, 2328 First Ave. (tel. 206/448-8884), for information and reservations.

Bus Tours

If you'd like an overview of Seattle's main tourist attractions, or if you're pressed for time during your visit, you can pack in a lot of sights on a city tour with Gray Line of Seattle (tel. 800/426-7532 or 206/624-5077). Half-day tours cost $32 for adults, $16 for children. Many other options, including tours to Mount Rainier National Park and to the Boeing plant in Everett, are also available.

Gray Line also operates a Double-Decker Tour in open-top buses. These city tours run from May through September and cost $19 for adults and $9.50 for children. Buses depart from seven stops around the city; call for details or keep an eye out for a parked double-decker bus.

To glimpse a bit more of Seattle on a guided van tour, try the "Explore Seattle Tour" offered by Customized Tours (tel. 800/770-8769 or 206/878-3965), which charges $40 per person. This tour stops at Pike Place Market, the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks and Fish Ladder, and the Klondike Gold Rush Historical Park. The company also offers a Boeing plant tour ($50 per person) and a Snoqualmie Falls and wineries tour ($60 per person).

Seattle Noir -- If your tastes run to the macabre, you might be interested in the tours offered by Private Eye on Seattle (tel. 206/365-3739). These somewhat bizarre van tours are led by a private eye named Jake, who shares stories of interesting and unusual cases from the Emerald City. Tours are $25 per person. Another option is a tour of some of the city's haunted locales.

Seattle by Duck

Paul Revere would have had a hard time figuring out what to tell his fellow colonists if the British had arrived by Duck. A Duck, if you don't know, is a World War II amphibious vehicle that can arrive by land or by sea, and these odd-looking things are now being used to provide tours of Seattle on both land and water. Duck tours take in the standard city sights, but then plunge right into Lake Union for a tour of the Portage Bay waterfront, with its many houseboats and great views. The 90-minute tours leave from a parking lot across from the Space Needle; they cost $23 for adults and $13 for kids. Contact Seattle Duck Tours, 516 Broad St. (tel. 800/817-1116 or 206/441-DUCK). Because these tours encourage visitors to get a little daffy, they're very popular; reservations are recommended.

Boat Tours

In addition to the boat tours and cruises mentioned below, you can do your own low-budget "cruise" simply by hopping on one of the ferries operated by Washington State Ferries (tel. 800/843-3779 or 888/808-7977 in Washington, or 206/464-6400). Try the Bainbridge Island or Bremerton ferries out of Seattle for a 1 1/2- to 2 1/2-hour round-trip.

If you don't have enough time for an overnight trip to the San Juan Islands, it's still possible to get a feel for these picturesque islands by riding the San Juan Islands ferry from Anacortes to Friday Harbor. These ferries depart from Anacortes, 75 miles north of Seattle. If you get off in Friday Harbor, you can spend a few hours exploring this town before returning to Anacortes. Alternatively, if you have more money to spend (and even less time), boat tours of the San Juan Islands depart from the Seattle waterfront.

If you opt for only one tour while in Seattle, the Tillicum Village Tour, Pier 55 (tel. 800/426-1205 or 206/933-8600) should be it -- it's unique and truly Northwestern. The tour includes a boat excursion, a salmon dinner, and Northwest Coast Indian masked dances. The salmon dinner is pretty good, and the traditional dances are fascinating (although more for the craftsmanship of the masks than for the dancing itself). At Blake Island State Park, across Puget Sound from Seattle, and only accessible by boat, Tillicum Village was built in conjunction with the 1962 Seattle World's Fair. The "village" is actually just a large restaurant and performance hall fashioned after a traditional Northwest Coast longhouse, but with the totem poles standing vigil out front, the forest encircling the longhouse, and the waters of Puget Sound stretching out into the distance, Tillicum Village is a beautiful spot. After the dinner and dances, you can strike out on forest trails to explore the island (you can return on a later boat if you want to spend a couple of extra hours hiking). There are even beaches on which to relax. Tours are $79 for adults, $72 for seniors, $30 for children 5 to 12, and free for children under 5. They're offered daily from May to September, and on a more limited basis (usually weekends only) during other months. You can also just opt to ride the boat out to Blake Island and skip the meal and dancing. This option costs $40 for adults, $37 for seniors, and $12 for children 5 to 12.

Seattle is a city surrounded by water; so while you're here, you should be sure to set sail one way or another. Argosy Cruises (tel. 800/642-7816 or 206/623-1445) offers the greatest variety of boat-tour options. If you're short on time, just do the 1-hour harbor cruise that departs from Pier 55 ($17-$21 adults, $7-$8.50 children 5-12) or the 2 1/2-hour cruise from Lake Union through the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks to Elliott Bay ($31-$40 adults, $10-$11 children). This latter tour departs from Pier 56 and includes a bus connection between the waterfront and Lake Union. Argosy also operates two Lake Washington cruises that will take you past Bill Gates's fabled waterfront Xanadu. The 2-hour cruise departs from the AGC Marina at the south end of Lake Union ($24-$30 adults, $9-$10 children), while the 1 1/2-hour cruise departs from the city dock in downtown Kirkland on the east side of the lake ($30 adults, $9 children). Of these options, I recommend the cruise through the locks; it may be the most expensive outing, but you get good views and the chance to navigate the locks. Reservations are recommended for all cruises; in rate ranges above, the higher rates are for cruises between April and September.

Want a meal with your cruise? Try one of Argosy's lunch, brunch, or dinner cruises aboard the Royal Argosy. Lunch and brunch cruises are $45 to $52 for adults and $22 for children 5 to 12; dinner cruises are $88 to $99 for adults and $30 to $59 for children. These cruises get my vote for best dinners afloat.

If you prefer a quieter glimpse at Seattle from the water, from May to mid-October Emerald City Charters, Pier 54 (tel. 800/831-3274 or 206/624-3931), offers 1 1/2- and 2 1/2-hour sailboat cruises. The longer excursions are at sunset. The cruises cost $25 and $40 for adults, $20 and $35 for seniors, and $18 and $30 for children under 12.

Scenic Flight and Hot-Air Balloon Rides

Seattle is one of the few cities in the United States where floatplanes are a regular sight in the skies and on the lakes. If you want to see what it's like to take off and land from the water, you've got a couple of options.

Seattle Seaplanes, 1325 Fairview Ave. E. (tel. 800/637-5553 or 206/329-9638), which takes off from the southeast corner of Lake Union, offers 20-minute scenic flights over the city for $68. This company also offers flights to nearby waterfront restaurants for dinner.

If you'd rather pretend you're back in the days of The English Patient, you can go up in a vintage biplane with Olde Thyme Aviation (tel. 206/730-1412), which operates from Boeing Field. A 20-minute flight along the Seattle waterfront to the Space Needle costs $125 for two people; other flights range in price from $149 to $495 for two people. Keep in mind that these flights only operate when weather conditions are appropriate.

Seattle isn't known as a hot-air-ballooning center, but if you'd like to try floating over the Northwest landscape not far outside the city, contact Over the Rainbow (tel. 206/364-0995 or 425/861-8611), which flies over the wineries of the Woodinville area. Flights are offered in both the morning and the afternoon and cost $169 to $225 per person.