Washington has many fun family vacation spots, where you can spend several days creating memories to last a lifetime. You can explore the outdoors, play in lakes and rivers, visits a zoo or aquarium, attend a regional food festival, or view a live volcano. Here are some of Washington's top family vacation destinations.
1. Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument
View of Mount St Helens Through Window at Johnston Ridge Observatory ©USDA Forest Service (Quiring)
A visit to Mount St. Helens is a great way to experience history. By visiting the four different visitor centers and taking interpretive hikes, you'll learn about the 1981 eruption. Foresty, plants, animals, and geology are all covered in visitor center exhibits and films. You can just spend a day visiting the attractions along State 504, or you can stay a few days experiencing sites such as Windy Ridge overlooking Spirit Lake or the Ape Caves. Mount St. Helens National Monument is located inside of Gifford Pinchot National Forest, where you can enjoy such year-round recreation as hiking, berry picking, scenic backroad drives, fishing, waterfalls, and camping.
2. San Juan Island
Marina at Friday Harbor ©J. Poth/Washington State Tourism
Accessible by water or air, San Juan Island provides its visitors a tempting mix of majestic scenery, rural charm, resort amenities, and thrilling outdoor adventure. In addition to wildlife viewing, outdoor recreation, and Friday Harbor shopping and dining, San Juan Island visitors can choose from a number of interesting attractions. Both kids and adults will have a fun time learning at the Whale Museum or at San Juan Island National Historical Park. Whale watching, sea kayaking, hiking, and biking are among the family-friendly outdoor activities you can enjoy together.
3. Spokane
Riverfront Park in Spokane ©Angela M. Brown
Spokane offers year-round outdoor recreation, unique shopping opportunities, amazing parks, and interesting museums. Riverfront Park is packed with family-friendly activities and attractions, including the Spokane Falls Skyride, a tour train, the Looff Carousel, and a humungous red wagon sculpture that the little ones can climb on. Families visiting Spokane also have easy access to Coeur d'Alene and Silverwood Theme Park, which are both just across the border in Idaho.
4. Long Beach
There's a reason why Long Beach's web site is "funbeach.com". Kite festivals, clam digging, beach combing, ocean fishing, and horseback riding are among the beach activities families will enjoy. Long Beach attractions include two lighthouses, the World Kite Museum and Hall of Fame, and the impressive Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center. Long Beach's family-friendly lodging options range from modern hotels to charming cabins.5. Bellingham/Whatcom County
Whatcom Falls Park © Angela M. Brown (2007)
Bellingham is one of those places you can spend a weekend or a month, there's so much to do. Bellingham and Whatcom County are particularly rich in opportunities to enjoy the scenic outdoors, whether on a river, a lake, a forest, or on a mountain. You'll be able to see wildlife of all kinds, in numerous habitats. The region's many parks provide plenty of opportunity for play. Bellingham also has a great arts scene and some of the tastiest food around.
