Explore Washington State
Washington State Destinations
Washington State packs more geographic variety into one state than almost anywhere else in the country. In a single weekend, you can wake up to ocean fog on the Pacific coast, drive through old growth rainforest, and fall asleep under the stars in the high desert east of the Cascades. That kind of range makes trip planning exciting, though it can occasionally feel overwhelming.
This section is where we have gathered every destination guide, weekend escape, day trip, and local find we have published across the state. Every post is written by someone who actually made the drive, not a sponsored itinerary or filler content. Real trips, real opinions, real Washington.
We cover all corners of the state: the wild beaches and rainforests of the Olympic Peninsula, the ferry accessible islands of Puget Sound, mountain towns like Leavenworth and Winthrop in the Cascades, the wine country and wide open spaces of Eastern Washington, and the day trip destinations within easy reach of Seattle. Whether you are planning a family vacation, a solo road trip, or a quick weekend getaway, you will find something worth bookmarking here.
Browse recent posts below, or use the county and city tags on any post to find more content from a specific area. Washington rewards the curious traveler and there is always another destination worth discovering.
We’ve all heard the opinion that among the different locations in the United States, western Washington is almost perpetually grey and rainy. While that may be the case in winter months, most of the west side is quite beautiful and temperate for much of the rest of the year. However, when it comes to one...
Skamania and Klickitat counties are known for their gorge-ous (pun intended) Columbia River Gorge views and a variety of outdoor recreation options. But did you know it’s also a fantastic area for locally made craft beer, cider and spirits? Read on for some of my favorites, including where to find great sour beers and family-friendly...
It was late Friday evening when my wife Johanna and I decided to drive to Whidbey Island the next morning. A little bit of research on Instagram made our decisions easy. The island looked gorgeous! As Canadians living near the border, we have been to Washington many times. We usually tend to explore Bellingham to...
Take a drive, away from the noise of the city and into the Washington country. Not too far lies an ornament of history. 15 minutes from I-5 and only 30 minutes from Vancouver, the roads to Cedar Creek Grist Mill are Sunday-drive perfect — windy, sleepy and nestled in the shadows of hazy hills and mountains....
Wallaby Ranch in Fall City is easily one of the most surprisingly outstanding experiences I’ve had on my day trips in Washington state. It’s not every day, month or even year that you get the opportunity to have such an intimate encounter with an animal so traditionally thought of as exotic in our region of...
Springtime in Washington means an abundance of blooms. Daffodils and crocus flowers begin to bloom, along with the hundreds of fruits and vegetables that begin to emerge from the ground after a chilly winter. But there’s one floral staple that begins to bloom in mid-March, catching the attention of thousands of Washington residents and travelers...
Being new to Washington state, my family and I are always trying to explore and learn about our new home… basically spending our free time seeing where the road takes us. Venturing just 15 miles outside of downtown Vancouver, we recently spent the day in Camas. On the way there, as we traveled east along...
Point Ruston and the surrounding waterfront have come a long way from a place of mills, boatyards, warehouses and an infamous copper smelting plant. As a child I’d beg my mom to drive under the looming smelter tower via a 325-foot tunnel that had such a curve before the north entrance, drivers were directed to...
Hey there, Explore Washington State reader! Hilary and Roscoe here. It’s another rainy day in Seattle, so in other words, it’s a perfect time to write about one of our favorite local adventures! Roscoe, my dog, is my go-to partner whenever I want to explore a new place in the area. We recently checked out...
Planning a trip to Bellingham? Start with our complete Bellingham Visitor Guide → Fairhaven is perhaps the most charming place in Bellingham. Perched atop a hillside sloping gently toward Bellingham Bay, the historic district packs shops, eateries and bars into several square blocks of 19th-century red brick buildings — all within walking distance of one...
Nestled between Mount Rainier National Park, Gifford Pinchot National Forest and Mount St. Helens on the Cowlitz River, the cozy town of Packwood offers the perfect mountain getaway experience. As the winter months descend on the Pacific Northwest, snow-seekers can find good beer, warm fires and freshly powdered mountains in Packwood, WA. Easily accessible in...
Monroe is home of the Evergreen State Fair, one of the largest county state fairs held annually in the Pacific Northwest. But there is so much more to Monroe than just an annually held event. Monroe is home to many local farms and nurseries that provide a multitude of crops ranging from different varieties of fruits...
