Day trips from Seattle

Getting to, around, and home from Mt. Rainier makes for a long day, by one fully worth it to see the majestic active volcano up close. One of the first U.S. National Parks, it was founded in 1899 and draws in hikers, climbers, campers, and people just there to check out the view from the 14,000-foot, glacier-covered peak. Plan to spend a full day there, taking a series of short hikes to wildflower fields, shimmering lakes, and powerful waterfalls. Spend a fall day peeping leaves, a winter day skiing or snowshoeing, or spring and summer days walking along the more than 130 trails. Each of the five sections of the park has visitor centers with maps and helpful rangers, but the Henry M. Jackson Memorial Visitors Center in the Paradise section is the only one open year-round (only on weekends in winter).

There are not many restaurants in the park and stopping for lunch means seeing less of the park than packing a picnic, so bring food (many tours will supply a packed lunch). Bring plenty of layers of clothing, including wind and waterproof ones, as the weather can change quickly here, and it snows even in the dead of summer sometimes. Whether or not you luck into sun, you need high-powered sunscreen at that altitude, and an equally high-octane bug spray.

If you plan to go to Mt. Rainier on your first or last day in Seattle, you can save yourself some travel time by staying either near the airport or just south of it. You’ll shave about 30 minutes off the drive each way compared to staying Downtown – and likely about 30% off your hotel bill, too.

How to get there: The drive to the park takes about two or three hours, depending on where you enter and if there’s a wait to get in. With your own car, you can pick the entrance and route within the park, but it’s a long day and taking an organized tour makes it much less exhausting (plus you can sleep on the bus).

While the San Juan Islands are a stretch for a day trip, especially with summer ferry lines, Whidbey makes for a quick day trip with much of the same scenic views and beach parks. Explore the shoreline at Eby’s Landing Historical Reserve, wander through the decommissioned military facilities, century-old lighthouse, and cement bunkers of Fort Casey, and look for whales from the bluffs on the southern part of the island. Stop for lunch in one of the small towns like Langley or Coupeville, and look for the homegrown specialty, Penn Cove Mussels, on the menu, then pop into the shops selling local art for a souvenir. If you don’t get scared of heights, head home via Deception Pass at the north end of the island and stop before the bridge to take in the enormity of the landscape.

In summer, a series of excellent farmers’ markets spring up around the island from Thursday to Sunday. The Bayview Market on Saturdays fills with arts and prepared foods, while the Coupeville one often includes fresh-off-the-boat salmon brought by ferry from Port Townsend.

How to get there: The ferry to Clinton, at the south end of the island, leaves from Mukilteo, a suburb about 30 minutes north of Seattle by car. And you will need a car: though you could take a bus to Mukilteo from Downtown, you would not see much on the island without one. The ferry to Clinton takes about 30 minutes but get there well before the scheduled departure, especially on summer weekends. Alternatively, you can drive around, it takes about 1h 20min from Downtown to Deception Pass at the northern tip.

No matter how many times you visit, this 270-foot waterfall never stops impressing. Just east of Seattle, whitewater roars over the wide falls, thundering into the pool below. A two-acre park surrounds the falls, with an interpretive trail that allows visitors to stroll from the top of the falls, near the parking lot, to the base of the falls. The 0.7-mile gravel trail includes signs identifying local berries, trees, and plants in both English and the language of the Snoqualmie, the original occupants of the land. At the bottom, another plaque explains the importance of the falls to the Snoqualmie, who purchased the 45 acres surrounding the falls in 2019 as part of their effort to reclaim their ancestral land.

Continue east along I-90 to Snoqualmie Pass, where the Summit at Snoqualmie offers tubing and nordic and alpine skiing from late November to the end of April, and mountain biking in the summer. Hikes around Hyak, Gold Creek, and Lake Keechelus break up the drive. Grab lunch from Laconia Market or stop for a beer at Dru Bru before heading home.

