Seattle as a Base: 4 Days of Oddball Trips
Four days folds in the most transit-heavy trip in this set: Olympic National Park, a ferry crossing plus a 2 to 3 hour drive to Hurricane Ridge. Drop back to the 3 day version if that sounds like one long day too many, or keep going with the 5 day version once Boeing’s Everett factory tour enters the plan.
| Day | Focus | Distance / travel time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Land, settle in downtown or Belltown | In Seattle |
| 2 | Mount Rainier National Park | 107 miles, 2 to 2.5 hrs each way |
| 3 | Bainbridge Island, then Snoqualmie Falls | 35-min ferry, plus 30 miles/40 min |
| 4 | Olympic National Park, Hurricane Ridge | Ferry plus 2 to 3 hrs driving |
Book these before you go
- Compare downtown and Belltown hotel rates , close to I-5 for an early start
- Reserve a guided Mount Rainier day trip if you would rather skip the parking gamble
- Book a guided Olympic day tour , which bundles the ferry, drive, and entrance fee
Day 1: Land, settle in, sleep early
SEA sits about 14 miles south of downtown; the Link light rail 1 Line covers the distance in 38 to 40 minutes for a flat $3 fare, tap-to-pay with a contactless card, no ORCA card required. Check into a downtown or Belltown hotel, since both sit close to I-5 for tomorrow’s early start.
Day 2: Mount Rainier National Park
Leave by 7am and take I-5 to WA-512 to WA-7 to WA-706, about 107 miles and 2 to 2.5 hours to the Nisqually entrance and Paradise. Rainier dropped its timed entry reservation for 2026, so the gate is first come, first served; the real constraint is the Paradise and Sunrise parking lots, which fill by mid morning in July and August. Entry runs $30 per vehicle for 7 days, cashless only, and the $100 international surcharge some other parks now charge does not apply here. Check current park conditions before you leave.
Day 3: Bainbridge Island, then Snoqualmie Falls
Catch an early ferry from the downtown waterfront to Bainbridge Island, 35 minutes each way, $11.35 westbound and free on the return leg. Winslow sits right at the dock, so a coffee and a wander cover the island in 2 to 3 hours. In the afternoon, drive 30 miles and 40 minutes east on I-90 to Snoqualmie Falls, a free 268-foot waterfall, and detour past Twede’s Cafe in North Bend, the actual diner used as the RR Diner in Twin Peaks.
Day 4: Olympic National Park and Hurricane Ridge
Take the ferry to Bainbridge (35 minutes) or Edmonds to Kingston (30 minutes), then drive to Port Angeles and on to Hurricane Ridge, 2 to 3 hours of driving on top of the crossing, or 3 to 4 hours all in if Hurricane Ridge itself is the destination. Entry costs $30 per vehicle for 7 days, the same as Rainier, with no international surcharge here either. Winter road access to Hurricane Ridge runs Friday through Sunday only, roughly November through April, so this day works best exactly as scheduled here, in summer. Booking the guided tour above bundles the ferry, the drive, and the entrance fee, worth it on the single most transit-heavy day in this itinerary. Confirm Hurricane Ridge road status the morning you leave.
Do you need a rental car for this itinerary?
Yes, for 3 of the 4 day trips. Only Bainbridge Island skips the need for one entirely; Rainier, Snoqualmie, and Olympic all assume a car or a booked tour that supplies one.
What if the weather does not cooperate?
Unlikely in July through September, Seattle’s driest and sunniest stretch, but Hurricane Ridge and Rainier’s upper trails can still hold snow patches into early summer. Pack one layer warmer than the Seattle forecast suggests for both mountain days.
Stack the ferry-based days back to back if your dates allow it: Bainbridge on day 3 and the Olympic crossing on day 4 both start from the same downtown terminal, so you learn the routine once and use it twice.