Happy New Year, Seattle! It’s not only a new month, but a brand-new year for exploring our city. If you’re looking for some exciting things to do in Seattle in January 2025, we have plenty of options for you. Whether you’re interested in catching a live show, getting outdoors, going shopping, or seeing an immersive exhibition, there’s something on this list for you. The best part is that many of these events are cheap or even free!
This ongoing list is in chronological order, and we will add more events as they pop up! Be sure to bookmark this and check back regularly for more.
Here are the top things to do in Seattle this January:
1. Brave the Seattle Polar Bear Plunge
Every January 1 at exactly noon, hundreds of Seattleites welcome the new year by plunging into the frigid water of Lake Washington. Read about this year’s Seattle Polar Bear Plunge before you go.
2. Do a New Year plunge and a 5k
If you really want to challenge yourself at the beginning of 2025, you could register here for the annual Club Northwest Resolution Run and Polar Bear Dive on January 1. (The polar plunge portion is optional!) There will be prizes for top finishers, free hot beverages, a beer garden for ages 21+, and a free kids race.
3. Take advantage of free state parks day
Every January 1 is free state parks day in honor of New Year’s Day. Check out our guide to the best Washington State Parks to plan your adventure.
4. Walk through Astra Lumina
Astra Lumina: A Night Walk Amongst The Stars recently reopened in the Seattle Chinese Garden and if you haven’t experienced it yet, you can still get tickets for select dates this January. It transforms the garden into a magical night walk experience full of music and stunning light displays. Book your time slot here!
5. See a hockey game
There are plenty of opportunities to catch a hockey game in Seattle this month! The Seattle Kraken will be playing an exciting game at Climate Pledge Arena on January 2 in addition to eight other home games in January.
6. Explore the Titanic exhibition
Titanic: The Exhibition is in Seattle for a limited time only. This powerfully immersive exhibition will give you a new appreciation for that fateful day in history. Tickets are still available here for select dates in January.
7. Visit a Seattle museum for free
You’ll be able to enjoy free access to Seattle museums in January if you have the inside scoop. Most of the free museum days occur on the first Thursday of the month. Read our guide to free museum admission in Seattle.
8. Do The Tomb Raider Experience
An exciting new escape room in Seattle is here for just a couple more months. The Tomb Raider Experience Seattle – Escape from the Temple of Fire is a fun immersive experience to do with friends or family. Get your tickets for January here.
9. Join a Sound of Music sing-along
Seattle’s beautiful 5th Avenue Theater is hosting its annual sing-along to The Sound of Music on January 11 and 12. There will be trivia and free tote bags, and costumes are encouraged! Get tickets here.
10. Catch a Candlelight Concert in Seattle
Don’t miss out on these beautiful upcoming Candlelight Concerts in stunning Seattle venues:
If you’d like to treat someone else, you can purchase a Candlelight gift card!
11. See the zoo lit up for WildLanterns
Don’t miss out on the WildLanterns light festival at Woodland Park Zoo before it’s gone after January 19! This winter experience is fun for all ages. Read all about WildLanterns before you go.
12. Join a Seattle art walk
Multiple Seattle neighborhoods hold an art walk every month—and they’re free! Read all about the various Seattle art walks coming up this January.
13. Go to a concert
There are some pretty exciting live music events in the city this month, from big names to fun tribute acts. See our roundup of concerts in Seattle this January.
14. See an incredible acrobatic burlesque show
From January 17 to January 26, The Triple Door is putting on Bohemia: a mystical cabaret set in 1890s Hungary.
15. Commemorate MLK Day
There are several ways to celebrate Martin Luther King Day this year in Seattle. The main MLK Day rally on January 20 begins with a job fair at Garfield High School in the Central District before the march to city hall. You can also enjoy free entry to all state and national parks on this day.
16. Go to Tết in Seattle
This annual celebration of the Vietnamese Lunar New Year will be on January 25 and 26 at Seattle Center. And it’s free! See more info here.
17. Shop at Seattle weekend markets
Seattle always has amazing weekend markets with crafters, vintage goods, and food trucks even in the winter months. See our regularly-updated roundup of the best Seattle weekend markets this January.
18. Visit the Seattle Spheres
The Spheres are one of Seattle’s coolest attractions, but you can’t just walk in whenever you want. Read our guide to snagging a reservation to tour the Seattle Spheres.
19. Warm up in a sauna or hot tub boat
Winter blues got you down? Warm up this January with the help of our guide to Seattle’s best saunas, hothouses, and hot tubs (including hot tub boats!).
20. Make going out for drinks a whole experience
Elevate your next night out by taking your date or your friends to one of Seattle’s coolest themed bars or a hidden Seattle speakeasy.
21. Or try Seattle’s best non-alcoholic cocktails for Dry January
Doing Dry January (or just not drinking for any reason)? We recently created a huge guide to all the best places in Seattle to find a non-alcoholic beverage. Make it your mission to try as many yummy mocktails in Seattle as possible this January.
22. Experience the best cookie in Seattle
Apologies if this ruins your New Year’s resolution, but we went taste-testing and determined the 10 best cookies in Seattle. You’ll have to decide for yourself which one deserves the number-one spot.
23. Go to a Capitol Hill dance party
Want to go dancing in Seattle? You have options, especially if you head to Capitol Hill:
- Neumos has various themed dance parties, such as a Beyonce night and a Taylor Swift night.
- Chop Suey has a reoccurring Dance Yourself Clean indie dance party on Saturday nights as well as their Monday night House Party.
- Gold Bar hosts their Don’t Think dance party every Thursday night.
24. Treat yourself to a delicious meal
Not sure where to eat this month in Seattle? Make a reservation to eat at the best new restaurant in Seattle.
25. Go on a day trip or weekend getaway
Want to get out of the city for a day or two? Check out our guide to 10 of the coolest getaway destinations near Seattle or our roundup of the most charming winter towns in Washington for a snowy getaway.
26. Take a scenic train ride
Seattle is an excellent starting point for several really cool train trips that you can take this month. The Amtrak Cascades is a route between Seattle and Vancouver, B.C. You can also book a winter getaway on these two train routes from Seattle that were named among the most scenic in the U.S.
27. Try Seattle’s new floating sauna
Did you know Seattle has a public floating sauna on Lake Washington? It’s the perfect way to warm up, unwind, and meet people this January. Read all about Von Sauna here before you go.
Psst: Make sure you’re following us on Instagram for even more ideas for things to do in Seattle this January!