Please help me plan a 25-year anniversary trip to Seattle, Vancouver, and Vancouver Island in July 2009. Neither of us have been to any of these places and our kids are old enough that they will not be coming along (yeah!) We both like good food, good wine, beautiful scenery, hiking (moderate), bicycling (flat), interesting museums and gardens, and wildlife. We have a total of 26 days, including travel by plane from (and to) Washington, DC. We can afford to stay in luxury hotels ($300-$400 per night) occasionally when it is worth it, but for the most part, we need to keep the lodging around $200-$250 per night. The most difficult task is trying to decide how much time to spend in each place and which side trips to include outside of Victoria, Seattle, and Vancouver. It seems like the west coast of Vancouver island might itself be worth a few days? Also, where should we start and then in what order proceed? Is it best to cross the border by car, train, or ferry? Thanks in advance for your advice.

Hi Laura, there is quite a lot of information on the PNW if you use the FIND tool at the top of the page here.

Also I am sure that the many ST members living in the area will give you tons of additional information.

Just to get you started....

Stanley Park is right in Vancouver and has many hiking trails, plus you can rent a bike and cycle around the seawall which circles the perimeter of the park.

Lighthouse Park is lesser known - in West Vancouver it is a beautiful natural park running down to the water and of course the lighthouse. Lots of hiking trails there.

Of course if you really want to hike you have a whole range of mountains running along the North Shore.

Yesterday I was talking to the people at Whales Vancouver for some house guests we have arriving in July. Apparently there is a pod that lives here year round, and two others join them during the summer, so your chances of seeing whales is about 80 - 90%. If you don't see any whales you are allowed to take another trip at no cost. The boats often sail in the area around the San Juan Islans so the scenery is spectacular.

Since you are looking at higher end accommodation:

On the west coast of Vancouver Island you might look at Wickaninnish Inn


If you decide to visit the San Juan Islands it would be hard to beat Hastings House in fact it is probably worth the trip to Saltspring Island just to stay there!

I'll get back with more, but in the meantime type 'Vancouver' into the find tab up above - it will keep you busy for a while!

I second the recommendation of Lighthouse Park. Every time we go to Vancouver (not nearly often enough), I love to go there and sit on the rocks looking back at the city. It's GORGEOUS.

If you go to Victoria, be sure to go to Buchart Gardens. Twice, once in the daylight, and again in the evening.

Are you flying into and out of Seattle? If so, you should take the ferry at least one way to Victoria. The trip through the San Juan Islands is just gorgeous.

Chris, I live just west of Lighthouse Park at Eagle Harbour. The next time you are in Vancouver call me (if you have time). Janie (Janie & Geoff) and I are always ready to go for a coffee or lunch!

There is a lot to do in the Seattle area. A great hotel is the Inn at the Market but you might want something a bit less expensive if you are staying a longer time. Many of the downtown hotels are pretty expensive. Others to look at are the Mayflower. Another option might be one of the hotels on Lake Union. These are chain hotels - Marriott Residence Inn, Marriott Courtyard, and Silver Cloud. They are a bit of a walk to downtown (1 mile) but the new Seattle Streetcar runs from Westlake Center to Downtown so there is good transportation. There are also B&B options but I'm not very familiar with the B&B's. You might also look at rentals.

Food, Lots of options in Seattle. What are you interested in? If you are a 'foodie', then you should try Union or Lark. Both do small plates focused on fresh and locally obtained food. The Chef at Union has two other restaurants that have been raved about recently - Tavola and How to eat a Wolf. Tom Douglas is a local celebrity chef and all his restaurants are great.

For wine - you might want to take a drive to Woodinville. St Michelle is the largest winery in Washington and has a gorgeous winery. Columbia is near by and also good. There are also small boutique wineries usually located in industrial warehouses but make great wines. Do check the schedules because not all wineries are open.

For hiking, I would suggest a trip to Mt. Rainier especially if the weather is clear. There are many hikes from Paradise. They are somewhat moderate/steep but all in good condition. There are many good books on hikes. There are also some good hikes along I-90 that are easy to get to and not too hard. For hikes outside of Mt. Rainier, you will need a day pass to park which you can get at REI.

Olympic National Park is another good option. You can take the ferry over to the Peninsula and stay in Pt. Angeles or Sequim. The drive from Pt Angeles to Hurricane Ridge is stunning (if the weather is good).

Thanks for the great feedback so far, I will check out all these recommendations. We think it would be best to fly in and out of Seattle (correct me if I am wrong) but don't know whether to drive over the border after renting a car or to take a ferry, and if a ferry, from where? We would like to include the Olympic National Park area as well as the San Juan Islands in the Seattle leg of our trip. Not sure how to best make the circle from Seattle at the beginning back to Seattle at the end with Vancouver and Vancouver Island in the middle. Also considering doing the Sunshine Coast while in Vancouver. Is that worthwhile? Thanks!

In 2004, I booked a Seattle hotel thru Priceline and it was very reasonable. I don't know if that's your style, but you might consider it. You can specify a 4 or 3 star hotel.

What a great trip!
We've been to Seattle a few times, as we have a sister there. We love to spend the night of our arrival at Inn at the Market. Wonderful place, and eat breakfast at the little spot attached to it. Seattle has a feast of things to see and do, and any guidebook can help you with that.

