Pacific Northwest: Seattle, Olympic, the Oregon Coast and Portland

1. Day 1: Arrive in Seattle

   Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) to your hotel in central Seattle

   • Welcome dinner
   • Stay in Seattle
   Day 1 details

   Fly into Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), about 25 km south of downtown. We meet arrivals at set times through the day and drive you to a central hotel; the pick-up windows come with your final itinerary. If you land early, the city is easy on foot: walk down to the waterfront on Elliott Bay, where the ferries come and go below the hills, or look at the totem poles and old brick buildings of Pioneer Square, where the city began. At about 6 pm your See Sight Tours guide meets the group at the hotel for a short briefing on the week ahead: how the days are paced, what to pack for rain in the Hoh and wind on Hurricane Ridge, and how the tides decide when we walk the beaches. Then we walk to a welcome dinner nearby, with salmon, oysters and other Pacific Northwest food on the menu. Tomorrow starts at Pike Place Market as it opens, a few minutes from the hotel.

   Included

   • Pick-up at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA)
   • Welcome briefing with your guide
   • Welcome dinner in Seattle

   Free time: Free until the evening briefing

2. Day 2: Pike Place Market and the Space Needle

   Pike Place Market, the waterfront and Seattle Center

   • Drive about 30 min
   • Breakfast
   • Stay in Seattle
   Day 2 details

   We walk into Pike Place Market at about 9 am, as the produce, flower and craft stalls open and before the midday crowds, which are heaviest on cruise-ship days. The market has run above the waterfront since 1907: your guide takes you past the fish stalls, through the lower levels and out to the viewpoints over Elliott Bay, then down to the rebuilt waterfront promenade. Lunch is your choice in the market, where the choice is wide. In the early afternoon a short van ride takes us to Seattle Center, built for the 1962 World's Fair, and up the Space Needle on a timed ticket: the observation decks at about 160 m look over Lake Union, the Olympic Mountains you will cross to tomorrow and, on a clear day, Mount Rainier. The rest of the day is free. Chihuly Garden and Glass is next door, the Ballard Locks have salmon in the fish ladder from about July, and the Olympic Sculpture Park runs down to the water a short walk away.

   Included

   • Guided walk through Pike Place Market as the stalls open
   • The Seattle waterfront
   • Space Needle observation decks on a timed ticket

   Optional experiences

   • Chihuly Garden and Glass
   • The Ballard Locks and fish ladder
   • Museum of Pop Culture

   Free time: Afternoon and evening free in Seattle

   Activity: About 3 km on foot in the morning, with some steep streets and stairs between the market and the waterfront.

   

3. Day 3: Across Puget Sound to Hurricane Ridge

   Seattle to Bainbridge Island by ferry, then Port Angeles and Hurricane Ridge

   • Drive about 3.5 h
   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Port Angeles
   Day 3 details

   After breakfast we board the Washington State ferry at Colman Dock for the 35-minute crossing to Bainbridge Island, with the Seattle skyline behind and Mount Rainier to the south on a clear day. From the island we drive about an hour and three quarters over the Hood Canal Bridge and along the Strait of Juan de Fuca to Port Angeles, the gateway to Olympic National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Lunch is a sit-down meal in town. In the afternoon, when the morning cloud has often lifted, we climb about 27 km to Hurricane Ridge at around 1,600 m. The view runs across a deep valley to the glaciers of Mount Olympus and the Bailey Range, and the meadows below the road hold black-tailed deer and Olympic marmots, which live nowhere else. We walk the short meadow paths together before heading back down. The evening is free in Port Angeles, on the water.

   Included

   • Seattle to Bainbridge Island ferry across Puget Sound
   • Sit-down lunch in Port Angeles
   • Olympic National Park entry
   • Hurricane Ridge viewpoints and meadow walks with your guide

   Easier option: Stay on the flat meadow paths near the Hurricane Ridge parking area, about 1 km in all.

   More active option: If the road beyond the Hurricane Ridge parking area has reopened, walk the paved Hurricane Hill trail, about 5 km return with about 200 m of climbing, for a view over the Strait of Juan de Fuca to Vancouver Island. That road was closed in 2026, and walking it to the trailhead adds about 5 km, too long for the afternoon; if it is still closed, your guide leads a longer loop on the ridge paths instead. We confirm the road status at booking.

   Free time: Evening free in Port Angeles

   Activity: Hurricane Ridge can be cold and windy even in summer. The day lodge burned in 2023, so only basic facilities are open at the top, and only when the road is; in summer 2026 there was no drinking water at the ridge. We carry water in the van; bring a warm layer and a snack.

