Guide to Spokane: how to get there and where to stay, what to see and where to go in the evening. The most interesting in Spokane: fresh reviews and photos, places to see, branded entertainment and shopping.
According to toppharmacyschools, Spokane is a city for businessmen, little known as a tourist destination. Meanwhile, this city has a well-defined atmosphere and its own character. Many interesting and ancient buildings have been preserved here. And the surroundings of the city give the traveler all the opportunities for outdoor recreation. It may not be the place to go specifically, but as a stopover on the way, for example, from Montana to Seattle, Spokane is great.
In 1974, Riverfront Park hosted the World’s Fair, and all the pavilions are still here, as is the famous clock tower with four dials.
How to get to Spokane
Spokane International Airport is located 13 km west of the city center and receives flights from Portland, Honolulu, Denver, Minneapolis, Salt Lake City, Vegas, Oakland, and Phoenix. You can also get to the city by train, on the Empire Builder line from Seattle/Portland and Chicago. In addition, several bus companies run into the city from Pullman, Seattle, and nearby cities.
A bit of history
The settlement of Europeans was founded here in 1871, and the city of Spokane officially became in 1881. It was named after the local Indian tribe, and the word itself means “Children of the Sun.” Spokane’s official nickname is “the city of lilacs”: many of these bushes were planted here in the early 20th century. At the end of the 19th century, gold and silver were discovered in the northwest, and the area became one of the most productive in terms of mining. From then to this day, Spokane’s economy has traditionally been based on natural resources: mining, logging, and agriculture. Today, with a population of over 200,000, Spokane is the second largest city in Washington and the region’s largest economic center. In addition, historically, Spokane is considered the place where Father’s Day was first celebrated.
Entertainment and attractions in Spokane
The history of the city is reflected in the appearance of its districts: they all look specific, from the Victorian-style South Hill and Brown’s Addition and the Davenport Art District in the center of the city, to the more modern neighborhoods of northern Spokane. In the historic downtown there are administrative and office buildings, among which the district court, built in the style of a French chateau, with high spiers stands out. The city’s Georgian Athletic Club, which stands opposite the beautiful Cathedral of Our Lady of Lourdes, a Catholic church with two symmetrical towers and contrasting red and white trim, looks similar.
4 things to do in Spokane:
- Ride the historic 1909 carousel in Riverfront Park. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the carousel is one of the most beautiful and well-preserved handmade wooden carousels in the United States.
- See the city’s assorted monuments in Reeferfront Park and beyond, such as the statue of a local astronaut who died on the shuttle Columbia, a giant Japanese lantern, a garbage goat, and the spiral poem “The Place Where Salmon Ghosts Jump.”
- Ride the cable car over the Spokane Falls.
- Take a picture of the clock tower with an amber dial illuminated at night.
The garbage goat is a sculpture made of sheet iron, and a vacuum reigns inside the goat. Therefore, if you bring small pieces of garbage to his mouth, the goat will “eat” them, making chewing sounds for greater naturalness.
Brown’s Addition is a National Historic District west of the city, where the first upmarket neighborhoods began to be built. The city’s elite lived here, and you can still see many old mansions built in the style of Queen Anne. The Coeur d’Alene Park and the Museum of Art and Culture are also located here. One of the buildings of the museum is Campbell House, built at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries for a local magnate: a beautiful Tudor Revival mansion with original decor and one of the city’s must-see sights. But the museum itself is very worth seeing: it is the largest cultural organization in the northeast with underground galleries and a learning center. His exhibitions focus on three themes: American Indians and other cultures, local history and visual arts.
Another famous building in Brown’s Addition is the Patsy Clark Mansion, designed in 1897 for another millionaire. It can be found on Western Second Avenue. For a long time, a restaurant operated in a mansion with a complex architecture, a remarkable main entrance and a corner turret with a colonnade on top, and to this day weddings and parties are held here.
The green western part of South Hill is one of the city’s oldest residential areas. Seen from downtown, South Hill appears to be entirely covered with evergreen trees, dominated by two tall buildings: the medical center and the beautiful St. John’s Cathedral, an example of modern English Gothic architecture. The cathedral began to be erected on the site of the one that preceded it in 1925 and completed in 4 years. The structure of the cathedral was made entirely of hewn stone, and the building is decorated with stone carvings and stained glass windows in a classic Gothic style. Notable is also the cathedral organ with more than 4,000 pipes, so well made that even the smallest pipes can be heard in every corner of the building. And on the tower of Bishop’s Cross there is a carillon of 49 bells, one of the few hand carillons of the northwest, cast in England. Listen to him play maybe at the Sunday service. In addition, every July the city hosts a festival of carillonists with weekly concerts, which bring together masters from all over the world.
The center of Spokane’s business life is Riverside. Here you can find shops, hotels and entertainment for every taste. Like most cities built on the river, Spokane’s history is closely tied to it. Further downstream are the Spokane Falls. There is also the popular Riverfront Park, with plenty of entertainment options for young and old, a convention center with an exhibition space, and a large shopping mall called River Park Square. In 1974, Riverfront Park hosted the World’s Fair, and all the pavilions are still here, as is the famous clock tower with four dials.
The recently restored Monroe Street Bridge spans the Spokane Falls and is considered one of the city’s most recognizable symbols. This is an arch bridge, originally built in 1911 – at that time it was the largest monolithic arch bridge in the country and the third longest in the world.
Another characteristic building is the Old National Bank, which was erected in 1911 and became the first skyscraper in the northwest. This fifteen-story building, 66 meters high, became a symbol of the economic growth of the region, and its interior decoration was also very rich for that time. Granite columns were installed in the two-level grand lobby, and five elevators were installed in the second lobby. In 1963, the building was renovated with remarkable lighting that won a national award, and today the entire façade is flooded with fluorescent light at night.
There are several beautiful green spaces in the city. In particular, one of them is the 90-acre Manito Park, opened in 1904. Here is Duncan Gardens, a classic European Renaissance-style symmetrical garden with a central fountain and an adjoining conservatory with exotic plants. In addition, the park has a rose garden, a lilac garden, a Japanese garden with bridges and a carp pond, a duck pond and a picnic area.
Spokane events
The Lilac Festival is the country’s largest holiday dedicated to the armed forces. It takes place on the third Saturday in May and includes a large military parade. In addition, Spokane hosts a week-long Spring Literary Festival with discussions, workshops, fairs, slams, etc. Two well-known events of a different kind are the Pride Parade, combined with the Rainbow Fest, the largest in Eastern Washington, the gay festival, which takes place in June, as well as the gay film festival, which takes place on the first weekend of November.
Neighborhood Spokane
Spokane is located in a beautiful location, among the forests, and from here you can drive to a number of amazing national parks – for example, to the famous Glacier. But even close to the city you can have a good rest. So, traveling to Mount Spokane remains popular at any time of the year, although in winter the very top of the mountain is closed. There is a ski resort at the top, however, skiing opportunities depend on natural snowfalls.
