Gas Works Park

Usually muddy in certain areas, but offers the best Instagram of the city if that is what you are into. I have been here half a dozen times or so. You will find your miscreants down by the water on the rocks up to no good and your families on the hill above. The covered area with the picnic tables is bum central, so proceed with caution and use the buddy system in the restrooms. If you have people come to town this is usually where you take them.

We had a blast here. I felt like a little kid frolicking around the park, running up and down the hills, and taking photos with the geese. It’s neat to see the remains of the industrial piping, but to also have such beautiful views of the water and the city in the same place. It’s a weird combination, but it made it pretty unique. This is a great place to stroll around in — and the views of Seattle were just astounding.

Nice park slightly north of Downtown with a great view of Lake Union and Downtown Seattle. They have a parking lot on site and plenty of street parking. Lots of people come here on July 4^th and New Year’s Eve to watch the fireworks. If you do go on those days, be prepared for a huge crowd.

As a Seattle tourist, this was the best park we went to. Park is spacious and offers a spectacular and unobstructed view of Seattle (with Needle!) across Lake Union. Formerly the site of an industrial plant, this renovated green space has hills and plenty of space to stretch your legs and take in the Emerald City. Plenty of sailboats and water planes taking off on the lake. The old «Gas Works» are still on the site and several parts have been repainted. This adds to the experience of the park and sets it apart from other parks in the city. Seattle natives also frequent this park as evidenced by trick kite fliers, LARP-​ers, artsy frisbee tossers, and kiteboarding novices we saw on our visit. A bike/​walk trail connects this park to Fremont to the West and the University of Washington to the East. Try to hit this park on a sunny day and maybe in combo with a trip to Fremont/​University of Washington.

Great place to picnic or just hang out for the afternoon. Love the city views on a sunny day!

Definitely one of my favorite spots in Seattle. Great view and wonderful place to lay out on a warm summer afternoon. You can people watch and see people kayaking/​stand-​up paddle boarding. Hard to beat really. I love that people fly kites, picnic, and lay out to enjoy the sun on a nice day. I like bringing visitors here.
The historical aspect of the park is interesting! Parking is readily available, which is a huge plus for me. Dogs welcome, but should be leashed, since it is not an off-​leash park.

This is a great place to bring out of town visitors for a view of the city, especially during the summer. I prefer it over Kerry Park because it’s more of an actual park with space to walk around and picnic. There’s a big parking lot and I’ve never had trouble finding parking.

Nice little park. The industrial stuff was cool & had a cool view of the water. I don’t think that I would ever go back unless it was for a concert. The park is very sketchy and dirty with homeless people all over.

— this is my favorite place to enjoy the view of Settle skyline. Kerry park comes close but some trees and people obstruct the view there. Here because of slope of hill, you can’t have people obstructing the view and there is nothing between the skyline and you other than lake union. On a sunny day, you can a small picnic there while enjoying sun and view. In summer lake union is pretty busy with people doing kayaking, boating and planes taking off lake union. The view at night is equally amazing.
— lots of parking near by
— lots of space. Even with a lot of people, it does not feel crowded. Nice place to relax and chill off

Gas Works is a fairly large and open area with an incredible view of the Seattle skyline. It was formerly a crude oil plant that, in 1975, was created into a public park. Remnants from it’s industrial past create environments that make it quite unique and worthy of a visit. It should be noted that it’s not a dog park, but many people utilize the large grassy spaces to let their dogs off leash. The boiler house area can often feel a bit dark but generally is quite empty. Inside the park are small pathways, one in particular that winds up a hill for an excellent place to sit and overlook the water and city. I happen to think the view is best at night, up against the edge of the park. Just east of the park, boats line the docks, some houseboats have been known to show up for sale right there. Imagine this park as your backyard!
During the day, some visitors use the hill to fly kites, and seem quite talented at it. Unlike other parks in the city, Gas Works offers fairly ample space for people to roam around. It’s very accessible as well, right off the Gilman Trail. My first time walking the Burke Gilman, I actually walked right through Gas Works, thinking that was just where you should go. Really, I was right. It’s worth the small detour.
So my conclusion is go. Have a picnic with friends, come in the evening on a date, or if you’re luck catch the group of fire dancers playing techno and throwing flames around. It can get muddy during the rainy months, so wear what you need to stay dry, but don’t miss a wonderful seattle specialty. I’m sure I’ll have more to say in the future, but for now I give 4 out of 5.
-
References
Seattle Parks Page:

Are you sure this is a park?
That was the question I was asking myself when I stepped onto the park land!
The historic keepsake of the gas industrial machine was an eye catcher and made quite a scene. Then, there was this one side that was painted and it reminded me of plumbing pipes.
On top of a paved hill, you can beautifully see the splendid water view as well as the city’s landscape. It’s an enjoyable time to simply lounge and be here!
Great spot to stroll, stay pleasantly blissful and linger.

