travel to the pacific northwest questions

[pugz]

We have talked about going to the PNW and are tossing it around as an option for our 30th bday trip next year.  Here are my questions.

Say you had a 4 day weekend to spend in the PNW, where would you go and what would you do?

also what season/month is best to visit?  Is spring a bad time to go?  

[msmerymac]

My husband used to live in Seattle and said that July-September is best because it rarely rains at that time and the weather is pretty warm, and nice.

Honestly, I'd love to see Portland, mostly because I'd like to try the beer.

[ijack]

I would say April - October are the best months, with the best choices being may, june, and september. What do you want to do? Portland is awesome if you want to do more of a city thing (I like it more than Seattle), and so are the San Juan islands.

[catbus]

Come to Seattle!

Edit: OK, real answers. Would it be just you and your H, or G as well? Late spring, like May, would be perfect. I'll assume you'd come in on a Friday and leave on a Monday: 

• Arrive Friday AM at SEA, spend Friday/Saturday in Seattle. 
• Sunday AM: take Clipper to Victoria or drive to PDX, see the sights, stay overnight. 
• Late Monday AM: back to SEA, fly home mid-afternoon. 

[pugz]

dh likes outdoorsy stuff/national parks, we both like good food and historic sites. Dh's bday in in December and mine is in March but I figure unless we go someplace really warm we'll have to do our trip late spring/summer. Our last trip was to the beach so I don't think dh wants to do that again.

[schrodinger]

Hands-down I would spend 4 days on Vancouver Island. I love Victoria and there is so much to do around the city - Butchart Gardens, Chinatown, the Inner Harbor, etc. We usually drive up to Cowichan and spend some time visiting the wineries along the way. We were in downtown Victoria last year around Canada Day and had a blast! Summer would be the best time, but even in July the weather can be hit or miss.

[rebekistan]

Does Montana count as PNW? B/c I would go back to Glacier National Park, in the early summer. It's one of my favorite National Parks -- absolutely beautiful.

[rebekistan]

Apr 22, 2013 11:16:34 GMT -5 pugz said:

dh likes outdoorsy stuff/national parks, we both like good food and historic sites. Dh's bday in in December and mine is in March but I figure unless we go someplace really warm we'll have to do our trip late spring/summer. Our last trip was to the beach so I don't think dh wants to do that again.

If you want to combine a city and outdoorsy trip, I would go to Seattle and spend 2-3 days on the Olympic peninsula -- there is a lot at Olympic National Park (rainforest, mountains, and beaches). For that, I would make it a 5 day trip. 

[catbus]

Apr 22, 2013 11:16:47 GMT -5 rebekistan said:

Does Montana count as PNW? B/c I would go back to Glacier National Park, in the early summer. It's one of my favorite National Parks -- absolutely beautiful.

Google image search term "PNW": 


 
Edit: I'm totally teasing. But no, MT is not officially part of the PNW. And in ninth-grade PNW history class, we only covered WA/OR/ID... and let's be honest, we barely talked about ID. 

[rebekistan]

Apr 22, 2013 11:20:45 GMT -5 catbus said:

Apr 22, 2013 11:16:47 GMT -5 rebekistan said:

Does Montana count as PNW? B/c I would go back to Glacier National Park, in the early summer. It's one of my favorite National Parks -- absolutely beautiful.

Google image search term "PNW": 


 

I didn't think so. But I'd still rather go there! 

[whosthatgirl]

Anything before late June is going to be a gamble as far as weather goes. That being said, I feel like our last few springs have been pretty mild. It's gorgeous today! I'm totally biased, but I'd say Portland with a night at Cannon Beach. There is so much to do here. Breweries, Vineyards, hiking, shopping (tax free!), beautiful parks, we have a great Zoo and other family friendly places (OMSI, Children's Museum, World Forestry Center), and great food!

[Deleted]

With only 4 days I would limit myself to one city there are so many things. Seattle are, Portland, Victoria and Vancouver are all great in the summer. Lots of options for hikes and outdoor stuff. Excellent food/beer/wine in each of those cities as well. If you are in Seattle you could do a day trip to Mt Rainier or Hurricane Ridge.

[bugandbibs]

I'd stay in Portland and travel around there. You could go hiking in the Columbia Gorge and see Multnomah Falls. There are tons of amazing breweries and good beer. Plus, there are lots of smaller brew fest/specialty tastings year round. The biggest brew fests are in December and July.

You can take your LO to the Oregon Zoo, Children's museum, and OMSI or one of the many pubs with a kids play area.

[goaskalice]

I'm totally biased. Portland rocks for a quick trip! Have some amazing food, visit Multnomah falls, and I second the Zoo or children's museum.

[InBetweenDays]

I would avoid spring, personally. Especially if you want to do more outdoorsy stuff. They joke that summer starts in Seattle on July 5th - which tends to be true. I'd aim for July, August, or September.

I love the idea of visiting the Olympic National Park, but would try to set aside more than 4 days for that. Especially if you want to spend any time in the city.

Another option that would be more pricey but would be such a PNW experience is to spend a few days in Seattle, then take a float plane to the San Juan islands. Do some kayaking/hiking/whale watching for a few days, then you can take a float plan from the San Juans right back to SeaTac airport.

[pugz]

Squirms is staying home! This will be adults only

[froggy76]

We went out for a week a couple years ago and crammed in Seattle, the Olympic peninsula, Portland, and Vancouver BC. My favorite part of the trip was staying here and hiking through the rainforest:
www.olympicnationalparks.com/accommodations/lake-quinault-lodge.aspx

[Deleted]

Apr 22, 2013 11:24:15 GMT -5 @sfgal530 said:

Apr 22, 2013 11:19:22 GMT -5 rebekistan said:

If you want to combine a city and outdoorsy trip, I would go to Seattle and spend 2-3 days on the Olympic peninsula -- there is a lot at Olympic National Park (rainforest, mountains, and beaches). For that, I would make it a 5 day trip. 

Was just going to suggest this.  Fly to Seattle, spend a day checking out Pike Place Market and other top sights, then rent a car and take the ferry over to Kingston (I think that's the stop?) and drive from there to Hurricane Ridge and Lake Crescent.  Spend a day there, drive on through to Forks (if you're a Twihard you can cross that off your bucket list) and down to the Hoh Rainforest, where you can spend another day.  Go to Ruby Beach for a totally different "beach" experience, head down to Aberdeen and route back in to I-5 where you go north to Seatac.  Drop your car off at the airport and head home.

Other options: if you come in late summer you can either (1) go to Mount Rainier and hike around there or (2) drive up to Anacortes and take the ferry to the San Juan Islands for 2-3 nights, where you can hike, go orca whale watching, etc. 

You can do that one which requires you to drive from Downtown Seattle to Edmonds or you can take the ferry from downtown to Bainbridge Island and drive from there. Really either works.

[LoveTrains]

My sister, who lives in Seattle, says that July and September are the best months to visit. It is less likely to rain (so she says). I visited last year in July and the weather was beautiful - mostly in the 70s to 80s and fairly sunny.

I also had great weather, though, when visiting this past March, but that is generally considered not the best time.

[LoveTrains]

Oh and I went to Hurricane Ridge and Lake Crescent last summer and loved it.