If you want to head over to the Olympic Peninsula, take the ferry to Bremerton - a very scenic ride. You might enjoy old Victorian town Port Townsend. Explore the Olympics. Take the ferry from Port Angeles to Vancouver Island - to Victoria, a great place. Explore Vancouver Island. Then I believe you can ferry to Vancouver. Then back to Seattle. And yes, you could include a visit to the San Juan Islands, easily accessible by ferry. I realize that there aren't many helpful details here, and I'm not sure how/where you'd best take care of car rental. The trick is to have the car to explore places such as the Olympic Natl Park, but minimize it in cities. Cars on ferries also add to your expense.

I'm glad you've got plenty of time, as there is indeed no shortage of great places to visit. Hope you get some great weather!
Linda

I forgot to add this to my post-
Re: Mount Rainier Natl. Park.
It is a stunning experience IF the weather is clear. If it isn't, I'd skip it, as it is quite a drive from Seattle. If I had to choose a mountain experience because of time limits, I'd choose the Olympic Park instead -and the Hurricane Ridge walk is fabulous.
Linda

We just spent 3 weeks in Washington/BC:
Anacortes
Orcas Island
Tofino
Ucluelt
Lake Shawnigan (wine country on Vancouver Island)
Sooke
Victoria

We had a fabulous time...I have a ton of images and lodging...museum...wine...Butchart Gardens...Royal BC Museum...etc, info posted on my blog. Click on "june".

http://baileyzimmerman.blogspot.com

Given your interests, I'd say you shouldn't miss these places:

For moderate hiking: Mt. Rainier. The Olympics are very pretty but there is nothing like a huge icy volcano, and the best flower meadows anywhere (bring bug spray!). You also have a fair chance of seeing wildlife--bear, elk, mountain goats--depending on where you hike (you will definitely at least see marmots!). Both the Paradise and Sunrise visitors areas are worth visiting. Try to avoid the weekend.

Garden: Bloedel Reserve on Bainbridge Island. A very unique, naturalistic PNW garden, in a beautiful waterfront setting. You need a reservation.

"Flat" biking: Well, not much in the PNW is really flat, but Lopez Island (in the San Juans) is a favorite of cyclists for its beautiful scenery, lack of traffic, and relative flatness

Food-Seattle and Vancouver are great foodie cities. Check out egullet.org or Chowhound for lots of tips.

General scenery: The San Juan Islands and the North Cascades highway. One gorgeous ferry ride, one gorgeous drive (there are short hikes you can do, too).

Don't risk driving to BC. The lines at the border are horrible and you could spend hours waiting. Taking a car on the ferry is very expensive these days especially to the San Juans. Check out the fares on their website. Some of the islands have transport buses from the ferry dock to their main town. You can also rent mopeds and tool around then catch the ferry again to the next island and do the same. That would all depend on the weather. The trip through the San Juans is truely Northwest.

I love Woodinville but if you really want to see where all that wine comes from you'll want to visit Washington wine country, the fastest growing wine region in the world. The grapes are grown in our high desert region across the Cascade Mountain range to the east. The wineries on this side of the mountains truck juice or berries to their facilities here. Summer temps soar into the 90's and the area is on the same lateral as some of the best growing regions in France. Vines (and stone fruit crops, apples, and a variety of vegetables)are every where. The drive to the Yakima Valley Wine region is just two hours east, hotels are relatively cheap so overnight is not hard on your wallet. If you get up at 9 you can be in wine country by noon! Some liken Washington wine regions to a young Napa Valley. Travel past the Yakima exits to Zillah where you will find some of the best wineries in the Yakima region including my favorite, Sheridan. www.winecountrywashington.org has all the info you'll need. Note:the best Washington wine comes from Vinyards further east at Red Mountain and Walla Walla. If you've got the money you can fly to Walla Walla otherwise it's a four to five hour drive! We do weekends there.

Restaraunts Seattle: In Madison valley for Spanish Tapas style try tiny Harvest Vine; on the same road is Crush; Further down the same road is a great sushi place. I can't remember the name but Seattle is a great place for Sushi. Earth and Ocean is elegant but expensive. For a more casual meal try the Purple Cafe they have wine tastings and a HUGE wine list. They have a great selection of Washington Wines. If you explore the Eastside (Bellevue, Kirkland, Redmond, Issaquah) you will want to try small elegant Bis on Main in old Bellevue. Joe Valardi always serves great food and good wine in an elegant atmosphere without putting on aires! Let him know I sent you! A few doors down is Amore Chocolates. Only two people can fit in the reception area at a time but the wrapped caramels (not dipped in chocolate) are to die for! Everything else is wonderful too!

The Bellevue Square Mall has a great collection of designer shops and more are on the way. Check out Bellevue Downtown.

Woodinville (across the street from San Michelle Winery is Willows Lodge and the Herb Farm restaraunt. You'll need to make reservations for the Herb Farm 6 months to a year in advance. I have never eaten here but everyone I know has and raves about the experience.

Check out the glass museum in Tacoma, antiqueing in Snohomish (on your way to the North Cascades Highway), boat tours of the lakes (they'll point out the Bill Gates compound, the "Sleepless in Seattle" houseboat, and Dale Chahuly's Boathouse), the night time views of Seattle from Alki in West Seattle where you can munch on some Spuds fish and chips, the locks are fun as well. You can watch the boats come and go and see the fish ladder and stroll the garden, further down the same road is Shilshole beach.

This was long but hopefully helpful.