   

4. Day 4: The Hoh Rain Forest and the Olympic coast

   Port Angeles to Lake Crescent and the Hoh Rain Forest, then Ruby Beach, Kalaloch and Lake Quinault

   • Drive about 4 h
   • Breakfast, lunch and dinner
   • Stay in Lake Quinault
   Day 4 details

   We leave Port Angeles at 7 am, with a short stop by the deep blue water of Lake Crescent in the early light, and reach the Hoh Rain Forest entrance at about 9:15, two hours on the road, ahead of the queue that builds at its single gate in summer. The Hoh gets several metres of rain a year, and it shows: Sitka spruce and western hemlock rise from fallen nurse logs, and bigleaf maples hang with thick curtains of moss. We walk the Hall of Mosses and the Spruce Nature Trail with your guide, watching for Roosevelt elk in the river valley. Then it is under an hour down to the coast. At Ruby Beach a short path drops through the trees to sea stacks and piles of bleached driftwood, and we picnic near Kalaloch, where a Sitka spruce known as the Tree of Life clings over an eroded gully. The last leg to Lake Quinault is about 45 minutes, so the day's four hours of driving come in short pieces. Dinner at the lake is included, since there are few places to eat out here.

   Included

   • Lake Crescent
   • Hoh Rain Forest: the Hall of Mosses and the Spruce Nature Trail with your guide
   • Ruby Beach
   • Picnic lunch on the Olympic coast near Kalaloch
   • Dinner at Lake Quinault

   Easier option: Walk only the Hall of Mosses, a flat loop of about 1.3 km, and skip the steep path down to Ruby Beach.

   More active option: Walk out along the Hoh River Trail for about 3 km and back while the group finishes the nature trails.

   Free time: Evening by the lake

   Activity: About 5 km on foot in all, on flat forest trails and soft sand. The Ruby Beach path is short but steep and can be muddy. The 7 am start is what gets us into the Hoh before the queue; if you would rather sleep later, ask for a boxed breakfast to eat in the van.

   

5. Day 5: Over the Columbia to Astoria and Cannon Beach

   Lake Quinault to Aberdeen and the Astoria-Megler Bridge, then Astoria, Fort Clatsop and Cannon Beach

   • Drive about 4 h
   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Cannon Beach
   Day 5 details

   Start with a short walk on the Quinault Rain Forest Nature Trail by the lake at about 8 am, while the forest is quiet, and leave at 9. This is one of the two longest days, about four hours on the road in all, so we break it into short legs. About 45 minutes brings us to Aberdeen, then the road follows Willapa Bay, with its oyster beds and tidal flats, and a coffee stop on the way. About two hours later we cross the Astoria-Megler Bridge, which carries the road some 6.6 km over the mouth of the Columbia River into Oregon. In Astoria we climb to the Astoria Column, built in 1926, for the view over the river mouth, and stop for a sit-down lunch in the old riverfront town. Fort Clatsop, a replica of the fort where Lewis and Clark spent the winter of 1805 to 1806, is 15 minutes away. Then it is about 40 minutes to Cannon Beach, our home for two nights, by about 4:30 pm, with the evening free on the wide sand below Haystack Rock, about 72 m high.

   Included

   • Quinault Rain Forest Nature Trail
   • Astoria-Megler Bridge across the Columbia River
   • Astoria Column
   • Sit-down lunch in Astoria
   • Fort Clatsop, Lewis and Clark National Historical Park, entry included

   Free time: Evening free in Cannon Beach

   Activity: The Astoria Column has 164 steps to its top deck; the view from its base is good if you prefer not to climb.

   

6. Day 6: Haystack Rock, Ecola and the north Oregon coast

   Cannon Beach to Ecola State Park, then south to Oswald West State Park and Neahkahnie Mountain

   • Drive about 1 h
   • Breakfast
   • Stay in Cannon Beach
   Day 6 details

   This is the slow day on the coast. We time the walk to Haystack Rock to the daylight low tide, which falls in the morning or evening depending on your dates, when the tide pools at its base show sea stars, anemones and crabs; volunteers on the beach often have scopes on the puffins that nest on the rock from about April to August. Just north of town, Ecola State Park looks down on Indian Beach, the headlands and the offshore Tillamook Rock Lighthouse, lit in 1881 and long out of use. Then a short drive south takes us to Oswald West State Park, where a forest path leads to the cove at Short Sand Beach, and to the viewpoint on the flank of Neahkahnie Mountain over the beaches of Manzanita. We are back in Cannon Beach for a late lunch of your choice, and the afternoon is yours: galleries, a beach walk or a long rest.

   Included

   • Haystack Rock tide pools at low tide with your guide
   • Ecola State Park viewpoints and Indian Beach
   • Oswald West State Park and Short Sand Beach
   • Neahkahnie Mountain viewpoint

   Easier option: Stay in Cannon Beach after the tide pools and skip the forest path at Oswald West.

   More active option: Hike up Neahkahnie Mountain, about 5 km return with about 270 m of climbing, for the view down the coast.

   Free time: Afternoon free in Cannon Beach

   Activity: Tide pool rocks are slippery and barnacled; wear shoes that can get wet, and never turn your back on the waves. The road into Ecola State Park has closed for landslides in recent years; if it is closed on your dates, we go south to Hug Point and Arcadia Beach instead.

