Seattle Private City Tour

Seattle Tour.

The name Seattle comes from “Sealth”, who was a Native American Chief of the Suquamish tribe in 1851. The city is over 83.9 sq. miles and has over 147.52 miles of freshwater shoreline and 53.38 miles of saltwater. The population within the city itself is 612,000 (WA state is 6,733,3000). Seattle itself is pretty diverse in comparison to the state, (Seattle Average Races: White: 68%, African American: 8.2%, Native American 1.2%, Asian: 14.4%, Hispanic 6.3%. WA Average Races: White: 81.2%, African American: 3.3%, Native American 1.4%, Asian: 6.6%, Hispanic 8.8%). Seattle is known for its rain… and the current record for the most amount of rain fallen in a day in Seattle is 5.02″ and the most amount fallen in a year is 55.14″.

Seattle experiences daily tourism from around the world. An average of 9 million visitors per year visit the city to tour one of the oldest cities with its rich history. The city also has some of the biggest Co. Headquarters including Amazon, Starbucks, Nordstrom and Costco. As for how educated the city is… according to the U.S. Census Bureau, 37.4% of people in Seattle have a college degree.

*Sources include U.S. Census Bureau, 2005 American Community Survey, King County Visitor Impact Study by Seattle’s Convention, Visitors Bureau, CIC Research, Inc; and Dean Runyan Associates for Seattle’s Convention. Please click here to learn more.

Smith Tower

Smith Tower.

This tower is the oldest one in the city and has been the tallest until the Space Needle took over in 1962. The Smith Tower is a skyscraper that is an example of Neoclassical Architecture which is located in Pioneer square. It has only been washed once on the exterior in 1976 because the building remains clean by itself! A unique aspect of this tower is that it is one of the only buildings on the west coast that contains elevator operators. Doors are latticed which means the rider can see everything clearly through the transparent glass windows.

There is also a special Chinese Room on the 35th floor that has furniture and a hand-carved ceiling that were gifts from the Empress of China with an observation deck. The building is crowned with a glass dome which is illuminated with blue light except during December, during when it becomes green instead. Take a tour of this ancient building or reserve the Chinese Room for your special occasion.