9 Day Road Trip from Seattle - Where to go?

[calmac]

We are a family of 3 (me, DH and DS-13) and will be flying into Seattle prior to our Alaskan cruise at the end of July. We will spend our first night in a hotel in Seattle before picking up a hire car and spending 9 days touring around before returning to Seattle the day before our cruise.

 

My question is - where should we go on a road trip?

 

We've been to Vancouver and area before so would like to tour in Washington and/or Oregon and/or Idaho. We prefer to spend at least 2 nights in any location. We will also be celebrating our anniversary during the 9 days so would like to stay somewhere "special" for that.

 

Thanks in advance for all your suggestions.

[nowornever]

have 9 days....such a beautiful area of the country. Depends on if you like outdoorsy stuff, city stuff, best of all, WINE STUFF. If you're a wine lover, you can't do better than Walla Walla & Columbia Valley. Suggest you take a look at this website: http://www.experiencewa.com/home.aspx

 

It will give you many ideas.

 

Have a great trip.

[kidzrnseattle]

You are going to have a wonderful vacation! If I had visitors coming from out of town with 9 days to tour the Pacific Northwest, this is what I would recommend:

Day 1- Drive south on I-5 to Mount St. Helen's. It is a volcano that erupted about 20 years ago and stills rumbles now and then. It is in the middle of the Olympic National Forest and there is a a lot to do in the area.

Day 3- Continue South to Oregon and then turn west to highway 101. Drive down the coast on hwy 101 and stay at Seaside Oregon. You will need reservations since it is July. Take a ride south to Tillamock Oregon and tour the dairy and huge cheese factory. Lovely drive and interesting tour. My teens loved it.

Day 5. Drive back up highway 101 and then hit Highway 84 and drive across Northern Oregon. Cross into Washington on Highweay 82. You will want to stay in this area.

Day 6. Drive to highway 97 and take it to Leavenworth. It is a wonderful area. You can ride horses, fish and there are many, many quaint shops. you can stay in a cabin by the river or a deluxe hotel in the town.

Day 8-9 Leisurely drive back to Seattle Area. It takes about 3 hours. There are lots of special hotels in downtown Seattle. One of my favorties is the Edgewater. It is right next to pier where you board the cruise ship. Here is their web site

http://www.edgewaterhotel.com/ It won't look special from the outside, but check out the photos on the web. It is a little pricey but fabulous and so convienent! The hotel will take you to any of the downtown areas. Don't miss Pike Street Market and Pioneer Square. You could take in a major league baseball game at Safeco Field or see our incredible zoo.You are going to have a great time. July is one of the best times to visit the Pacific Northwest:)

[Genghis Khan]

Wow! 9 Days to drive that part of the country would be great. I have traveled a bit in that area and if I ever thought I might not get back again, I would drive the Pacific Coast Highway/US101 (not the Interstate I5) all the way to San Francisco. Many beautiful vistas and quite uncrowded most of the time. While it does get more visitors during the summer that also results in great weather. List of sites is endless; St Helens, Columbia River, Oregon Coastline, Crater Lake, Shasta Forest, Lassen Volcano NP and that doesn't even get you to Redwoods National Park, the Medocino Coast or what I believe to be the most beautiful city in the US- San Francisco. You'd probably have time to even spend a night or two in Yosemite National Park. Probably plan on a non-weekend day there in July however. Whatever direction you head in that part of America you can't miss. Good luck and happy travels.

[calmac]

Thanks for your suggestions - now we just need to plan our route and decide on what exactly we do want to see. At the moment it looks like Highway 101 then heading back via the wine country is a strong possibility.

 

Thanks again.

[Bruin Steve]

Many years ago (before kids) my wife and I flew into Seattle and rented a car for 7 days...Drove across the border into British Columbia and visited Glacier National Park (Canada), Lake Louise, Banff and Jasper before heading back toward Seattle...a lot of driving, but some of the most incedible scenery you will ever see...The Canadian Rockies, the Columbia Icefields, lakes the color of which one can not describe in normal words...incredible wildlife...

 

That would be my recommendation...

 

I'd drive Seattle to Kamloops--about 5 hours spend the night, then the following day, I'd get an early start--it's a little over 3 hours drive from Kamloops to Glacier...2 more hours from Glacier to Lake Louise...I'd spend a night there...Lake Louise and Banff are about 45 minutes apart...I'd stay the next 3 or 4 nights in Banff, then continue on to Jasper...

 

Banff to Jasper is about a 3.5 hour drive if you did it straight, but there's so much to see along the way...plan for a day, stopping at the icefields for a ride on the glaciers...Then spend a couple of nights in Jasper...

 

It's about a 10 hour drive back to Seattle from Jasper...so we broke it up with a stop for the night at Harrison Hot Springs...about a 7 hour drive from Jasper, leaving a 3 hour trek back to Seattle from there...back to Seattle for day 9...

