We have been to most of America’s 63 national parks, and Washington’s three rank with the best of them. Two of them landed in our top three when we ranked every national park in the country. That is not marketing talk. That is what happens when you put glaciated volcanoes, temperate rainforests, and wild coastline inside one state.
A quick note on the count, because it trips people up. Washington has exactly three full national parks: Olympic, Mount Rainier, and North Cascades. The state holds more than a dozen other National Park Service sites too, but those are historic parks, recreation areas, and trails, a different designation. We list them all near the bottom. This guide ranks the three parks honestly and gives you the planning details for each.
How We Scored Each Park
I have spent the last several years living in Portland, Oregon and have made it my mission to spend as much time as possible in the surrounding public lands. I have been to Mount Rainier more times than I can count, and Olympic is my favorite national park in the world. It is where I proposed to my wife.
We score each park across five categories so you can compare them at a glance:
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- Accessibility: How easy is the park to reach? Vehicle access, airport proximity, lodging, and services.
- Recreation: Hiking, climbing, paddling, and other things to do.
- Crowds: Traffic, packed overlooks, campsite competition, and lines. A higher score means fewer crowds.
- Amenities: Visitor centers, campgrounds, lodges, and facilities.
- Scenery: Scenic beauty. Subjective, but it has to count for something.
1. Olympic National Park
Score: 48 of 50. Accessibility 10, Recreation 10, Crowds 9, Amenities 9, Scenery 10.
Olympic is the most diverse national park in the country, hands down. One park holds lowland forest, glaciated peaks, alpine lakes, clear rivers, the largest temperate rainforest in North America, and more than 50 miles of wild coastline. And it sits a short drive from Seattle, without the crowds that have overwhelmed so many other parks. That combination is why we rank it the best national park in America.
Read: our complete guide to things to do in Olympic National Park.
Getting There
Olympic sits on the Olympic Peninsula in the far northwest of the state. The nearest major airport is Sea-Tac, south of Seattle, about a 3.5-hour drive to Hurricane Ridge. From Seattle you have two options: drive around Puget Sound through Tacoma (about 3.5 hours), or take the ferry across the Sound, which runs about the same time with far less driving and costs roughly $15 for a standard vehicle each way.
Best Time to Visit
Summer is when the whole park opens up, the trails clear, and the days run long. The trade-off is crowds, though the park is big enough that you can still find solitude. Summer also brings wildflowers and marmots out of their winter hideouts. For the best balance, aim for September, when the high country is still open and the crowds have thinned.
Watch Our Award-Winning Olympic National Park Film
Highlights
Hurricane Ridge is the easiest way to feel the scale of the Olympic Mountains, and the first stop most first-time visitors should make. Rialto Beach shows off the rugged Washington coast, with bald eagles and offshore sea stacks. The Hoh Rain Forest is a mossy, dripping cathedral that has been called the quietest place in North America, home to a resident elk herd.
Where to Stay
Lake Quinault Lodge, Lake Crescent Lodge, and Kalaloch Lodge are the classic in-park options. See more places to stay near Olympic.
2. Mount Rainier National Park
Score: 43 of 50. Accessibility 7, Recreation 8, Crowds 7, Amenities 10, Scenery 9.
John Muir called Mount Rainier “the most luxuriant and the most extravagantly beautiful of all the alpine gardens I ever beheld.” It is the most heavily glaciated peak in the contiguous United States, and like the Grand Canyon, it is the kind of landscape you can stare at for hours without quite processing its scale.
There is far more here than the mountain itself, though the wildflower meadows that ring it are reason enough to come. The park also protects old-growth forest, clear rivers, plentiful wildlife, and some of the best day hiking in the Pacific Northwest. Summer crowds can be heavy and wildfire smoke has become a bigger factor each year, so plan around both.
Getting There
Rainier looms over the Seattle skyline from the western part of the state and sits about 2.5 hours south of the city. The closest airport is Sea-Tac, roughly two hours from the Longmire entrance. Note that timed-entry vehicle reservations have been in place for the Paradise and Sunrise corridors in recent summers, so check the current system on our Rainier guide before you go.
Best Time to Visit
Late July and early August deliver the wildflower bloom at Paradise, one of the finest displays anywhere. The meadows turn into rolling carpets of color for a few short weeks. September trades some of the flowers for thinner crowds and clearer skies.
Highlights
The Skyline Trail out of Paradise is the most popular and arguably the finest hike in the park, climbing right up toward the glaciers. The Mount Fremont Lookout Trail in the Sunrise area leads to a fire lookout with the mountain close enough to feel within reach. Reflection Lakes mirror the peak on a calm morning and turn up in half the state’s tourism photos for good reason.
