Want to see as much of Washington State in three days as possible? With this 3-day Washington road trip itinerary, you’ll have the chance to visit all three Washington national parks: Olympic National Park, Mount Rainier National Park and North Cascades National Park.
While three days is not nearly enough time to see everything in each of these Washington national parks, I can assure you that your trip will still be worthwhile. At the very least, you’ll get a fantastic taste of the beauty of the PNW and crave a trip back.
Here’s how to visit all three Washington National Parks in three days.
Day 1: Olympic National Park
On day one, you’ll start your Washington road trip exploring Olympic National Park. You’ll likely fly into Seattle, which means you will have at least a two hour drive from Seattle to the Olympic peninsula and national park.
Olympic National Park is one of the most diverse national parks in the United States. As such, there is a ton to do and see — from hiking mountains to exploring rainforests to relaxing on beaches. Obviously, because you are short on time, you will have to be picky about which Olympic National Park activities you choose.
Hoh Rainforest + Hall Of Mosses
I personally chose to visit the Hoh National Rainforest. This otherworldly rainforest is filled with massive trees, towering over 300 feet tall, completely covered in hanging green moss. To see the magical moss in all its glory, I highly recommend walking the Hall Of Mosses trail. It’s a short, relatively flat hike through the park’s mossiest forest.
Hall Of Mosses
Difficulty: Easy
Length: 1.1 miles
Trail type: Loop
Elevation gain: 82 feet
Estimated time: 30 minutes
Other popular things to do in Olympic National Park include the Rialto Beach and the Hole-In-The-Wall sea stack; Hurricane Ridge, which offers an epic mountain range view; and Sol Duc Valley, where you can see beautiful waterfalls year-round.
I recommend you stay in Olympia tonight for the easiest access to both Olympic and Mount Rainier National Park. Olympia is very civilized, unlike most of the towns outside the national parks, so this is also the perfect place to grab road trip groceries and fill up on gas before entering the secluded parks.
Day 2: Mount Rainier National Park
On day two, start your day bright and early and head into Mount Rainier National Park from Olympia. Again, you will have at least a two hour drive to your first destination in Mount Rainier National Park.
Like Olympic, Mount Rainier National Park has a lot of bucket-list-worthy tails and viewpoints. If you’re up for the perfect sunrise, head to Reflections Lake for spectacular vista of Mount Rainier reflecting on a glassy lake. Alternatively, another very popular sight to see in Mount Rainier is Myrtle Falls, a stunning 72-foot waterfall with Mount Rainier as its backdrop. Myrtle Falls is a short quarter mile walk from the parking lot, making it fairly accessible for all hiking levels.
Mount Fremont Fire Lookout
Additionally, if you’re up for a fantastic day hike, I highly recommend hiking to Mount Fremont Fire Lookout. This 6-mile out-and-back hike takes just about three hours to complete. You’ll be rewarded with an iconic view of Mount Rainier from a wooden fire lookout, which is particularly spectacular at sunrise or sunset. Check the weather before you begin your hike, though. Unfortunately, we were fogged out with no mountain view at the end of our cloudy hike. Regardless, this gradual trail remains one of our favorite USA hikes to date.
Mount Fremont Fire Lookout
Difficulty: Moderate
Length: 6.22 miles
Trail type: Out-and-back
Elevation gain: 1250 feet
Estimated time: 3 hours and 15 minutes
Tonight, you can either stay in Olympia, Seattle or elsewhere between Mount Rainier and North Cascades National Parks.
Day 3: North Cascades National Park
On day three, you’ll adventure through one of the most underrated national parks in the country: North Cascades National Park. Although North Cascades is one of the least visit US national parks, it is certainly worth the visit, even just for a day. You could potentially have a 4+ hour drive into the park, depending on where you’re coming from, so it’s advised to start your day early again.
Diablo Lake
Much of the North Cascades is only accessible by backpacking and overnight hikes. But, there is still plenty to see in one span of daylight. First, Diablo Lake should be at the top of your Washington road trip bucket list when in North Cascades. Diablo Lake is an impressive glacial lake, filled with bright blue Gatorade-colored freshwater. The best places in the park to see Diablo Lake are the Diablo Lake overlook and Colonial Creek campground. If you have an SUP or kayak with you, definitely bring it onto Diablo Lake by the Colonial Creek campground parking lot for an epic float.
Thunder Knob Trail
If you wish to hike along Diablo Lake, there is a great trail open next to Colonial Creek campground named the Thunder Knob Trail. On this trail, you’ll take a foot bridge over a glacial creek, walk among massive trees, catch an overhead view of Diablo Lake and see a great mountain view. If you don’t want to do the whole 3.4 mile hike, you can simply hike to the mountain view and back. See the All Trails app here for directions.
Thunder Knob Trail
Difficulty: Moderate
Length: 3.4 miles
Trail type: Out-and-back
Elevation gain: 675 feet
Estimated time: 1 hour and 45 minutes
Maple Pass Loop Trail
Alternatively, if you’d prefer to see more of the North Cascades mountain range, the best mountain day hike in North Cascades National Park is the Maple Pass Loop Trail. This trail is a difficult, 6.5-mile loop trail through the mountains. You’ll gain over 2100 feet of elevation and will be rewarded with jaw-dropping mountain vistas, wildflower viewing and more.
Tonight, make your way back toward Seattle if you can to catch your flight out of Washington the next day.
Important Washington Road Trip Tips
Clearly, this 3-day Washington road trip itinerary is jam-packed with plenty of awesome adventures. In just three days, you’ll get to see all three of Washington’s famous national parks.
But, I want to make sure you are aware that you will be driving a lot in these three days. Even though your GPS may tell you shorter drive times, always overestimate how long your drive will be. This is the case for two primary reasons. First of all, you will be driving through the Seattle metropolitan area multiple times over the course of this itinerary. City traffic and cause longer drive times between parks.
Second of all, the drive time between each national park does not equal the drive time from road trip stop to road trip stop. For example, according to your GPS, the drive time from Olympia to Olympic National Park may be one hour and nine minutes. However, the drive time from Olympia to, more specifically, the Hall Of Mosses trailhead is three hours and eight minutes. Very different drive times!
The national parks are massive, with windy roads that are built around nature. Driving from one end of the park to the other end will likely take hours (plural). While this Washington road trip itinerary is definitely still worthwhile, it is important to know going into the trip ahead of time that you will be driving a lot!
That being said, which part of this Washington road trip are you most excited for? Let me know by leaving a reply below or sending me a message on Instagram. My DMs are always open!
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