A relatively-recent addition to the city park list, Lake Union Park has quickly become one of the most popular on sunny days. Deeded to Seattle Parks and Recreation from the Navy in 2000, the city consolidated that acreage with other spaces to open the park officially in 2012. Between the fountain, a tiny beach, MOHAI, Historic Ships Wharf, and the Center for Wooden Boats, there’s no shortage of things to experience here. Just watch out for the geese.

Purcahsed in 1926, this park was originally known as Pontius Playground and located close to Cascade School. The school is now a warehouse, but the name transferred over when the park was renovated and reintroduced in 2005. Now it includes play areas, a picnic table and is adjacent to a community p-patch.

Capping the north end of the waterfront past the Olympic Sculpture Park, Myrtle Edwards boats both industrial and water views, plus some of the prettiest parts of the Elliott Bay Trail and some beachfront space within walking distance of the downtown core.

Co-operated by Seattle Parks and Recreation and the Seattle Art Museum, this park has many installations that locals know well (the jagged red “Eagle” stands out) and occasionally something new and surprising.

As the name suggests, this park runs along Bell Street in Belltown. The four-block park is a shared street project, has one mixed-use traffic lane and features landscaping and open space, encouraging pedestrians, cyclists, and automobiles to share the space.

Less a park for humans than an off-leash dog park, this third-of-an-acre area is located at 3rd and Bell. There is a 5-foot-tall fence that encloses the entire park, and there are double “airlock” gates at each entrance to ensure dog safety. With a bus stop and busy streets surrounding, it’s not exactly a nature getaway but if your dog needs to pee and/or play, it’ll get the job done.

If there’s any park on this list we’re pretty sure you’ve been to, it’s this one. Arguably the hub of downtown Seattle, it’s a central meeting or hangout point for locals, tourists and everyone else. Consider it the perfect launching point for exploring the surrounding city. Head towards the water and Pike Place Market. Head up Pike or Pine and do some shopping. Head north on 4th Avenue to Belltown and Denny Triangle or south toward Pioneer Square and the Stadium District. Pop into Westlake Station to catch a light rail train to somewhere farther away. Or, you know, just hang out here and people watch all day long.

Another park that’s been changing in recent years, this Pike Place Market-adjacent spot hasn’t always been the most friendly, but it feels a lot more friendly these days. Find a grassy spot or go watch Elliott Bay from the railing and soak in the sun. It’s also a nice way to bring your energy down after a stroll through the market on a busy day. Two 50-foot cedar totem poles give the park some personality as well.

Bounded by Sixth and Ninth Avenues as well as Union and Spring Street, this park overlooks Seattle’s financial center. Designed by brutalist icon Lawrence Halprin, it makes for a nice respite from the busy downtown corridor whether you’re working, visiting, or just passing through. It’s named for Jim Ellis, a preservationist who fought for many causes as Seattle was growing up in the 1950s and 1960s.

This 1.3-acre park got its name because when it was laid out in 1916, the adjacent King County Courthouse was the County-City Building. In 1955, a pine oak tree was planted to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the United Nations.

Yes, the triangular park with a Tlingit totem pole is actually called Pioneer Square. And yes, that’s how the neighborhood got its name. A statue of Chief Seattle keeps watch over things, and the iron pergola built in 1909 still stands, even if people seem to keep hitting it with their cars every couple years. (Fun fact: there’s an abandoned bathroom underneath.)

After some recent activation work, Occidental Square has become the Pioneer Square central hub it was always meant to be. A private-public partnership has made it more welcoming, added tons of fun activities, and brought in the food trucks.

Designed by landscape architect S. K. Sakuma, Seattle’s “Park for Pleasurable Gatherings” features a red brick square with an ornate Grand Pavilion designed and constructed in Taipei. There’s also beautiful artwork about Asian-American history in the Northwest to be admired. The park was recently expanded, too, stretching the open space down the length of the block.

During a period in the 1970s, there was a strong push for public park development in Chinatown International District in order to give the community more amenities to enjoy. This park was one of three built at the time. In the center of the park, grass and sand form the yin-yang symbol, while a bronze dragon sculpture created by Gerard Tsutakawa sits in the middle of this area and is often used as a plaything by kids.