Washington State contains more geographic extremes within its borders than almost any state in the country. The Olympic Peninsula's Hoh Rain Forest receives up to 14 feet of rain annually and grows Sitka spruce trees 300 feet tall in a landscape that reads as Jurassic. Forty miles east, the Olympic Mountains create a rain shadow so total that the northeastern corner of the peninsula is semi-arid. Mount Rainier — a 14,411-foot active stratovolcano permanently capped in 35 square miles of glacial ice — looms over the Puget Sound lowlands so completely that Seattle residents describe their city's entire mood as dependent on whether "the mountain is out." The Columbia Plateau's channeled scablands, carved by catastrophic Ice Age floods, produce a high-desert wine country in Walla Walla and Yakima that bears no resemblance to the rain-soaked western side of the Cascades.
Washington generates approximately $22 billion in annual tourism spending. Pike Place Market in Seattle — opened in 1907 and the oldest continuously operated farmers market in the US — draws 10 million visitors annually, making it one of the most visited attractions in the country, and for good reason: the fish-throwing fishmongers, the original Starbucks, the flower stalls, and the underground shops constitute an authentic urban market that has managed to remain genuinely local despite its tourist fame.
Seattle, Olympic & The Cascade Volcanoes
Seattle's neighborhoods reward extended exploration: Capitol Hill's restaurants and bars, Ballard's Scandinavian heritage and craft brewery scene, the International District's Asian food culture, and the waterfront's rehabilitation project (the Alaskan Way Viaduct removal has opened the waterfront to redevelopment, with new parks and access underway). The Seattle Art Museum's collection and the Chihuly Garden and Glass — a stunning installation of Dale Chihuly's blown glass sculpture at Seattle Center — are essential cultural stops.
Olympic National Park, a 2-hour drive west of Seattle, offers three completely distinct ecosystems in one park: temperate rain forest (Hoh Rain Forest, with moss-draped maples and 300-foot Sitka spruce), rugged Pacific coastline (the most remote stretch of Pacific coast in the lower 48), and alpine meadows and glaciers above treeline. Mount Rainier National Park's Paradise visitor area at 5,400 feet offers year-round glacier views and the most accessible alpine wildflower meadows in the Pacific Northwest. North Cascades National Park — the least visited of the three — provides some of the most dramatic mountain scenery in America for backcountry visitors.
"The Hoh Rain Forest receives up to 14 feet of annual rainfall and grows Sitka spruce 300 feet tall draped in club moss — a landscape so lush and green it barely feels like it's in the same country as the Columbia Plateau wine country 200 miles east."
Dungeness Crab, Oysters & Seattle's Enduring Excellence
Washington's food identity is the Pacific — Dungeness crab, Pacific oysters from the cold, clean waters of Puget Sound and Hood Canal, Copper River salmon (the season's first run, arriving in May, is a culinary event), and a Seattle food scene that has maintained national recognition for decades. The coffee culture that Starbucks launched has produced a city where independent roasters (Stumptown, Slate, Lighthouse) take their craft as seriously as the finest European coffee houses.
The most-awarded chowder in America — a Pike Place Market institution that has won the national chowder competition multiple times. The New England clam chowder and the Dungeness crab chowder are both exceptional. Expect a line; it moves quickly and the chowder in a bread bowl is worth every minute.
$ · BudgetSeattle's great institution — a mid-century modern room perched on Queen Anne Hill with panoramic Lake Union views, open since 1950 and still one of the finest dining experiences in the Pacific Northwest. The seasonal tasting menu and the long-standing classics (the Canlis salad, the Dungeness crab) coexist beautifully.
$$$$ · LuxuryThe oyster bar that sparked Seattle's oyster renaissance — a small, perpetually packed Ballard raw bar where the Pacific Northwest oyster selection is extraordinary and the small plates complement perfectly. Reservations are not taken for small parties; arrive early or expect a wait at the bar.
$$ · Mid-rangeThierry Rautureau's beloved Madison Valley French restaurant — a garden cottage setting and a tasting menu of extraordinary French technique applied to Pacific Northwest ingredients. One of Seattle's most romantic and consistently exceptional dining experiences, celebrating 35+ years.
$$$$ · LuxurySeattle Boutiques, Olympic Lodges & Walla Walla Wine Country
Seattle's boutique hotel scene is strong — the Ace Hotel Seattle, the Kimpton Hotel Monaco, and the Inn at the Market (directly in Pike Place) run $180–$350/night. The Four Seasons Seattle and the Fairmont Olympic are the luxury anchors at $400–$800/night. Olympic National Park's Lake Crescent Lodge (on a glacial lake ringed by old-growth forest) and Kalaloch Lodge (on the Pacific coast) run $180–$320/night — book months ahead. Walla Walla's wine country inn scene runs $160–$300/night.
- Pike Place Market's fish throwing happens at the Pike Place Fish Market stall — the fishmongers throw orders to each other on request, not continuously. Ask nicely.
- Mount Rainier's Paradise Road is open year-round but can close after heavy snow. The mountain "is out" (visible) only about 70 days per year — a clear day is genuinely precious.
- Olympic National Park requires a vehicle reservation for the Hoh Rain Forest entrance July–September. Book at Recreation.gov well ahead of your visit.
- Copper River salmon season (mid-May through June) is a genuine Seattle culinary event — restaurants put it on menus the day it arrives. If you're in Seattle during this window, order it everywhere.
- Washington State Ferries are an essential part of the Puget Sound experience — the ferry to Bainbridge Island from Seattle's waterfront takes 35 minutes and offers some of the finest views of the skyline and Rainier available.
- Walla Walla wine country peaks in harvest season (September–October) — the wineries are open, the crush pads are running, and the harvest dinners at the best wineries are exceptional. Book ahead.
Washington: The State the Rain Made
Washington is a state defined by water in every form — rain that builds rain forests, snowpack that feeds glaciers, the Pacific that delivers Dungeness crab and oysters, and the coffee culture that turned a Seattle neighborhood into a global industry. The mountains hold the whole picture together: Rainier presiding over everything, visible or not, shaping the city's mood from 80 miles away. The Evergreen State is exactly what the name promises — green, wet, alive, and producing extraordinary things from extraordinary ingredients.
Evergreen, always. 🌲