Cities
[edit]
- Seattle — the seat of King County and the Pacific Northwest's largest city, with an extensive range of attractions
The rest of the county is described by its location relative to Seattle and Lake Washington.
North King County
[edit]Largely upscale suburbia, heavily residential.
- 1 Bothell — commercial center of the north county
- 2 Shoreline — a northern suburb of Seattle that is home to Kruckeberg Botanic Garden
- 3 Woodinville — the center of the Washington wine industry
East King County
[edit]Better known as the Eastside, this is the Pacific Northwest's original tech hub, with some of the area's most high-end development.
- 4 Bellevue — the second largest city in King County and Seattle's largest suburb, home to an art museum and a botanical garden
- 5 Issaquah — has an attractive old town and hosts a salmon festival
- 6 Kirkland — a charming lakefront city with a collection of outdoor sculptures
- 7 Mercer Island — a small city located on an island of the same name in Lake Washington
- 8 Redmond — home to Microsoft and Nintendo of America
- 9 Sammamish
- bedroom community for Bellevue and Redmond on the east side of Lake Sammamish.
South King County
[edit]Most visitors will only see the Sea-Tac Airport, in the city of SeaTac. (The airport's name came first.) These largely-industrial cities spread towards Pierce County, soon reaching Tacoma.
- 10 Auburn — home to the White River Valley Museum which focuses on Native American history to the 1920s. They focus on the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe, pioneer life
- 11 Burien — 'Old Town' Burien has a wide variety of shops and restaurants and has held onto the area's early charm
- 12 Federal Way — home of the Pacific Bonsai Museum and Rhododendron Species Botanical Gardens
- 13 Kent — a commuter town and manufacturing
- 14 Renton — dominated by Boeing's 737 factory
- 15 SeaTac — the city that named itself after an airport
- 16 Tukwila — visit the Museum of Flight, an air and space museum
- 17 Vashon Island — the largest island in Puget Sound, with a distinctly rural character
- 18 White Center — blends seamlessly into its neighbor, West Seattle, the area has embraced its punk rock, mixed-ethnicity identity
Cascades
[edit]The rural, sparsely distributed towns of the far east county are the respite from the sprawl:
- 19 Black Diamond
- 20 Duvall
- 21 Enumclaw — a northern gateway to Mount Rainier.
- 22 Fall City
- 23 North Bend — David Lynch's television series Twin Peaks was partially filmed here
- 24 Snoqualmie — Old railroad and logging town, home to the impressive Snoqualmie Falls
Other destinations
[edit]- 1 Snoqualmie Pass — a Cascades ski resort on the eastern edge of the county, along I-90
- 2 Stevens Pass — a Cascades ski resort on the eastern edge of the county, along US-2
Understand
[edit]Local information
[edit]- King County Council website
Get in
[edit]By car
[edit]
Interstate 5 (I-5) is the major north-south highway, running near the coast through Seattle to Snohomish County and Pierce County
Interstate 90 (I-90) runs east from Seattle through Bellevue and Issaquah to Snoqualmie Pass and Kittitas County.
The notoriously congested Interstate 405 (I-405) splits off from I-5 at Tukwila in the south and Lynnwood in the north, serving Bellevue and the other cities of the Eastside. From the I-5/405 junction in Tukwila I-405 becomes SR-518 which continues west to SR-509 in Burien via Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
By plane
[edit]1 Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, (SEA IATA), called "SeaTac" by locals, it connects Seattle to all regions of the U.S. and the world, especially with frequent transpacific routes but, also to Europe, Mexico and the Middle East as well. Competition is fierce and fares are low on service to the San Francisco Bay Area and Southern California with multiple airlines.
In addition to the above there are additional airports for general aviation and Kenmore Air at:
- 2 King County International Airport/Boeing Field (BFI IATA) which serves as an airport for cargo flights, general aviation, VIP flights, and Boeing test flights as well as Boeing manufacturing activities. It is also the location for the aviation museum. Commercial aviation is only with Kenmore Air.
- 3 South Lake Union Airport (LKE IATA) is a base for Seaplanes which are another popular way to travel around Puget Sound with several airlines based out of Seattle including Kenmore Air serving areas all around Puget Sound and Canada and Harbour Air to Vancouver's Coal Harbour. Kenmore Air offers shuttle transfer from SeaTac to their terminal on the shores of Lake Union and King County International Airport (Boeing Field).
- 4 Renton Municipal Airport (RNT IATA), farther from downtown than Boeing Field but still closer than Sea-Tac Airport, is another option for general aviation, with a sea plane dock at the north end of the airport on Lake Washington known as Wiley Post Memorial Seaplane Base. This airport only has basic facilities and no terminal building, but customs and immigration facilities are available for international arrivals with prior arrangement. For travelers going up to Friday Harbor on the San Juan Islands 5 Friday Harbor Seaplanes offer tours and one way travel up from the Renton Municipal Airport in their seaplanes.
By boat
[edit]- Washington State Ferries (WSF) operates the following within King County and from King to Kitsap County in the other side of Puget Sound:
downtown Seattle (Pier 52) and Bainbridge Island
downtown Seattle (Pier 52) and Bremerton
Fauntleroy (next to Fauntleroy Park) in West Seattle to Vashon Island and Southworth.
- All Washington State ferries are for both vehicles and passengers.
- Kitsap Transit Fast Ferry operates the following passenger only ferry, from Pier 50 in Downtown Seattle to:
- Bremerton From Bermerton they operate another smaller and slower moving passenger only ferry to Port Orchard.
- Kingston
- Southworth in Kitsap County. No stops in Vashon Island.
From ferry terminals in Kitsap County passengers transfer to Kitsap Transit buses to go onward without a car.
