The Seattle Great Wheel, Seattle, Guía del visitante y qué hacer cerca

The Seattle Great Wheel is a giant observation wheel at the end of Pier 57 on the Seattle waterfront, rising about 175 feet above Elliott Bay. Opened in 2012, it gives riders a slow, high view of the harbor, the downtown skyline and the Olympic Mountains on a clear day, and it has become one of the most recognizable sights on the city's shoreline.

The story behind it

Seattle's waterfront has been the city's working front door since its earliest days, lined with piers for ships, ferries and trade. The Great Wheel is a modern addition to that story. It was built out over the water on Pier 57 and opened in 2012, and it quickly turned the pier into a gathering place for locals and visitors alike.

The city itself carries an older story in its name. Seattle is named for Chief Seattle (Si'ahl, or Sealth), a leader of the Suquamish and Duwamish peoples who lived around Puget Sound. He was respected by Native people and settlers alike and worked as a negotiator during the upheaval that followed non-Native settlement. When the settlement was founded in the early 1850s, his friend David 'Doc' Maynard proposed naming it in his honor, and the name stuck.

What to look for

• The ring of gondolas lit up against the evening sky, which makes the wheel a landmark you can spot from along the waterfront.
• The way the wheel extends out over the water, so the ride lifts you above Elliott Bay rather than above the street.
• The view back toward the downtown towers and across the bay to the ferries and, in clear weather, the Olympic Mountains.
• The busy pier below, where the boardwalk, ferry traffic and harbor activity all sit within a few steps of each other.

Tips for your visit

• Allow time for the ride itself plus a little extra for the queue, and check current opening hours and ticket options before you go.
• Late afternoon into dusk is a good window, when the light over the water is soft and the wheel begins to glow.
• You can enjoy the wheel from the pier and boardwalk without riding, which is a good option if the weather is poor or you are short on time.
• Pike Place Market, the Seattle Aquarium and the ferry terminal are all within an easy walk along the waterfront.

See it on a quest

Seattle: Harbor of Secrets, Hunt for the Golden Mermaid is a self-guided walk with a harbor theme, so the Great Wheel fits naturally as one stop on a longer route through the waterfront area. You reach it on foot, the app tells you about the place as you arrive, and you solve a puzzle based on what is right in front of you. There is no guide and no fixed start time, and one ticket covers the whole group.