Top Rated Parks to Visit in Bellevue

"The Olympic Sculpture Park is free and open to the public year-round, positioned at the edge of Elliott Bay. Some of its more remarkable sculptures are the Eye Benches and a glass bridge titled Seattle Cloud Cover. Many Seattle residents and tourists come to the park to wander the day away and photograph or admire the installations."

"The serene park is also a top destination for photography in Seattle. Apart from providing lovely greenscapes with sculptures in the background, the view of Elliot Bay and Puget Sound is stunning from here. You can also see Mount Rainier beyond the Puget Sound in clear weather."

"The Olympic Sculpture Park encompasses nine acres near the downtown waterfront. It's one of the largest green spaces in the downtown vicinity, and several eye-catching sculptures adorn the area. The Seattle Art Museum, a mile to the south, administers the park."

"Hard to beat on a sunny spring day, this former military installation has been transformed into a wild coastal park, laced with walking trails and offering glimpses of the Olympic mountains across the water. Discovery Park wasn’t inaugurated until 1973 and the American military only left the area in 2012. It's the largest green space in the city, with 534 acres of forest, meadows, sand dunes and beaches, providing a welcome escape for locals and a vital corridor for wildlife."

"Discovery Park is Seattle’s largest city park with 534 acres of forests, meadows, sand dunes, and beaches. Located around 5 miles from downtown, it’s a tranquil space to escape the hustle and bustle of the city and admire magnificent views of Puget Sound, as well as the Olympic and Cascade Mountain ranges. Explore 9 miles of walking trails, admire art at the Daybreak Star Indian Cultural Center, and keep your eyes peeled for bald eagles fishing along the water."

"If you want a little bit of everything in a day spent at the beach then you should head to Discovery Park. This park has it all, hiking, beaches, and a whole lot more. Plus its one of the best beaches on the sound and the lighthouse is pretty dang cool."

"Gas Works Park is a National Register of Historic Places-listed public park in Seattle's Wallingford neighborhood, located along the northern shores of Lake Union. The park preserves 19.1 acres of the former Seattle Gas Light Company plant, the United States' last operating coal gasification plant. It opened to the public in 1975 as Myrtle Edwards Park, named for a late city council member, and incorporates several elements of the former plant, including pieces that have been repurposed as children's play structures."

"Gas Works might be small compared to other Seattle parks but hosts one of the coolest hangouts spots in Seattle. Located in Wallingford along Lake Union, Gas Works is a 19-acre park that sits on the former Seattle Gas Light Company's gasification plant. Due to this, the park has remnants of the last coal gasification plant in the United States!"

"What was once home to Seattle Gas Light Company’s gasification plant is now a place to fly kites and enjoy a stunning view of the Space Needle and the Puget Sound. I would love to see them turn those giant rusty structures into some cool community space!"

"You too can get that iconic skyline view so often used in establishing shots. That familiar shape that puts the Space Needle front-and-center comes from Queen Anne’s Kerry Park—essentially built for Seattle photo ops. The design-minded can also grab a shot with Changing Form, a steel sculpture Doris Totten Chase designed to frame the view."

"For a beautiful and unique view head to the small neighborhood Kerry Park located in the Queen Anne neighborhood. You could use a visit here as an opportunity to also explore the many boutique stores of the Queen Anne neighborhood."

"Another favorite site that is also free is to go to Kerry Park. You will get an amazing view of the city skyline from a different angle. We stayed here as the sun went down to enjoy the view at night."

"The best of the monuments in Capitol Hill’s Volunteer Park is a stunning conservatory modelled on London’s Crystal Palace and completed in 1912. This wrought iron and glass wonder is composed of 3,426 glass panels and houses the park’s collections of bromeliads, ferns, palms, cactuses/succulents and seasonal plants. The heat and humidity varies from area to area and is computer controlled, rising to 27°C in the cactus house."

"Volunteer Park Conservatory, a Victorian-style greenhouse and botanical garden, is the perfect escape from the hustle and bustle of city life. Built in 1912 using 3,426 glass panes, the conservatory is as delicate as it is distinctive. It may even be a familiar sight to those across the pond as it is modeled after London’s elegant Crystal Palace."

"Modeled after the “Crystal Palace” of London, the Volunteer Park Conservatory is a stunning example of man-made architecture. Glass walls are fitted into steel and iron frames. Victorian-style decorations give an ornate flair to everything from the windows and trellises to the doorknobs and flowerpots."

