An absolute must visit, a gem of a museum, you must visit to immerse yourself in the artifacts and exhibits and imagine you are re living the days of the famous Klondyke Gold Rush. A must for anyone going on an Alaska cruise from Seattle- dont miss this. The Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, an unassuming little hidden treasure tucked away in the historic Cadillac Hotel building in Pioneer Square, is actually more of a museum, filled with all kinds of interesting exhibits relating to the Gold Rush era and Seattle’s connection to it. Just look at my photos to get an idea of the museum. Various programs are offered during summer months. Address: 319 Second Avenue South, Seattle, WA 98104

An absolute gem of a museum, immersing yourself in the artifacts and exhibits and you are re living the days of the famous Gold Rush. A must for anyone going on an Alaska cruise from Seattle- dont miss this. The Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, an unassuming little hidden treasure tucked away in the historic Cadillac Hotel building in Pioneer Square, is actually more of a museum, filled with all kinds of interesting exhibits relating to the Gold Rush era and Seattle’s connection to it. Various programs are offered during summer months. Address: 319 Second Avenue South, Seattle, WA 98104

Very interesting spot in Pioneer Square. Free admission, plus you can buy forrest passes there for National Parks!

An unexpected treasure hidden away near Pioneer Square. Highly recommended to watch the 20 minute introduction movie every hour and learn the history of Seattle then wander the exhibits and interact. Not a big museum but free and a good way to spend an hour or two.

A compact yet educational learning center with a very friendly staff, one member of whom kindly guided my visually-impaired daughter to try gold-sifting and made the process come alive for her. Thank you.Free admission is great, so is the super-informative 20-min documentary film, the latter is worth every minute in gold.

This museum is a gem that opens you to the history of Seattle and its becoming. Its rather small with only 2 stories of exhibits. I recommend watching the movie for a good overview before you dive deep into looking and reading around the museum.

Great museum with lots of interesting info and stories of those who were part of the 1897 gold rush. Make sure to catch the movie. Also bring a sheet of printer paper and a pencil. You can do a rubbing of one of the items as well as 3 different embossed stations. Allow about 2 hours.

Fantastic small museum with free entrance that gives you an exquisite view into the Klondike gold Rush, and how Seattle was its starting point for many gold rush Stampeders. The museum features a small movie theatre, definitely recommended to start with the movie to get the gist of the history, but then make sure to make your way through this gem of a museum!

Seemed very interesting to me. Unfortunately closed because of covid

Great free admission museum to help complete our passport stamp book. No parking but very cheap street parking along the roads at the address

Come here if you want to learn more about the Klondike gold Rush or the history of pioneer square and Seattle. Located near many historical buildings. Museum is free and is a national park. Fun fact: this is the only national park in Seattle.

The ranger is so upbeat and fun. The movie is educational and insightful. You learn all about the Klondike Gold Rush with interactive exhibits. There lots of photos from the time because it was one of the most photographed events of the 19th century. It is free.

Saw postings about this place online and was interested that the museum was free. The location was easy to find and had a lot of cool tourist attractions surrounding it. I wish that they could play the Introduction video at the very start of each self-guided tour, because it would have been very helpful. Unfortunately, when I arrived, the video wasn’t playing for another half hour, so I decided to walk around on my own. The information is interesting; however, the layout of the building and the order of information is confusing. I was never sure which way I was supposed to go and if I was reading the right signs. The other thing is that there is SO MUCH TEXT. I wish there were more variety in how the information was presented, like more videos or audio recordings. Definitely worth a visit (mostly because it’s free), but WATCH THE VIDEO FIRST.

Cute museum in the midst of Old Town Seattle. Great place to kill time before a train or Bolt Bus trip. Its free!

Its a small museum, but does a thorough job covering the gold rush and interesting individuals involved. The man at the front counter was incredibly informative.If you want some time out of the weather and want to learn some interesting things about not only Seattles history, but Alaskas history as well, I definitely recommend it.

Small but cool Museum ran by the Next Park Service dedicated to the Klondike Gold Rush, with really cool exibits & staff.

I love visiting national parks and collecting stamps. This historical park is free and has great exhibits detailing the Yukon gold Rush that passed through Seattle. Dont miss out on their fun little travel passport at the front desk. It lets you collect embossed dates and pencil rubbings of facts. National park stamp is located in their gift shop. Exhibits were interactive and I learned that Nordstrom was part of the Yukon gold Rush before starting his business.

This museum can look small. But its great! The stories behind Seattle construction are really interesting and you can become to travel through time. This visit is a perfect conection with underground tour ;)

Great free National Park Museum. Definitely worth the visit. We enjoyed watching the 20 min informative movie on Seattles part in the Klondike gold rush. Good for all ages.

Really well done multi-floor museum. Good exhibits for both adults and kids. I liked all the personal stories they had displays on.