   

7. Day 7: Through the Coast Range to Portland

   Cannon Beach to Portland on US 26

   • Drive about 1.5 h
   • Breakfast
   • Stay in Portland
   Day 7 details

   A free morning on the beach, then at about 10:30 we drive inland on US 26 through the forested Coast Range, about an hour and a half to Portland, where we stay two nights. After lunch on your own we set out on foot with your guide at about 2 pm. Pioneer Courthouse Square is the city's meeting place; a few blocks away Powell's City of Books fills a whole city block, and it is easy to lose an hour inside. We walk through the Pearl District, with its old warehouses turned into galleries and cafes, to Old Town and the Lan Su Chinese Garden, a walled Suzhou-style garden built by artisans from Portland's sister city and opened in 2000; tea is served in its teahouse. The walk ends along the Willamette River in Tom McCall Waterfront Park in the late afternoon. The evening is free: the city's food cart pods are the easy way to eat well.

   Included

   • Drive from Cannon Beach to Portland
   • Guided walk through downtown Portland, the Pearl District and Old Town
   • Lan Su Chinese Garden entry
   • Tom McCall Waterfront Park

   Free time: Morning free in Cannon Beach, evening free in Portland

   Activity: About 4 km on foot in the afternoon, on flat city streets.

   

8. Day 8: The Columbia River Gorge

   Portland to Vista House, Latourell Falls and Multnomah Falls, then Bonneville and Hood River, back to Portland

   • Drive about 3.5 h
   • Breakfast, lunch and dinner
   • Stay in Portland
   Day 8 details

   We leave at 8 am on the Historic Columbia River Highway, the old road along the cliffs of the Gorge. Vista House at Crown Point, a domed stone rest stop finished in 1918, stands high above the river with the Gorge opening east. Latourell Falls drops about 76 m beside the road, a short walk from the van. We reach Multnomah Falls at about 9:30, ahead of most of the coaches: the water falls about 189 m in two tiers, and a short paved path climbs to Benson Bridge between them. Further east, Bonneville Lock and Dam has windows onto its fish ladders. Lunch is a sit-down meal in Hood River, where the river is busy with windsurfers and kiteboarders and Mount Hood rises to the south on a clear day. We drive back to Portland on the interstate, about an hour, for a free late afternoon before a farewell dinner together.

   Included

   • Historic Columbia River Highway with your guide
   • Vista House at Crown Point
   • Latourell Falls
   • Multnomah Falls and Benson Bridge
   • Bonneville Lock and Dam fish ladders
   • Sit-down lunch in Hood River
   • Farewell dinner in Portland

   Easier option: View Multnomah Falls from the plaza at its foot and skip the climb to Benson Bridge.

   More active option: Climb the switchback trail from Multnomah Falls to the viewing platform at the top, about 3.5 km return with about 250 m of climbing.

   Free time: Late afternoon free in Portland

   Activity: About 3 km on foot in all, on paved paths; the Benson Bridge path is short but steady uphill. Breakfast is from about 7 am for the 8 am start; if you would rather sleep later, ask for a boxed breakfast to take in the van.

   

9. Day 9: Rose garden morning and home from Portland

   Portland to Washington Park, then Portland International Airport (PDX)

   • Drive about 45 min
   • Breakfast
   Day 9 details

   A last walk before you fly. At about 9 am we drive up into Washington Park, in the hills just west of downtown, to the International Rose Test Garden, where thousands of rose bushes flower from late May into the autumn and the terraces look out over the city to Mount Hood on a clear morning. Entry is free and the garden is quiet at this hour. Back at the hotel by about 10:30, you have time to pack and check out, and then it is about 25 minutes to Portland International Airport (PDX), where we drop the group at about noon. Your guide sees you to departures and checks your flight before saying goodbye. Book a flight leaving after about 2:30 pm. If you are staying on in Portland, we can leave you at the hotel instead, and the light rail runs from downtown to the airport when you are ready to go.

   Included

   • International Rose Test Garden in Washington Park
   • Drop-off at Portland International Airport (PDX)

   Easier option: If your flight leaves before about 2:30 pm, we take you to PDX straight from the hotel in the morning.

   Activity: Book a flight leaving after about 2:30 pm.

Wildlife and weather: July to September is the driest stretch, with Seattle and Portland often in the mid-20s C, while the coast stays near 15 to 18 C and is often foggy in the morning. Hurricane Ridge can hold snow into June, and the Hoh gets rain in every month. Look for Olympic marmots and black-tailed deer at Hurricane Ridge, Roosevelt elk in the rainforest valleys, tufted puffins on Haystack Rock from about April to August, and harbour seals and bald eagles along the coast.

• Seattle2 nights
• Port Angeles1 night
• Lake Quinault1 night
• Cannon Beach2 nights
• Portland2 nights