For those who really want to make the most of their time in Pierce County, we’d recommend the Mountain City Sea Attraction Pass. It’s access to seven attractions for one discounted price. Geographically, those attractions span the Mount Rainier area, downtown Tacoma and the Tacoma waterfront, and categories from history, automotive, maritime, outdoor recreation and glass art.
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- Museums – Tacoma is a museum town, with six major museums in the downtown core. Spanning history, automotive, maritime and art, you’ll have plenty to see and all within walking distance of the convention center.
- Glass art – Downtown Tacoma is alive with glass art. Some of it’s in the two museums with world-class collections (Tacoma Art Museum and the Museum of Glass), but plenty is in public – from Union Station to the Chihuly Bridge of Glass to the art that decorates the University of Washington – Tacoma campus. Local artists at Tacoma Glassblowing Studio and Area 253 Glassblowing Studio host hour-long or half-day workshops where visitors can create their own masterpieces under the instruction of the masters. Both are walking distance from the hotels and convention center.
- Tours – Local tour company Pretty Gritty Tours has regular tours that explore Tacoma’s sweets, craft beer scene, coffee, history and even its ghosts.
- Mount Rainier excursions – Being in the shadow of Pacific Northwest icon Mount Rainier makes the whole region more beautiful by proximity. But it’s only an hour away driving, and tour companies such as Discover Nature LLC can put together affordable and bespoke tours for groups, and also have planned tours that you can join individually.