THIS IS SEATTLE. PERIOD.
Located in the hipster, trendy Fremont area across the lake from downtown, Gas Works Park is the place to be on one of the Emerald City’s elusive bright and sunny days (although under an extreme drought recently).
Instead of tearing down the remnants of what used to be an old oil plant, the city revived some of the unique, old structures and created a huge 20 acre park for adults and kiddos to chill and have fun.
While the younger peeps choose to climb on painted pipes, the older folks engage in some hacky (yup, still), toss a frisbee, fly a kite, play with Fido, or simply sprawl out on the grass (apparently no blanket necessary) and take in some VitD and great views of the Seattle skyline.
Be a local, or just act like one… and enjoy. No matter who you are or where you’re from, you’ll fit in just fine here… great people watching too. ;)
[176 in 2015]

The first day we arrived in Seattle, we visited this park to relax and soak in the city views.
One of my favorite parks, as it is situated along Lake Union. You can hang out on top of the hill; feel the breeze, look at the remains of the gasification plant, and even the Space Needle.
Tons of history on this park. Fell in-​love with the pieces of the old plant. Some were re-​conditioned, painted and few served as play barn. But many remained ruins which makes it unique.
Gas Works Park is great for family picnics, kite-​flying and just relaxing. There are tons of parking in the structure.
The only downside to this park is that dog-​owners leave their four-legged’s shit everywhere. At first, I didn’t mind seeing a poop, until I noticed the pattern and shits were everywhere!!!
For such a beautiful park, it’s full of poop –_–

On a nice day, the view is as good as it gets! If you need a place that combines industrial architecture (abandoned oil refinery), with the beauty of the cityscape, waterfront, and nature, this is your spot.
I appreciated the ability to walk around, explore, and really take a break from our trip to reflect and enjoy the surrounding areas.
Beware! Animal turds are like little land mines. Also, the scenic views can trigger actions of selfies or photo ops… so you’ve been warned. Lol.

Awesome park with an awesome view of the Seattle skyline. I stopped here before heading to the airport on a beautifully sunny day. If I lived in Seattle I would be there all the live long day.

Awesome park! Really nice views of downtown and lake Union.
My dog was going off here and having a great time with all the people around there. There wasn’t an off leash area but it’s a good big park for dogs.

Visited this park on the fourth of July for the Seafair Summer Fourth and the view! It was a super hot day and not much shade, so if you’re planning on staying for awhile in the summer, bring an umbrella or something. Def put on lotsa sunscreen!
The seafair event had a lot of stands that were giving away free things/​had games/​explaining who they were and what they do/​had bounce houses and other bounce slides/​booths selling foods etc. It was like a carnival without the rides!
Past the booths was a lake with the most amazing view of Seattle! The sky was a beautiful blue, the waters shining under tha light of the sun, and the best part was the people hanging out in the lake waters even though there was a sign that clearly said not to. The «grassland» in front of the lake is pretty big and perfect to bringing your dogs or hanging out with a large group of people.
It’s a beautiful place def worth checking out!
I would give this park five stars if parking wasn’t so much of a btch though.

Abandoned oil refinery: How much more interesting can you get with a park idea? Rather than allowing the obsolete infrastructure make the entire area useless, the city transformed the area by instead making the industrial ruins into an unique urban attraction! In almost a ruinous state, the refinery gives a slight dytopian vibe that heavily contrasted with the beautiful skyline that you can see as the abandoned refinery’s backdrop.
Oh yeah, this park also has the best view of the Seattle skyline on ground-​level!
The only problems I had with this park were the homeless community in the covered part of the park and the poorly maintained lawn that is full of dog poop. It’s probably not a good idea to come alone at night, but I still recommend this an awesome sightseeing location especially during the clear day!

I was amazed at the view I could see from the park. I saw the whole Seattle downtown. Its beautiful at night time with all the lights. But unfortunately, I didn’t show up in the day time as well. I am sure the day time would be gorgeous.
There are a few people there even really late at night. But what’s interesting they still have the old machinery there for tourist to take picture and see.
I would definitely come back again.

Gas Works Park is great! Has one of the best views of the city! Great view of Lake Union into downtown. You’ll know why they call it «Gas Works» when you get there. Nice big open spaces to relax on the grass, catch some rays, kite flying, have a picnic, or just come and chill on a nice sunny day.
Came here recently for the 4^th of July to catch the fireworks show and its probably one of the better fireworks shows I’ve seen in Seattle. Great views of fireworks shooting off of Lake Union paired along with music. Earlier they had skydivers coming down into Lake Union to get the crowd going. Pretty neat! Get there early to grab some prime real estate so you can enjoy the show. It will get crowded real fast and next thing you know, you’ll be shoulder to shoulder with 1000 new friends around you.
Overall, this is a wonderful park and a park you must visit! Bus routes can be limited to the park, so you may have to bus to Fremont then walk like 10 minutes down Burke Gilman Trail to get there. If you drive, there are parking lots but during festivals or events it will be pretty tough to find a spot, good luck with that.

Being new in Seattle, we pretty much spend all available time exploring our new home. I am so glad that we discovered Gas Works Parks. Gorgeous views everywhere… love the rustic feel and seeing the old oil rig. Makes for a great photo shoot session!
3 stars because oh my goodness, animal droppings everywhere. I was looking up appreciating the view of Lake Union, the city skyline, and the oil rig, and we started walking around the park and there it goes… droppings everywhere. I pretty much had to tiptoe around to make sure I don’t step on them. Not sure if they’re dog droppings (I’d like to hope not and hope that the owners pick up after their dog — as a dog owner myself, it bothers me so when people don’t) or large birds… anyway, just watch where you are walking.

Review based on trip to Seattle. Home base is in Salt Lake City, Utah
So disappointed that the main hill that overlooks the city was closed off because of construction? There was no signs that informed visitors of what was open or not. Our group just followed the people that were in front of us. We were led to the actual «gas works» side near the restrooms.
We were happy to see that at least half of the park was still open and people enjoying their day.
Overall, I enjoyed this neat scenic park and will be looking forward to coming back when the whole back reopens!

Love this place! It will never get old– especially on a beautiful clear sunny Seattle day.
We love to come here to watch the sunset, but anytime you come here you can be sure to enjoy the amazing view of lake Union and the Seattle skyline. It’s a huge park with lots of space.
We came here this past weekend and set up a picnic at the top of the hill. It was such a beautiful and romantic location and watching the sun slowly set and the city change colors was breath taking.
I definitely recommend grabbing a blanket and taking your sweetie to enjoy the view– you won’t regret it