How to get there: Tour buses serve the falls, but the best way to see the various areas is to have your own car. Getting to the falls takes about 30 minutes, then it’s another 30 minutes to get to the pass. Aim to leave later in the morning for this trip, since it is short, and you’ll avoid the morning rush hour, which goes east out of the city as well as west into it.

The heart of Seattle’s local agricultural community sits in two small towns about 1h 15min drive north of the city. The scenic Skagit Valley grows flowers, berries, and vegetables of all sorts, dairies produce some of the state’s best cheeses, and shellfish farms supply bountiful oysters. The route passes old barns and pastoral scenes deserving of being painted.

In spring, the roads fill with visitors from around the world, coming to gawk at the vivid displays of tulips, but the rest of the year maintains a quiet flow. Sit down for lunch at Mariposa Taqueria, which stuffs local ingredients into enormous tacos, head 10 minutes north to Taylor Shellfish for a grilled seafood feast on the patio, or round up a picnic with meat and cheese from Slough Food and a loaf from Breadfarm, and bring it to the picnic table on Samish Beach.

On weekends, especially in summer, farms open shops along the roads. The annual Skagit Valley Farm Map can help with route planning, but often the best stands are little more than a hand-written sign with whatever came up ripe that day.

How to get there: This trip requires a car, as it’s a bit off the beaten path – you even need to ignore your GPS or navigation app, which prizes efficiency over charming rural landscapes. Head north out of town on I-5 to exit 231, then take State Route 11 north to either Bow or Edison, about a 1h 15min drive.

Winslow oozes small-town charm from its perch directly across the water from Downtown Seattle. The day starts with the journey, which can be done solely by ferry, making this one of the only day trips from Seattle that can be done from Seattle without having to step onto a bus or into a car. If you do drive a car onto the ferry, or use buses or taxis on the island, there are a few further out things to see – Bloedel Reserve’s gardens and the Japanese American Exclusion Memorial.

Nearly everything else to see sits on (or just off) Winslow Way, the town’s main street, including the Bainbridge Island Museum of Art, Eleven Winery Tasting Room, and the quaint Bainbridge Island Historical Museum. Pop into shops like Eagle Harbor Books, Salt House Mercantile, and Millstream, then choose from fish and chips at Proper Fish, Northwest-tinted Vietnamese food at Ba Sa, or upscale sandwiches at Café Hitchcock for lunch.

How to get to there: Board the Bainbridge-bound ferry at Colman Dock on Pier 52, right on the Downtown waterfront. Ferries always have room for walk-ons. On weekdays, this is the opposite of commute flow, so shouldn’t run into lines for vehicles, but leave plenty of extra time if you do this on a summer weekend. The crossing takes about 35 minutes and runs roughly hourly.

Peeking out of the top of the Olympic Peninsula, Port Townsend exemplifies the placid charm of Pacific Northwest small towns. Walk along the beach at low tide, look for tufted puffins on a wildlife cruise with the Port Townsend Marine Science Center, and admire Victorian architecture from the town’s early glory days. The town long valued the arts, evidenced by the selection of art galleries, and that spills into the culinary arts with lovely farm-to-table cuisine on offer at places like Finistere and Alchemy Bistro.

Stretch your legs with walks to the lighthouse, along the trails, and around the bunkers of Fort Worden State Park just on the edge of town. Or, if you don’t mind a long day and want something more ambitious, the entrance to Olympic National Park sits just over an hour from town.

How to get there: It takes two hours to get to Port Townsend from Seattle, but they are an exceedingly pleasant two hours. While you can drive around the south end of Puget Sound, the better way to go is by ferry. From Downtown, you can either take the Bainbridge Island ferry and then drive north on State Route 305, or you can drive north on I-5 to the suburb of Edmonds and take the ferry to Kingston, then continue on by car to Port Townsend. On weekdays, the trip is not too complicated by public transport, though requires careful planning: take the Fast Ferry from Downtown Seattle to Kingston, then the Kingston Express bus (designed to meet the ferry) to Port Townsend. On Saturdays, it gets much more complicated and on Sundays is not possible.