A national park that is like no other. The way the history is conveyed was very interactive, this place is kids and family friendly.

Cute little museum / National Park! Its free and a good place to get out of the rain while you are exploring Pioneer Square. Mostly reading exhibits, so may be a bit boring for some but I enjoyed the bits of history that I learned about regarding Seattle and the Alaska gold Rush.

I’ve lived in Seattle my whole life and had no idea this museum was there. My friend and I took our five year old sons there for a visit. The staff was so nice and gave the kids a passport and an activity book. All thru the museum there were things to stamp and rubbing to do inside the passport. When they completed four activities in their workbooks they received a really cute wooden park ranger badge and were sworn in as junior park rangers. It was such a cute and fun way to get younger kids excited about a museum.

I recommend this place for anyone new to town. The artifacts and props together take you back to a very special time of Seattle.

Pretty cool for smallest park. And FREE

This museum will provide the details and some surprising facts about the event that turned Seattle into an internationally famous city.

This small museum give you an insight into the history of Seattle and its people. Nice to pass a bit of time and there is a interesting video to watch about the gold rush.

Towards the tail end of our 9 day vacation trip to the Northwest, & looking for something on the light side that would fill out the rest of our daylight hours, my wife & I ran across this little historical Museum. While it did fill out the rest of our day, & it was a nice display of mining stuff, it wasnt quite what we expected, but then again it is a tiny place with limited space in a location downtown filled lots of history. They had a couple little informative movies about the development of Seattle, & how the Alaska Gold Rush influenced its growth, & another movie about the AGR itself. So if you got some spare time, do go, & check it out, but if you dont theres always next time. Probably best visited if you got a few hours to kill.

We had to wait a couple of hours for our Amtrak at King St Station in Seattle.Wandering around Pioneer Square we stumbled on this little gem.Very cool exhibit on how Seattle grew to be the gateway to the Klondike Gold Rush and how that Gold Rush changed the history of Seattle.Stay for the 20 min movie. Its a great overview of the events around the Gold Rush. If the museum is quiet, the staff will start it for you on demand.

Awesome place have been watching shows about the klondike gold rush nice to see the experience up close great informative movie also spun the wheel 3 times and didnt find gold

Randomly came across this museum on a walk around and was so impressed! Really well organized and laid out and very interesting.

Pretty neat National Park, no joke. It is an actual National Park. The Filson store has similar artifacts but this museum has the story around the item and the Gold Rush as a whole. Super kid friendly.

The storytelling aspect of this historical park is very well thought out. The exhibits do a great job of explaining the Gold Rush of Klondike. Worth a visit if youre exploring Pioneer Square. The summer waterfront shuttle has a stop only 1 block away from here.

Very nice little museum. Good place to learn about one of the most important events in early Seattle history. I played the computer game Yukon Trail a lot as a kid, so I thought it was pretty cool to find out more about the real life experiences of people heading north back then. Its not the kind of place where youd plan a whole trip just to go there, but if youre in the area anyway (Pioneer Square, International District, football/baseball/soccer game), I definitely recommend stopping by.

The museum told a very interesting story about the history of Seattle, and presented it very well. We were hooked! You get caught up in the excitement of the news of gold, endure the harsh journey to the Klondike, and get hit with the brutal reality faced by many of the stampeders when they returned home empty-handed. Well worth the visit!

We just happened across this place while wandering the city and killing time before dinner. Theres some pretty interesting history in this little Outpost. Its free so theres no reason not to visit if youre in the area. I never knew Nordstrom was a Seattle company from the gold-rush era until I visited here(sorry for the spoilers). Only negative: they said there was a gift shop, but I couldnt find it.

I really enjoy little store front museum/national park educational centers.

Very cool Museum with so much Seattle History.

This National Historical Park is an absolute gem and the staff are experts on the history of Seattle. Plus, the facilities are well maintained and easy to navigate. We are so lucky to have this FREE park in Pioneer Square and I hope visitors take time to enjoy it...I know that I do!

Very nicely done. Two hours for films and a stroll through the exhibits.

I loved it. When you walk in the specials are on the steam table. Today was catfish etouffee. Served with two sides. Crazy good.They have a full menu. Steaks, burgers, salads and seafood. Great stuff.

Nice little place to check out for about 30 min. The scale that tells you how much youre worth in gold is pretty cool. Definitely recommend as something to kill time as a tourist. Also, its free! Plus the smallest National Park in America.

Nice area for an afternoon stroll.

A great place to learn about the Gold Rush era and how Seattle came to be.

This free museum of the history of the gold rush is located in the pioneer square neighborhood.The exhibit allows you to follow several individuals and families as they went to the far north to search for gold.This is a very professionally curated museum presented in a very interesting manner.

