An option for a trip to Seattle in late July would be the Olympic National Park. Several lodges seem to be good choices - Lake Cresent Lodge, Lake Quinault Lodge, and Kalaloch Lodge.

Any reaction/comments to these places would be appreciated. On a more practical level - is it too late to get mid-week reservations in July for any of these places?

Thanks,

Hans

I have stayed at all of these. They are all acceptable. I prefer Kalaloch because it is directly on the ocean, and has private cabins with direct access by auto which we enjoy. Lake Quinalt is an old building with small rooms, often noisy, but I think they are building some newer additions. Lake Cresent is in a most beautiful setting, again, pretty old. Any of them are exquisite, in my opinion, not for the lodging, but the setting. Be sure to book early, ans summer is a busy season with many tourists discovering our part of the world. PS...Lake quinalut is good for kids, with boats to rent, access to sandy beaches and quiet water for kids to paddle upon.

Hi, Hans,
I agree with Julie that a Kalaloch cabin would be the first choice, but would be surprised if they're available - they are often booked literally a year ahead. Second choice would be Lake Quinault, really because it's close to the two things which (IMO) set Olympic NP apart from other destinations, those being the coastal strip (on which Kalaloch sits), and the temperate rain forest (like at the Hoh Valley, not far from Lake Q.) Crescent Lake is lovely but not in the part of the national park which offers these attractions. You can visit Crescent Lake (and Hurricane Ridge - near Port Angeles and quite spectacular) for mountain scenery, on your way to or from the coast and Kalaloch or Lake Quinault.

Lake Quinault has both the Lake Quinault Lodge AND the Lake Quinault Resort. Does anyone know anything about the Resort?

The LQ Resort is an older motel-type place that was bought by new owners recently and apparently spruced up pretty nicely. I've talked to the new owners and it sounds like a neat place but I haven't been out there to check it out since they bought it. It's on the North Shore (so the opposite side of the lake from the LQ Lodge).

Good luck finding *anything* available in July!

Just make sure you have reservations somewhere. Being from the East Coast I was surprised to see so many miles of ocean frontage with no buildings. I thought I would see thousands of B&Bs, hotels or motels. Wrong. We drove for many hours before finding a location to stay.
Enjoy the beautiful Olympic National Park