Chihuly Garden and Glass in Seattle 

Chihuly Garden and Glass exhibit in Seattle is simply stunning. Visiting the Chihuly Garden and Glass exhibit in Seattle near the Space Needle is a must. The whole place is beautiful and worth adding to your next trip to Seattle.

Chihuly Garden and Glass

Chihuly Garden and Glass is a permanent exhibit in the Seattle Center right next to the Space Needle showcasing the studio glass of Dale Chihuly. If you are wondering how you possibly could have missed this museum (like I was) during previous trips it’s because it wasn’t here. The exhibit opened in 2012 where the Fun Forest used to be. RIP Fun Forest The exhibition includes eight galleries, the Glasshouse, and a garden.

Fun Fact about the photo above. Noah was with us, and no, he is not the one who took our picture. He refused to be in the picture and spent most of his time sitting on a bench. Teenagers are so much fun.

Chihuly Garden

The garden is small but beautiful. He did an amazing job incorporating nature with the glass. It was nice to visit the garden during the fall. As you can see the leaves on the trees are a variety of colors. I would have liked to spend more time out here, but it was 36 degrees and my kids weren’t having it. I can imagine in the spring and summer this would be even better. They have a list of plants found in the garden on their website like the Whipcord Cobra Lily, scarlet daylilies, dogwoods, and Orange Candleflower. I wish I had known that ahead of time.

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Glasshouse

The glasshouse is really something to see inside and from the outside. The Glasshouse is the result of Chihuly’s lifelong appreciation for conservatories. We saw it on a cloudy day. I cannot imagine how brilliant this would be on a sunny day. The glass ouse is a 40-foot tall, glass, and steel structure covering 4,500 square feet of light-filled space and houses a 100-foot long sculpture in a color palette of reds, oranges, yellows, and amber. This is one of Chihuly’s largest suspended pieces of work. On their website you can see it all lit up at night.

A burst of sunshine made with glass reeds made in Finland.

They host a variety of events in the glasshouse like painting, yoga, and Bachata dancing.

Glass Galleries

I liked the way the different gallery rooms were laid out and the way they had them lit. In two of the galleries, they had photographers taking pictures for free that you could have emailed to your email.

Is it okay to bring kids?

One thing that surprised me is how accessible the glass art is. My kids are old enough not to touch the glass, but if they were this place would be a nightmare. I do not recommend bringing kids under 7 or 8 here. They also do not allow large strollers in the exhibits. The museum has a free activity book for children. In the book, there is an activity for each of the rooms at the facility.

This next glass display represents Dale Chihuly’s love of water. This is a float boat inspired by rowboats he saw in Finland in the mid 90’s.

You may be thinking this looks familiar, but I’ve never been to Seattle. You probably saw it at the check-in desk inside the Bellagio hanging over your head. If you’ve seen it you know exactly what I am talking about.

Dale Chihuly’s mother’s garden where he grew up was the inspiration for this next photo. I didn’t realize I was looking at a “garden” until I listened to the audio tour.

Location:

Chihuly Garden and Glass

305 Harrison St, Seattle, WA 98109

(206) 753-4940

Hours:

Open Sunday – Thursday from 11 AM – 6 PM and from 11 AM – 7 PM on Friday and Saturday.

They offer a military discount on adult admission, but not on youth tickets. Every admission includes a free audio tour.

Discounts to Chihuly Garden and Glass

You can get into the Chihuly Garden and Glass with the Seattle CityPASS. If you are doing several activities definitely look into getting one of these passes. We’ve done it twice now and saved a lot of money. CityPass offers admission to either Chihuly Garden and Glass or the Pacific Science Center. This is a tough choice because both are good. If you are traveling with little kids take them to the science museum.

They offer a military discount on adult admission, but not on youth tickets. Every admission includes a free audio tour.

I don’t really know why they offer a “free” audio tour. I found a free audio tour right on their website under Audio Tour. Granted, it was somewhat boring unless the artist Dale Chihuly himself is speaking. He spoke about where he got his inspiration and mentions his mother’s garden.

Doing a quick search it appears that AAA members can also get discounted admission.

Coat Check

They offer a limited free coat check located at all entrances. All packages, umbrellas and bags larger than 11″ x 15″ must be checked, including backpack-style child carriers. Considering the constant rain and occasional snow, they pretty must have to offer this. We went in November and it was snowing! If I had stayed a little longer I probably could have gotten an amazing shot of the garden in the snow. At the time, though all I could think about was that 3.5 hour drive back to Portland in the rain and snow. So I hustled up the kids and hit the road. That week I was driving the 2017 Toyota Highlander Hybrid.

Parking Lots

Parking is hard to find in this area, here are the three closest lots.
Mercer Garage: Third Ave N & Roy Street
First Ave N Garage: between John and Thomas Street
Fifth Ave N Garage: Fifth Ave N & Republican Street

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