Eugene, OR & Seattle w/ teens
Looking for recommendations for our family (nearly 13yo and nearly 18yo, rising HS senior) when we visit Eugene and Seattle next month (for U of O and U of W campus tours). What cool things should we check out during the days? (we loved Chihuly Gardens and the space needle; not so much Pike Place and definitely not the gum wall (ick)) Any fave ice cream spots (we know Salt & Straw), restaurants (we are omnivores), or chocolate/sweets shops? As we'll only be in Seattle for 2 nights, would it be best to stay in the University area, or do you have an alternative neighborhood/hotel recommendation? Thanks in advance!
Jul 7, 2025
Parent Replies
I love Eugene. Both of my kids are UO students. Hey Neighbor for pizza, Pandita for Mexican food, Prince Pucklers for ice cream, Sweet Life is a great dessert place - there's one near campus and a larger one a little further away, Human Bean for coffee, Tailored for breakfast. Things to do: Spencer's Butte, 5th St Public Market, walk along the river, walk to Autzen (which is a student tradition during game days).
The raptor center in Eugene is very cool!
Staying near UW is probably easiest, since you can just walk up to campus from the numerous hotels that are nearby. However, if you want an alternative, I like the Silver Cloud Inn on Lake Union, especially the lake view rooms. Lovely view of the lake, float planes taking off and landing, pretty central to many neighborhoods. They have other hotels in the chain, I know there's one on lower Capitol Hill also. Haven't tried those. We've also stayed at the Marriott Residence Inn Lake Union right down the street, and they have two-bedroom suites with a kitchen and living room, sometimes at reasonable prices (gets pretty expensive during holiday times.)
I'm out of touch on food (grew up in Seattle but haven't lived there for decades) but I always go back to Dick's Drive-in to get my fries fix. It's a local fast food chain but decent quality and the fries are very good. Shakes are also good; the burgers (in my opinion) are just so so but it is fast food after all. Open until 2 am! Macrina bakery (several branches) has good pastries.
UW has a Waterfront Activities center where you can rent canoes or kayaks. It's a little dicey canoeing across the Montlake Cut but once you get across, the Arboretum waterways are fun to explore. If you'd rather stay on dry land, you can just walk through the Arboretum itself and admire the trees. If you're into swimming, there are many beaches along the shores of Lake Washington and the water is very refreshing. Volunteer Park on Capitol Hill is a pretty park with a brick water tower you can climb, and the park also includes Seattle Art Museum's original building, which now holds the Asian art collection. On Queen Anne Hill, the view of downtown (and hopefully Mount Rainier, if it is "out" on the day you visit) from Kerry Park is quite good.
If it's late enough in August, the blackberries should be ripe. Stop at any roadside and pick them--they're all over the place (especially in less manicured areas.) After my family, they are the thing I miss most about Seattle. The ones grown here in CA are just not as good.