Capitol Hill, which is the second most densely populated area of the city, is an eclectic neighborhood west of downtown and is also responsible for half of Seattle’s 12 steepest streets.  A stroll down Broadway or through the parks will reveal a wide diversity of people, and an edgy, urban feeling.  Shopping in the numerous retail stores and boutiques offers everything from used and vintage clothing stores on Broadway, art galleries and shops from around the world.   The neighborhood figures prominently in nightlife and entertainment, with club-goers from all over Seattle and Bellevue visiting the many bars hosting live music, and two of the city’s best-known movie theaters.

Volunteer Park is the gem of Capitol Hill, original home of the Seattle Art Museum, a much-beloved building now handsomely restored as the Seattle Asian Art Museum. The spacious grounds of Volunteer Park also include a conservatory and an old battlement of a water tower which boasts, at the top of 108 steps, one of the best views of the city.  A recent addition to Capitol Hill is Cal Anderson Park, a beautiful new park which houses a water reservoir, inverted fountain, playground, wading pool, wide green lawns, gravel jogging path and sports playfields.

Residences in this area cover the gamut from modest motel-like studio apartment buildings to some of the city’s grandest and most venerable mansions, with the two extremes sometimes located very closely together.