The Seattle Monorail

The Seattle Monorail is a short, but fun way to get from downtown to Seattle Center and vice versa. It's only a one-mile route, but it's great if you are carrying stuff, and kids love riding the train! On one end is the station at Seattle Center just across from the Space Needle. As it leaves the station, it passes right through the Experience Music Project! The EMP building was built around the monorail platform.

The Seattle Monorail was built for the 1962 Seattle World's Fair. It opened three months before the start of the Fair and carried more than 8 million passengers during the Fair.

Today locals use the monorail to get to major festivals and sports events held at the Seattle Center. For tourists who are visiting Seattle it is a convenient way to get to the Space Needle, EMP, Pacific Science Center, and other attractions at Seattle Center from downtown.

At the other end of the line is Westlake Center at the corner of Fifth and Pine Street. This is right in the center of the downtown shopping area near stores such as Nordstrom's flagship store.

Trains depart every ten minutes from each station, and the trip takes two minutes to cover the 1-mile route. During special events trains depart every five minutes. The Monorail operates seven days a week year round except for Thanksgiving and Christmas. One-way and round-trip tickets are available at the station.

Monorail Fun Facts:

• It takes 2 minutes to cover the 1-mile route.
• Each train can carry up to 200 passengers.
• It has made an appearance in at least two major movies filmed in Seattle.
• Famous riders include Elvis Presley, Sylvester Stallone, John Lithgow, Kelsey Grammer, and John Glenn.