We are first-time visitors to Seattle and will have 7-8 days to explore the area.
We have a convertable reserved and are wondering what cities to visit in the area (Canada inclusive) while still allowing time to get to know Seattle a bit. We are willing to stay overnight on side trips.

I've conducted a search and found lots of great ideas on Seattle restaurants and hotels, however, it's more difficult to target other cities with the search function. b-( Also, is there any problem taking a U.S. rental car into Canada?

Thanks for all help and any suggestions!

Al

Consider taking a ferry to Victoria, B.C. My wife and I enjoyed the drive to Port Angeles from Seattle and ferried from there. I'm sure there are other routes too; likely there's a ferry directly from Seattle. You'd definitely need to stay overnight on this jaunt.

We went pre-2001, but at that time there were no problems taking a rental car into Canada and re-entering the U.S. Check with your rental company; they'll know. I also recommend calling your insurance agent to make sure you'll have Canadian coverage.

Buchart Gardens and high tea at the Empress Hotel are big attractions in Victoria. Note: high tea at the Empress is a long tradition, and there's no question that you'll be looked on favorably if you dress for the occasion--jacket and tie for you and corresponding dress for your wife.

There's also a really fine museum of Northwest Amerindian culture, boat rides to watch orcas, shopping and sightseeing--it's a very handsome city. Camille's is moderately expensive, but a great place to splurge for dinner.

Although you specifically requested cities, Mt. Ranier is a great side trip too. Beautiful country, although not a great deal of lodging.

Again, not a city, but the Hoh rainforest is exceptional if you're a nature lover. Don't know how I forgot it earlier.

Have you considered doing a whale watching tour? There are great 1/2 day trips out of Port Townsend, a lovely Victorian town. I agree w/ a previous poster that Hoh rainforest is amazing but its not too close. Hurricane Ridge and Lake Crescent of Olympic Nat'l Park are closer to seattle.

Check out Mt. Rainier - stay in the park at the paradise inn (think Old Faithful Lodge on a bit smaller scale) Mt. St. Helens is also nearby and definitely worth a visit.

I would go to victoria / vancouver island but skip vancouver the city, just my opinion.

Drive north of town for the Boeing tour in the worlds largest building. Go early, tickets go fast.

If the mariners are in town and you can get tix, take in a game at beautiful safeco field - have the salmon, yum!

I agree that Butchart Gardens are well worth the trip and Victoria is fun but it will take two days to make the round trip from Seattle. :-B

Mount St. Helens is well worth the day trip. It is truly awe inspiring! It opens in May sometime.

The San Juan islands are gorgeous. They are reached by ferry out of Anacortes. In the summer, ferry wait lines are quite long and require some advance planning. That should be considered an overnight.

Whidby Island is great. There are some excellent Inns in and around Langley.

If you are interested in traveling east over the cascades, Leavenworth is a quaint "bavarian" town.

I agree about Victoria and Vancouver Island. I really love Vancouver, the city. And there is no trouble taking a car across the border. Beware, with the added security, the border waits can be very long on weekends.

First, when is your visit? Makes a difference re itinerary because some things become very congested in high summer, lodging tight, prices high, while in other places spring can be annoyingly wet or the scenery shrouded by clouds.

With only a week or so I would suggest skipping any car-based visit to Vancouver Island. Don't get me wrong - it's very nice, but IMO the effort and expense needed to get you and a car there is not justified. Butchart Gardens are lovely, also pricey and touristy, while the Van Dusen Gardens and Queen Elizabeth Park gardens and conservatory in Vancouver are cheaper, easier to visit, and between them offer just as much garden goodness as Butchart. If you do want to make a quick trip to Victoria, think about a scheduled float plane excursion from downtown Vancouver or (somewhat more expensive) from Seattle.

Regarding other towns in the Washington/BC area, what are your interests? Museum of Glass and Chihuly Glass Bridge in Tacoma? Antiqueing? - Snohomish, Washington, 20 mi. NE of Seattle. If you're coming in mid-late April or even early May, tulip fields near LaConner in the Skagit Valley (WA) - your eyeballs will pop.