Learn all about the gold rush at this terrifc national park. In a big way, this tiny museum will explain how Seattle became a jumping off point for the gold rush and you may be surprised to hear some of their stories. Free, handicapped accessible, and fun for the entire family. A fun way to spend an hour or so in downtown Seattle. Please support your parks!!!

As soon as we arrived at the museum the staff welcomed us very friendly and immediately informed us about the on-going presentation about how to pan gold. The educational value of the presentation was incredibly informative. After the presentation we walked around exploring the museum on our own. Firstly we took a look on the ground floor that provides many different interesting exhibits, displays and pictures. As soon as we entered the basement, it felt like we were going into an actual gold mine. This might be good for children as it has many possibilities to interact with the physical exhibits that are, for instance the gold panning that you can try out by yourself as well as a wheel that you can spin, which shows you the probability of actually finding gold. In conclusion we can say that the staff is very helpful and extremely friendly, the interactivities with the exhibits are easy to understand and fun to use. Due to this the educational value is really high. It is an absolutely need to go when you are interested in american history!

This Historical Park is Awesome. They have great exhibits and movies to teach you what the Klondike Gold Rush was all about. The Rangers are super cool too. This Park is located in Pioneer Square in the old Cadillac Hotel. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.

Interesting! Hearing the first part of the Walking Tour- where Seattle was built, etc, very interesting! I may actually complete the tour one day. I was there for the bathroom, waiting for King Co Metro Lost & Found to open, security guards there gave me the tip!

What a great story that sits behind Seattle. Super friendly park rangers make this a definite destination to visit in Seattle

Great Museum and Free! So informative, never knew Seattle was made famous because of the gold rush. National park museums are always enjoyable to visit.

Would you believe that there is a national park in downtown Seattle...AND... its Free to visit?! Well, believe it! Its a great place to learn more about the history of the region and the Klondike Gold Rush. Kid-friendly! Even if you dont have a lot of time, you can easily walk the museum in 10-20 minutes.

What a great little museum! The National Parks Services does NOT disappoint with this one. The whole museum flows like one big story from the beginning of the gold rush to its climax and end, following the stories of several people who lived through the experience. I especially liked their inclusion of womens stories, as this made it more relatable to me. The videos were fine and the gift shop was small. But the overall story the museum tells more than makes up for it. Well done, NPS!

This place is such a great free spot to explore. They do a great job at highlighting Seattle’s role in the gold rush! They have short films and gold mining demonstrations and the staff was very friendly!

Interesting national park. First one Ive been to that is all indoors, but very educational. I learned a lot about the Klondike gold rush that I didnt previously know. Plus, its free! Cant go wrong.

Was impressed by the knowledge gained within this museum. It definitely exceeded my expectations. Make sure to catch the video

Great place to go and discover some Seattle history just dont go there after dark because of all the junkies and hobos there.

Such a fun and interactive museum! The staff and volunteers are so clearly passionate and knowledgeable about what theyre doing. The museum is very fun for all ages! I usually dont like museums because I cant touch anything, but you can touch everything that isnt behind glass here! I highly recommend going here whether youre a local or just visiting!

I suppose it is alright. Im sure it would be informative. It was closed when I was there. It is only a corner location and not really a part of anything.

Virtually the only free tourist attraction in Seattle. The week before I was in NYC and I was able to visit virtually every major museum in the city on their free day or PWYW (Pay What You Wish). Seattle museums rarely have free days and usually want $25-35 per person entrance plus an extra $10-20 for special exhibits. Congratulations to the volunteers that make the Klondike a great educational center for kids and adults alike. Thanks for your important support!

Learned lot of history in this place. I even enjoyed the movie.

This is a great museum! It’s well-organized (I really appreciate that it’s in chronological order), and they provide necessary background information (such as the US acquisition of Alaska in 1867, the panic of 1893, etc.) so people can fully understand the cause and outcomes of the gold rush.

For as small as the park is, they can pack a ton of information into what they have. Excellent facility where you can spend more time than you think and jam a good deal about the Gold Rush than you thought you really wanted to know. My son was even able to complete the Junior Ranger activities and get his first swearing in ceremony to become A Junior Ranger.

Small museum located between the Century Link stadium and Pioneer Square. As its name states, it has detailed information and artifacts about the Klondike Gold Rush. Plus, some very interesting information about how that influenced the growth of Seattle. I like that several womens biographies are included as important historical figures and savvy business entrepreneurs. You can get your National Parks passport stamped here too!

I would say this is a must do for everyone who visits Seattle for the first time and wants to know a bit about the city. I watched the 20 minutes movie, they offer for free. It was very interesting and made be understand the city and its history so much better. Im usually not a fan of history but it was totally worth it. It honestly wasnt boring at all, which I feared at first. I would recommend everybody to go to this small museum on their first day in Seattle and to discover the city after learning about it.

