Pike Place Market Before Our Norwegian Encore Alaska Cruise: Fish Throwing, the Gum Wall, and a Great Seattle Morning

We had been to Pike Place Market before, but the friends traveling with us on our Norwegian Encore Alaska cruise had not. With the Thompson Seattle just a short walk away, it was an easy choice for Saturday morning before we headed toward the Mariners game.

We started with breakfast at Biscuit Bitch, spent about 90 minutes at Pike Place, wandered down to the waterfront, and eventually continued on foot toward T-Mobile Park. The fish throwing was the experience we specifically wanted our friends to see. The Gum Wall turned out to be the part that was new to us.

For a cruise traveler staying downtown, that is probably our biggest takeaway: Pike Place can give you a very memorable Seattle morning without requiring a reservation, an admission fee, or half of your sightseeing day.

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The Fish Throwing Was the Highlight We Wanted Our Friends to See

We had seen the famous Pike Place fish toss before, but our friends had not. This was one thing we intentionally wanted to make sure they experienced.

The biggest thing that stood out this time was not just the flying fish. It was the energy and passion of the fishmongers and the way the crowd fed off it.

More detail: What It Was Like Waiting for the Fish to Fly

When we reached Pike Place Fish Market, nothing was flying through the air yet. We waited for about 10 minutes.

What made us stay was the activity around the stand. The crowd was getting larger, the workers were moving around, and it felt like something was coming. Then the action picked up.

Pike Place Market explains that the fish throwing happens when a customer buys a fish and it is tossed from the front display to the fishmongers behind the counter to be wrapped and prepared. It happens throughout the business day rather than as a scheduled performance.

That is why we would give yourself a little time rather than walking up, seeing nothing happen immediately, and assuming you missed it.

There is some history behind the attraction too. Pike Place Fish Market has operated at the Market since 1930. In 1986, longtime owner John Yokoyama and the crew made a deliberate commitment to becoming “world famous,” with the energetic customer experience becoming part of what the market is now known for.

For current visitor information, see the Pike Place Market Visitor FAQ and the official Pike Place Fish Market page.

The Gum Wall Was New to Us — and Really Neat and Really Gross

Our friends were actually the ones who had researched the Gum Wall and told us we should find it. Somehow, even after previous Pike Place visits, Jon and Melanie had never been there and really did not know much about it.

Our reaction once we found it was pretty simple: really neat, but definitely gross.

More detail: How the Gum Wall Became a Seattle Attraction

The Gum Wall sits in Post Alley below the main Pike Place Market level. According to Pike Place Market, the tradition began in the 1990s when patrons and performers at nearby Unexpected Productions started sticking used gum to the brick wall.

It kept growing from there and now stretches along a large section of the alley.

We mostly walked around, looked at it, and took photos and video. One of our friends went a step further and added their own piece of gum to the wall, so our group can now claim a very small contribution to the attraction.

You can find additional history and directions on Pike Place Market’s official Gum Wall page.

About 90 Minutes Was Enough for the Visit We Wanted

Pike Place was extremely busy that Saturday morning. It was a summer cruise weekend with another major Seattle event happening, so there were crowds throughout the Market—not just around the fish stand.

That still worked for us because we were there to experience the Market rather than shop every stall.

More detail: Why a Focused Visit Worked

Our priorities were simple:

Wander through Pike Place and get a feel for it.
Make a point to see the fish throwing.
Find the Gum Wall.
Take photos and video.
Keep moving into the rest of our Seattle day.

For that, about 90 minutes felt like plenty.

If you want to shop extensively, sit down for a meal, explore all of the lower levels, or sample food from multiple vendors, you could easily spend much longer.

If crowds bother you, we would also try to go earlier. Even on a very busy summer weekend, though, our focused visit was easy enough to enjoy.

There is no admission fee to enter Pike Place Market, which is another reason we like it as a pre-cruise stop. You can spend as little or as much as you want once you are there.

A Few Things We’d Tell Other Cruisers Before They Go

You do not need a complicated Pike Place itinerary to have a good visit. A little time and a couple of priorities were enough for us.

More detail: Our Practical Pike Place Tips

Give the fish market a little time. Our wait was about 10 minutes. The fish tosses are part of the market’s actual business rather than a performance on a published schedule.

Watch the activity around you. The growing crowd and the energy behind the counter were good clues that sticking around was probably worthwhile.

Go earlier if you want more breathing room. Pike Place can get extremely busy during the summer cruise season.

Find the Gum Wall. It is easy to add to a Pike Place visit and worth seeing at least once—even if your reaction is the same as ours.

Do not count on a quick Starbucks stop. The historic Pike Place Starbucks was right there, but every time we saw it the line was insanely long. Starbucks itself says summer lines at the Pike Place location can sometimes stretch for hours when cruise visitors are in town.

You do not have to see everything. If Pike Place is one part of a bigger Seattle day, a focused 60–90 minute visit can work very well.

Why Pike Place Worked So Well Before Norwegian Encore

We were staying at the Thompson Seattle, so Pike Place was close enough that it never felt like a separate transportation project. After the Market, we simply dropped down toward the waterfront and kept walking toward the Mariners game.

That was exactly the kind of Seattle day we wanted before boarding Norwegian Encore at Pier 66 the following morning.

More detail: How It Fit Into Our Two-Night Seattle Stay

Saturday was intentionally built around only a few anchors. We started around 9:00 a.m. with Biscuit Bitch, visited Pike Place, wandered the waterfront, and reached T-Mobile Park around 12:30 p.m.

That flexibility is part of what we liked about arriving in Seattle two nights early. Our Seattle Before an Alaska Cruise: The Strategy Behind Our Two-Night Stay goes deeper into why we chose that schedule and how the rest of the weekend worked.

For the broader hotel, transportation, Pier 66, and embarkation logistics, see our Seattle Cruise Guide: Pier 66, Waterfront, Hotels, Transportation, and Embarkation.

We Would Keep Coming Back to Pike Place

Even though this was not our first Pike Place visit, we would almost always stop again if we were staying downtown.

The fish throwing is still fun to watch, but repeat visits also give us another chance to try some of the unique food in and around the Market. The following morning, before we headed to Pier 66, we went back for Beecher’s mac and cheese for breakfast.

That is probably what keeps Pike Place from feeling like a one-and-done Seattle attraction for us. There is always another corner to wander or another food stop to try.

Final Thoughts

Pike Place Market was not the biggest activity of our two-night Seattle stay, and that is part of why it worked so well.

We spent about 90 minutes there, showed our friends the famous fish throwing, discovered the Gum Wall ourselves, and then kept walking into the rest of our Seattle day.

For someone staying downtown before an Alaska cruise, we think that makes Pike Place especially easy to recommend. It is memorable, flexible, free to explore, and does not have to take over your day.

And if you have never seen the fish throwing in person, we would make a point to give yourself enough time to catch it at least once.