To make good use of the ragtop, think about crossing the Cascades to wonderful "old west" country, orchards, red rocks, big rivers - always sunny and warm (maybe hot) compared to Seattle and the "wet side." Same goes for BC - you can swing east on beautiful BC Hwy. 3 to the Okanagan country, then south on US 97 back to WA Rte 20 and re-cross the mountains through the North Cascades National Park. Makes for a wonderful Seattle-Vancouver-east side-mountains-Seattle loop. Alternatively, visit Mt. Rainier National Park, but then continue over the Cascades, through the Yakima Valley (vinyard areas) then down US 97 through the Yakama Reservation to Goldendale, visit the Maryhill Museum, then return to Seattle via the Columbia River Gorge. That, for example, is a flat out wonderful trip in a convertible in summer. One or two overnights.

Olympic National Park is destination worth two or three days on its own. As mentioned above, don't overlook the Pacific coastal strip and the temperate rainforest valleys - Hoh and Quinault the most noteworthy. Accommodations on the coast are skimpy, so if that's your target, plan ahead. The weather will most likely not be conducive to having the top down, though. Not at 100 inches of rain a year.

In Canada, consider the "Sea to Sky" highway toward Whistler - one of the lovliest drives in North America. Think about Priceline for hotels in Vancouver - rather overbuilt it appears.

There's lots more...let us know your particular interests and we can go from there.

Thanks to all for your kind replies!

Gardyloo: We had originally planned to go during the third week of September, however, now we may have to go the first week of May--or not at all (changes at my Sigs office). As for interests, we are into everything and love to explore museums, towns, and anything new.

Thanks again!

Check out the San Juan Islands. They are beautiful.
You can rent kayaks .
On Orcas Island you have to see Mt. Constitution, from the top you can all the islands.
Have a good trip!

Portland, OR is a beautiful city. About a two hour drive from Seattle. See the Rose Gardens, zoo, Sauvie Island, downtown Portland is gorgeous.

If you go on the weekend, don't miss the Saturday Market ( it runs Sun. also) on the Tom McCall Waterfront Park. Lots of arts and crafts from local merchants. Walk around the Pearl District and Nob Hill. We had a great pizza there ( Nob Hill) and the Moonstruck chocolate milkshakes are out of this world! ***kim***

To get from Seattle to Portland in two hours requires an average speed of roughly 88 mph. In the immortal words of Richard Nixon, "We could do that, but it would be wrong."

Strive, the main difference between late Sept. and early May is that some of the mountain roads, especially the roads up to Paradise or Sunrise on Mt. Rainier, the Sea to Sky, and especially the North Cascades Highway, might have issues with driving conditions. SR 20 usually opens to traffic by mid-April, but late storms can keep it shut longer. At any event, in early May things will still be quite wintry in the mountains, so any thoughts about frolics in floral mountain meadows should be shelved.

Out on the coast, the rains will be in full throat; however the good news is that in the spring the Olympic Park rainforest valleys are at their eerie best, as the overwintering elk have usually eaten all the undergrowth, leaving surprisingly long vistas under the mist and hanging moss canopies.

Early May is also when "opening day" of the yachting season takes place in Seattle, and the city busts out of its winter doldrums with a blast of oceanic hoohah. The Pike Market is full of flowers, as are the tulip fields in the Skagit Valley, and the orchards in Eastern Washington and the Okanagan are drop-dead gorgeous. The waterfalls along the Columbia Gorge are scary spectacular as the snowmelt hits them.

In other words, c'mon...

Since you're interested in museums, you should visit the Maritime Museum in Astoria, OR. www.oldoregon.com It recently went through a major renovation and was mentioned in the New York Times. Truly an amazing place. Astoria is also full of culture and history. We drove from Astoria to Seattle in four hours last summer.

If you can't make it over to Astoria, Portland would be great place to add to your places to visit! Have fun!

The gorge area is also beautiful! The Columbia Gorge Hotel is a destination in itself. Our favorite lodging in the area. ***kim***

We really like Portland and the Columbia River Gorge is one of our most favorite places in the country.

We did a day trip from Seattle to Victoria and Butchart Gardens. We took a high speed boat there and back. I'd highly recommend this.

I was in the Seattle area on my way to Vancouver a few years back and was advised that I might enjoy the scenery along "Chuckanaut Drive" which is the most beautiful coastal drive heading north out of Bellingham. I highly recommend it!! Get your camera ready!
Carol

Strive.....I live in Wa...listen to Gardyloo....right on the money!!!....I didn't hear Port Townsend get any plugs?Ah...the Tulips...only 15 minutes away...and WOW!

circa