- King County Water Taxi connects downtown Seattle (Pier 50) to Seacrest Park in West Seattle and Vashon Island on two separate routes. This operates as a passenger only ferry.
- High Speed Catamaran by Clipper Vacations connects Seattle to Victoria, British Columbia (Canada) via Friday Harbor as a passenger only ferry from Pier 69 in the Seattle Waterfront.
Get around
[edit]By public transit
[edit] King County Metro, ☏ +1 206-553-3000. Operates bus, streetcar, and monorail routes in King County. Communities within the county served by this operator's routes include Auburn, Bellevue, Bothell, Burien, Federal Way, Issaquah, Kent, Kirkland, Mercer Island, North Bend, Redmond, Renton, SeaTac, Seattle, Shoreline, Tukwila, Vashon Island, White Center, and Woodinville. 
The web trip planneris straightforward and accurate, as long as your bus is on time.
The number of the route also tells you which area of the county it serves:
- Below 100 - Seattle only
- 100s - South King County: Auburn, Burien, Federal Way, Kent, Renton, SeaTac, Tukwila, Vashon Island, White Center
- 200s - Eastside: Bellevue, Bothell, Issaquah, Kirkland, North Bend, Redmond, Sammamish, Duvall
- 300s - North King County: Aurora Village, Bothell, Northgate, Shoreline, Woodinville
- 400s - Reserved for Community Transit commuter routes to Snohomish County from Seattle
- 500s - Sound Transit routes operated by King County Metro are 522, 542, 545, 550, 554, 556, 566
- 900s - DART (fixed) routes to serve surrounding lower density suburban or rural neighborhoods from a transit center or station in one of the cities served by King County Metro. There is some flexibility to deviate from the fixed route for drop off and pick-up. Appointments required for pick-up off their fixed routes.
- RapidRide - operates as bus rapid in the area to serve fewer stops (spaced further apart), along the route on frequent schedules. Routes are identified by a letter (A-H) rather then by numbers.
Sound Transit, toll-free: +1-888-889-6368. Has regional public transit routes including Sounder trains, Link light rail, and express bus in King County (e.g. Bellevue, Federal Way, Kent, Renton, Seattle), Snohomish County (e.g. Everett, Lynnwood) and Pierce County (e.g. Puyallup, Tacoma).
- Link light rail operates throughout King County, running every 8-15 minutes from 5AM to 1AM:
- The 1 Line travels through Seattle north to Lynnwood and south to Angle Lake via Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Construction is underway to extend the line south to Federal Way by 2026.
- The 2 Line travels from Redmond Tech Station to South Bellevue via downtown Bellevue. Construction is underway to extend the line into downtown Seattle by late 2025 or 2026.
- Sounder commuter rail service, operating weekday rush hours only, connects Seattle to Tacoma via Auburn, Kent and Tukwila on the 'S' Line Train and to Everett via Edmonds and Mukilteo on the 'N' Line train. Two separate routes.
- Sound Transit has many convenient express bus routes that travel South (to Tacoma), East (Redmond, Bellevue), and North (Bothell, Lynnwood). Outside of the immediate Seattle-Bellevue area, many routes operate only during weekday rush hours. Check your schedules in advance, and beware of holiday service cutbacks. All Sound Transit routes have route numbers that are in the 500s.
ORCA Card
[edit]The ORCA card is a contactless fare card that enables you to transfer seamlessly between King County and various Puget Sound public transit agencies, including: King County Metro, Sound Transit, Community Transit, Everett Transit, Pierce Transit, Kitsap Transit, and Washington State Ferries. The card is $3, and you must put in a minimum of $5 in your e-purse to start using it. You can add money or monthly passes to the card. Day passes are also available for $8 and can be used for all bus and train services. You can request a refund of unused e-purse funds online, by phone, or in person.
By car
[edit]All but essential for reaching the outermost suburbs and mountains. In addition to the interstates, major routes include:
SR-520, linking Seattle's University District to Bellevue and Redmond.
SR-18, a major freeway from I-5 (Exit 142) in Federal Way to I-90 (Exit 25) in Snoqualmie, east of Issaquah, through Black Diamond, Maple Valley and Covington
SR-167, from Exit 2 of I-405 in Renton to Puyallup via Kent, Auburn (Jct SR-18), Pacific and Sumner.
SR-522 branches from I-5 (Exit 171) to US-2 in Monroe via Lake City Way in N Seattle, Bothell, and Woodinville (Jct I-405). SR-522 goes around the northern shores of Lake Washington.
Traffic congestion is a major problem in the Puget Sound area on all freeways and major roads. Avoid traveling during rush hour if you can, particularly along I-5 and across the Lake Washington bridges.
Tolls
[edit]There are tolls for the SR-520 floating bridge and the express lanes of I-405, with rates that vary by time of day and traffic levels. There are no toll booths. If the vehicle has a "Good to Go" sticker on the windshield, the toll is deducted from a prepaid account. Otherwise, transponders take a picture of the license plates, front and back, and mail the bill to the registered owner.
Lake Washington is crossed by another floating bridge, across I-90, that is free. However, making a long detour around the lake will usually waste far more time than you'll save in toll money.
Do
[edit]- 1 Remlinger Farms (in Carnation).
Go next
[edit]- The South Sound, to the south, includes Tacoma, Olympia and Mount Rainier National Park.
- The North Sound, to the north, includes Everett, Mukilteo, Edmonds, Snohomish and Whidbey Island. Further north are Anacortes, Bellingham, and North Cascades National Park.
- The Kitsap Peninsula, to the west, includes Gig Harbor, Bainbridge Island, Port Orchard and Bremerton. Further west is Olympic National Park.
- The North Central Cascades, to the east, includes Ellensburg, Cle Elum and Leavenworth.