Washington

Washington, in the far north-west corner of the United States, holds three national parks within a few hours of Seattle. They are Olympic's rainforest and wild coast, the glaciated volcano of Mount Rainier, and the steep North Cascades. None of them charges the $100 surcharge that eleven other parks add for visitors from abroad in 2026.

Seattle's airport has 36 nonstop international routes, which makes the state an easy first stop. We read the figures below on 27 October 2026 on the National Park Service's pages, the state transport department's, the airport's and NOAA's normals.

Which national parks are in Washington?

Washington has three national parks, and Olympic draws more visitors than the other two together. Each is a separate trip from Seattle, and none crosses the others.

North Cascades' own count is small because State Route 20 runs through Ross Lake National Recreation Area. That area, part of the same park complex, had 1,173,028 visits. Two adults from abroad pay $60 for all three parks. The $250 non-resident pass only pays off on a trip that also takes in surcharge parks such as Glacier or Yellowstone.

How do you visit Mount Rainier?

Mount Rainier needs no timed-entry reservation in 2026, and the park manages parking instead. Paradise, at 5,400 feet on the south side, averages 640 inches of snow a year. In winter it is reached only from the Nisqually Entrance, through the gate at Longmire.

Arrive before 7 a.m. or after 4 p.m., the park advises, especially on summer weekends, when entrance queues can last more than an hour. Car entry costs $30 for seven days, by card only. Cash buyers can get passes at shops in Ashford, outside the park.

By 25 October 2026 the park had closed Sunrise, Stevens Canyon and Paradise Valley roads for the season. The road from Nisqually reaches Longmire all winter. The gate at Longmire, though, has shut every night since 29 October and can stay shut all day in snow.

On 28 October 2026 the park's alert said the gate was closed and not expected to open that day. From 1 November to 1 May every vehicle must carry tyre chains, four-wheel drive included. The Carbon River and Mowich Lake areas cannot be reached because a state bridge is closed.

Is the North Cascades Highway open?

State Route 20, the North Cascades Highway, crosses the North Cascades over Washington Pass at 5,477 feet. It is the only road across the park complex. The state usually closes it for avalanches some time between early November and mid-December, most often in the second half of November. It reopens the road in April or May.

The highway closed on 4 December 2025 and on 18 November 2024. In 2026 floods and a rockslide kept it shut until it fully reopened in mid-June. On 28 October 2026 the state had announced no closure for the winter. Its pass page had stopped reporting conditions for the season.

Stehekin, at the north end of Lake Chelan, has no road access at all. Visitors reach it by ferry, by chartered floatplane or on foot. North Cascades Lodge at Stehekin is closed for 2026. Break-ins happen at trailheads along the highway, so leave nothing in the car.

What is there to see in Seattle?

Seattle's best-known sights sit close together near the waterfront. Pike Place Market, Seattle's original farmers market, opened on 17 August 1907. Its nine-acre historic district holds more than 30 international places to eat.

The Space Needle, 605 feet tall, was built for the 1962 World's Fair and opened on 21 April 1962. Its observation deck is 520 feet up, and the rotating glass floor is one level below it. Our Seattle guide covers the rest of the city. General admission costs $35 to $55 depending on the day and time, with timed entry in 15-minute windows.

Mount St. Helens has its visitor centre at Silver Lake, about two and a half hours south of Seattle. Its second viewpoint, the Johnston Ridge Observatory, is out of reach. State Route 504 has been closed since a debris slide in May 2023 destroyed a bridge. The state expects the new bridge in spring 2027, after which the Forest Service must restore the observatory.

How do the Washington State Ferries work?

The Washington State Ferries cross Puget Sound from Seattle and its suburbs to the islands and the Olympic Peninsula. Seattle to Bainbridge Island takes about 35 minutes, and is the start of the shortest route to Olympic.

Most routes are first come, first served. Vehicle reservations exist only for Anacortes to the San Juan Islands and for Port Townsend to Coupeville. Walk-on passengers should board at least five minutes before the sailing. Vehicle fares carry a peak-season surcharge from 1 May to 30 September. The San Juan Islands ferries leave from Anacortes, about 82 miles north of Seattle.

How do you get to Washington from abroad?

Seattle–Tacoma International has 36 nonstop international routes, including 12 to Europe and many to Asia. Among them are London, Paris, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Dublin, Reykjavik, Tokyo and Seoul. It is about 14 miles from downtown Seattle. Spokane, in the east, has domestic flights only.

Amtrak Cascades runs 12 trains a day between Seattle and Portland and 4 between Seattle and Vancouver in Canada, with new trains from 30 September 2026. British Columbia did not turn its clocks back on 1 November 2026, so from that date Vancouver is an hour ahead of Seattle and ticket times look an hour shorter or longer than the ride. The Coast Starlight runs daily from Seattle to Los Angeles in 35 hours.

The distances are our own routing. Two crossings at Blaine, Douglas and Pacific Highway, connect Washington with British Columbia on the way to Vancouver.

When does it rain in Washington?

Washington's west is wet from October to April and dry in summer: Seattle averages about 19 days with rain in January and only about 5 in July. The east, beyond the Cascades, is much drier and has hotter summers and colder winters.

The table gives NOAA's 1991 to 2020 average highs and lows. November is Seattle's wettest month, at 6.3 inches, and July its driest. Summer is the busiest season at Olympic and Mount Rainier, when the high roads and trails are clear of snow.

What taxes are added to a Washington bill?

Washington's state sales tax is 6.5%, and cities add their own. The total is 10.55% in Seattle and 9.1% in Spokane at the end of 2026, by the state's own lookup. Car rental carries an extra 11.9% state tax in 2026, falling to 9.9% in 2027.

Washington is on Pacific Time, the same as California, and its clocks went back an hour on 1 November 2026. Our guide to sales tax in the USA explains why prices are shown before tax.