This museum will be interested to everybody because it is existing trip to history. Gold Rush, first Nations, and many other are waiting for you there.

Interesting free, little museum to spend some time in on a rainy day. I learned a lot about a gold rush Id never heard of, the lives of a few people who participated in it, and how it was a key event in making Seattle the city it is today.It wont take you very long (two hours?) to go through, even at a leisurely pace, so have other things planned to do downtown.

A great place to walk around Wooden Boat Museum is free and has some cool boats.

Free museum. I lost track of time in there. Highly recommended.

Cool place! Love the movie, live talks/demos, and museum. Well done! Definitely worth a visit.

Great! Well organised museum. Found out loads of stuff. All free! Wonderful

I always see about the Klondike on Discovery channel, we came across this museum by mistake but I was pretty excited to take a look. Free enterance which is super nice and the museum is built in a very interesting way with a lot of pictures and information. We were there for about 30 min, if youre in the area I recommend coming insode for a few min :)

Learn about the event which put Seattle on the global map! The Klondike gold rush changed the PNW forever and this museum does an excellent job of detailing the events that led the gold fever which drove 1000,000 prospectors to Washington

Such an AWESOME museum; I still cant believe its free! Dont miss the short film in the beginning; its fascinating!

Amazing museum and it is free

What a neat find. Alot of cool information in here. Plus it is free admission. We went shortly before closing time so we didnt get to spend very much time looking at stuff but the staff was very friendly and polite. Worth the trip.

It is a small park in the Pioneer square area of Seattle, worth visiting.

We stopped by using the free waterfront shuttle. The Klondike Gold Rush National Historical site was extremely informative.We learned about Seattles role in being the gateway to the Yukon. Gold hungry stampeders purchased supplies in Seattle for the arduous trip north to the Yukon River. We were touched by the stories of the men and women who made the trek. The movie was well done. We were able to get a passport stamp. Two hours very well spent.

Very informative, watch the short movie. I really like this museum. People that work there are very helpful.

This is an interesting place to spend an hour or three in Seattle and the price was right — free! It was interesting to watch the film about the gold rush and the two floors of exhibits were well done. I loved the way it allowed me to choose and learn about a particular person as I went through. The gift shop was small and nice.

Awesome free museum hosted by the national park service. Definitely worth a stop.

This is a great museum and it costs you nothing. It is the best and largest free museum I have been too. There is lots about the gold rush here. The staff is very nice and they also have free tours. There are lots of cool artifacts and things here that show lots about the gold rush, like gold sifting tools and other tools. I really recommend it you should come here for a free fun afternoon.

Gold! See how people went to find gold back to the old days.

Nice little museum. Would not have known it was a museum if did not look through windows. Has displays about gold rush and Seattle.

Cool place to see how Seattle got it start. It gave of information regarding the Gold Rush and how prospectors would stop by Seattle to get their supplies. It is great for kids and family to enjoy

Small and but informative museum. Got to know history of Seattle. This museum is free all the days. They have small movie theater and every 30 min there is tour on the museum.

A Federal Park. If you need an America the Beautiful Pass, go here!

Located in Pioneer Square, this historical building and site operated as a National Park is an incredible museum (and free). Incredible information on the Gold Rush! Fun and interactive. Check out Megs across the street for a snack or lunch!

This is actually a national park. Its a small little museum with lots of history on the gold rush. Clean restrooms. You can probably spend about 2 hours here total.Parking is nearly impossible and the location is in the middle of a few different homeless tent cities, so I recommend Ubering there.

Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park is a great place to learn of the beginnings of Seattle as we know it today. The Park staff were amazing and extremely helpful with assisting our party of four.We spent approximately 1 1/2 hours here and could easily have doubled that with the content that is here. Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park is well worth the stop for anyone visiting the area. #localguides #Museums

Great little Museum. The Guide was very knowledgeable and entertaining. If you are in the neighborhood its worth the visit.

This is an awesome place to walk through a time period in history. Excellent interactive for kids. The junior ranger program is a great learning tool and a fun way for kids to explore history.

Loved the panning for gold experience.

Very good explanation of the Klondike gold rush and the history of the people who caught gold fever. Also restrooms and gift shop.

Very quaint little museum. Interesting history and information. Nice staff.

Free free free! Great venue considering how expensive other attractions in the area are. The exhibits are enjoyable as well as a 20-minute documentary in the theater. Not far from the Underground Tour.

I highly enjoyed this interesting (and free!) museum run by the National Park Service!

Beautiful museum with rich history. You will not regret.

Donations only for a big museum with artifacts and movies. Its actually a State Park! Perfect for families.

Great place to spend 45 minutes to an hour. The gold Rush had a huge impact on Seattles early development. Nice displays. Great place to get out of the rain for a few minutes and learn something new. Also, I highly recommend the walking tour of Pioneer Square.