"With a stunning Lake Washington, Madison Park North Beach is a 400-feet beach housed in Madison Park. The park slopes down from the sidewalk to a few miles towards the beach, which features a bathhouse with restrooms, play areas for the kids with swings/play equipment, tennis courts, and more. Swimming and boat launches, however, are prohibited at the beach due to a rock seawall along the shoreline."

"5 km from city center 18 out of 191 places to visit in Seattle. With a stunning Lake Washington, Madison Park North Beach is a 400-feet beach housed in Madison Park. The park slopes down from the sidewalk to a few miles towards the beach, which features a bathhouse with restrooms, play areas for the kids with swings/play equipment, tennis courts, and more."

"Ella Bailey Park is further north of Kerry Park so that means Queen Anne Hill creeps into the view of the city skyline. Photographing from here will give your Seattle skyline photos a unique feel to the others being shot in the more popular Kerry Park."

"Descend to Fauntleroy's Lincoln Park through a green tunnel of stairs—the city's second most outdoor steps in a row—with wooden railings."

"Chef Sara Eveland has worked in the Seattle food scene for 15 years. She started selling cookies out of Watson’s Counter in Ballard as a way to share something independent of the restaurants she works in. You can also find her cookies at popups like Chachis Pizza, Big Footlongs, and Good Shape Pizza."

"website | delivery radius: nationwide | best for: cookies, including vegan and gluten free. This Black-owned cookie company out of Kirkland was started by Michael, who became obsessed with developing the perfect chocolate chip cookies. When he realized that it’s difficult fo find a great cookie at 11 pm in most cities, he set out to make cookies that can last in the fridge or freezer for anytime the sweet tooth craving hits."

"location: Kirkland | website | best for: soft, chewy cookies that last awhile. This Black-owned cookie company operates out of a catering kitchen in a strip mall in Kirkland. Owner Michael Pinckney doesn’t have a storefront, but you can order online for pickup or get nationwide shipping."

"Decadent cookies (including vegan and gluten free creations) based in Kirkland, but shipped nationwide. You can also find them at some Seattle-area farmers markets."

"Thanks to a nudge from the owner of legendary Seattle ice-cream brand Molly Moon’s (see below), Hello Robin opened in 2013 to offer freshly baked cookies (and ice-cream cookie sandwiches) in a dozen different flavors every day. And these are not your run-of-the-mill cookies, either. Squidgy, chewy and with the right balance of salty and sweet, the options range from the traditional (chocolate chip) to the more adventurous (orange habanero chocolate chip or salted butterscotch)."

"Hello Robin would be perfect even if it only served cookies, the moist and chewy kind you dreamed about as a kid. But this Capitol Hill shop — with a new outpost at U Village — decided to venture even further toward perfection and utilize its signature cookies for ice cream sandwiches with Molly Moon’s in the middle. Delivery is available via GrubHub and Postmates."

"You can find Hello Robin nestled on the quiet side of Capitol Hill. Here, you'll find a sandwich made from two of my favorite classics: warm cookies and ice cream. They freshly bake their cookies in-house throughout the day to ensure that each sandwich is the perfect combination of warm cookie and cold ice cream."

"Three examples: they give 1 percent of their sales away to charities, they host culinary classes for Seattle Public Schools, and they buy the cookies they use to make their Scout Mint ice cream directly from local girl scouts. The menu includes both standard and unorthodox flavors (Earl Grey, anyone?), and 90 percent of the ingredients come from the Pacific Northwest. There are non-dairy options."

"With eight locations in the Seattle area, Molly Moon’s is a popular, local stop. Sustainably minded, they keep things local by partnering with nearby farmers and producers. Not only are 90% of their ingredients from the Pacific Northwest, but everything in their shop is 100% compostable."

"Tango serves up Tapas and Spanish meals, but be sure to save room for dessert from Molly Moon’s Ice Cream. Molly Moon’s hosts 4 locations around the greater Seattle area."

"Sports fans should take a tour at CenturyLink Field or Safeco Field. Once you’ve worked up an appetite again, go for a casual meal at Canton Wonton House or take your time at Red Lantern."

"While smaller than nearby Discovery Park, Magnolia Park offers stunning water views from a grassy field. A post shared by Emily Lex (@jonesdesigncompany) on Jun 2, 2018 at 8:28pm PDT"