We are planning our trip to the Seattle area starting June 11 and ending June 25. We are planning on taking a tour to Mt. Rainier during the first week. My question is, is that a good idea? Another post mentioned that it would be snowed in in late May/early June, so now I wonder if we should change our plans.

There probably will still be snow up at Paradise in mid-June. So hiking would be tough, but if you're taking a tour you probably wouldn't have time to hike anyway. If you're just going to see the mountain up close then having snow on the ground won't really impact that.

But keep in mind that the mountain isn't always visible so if the weather isn't good, you might not get to see much.

P.S. Depending on where you stay in Oregon your last night before heading to Seatac for the night, you could visit Mt Rainier on your own that day. It's likely there will still be snow through the first week in July or so, however.

In any event, it is best to visit Mt. Rainier on a clear day. It is disappointing to drive there when it is shrouded in clouds.

I was there a couple of years ago on Memorial Day weekend (end of May). It was nice, waterfalls were full, and this was the weekend when they started to open other roads in addition to the winter ones.

Have a back-up plan to go elsewhere in case of bad weather, but try your best to go there.

Thanks to all of you for your replies. I believe I will not book a tour in advance and will then play it by ear. We were planning on not having a car for the first week and doing day trips and then renting a car for the second week when we leave Seattle, but it's looking more and more like we should rent one for the whole time, or at least most of it.

You don't need a car for the whole time you're in Seattle--maybe pick it up a day or two before you leave the city to do things outside of downtown but you definitely don't need it the whole time.

Oh, you mean a bus tour? This is what I did It took us up to the glacier to walk on it! Make sure you don't forget the camera. Such fun time!

By the way, the bus I was on did not pick up passengers at each hotel, they have pick-up places. Going back, the driver made stops on request expecting tips.

Yes, a bus tour was what we had in mind, but now I think maybe I will at least wait until we get there to book it. There are just some things that need good weather. I would rather do something else than spend money on it if the weather isn't right.

Once, long ago, there was a co-worker temporarily assigned to our Seattle location. She really wanted to go to Mt. Rainier, so one weekend we planned it and she came home with me. It was our absolutely only opportunity while she was there.

Alas, it was cloudy and foggy, but we set out undeterred. Maybe it would clear! It did not clear. But we got out at Paradise and walked some of the fog-shrouded trails, so she could say she had been to the mountain.

It was then we had our magical moment. We rounded a bend to come upon three deer in the path, in the fog. It was so quiet, just us and them.

A clear day on the mountain definitely is the best, but you just never know what might happen no matter what!

That does sound like a magic moment. I'm very glad you were on foot instead of in the car when you rounded the bend and saw the deer in the fog.