 

I think the scenery on this route is among the most spectacular in the world...

[calmac]

Something else to think about. We had thought of flying in to either Vancouver or Calgary then touring around from there before heading to Seattle but were unable to get flights (we're using FF miles). We've been to Vancouver and Vancouver Island before but not further north so it's very tempting.

[sultan_sfo]

I agree with the suggestions of Bruin Steve above. Drove from SF to Banfe in mid-seventies. It is still a wonderful memory. It is not worthwhile to drive all the way back toward SF. Also check out where the wineries are in Washington State / Oregon. I have not visited them but now many of their wines are comparable to the best of Napa / Sonoma.

[calimn]

Make sure you check out Olympic Nationa park if youy want to not do too much driving. It is just west of Seattle. They have a "rainforest" there - we stayed at the HotSprings in Sol Duc and then on the coast at Klaloch (sp?) on the ocean and then in the heart of the park - where the kids went on a banana slug hunt. Still one of my favorite national parks and we have been to probably 20 of them.

[Blamar]

I would suggest head north into Canada. Go up I-5 to Abbotsford in Canada then head over to the Okanogan via the Cowboy Country of Merritt. You can then go to Kelowna and Pentiction and discover some of Canada's best wines. there are some great resorts and the fruit farms are extra nice. Go return to the US on Highway 97 where you can head on down Ellensburg or Wenatchee. Stay on 97 through indian land until you get to the little town of Maryhill. Oddly enough you will find a world class museum complete with sculptures by Rodin and a remaking of stonehenge all along the edge of the columbia river. Head west and you can experience the columbia river gorge. You will end up in Portland which is a great city to explore and then head up I-5 back to Seattle.

 

this is a great trip to save money, all the Canadian stuff is cheaper because of the exchange rate. You will get a great idea of the true west by going through the deserts of central Washington. And finally the totally wonderful scenery of the Columbia waterway. Along the way you will find first class hotels, great roads, mostly miss the interstates and major highways.

 

Have a wonderful trip.

[dfields1814]

http://www.visitlakequinault.com/ Check out this place. This is my amd my wife's favorite place in Washington. It is a good place to relax. Our kids were young when we went there and they thought it was a bit too relaxed. However, it is an easy drive north to see all the beaches and rain forests. Paul

[Chat Noir]

Many years ago (before kids) my wife and I flew into Seattle and rented a car for 7 days...Drove across the border into British Columbia and visited Glacier National Park (Canada), Lake Louise, Banff and Jasper before heading back toward Seattle...a lot of driving, but some of the most incedible scenery you will ever see...The Canadian Rockies, the Columbia Icefields, lakes the color of which one can not describe in normal words...incredible wildlife...

 

That would be my recommendation...

 

I'd drive Seattle to Kamloops--about 5 hours spend the night, then the following day, I'd get an early start--it's a little over 3 hours drive from Kamloops to Glacier...2 more hours from Glacier to Lake Louise...I'd spend a night there...Lake Louise and Banff are about 45 minutes apart...I'd stay the next 3 or 4 nights in Banff, then continue on to Jasper...

 

Banff to Jasper is about a 3.5 hour drive if you did it straight, but there's so much to see along the way...plan for a day, stopping at the icefields for a ride on the glaciers...Then spend a couple of nights in Jasper...

 

It's about a 10 hour drive back to Seattle from Jasper...so we broke it up with a stop for the night at Harrison Hot Springs...about a 7 hour drive from Jasper, leaving a 3 hour trek back to Seattle from there...back to Seattle for day 9...

 

I think the scenery on this route is among the most spectacular in the world...

 

This would be my choice. We thoroughly enjoyed our trip south of Seattle to Mt. St. Helen's, down into Oregon, then over to Astoria and the coast... however, my opinion, the Canadian Rockies are much more spectacular! We've never driven in from the west, only the east, and I'd love to see Whistler area, too.

[andynapril]

If you do end up doing the Seattle/Oregon route: We drove from Seattle back to California a couple of years ago with our girls. He had a great time in the Astoria, Oregon/Long Beach, WA area. We stayed at a little hotel by the beach with a fireplace. It was gorgeous. Here are the links:

 

http://www.oldoregon.com/

http://www.longbeachwa.gov/

[SelectSys]

Other side trips you can also consider:

 

1) the North Cascades, Lake Chelan, and Leavenworth as a loop from Seattle.

2) I will also second both the Kitsap and Olympic peninsulas. Take the car ferry from Seattle or Edmunds. Lots of nice resorts - e.g., Port Ludlow, Sequim - and things to see - e.g., Hurricane Ridge

3) Oregon Shores area such as Lincoln City, Seaside, etc

4) If you go to the wine county consider heading over Chinook Pass for great scenery and stopping at Mt Ranier.