Seattle — City ranks among top U.S. tourist destinations

SEATTLE — A vacation in northwest Washington can be accurately described as simply "waterful."

Going from Utah, the second driest of the 50 states, to one of the wettest is a contrast to be appreciated. From a high amount of annual rainfall, to waterfalls and rivers, to all the greenery, to ocean bays/ports, this makes for a vacation of high H2O proportions.

But is Seattle really that rainy?

No, according to David Blandford, director of public relations for Seattle's Convention and Visitors Bureau.

"Seattle summers tend be consistently dry and warm," he said. "As for the rest of the year, Seattle's precipitation statistics speak louder than its rainy reputation, counting many major U.S. cities that get more of the wet stuff."

For example, Boston, Houston, Miami, New York and Washington, D.C., all receive greater annual precipitation than Seattle (at 37.04 inches a year), according to the National Climatic Data Center.

Add a vibrant downtown with many galleries and museums, plus such icons as the Space Needle and the Pike Place Market, and the H2O angle is only one way to enjoy a surprisingly diverse Seattle.

In an AAA survey earlier this year, Seattle ranked third, behind Orlando and Las Vegas, as a "hot spot" destination for travelers in the summer of 2007.

Located almost 900 miles from Salt Lake City, Seattle's overnight visitors in 2006 increased to 9.4 million, up 3.4 percent from the previous year.

Blandford said that in the mid-1990s, Seattle garnered several big destination accolades, widely credited to its influence in pop culture — gourmet coffee, grunge rock, and movies such as "Sleepless in Seattle."

"Today, it is widely considered a top travel destination," he said, "because its tourism infrastructure has matured to feature a bustling cruise port (400,000 passengers each year), world-renowned cultural institutions, such as the Seattle Public Library's downtown brand and Olympic Sculpture Park, growing numbers of hotels and gourmet restaurants and more."

The 76-story Bank of America Tower — now named the Columbia Seafirst Center — is Seattle's tallest building.

The Space Needle, though not as tall at 520 feet above the Seattle metropolis, lives up to its billing — "Go from 0 to 'Wow' in 41 seconds." Located at Seattle Center on the northwest side of town, the Space Needle is the tallest structure in the area and offers 360-degree, commanding views of downtown and the region.

Built for the 1962 World's Fair, the Space Needle still thrives 45 years later. It isn't inexpensive for families, though (tickets for ages 14 and up cost $16; youths $8, and seniors $14), but it is great with its observation deck/restaurant on top and gift shop at the bottom.