Where to Stay
Two lodges sit inside the park: the National Park Inn at Longmire and the historic Paradise Inn. For nearby towns, look at Enumclaw, Packwood, and Ashford.
3. North Cascades National Park
Score: 37.5 of 50. Accessibility 6, Recreation 8, Crowds 9, Amenities 5, Scenery 9.5.
Often called the American Alps, North Cascades rivals any mountain range on the planet for sheer ruggedness. It is the least visited of Washington’s three parks, the hardest to access, and the most rewarding for those willing to work for it. We expect it to climb our overall national parks ranking as more people discover it.
This is backpacker country first and foremost. We docked it on amenities because there genuinely are not many inside the park boundary. But the interior is extraordinary, the crowds are almost nonexistent, and if you want to get off the beaten path, this is your park. One useful note on the count here: North Cascades is part of a larger complex that also includes Ross Lake and Lake Chelan National Recreation Areas, which are co-managed but are not part of the national park itself.
Getting There
North Cascades sits in northern Washington on the Canadian border. The closest airports are Sea-Tac to the south and Vancouver to the north, both about a 2.5-hour drive. The North Cascades Highway (Route 20) is the scenic spine of the area and closes in winter.
Best Time to Visit
Fall is our pick, when the crowds vanish and the larches turn brilliant gold. Fall hiking here is exceptional and you will often have the trail to yourself. Summer is the other good window, with wildflowers and turquoise lakes at their best.
Highlights
The Maple Pass Trail is a steep loop that climbs out of the valley into a world of peaks, best in summer and fall. Diablo Lake is one of the most mesmerizing lakes in the Pacific Northwest, glacier-fed to a deep turquoise in summer, with a famous overlook right off Route 20.
Where to Stay
Options are limited near the park. See places to stay near North Cascades.
Washington’s Three National Parks, Ranked
- Olympic National Park (score 48)
- Mount Rainier National Park (score 43)
- North Cascades National Park (score 37.5)
Other National Park Service Sites in Washington
Beyond the three national parks, Washington holds these other National Park Service units. They are not “national parks” in designation, but several are well worth a visit:
- Ebey’s Landing National Historical Reserve
- Fort Vancouver National Historic Site
- Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Seattle Unit)
- Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area
- Lewis and Clark National Historical Park
- Manhattan Project National Historical Park (Hanford)
- Minidoka National Historic Site
- Nez Perce National Historical Park
- San Juan Island National Historical Park
- Whitman Mission National Historic Site
The Big Question: Olympic or Rainier?
This is the eternal Washington debate. Rainier has the iconic volcano and the wildflower meadows. Olympic has the rainforest, the coast, and Hurricane Ridge. We gave Olympic the slight edge in our national rankings, but it is razor thin. Tell us your pick in the comments.
Save this tip: September is the sweet spot for Washington’s parks. Wildflowers still bloom at higher elevations, summer crowds are thinning, and you get the best odds of clear skies for mountain views. Late July and August are peak fog season on the coast.
Why Listen to Us About Washington’s Parks
We have spent our adult lives exploring and filming America’s national parks and public lands, and we have worked with the National Park Service, the Department of the Interior, and the U.S. Forest Service on films about these places. Our work has run in leading publications around the world. The rankings here are ours, built on repeat visits in every season rather than a single drive-through.
Helpful Related Articles
- Olympic: Best Things to Do in Olympic National Park
- Mount Rainier: Things to Do at Mount Rainier and Mount Rainier Facts
- North Cascades: Things to Do and Best Hikes in North Cascades
- National Rankings: All 63 US National Parks Ranked
- Visitation: Most Visited National Parks and Least Visited National Parks
A Bonus: Tips for Visiting a National Park Responsibly
Permit Systems and Reservations
Check whether the park you are visiting has a permit or reservation system before you go. As parks grow more crowded, more of them control entry to protect the resource. Parks with reservation systems of some kind include Yosemite, Yellowstone, Zion, Rocky Mountain, Glacier, Arches, Acadia, and others, and timed entry has appeared at Mount Rainier in recent summers.
Want Fewer Crowds? Try a National Forest
Pair your trip with a national forest to dodge the crowds. There are 154 national forests in America, many every bit as beautiful as the parks they border and far less visited. Near Washington’s parks, the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie and Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forests surround the North Cascades, and the Olympic National Forest wraps the peninsula.
Practice Safety, Seriously
National parks are wild places, so basic safety matters. People die in these parks every year, and most of it is avoidable:
- Stick to the trails
- Check the weather before any hike
- Keep your distance from wildlife, at least 25 yards from most animals and 100 yards from predators
- Stay back from ledges and steep drop-offs
