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U.S. state
Photo: Cacophony, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Washington offers rugged coastline, deserts, forests, mountains, volcanoes, and hundreds of coastal islands to explore. The Cascade Mountains bisect the state, with the damp forested coastal areas to the west, and pine forests, deserts and irrigated farmland of the Columbia River Plateau to the east. Outside the state, Washington is often called Washington state, to distinguish it from the national capital Washington, D.C., on the East Coast.
East of the Cascades are canyons, deserts and steppes set in hillside valleys. Includes Kennewick, Walla Walla and Yakima.
Steep peaks, deep lakes and the premier mountain resorts of the Pacific Northwest. The foothills that roll towards the Columbia River make for some of the most productive fruit growing regions in the country. Includes Leavenworth and Wenatchee.
The semi-arid foothills of the Rockies includes the Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area created by the Grand Coulee Dam.
Beautiful mountains and fields of flowers, with outdoor activities galore. Includes Bellingham and North Cascades National Park.
Known for its rugged beauty with rain forests against a spine of dramatic mountains and miles of isolated beaches, centered on Olympic National Park.
The regional hub of Spokane gives way to this agricultural area of rolling fields, including Pullman.
The waterways between the Cascades and the Olympics lead to the most populous region in the Pacific Northwest, including Seattle (the state's largest city), Tacoma, and Olympia (the capital), amongst forested peninsulas and rural islands.
A scattering of forested islands in the serene waters adjacent to British Columbia. Ferries, private boats, kayaks, and orca (whales) criss-cross the waters, while float planes and bald eagles soar overhead.
Known for its long sandy beaches and amazing views along the Columbia River. Includes Vancouver (not the one in Canada) and Mount St. Helens.
By train
By car
Highway 99 (British Columbia) / Interstate 5 (Washington) via the Peace Arch Border Crossing is the main land port-of-entry to Washington from British Columbia.
By bus
By ferry
Most ferries crossing the San Juan de Fuca and Puget Sound are capable of transporting vehicles.
By seaplane
A quick and spectacular, though not cheap, way to travel. There are many American and Canadian companies offering sea plane travel into and around the Puget Sound area.
By cruise ship
Cruise ships arrive in the area in Astoria (Oregon) and Seattle (Washington) with continuing connections along the west coast including Canada and Alaska.
By boat
It is not coincidence that so many cities in this region are on the water.
By foot
The Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) is a well-known trail that extends along the West coast of the United States, from Mexico to Canada. It passes through California, Oregon, and Washington.
By car
Washington's road network is well-maintained and cars are the quickest way to travel around the state.
By ferry
Many ferry destinations are not islands without a bridge, but peninsulas where going by land would involve a very long detour.
By train
Getting around by train on Amtrak is likely to be quite a hassle, especially with infrequent departures, slow travel times, inconvenient schedules and limited routes.
By boat
The Puget Sound region is one of the most popular places for cruising on small craft in the United States offering hundreds of miles of protected coastlines and dozens of remote islands to explore.
By bus
Information on transit can be found here.
By plane
Delta/Delta Connection and Alaska/Horizon Airlines offer intrastate flights from Seattle to Portland, Pasco and Spokane. In addition to the other larger airports listed under Get in.
Choose an airport to see hotels, stations, taxi ranks and car rental desks around it.
Wenatchee · Regional · EAT
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State capital in the fast growing South Sound area. Home of The Evergreen State College and St Martins College
Seattle's suburban cousin across Lake Washington, a commercial center with a growing downtown area.
Home of Western Washington University. Near the Canadian border and Vancouver, BC.
Largest city in the Pacific Northwest. Home of the University of Washington and Seattle University.
The heart of Eastern Washington, unofficial capital of the Inland Empire and home of Gonzaga University and Whitworth University.
Port city with several good museums downtown. Home of the University of Puget Sound, Pacific Lutheran, University Washington Tacoma (downtown), and Joint Base Lewis-McChord, a major army and air force base.
Just across the Columbia River from Portland, Oregon. Not to be confused with the larger Canadian city of Vancouver, BC.
Small eastern city in the heart of Washington's blooming wine country. It is also home to Whitman College.
In the Yakima Valley, the major agricultural and wine region of the state.
a 14,410 ft volcano, the tallest mountain the Cascades and the most "prominent" mountain in the lower 48 states. "Tahoma" holds more snow and ice than all other Cascade volcanoes combined.
In 1980, Mount St. Helens erupted: it was the deadliest and most destructive volcanic event in U.S. history. The explosion reshaped a pristine peak into a dramatic crater.
Home to 50% of all glaciers in the lower 48 states. The undeveloped wilderness is a favorite for climbers and backpackers.
Temperate rain forest, rugged Olympic Mountains and wild coastline, this is the only UNESCO World Heritage site in the Pacific Northwest.
A collection of nearly 200 islands in the rain shadow of the Olympic Mountains. These islands are famous for eagles and orca whales, as well as the 1859 "Pig War" against Great Britain.
preserves and protects an unbroken historical record of Puget Sound exploration and settlement from the 19th century to the present. Historic farms, still under cultivation in the prairies of Whidbey Island, reveal land use patterns unchanged since settlers claimed the land in the 1850s.
Between May 1804 and September 1806, 32 men, one woman, and a baby traveled from the plains of the Midwest to the shores of the Pacific Ocean. They called themselves the Corps of Discovery.
An overlook where you can see the remains of the end of the last ice age where a flow of up to 10 times of all the present-day rivers of the world merged into a huge waterfall. While not as deep as the Grand Canyon, you can get dizzyingly close to the edge.
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