20 Best Sights in Spokane and Eastern Washington, Washington

This trail—which starts near Nine Mile Falls, northwest of Spokane, then runs through downtown, along Riverfront Park, and then stretches east to the Idaho border—is perfect for a hike, bike, or run. Roughly 40 miles long, the path follows the Spokane River.

A pleasant place to stroll in summer, this 90-acre park has a formal Renaissance-style garden, Japanese garden, duck pond, rose and perennial gardens, and a conservatory. In December the park hosts a festive and free holiday lights event over 10 nights, with a drive-thru option the first four nights. The half-mile trail is lit up with more than five million lights in animated and whimsical displays. The park's café is open daily from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Snowy winters find the park's hills full of sledders and its frozen pond packed with skaters.

The 100-acre park is what remains of Spokane's Expo '74. Sprawling across several islands in the Spokane River, the park was developed from old railroad yards, where the stone clock tower of the former Great Northern Railroad Station still stands. The modernist Washington State pavilion, built as an opera house, is now the INB Performing Arts Center. A 1909 carousel, hand-carved by master builder Charles I.D. Looff, is a local landmark. Another family favorite is the giant red slide shaped like a Radio Flyer wagon. Thanks to a multiyear redevelopment effort, the iconic U.S. Pavilion reopened in 2019 as the Pavilion at Riverfront, an event space that hosts concerts, festivals, and an eye-catching light display on weekends. For a great view of the river and falls, walk across Post Street Bridge or take the sky ride over Spokane Falls.

Here's the place to learn about the Hanford Reach National Monument, an area that encompasses the Hanford Reach of the Columbia River and greater Columbia Basin and surrounds the former site of the Hanford Nuclear Reservation. The interpretive center highlights the region's history, culture, science and technology, natural resources and agriculture, and arts. The exhibit area has permanent exhibits on the Columbia Basin Project's irrigated agriculture, the history of the atomic age and Hanford's contribution to ending World War II, the vineyards of Red Mountain, and the Columbia River's role in producing electrical power. Special events include tours, classes, and culinary events highlighting the area's wineries and agriculture. The 18-acre setting on the Columbia River includes outdoor exhibits, a nature trail, and a stage where concerts are held in the summer.

Among the large cats living at this wildlife refuge and rescue sanctuary are lions, tigers, bobcats, pumas, and lynxes. You'll also see bears, coyotes, and foxes. Guided tours give background information on the animals and an opportunity to feed them. While it's not a zoo in the traditional sense, the mission of the nonprofit that runs it is a worthy one.

Adjacent to the Columbia River, this is one of Washington's great parks. Its 4½-mile-long riverfront has boat ramps, a golf course, picnic areas, playgrounds (including an aquatic one), train ride, skate park, and family fishing pond. In summer, hydroplane races are held here.

On 15 acres at Fort Walla Walla Park, a 17-building pioneer village depicts the region's life in the 1800s, and five halls house military, agricultural, textile, and transportation exhibits.

Colorful displays about the dam, a 13-minute film on the site's geology and the dam's construction, and information about the 30-minute laser-light show (held nightly from Memorial Day weekend through September) are here. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which oversees operation and maintenance of the dam, conducts tours daily from late May through early September, weather and maintenance schedules permitting. You can also pick up a self-guided historical walking tour that will take you from the visitor center through the old part of town, across the bridge, and into the old engineers' town. Geocachers are encouraged to bring some swag and take the geocache challenge on the visitor center's grounds.

More than 30 pioneer-era buildings have been brought here from other parts of Grant County. They include a blacksmith forge, saloon, barbershop, and printing office.

At 103 feet, the single-lift locks here are among the world's highest. Inside the visitor center, there's a fish ladder viewing room where you can see salmon and steelhead on their annual migration. Exhibits and films provide information about the Salmon River and the area's history. As this is a federal facility, government identification is required for entry.

Washington State University's outstanding Museum of Art has more than 4,000 pieces in its permanent collection, including works by regional, national, and international artists. Its six galleries showcase art from the university's collections and host visiting exhibits. The architecturally stunning building nicknamed the "Crimson Cube" opened in 2018.

Visitors here can see a farmstead, lookout tower, trappers' cabins, blacksmith shop, sawmill, and museum.

More than 200 species of birds have been identified here, and many waterfowl make it their winter home. But the 15,000 acres of water and marsh, croplands, grasslands, trees, and shrubs are most enjoyable in spring and summer. The Environmental Education Center features hands-on exhibits. A self-guided 2-mile trail winds through the marshes, and a cabinlike blind hidden in the reeds allows you to watch wildlife up close. Other recreation includes boating, fishing, hiking, and horseback riding.

In 2020, the Mobius Science Center and Mobius Children's Museum combined to create a new entity, the Mobius Discovery Center, featuring the best of both for kids—hands-on learning and fun through creativity, play, and science inquiry. Exhibits include STEAM Labs, space exploration, an eye clinic, a market, a water play area, enchanted forest for the littlest tikes, and the perennial kids favorite, bubbles. The center is in the historic Washington Water Power building. 

Spokane's museum for children is in the lower level of River Park Square and has six interactive galleries for hands-on learning. Exhibits include a miniature city with safety education features, an art studio, a science exhibit called Geotopica, a forest-themed play area for infants and toddlers, and a stage with theater equipment and costumes. A partner facility, Mobius Science Center, is across the street.

Affectionately known as the MAC, the museum is in an impressive six-level glass-and-wood structure filled with audiovisual displays and artifacts that trace Spokane's history. There's also a fine Native American collection that includes baskets and beadwork of the Plateau nation. Wander to the adjacent Victorian home, the Campbell House, to admire the interior or view mining-era exhibits.

Okanogan pioneer life is portrayed in the displays here, and there's a replica of an Old West town. Outside are Okanogan's oldest building, a 19th-century log cabin, and antique farm equipment.

Planted with native and exotic flowers and trees, this turn-of-the-20th-century park (Walla Walla's first) has a fine aviary. There are pickleball courts, outdoor ping pong tables, a playground, and a pretty rose garden. It was originally landscaped by sons of Frederick Law Olmsted, who designed New York City's Central Park.

This is a great place to cool off from the hot central Washington sunshine, with an Olympic-size pool, two 200-foot waterslides, a tube slide, a "baby octopus" slide, and diving boards.

This is a reconstruction of Waiilatpu Mission, a Presbyterian outpost established on Cayuse lands in 1836. The park preserves the foundations of the mission buildings, a short segment of the Oregon Trail, and, on a nearby hill, the graveyard where the Native American victims of an 1847 measles epidemic and subsequent uprising are buried.