Olympic Peninsula Family
Road Trip: 7-Day Loop
Rain forest walks, tide pools, and mountain meadows in a loop the whole family can do, with no serious elevation, just pure wonder.
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Don't just plan it. Hike it with a local.
Join Yulia's small-group guided hike in the Pacific Northwest. A local who knows every trail brings the gear, takes the photos, and shows you the spots most people walk right past.
Build your own Olympic loop, drag, reorder & map it.
Drag stops between days, swap beaches and rain forest walks, and add your own waterfalls and overlooks with the place search. The live map and drive times recalculate as you go, so you can tune the whole peninsula loop around your family's pace.
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One peninsula, rain forest, coast & alpine meadows, all in Washington.
Olympic National Park packs three completely different ecosystems into one loop: ancient temperate rain forest, wild Pacific coastline, and alpine meadows with views of the Olympic peaks. The whole peninsula is doable as a 7-day loop with kids, with no long hikes required, no serious elevation gain, just one stunning landscape after another.
You start near Seattle or Port Angeles, climb to deer-grazed meadows at Hurricane Ridge, paddle the impossibly blue Lake Crescent, soak at Sol Duc Hot Springs, then wander the moss-draped Hoh Rain Forest, hunt tide pools at Rialto and Ruby Beach, and finish in the giant trees of Lake Quinault before the drive back to Seattle.
June through September is the easiest window, though the rain forest is great year-round. Lodges inside the park book months ahead, and cell service is patchy across the peninsula, so download offline maps before you leave Port Angeles.
The historic lodges inside Olympic (Lake Crescent Lodge, Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort, Kalaloch Lodge, and Lake Quinault Lodge) book months ahead for summer, so reserve early. Cell service is patchy throughout the peninsula, so download offline maps before you leave Port Angeles, and check tide charts the night before any beach day.
Seattle to Port Angeles via Hurricane Ridge
Cross Puget Sound on the Edmonds–Kingston ferry or drive around. Arrive in Port Angeles by mid-morning to maximize time at Hurricane Ridge.
At 5,242 ft, deer graze in meadows right alongside the parking lot at the Hurricane Ridge Visitor Center, and kids go wild for it. The 1-mile Cirque Rim Trail is paved and stroller-friendly with mountain views in every direction, while the easy 1-mile Big Meadow Trail loops through subalpine wildflowers where Olympic marmots whistle from boulders. Bring binoculars.
- 5,242 ft · deer in the meadows · paved, stroller-friendly Cirque Rim Trail
- Easy 1-mi loop · subalpine wildflowers · Olympic marmots
- Close to the park entrance · good restaurant options
- Cross Puget Sound on the Edmonds–Kingston ferry or drive around, and aim to reach Port Angeles by mid-morning to maximize time at Hurricane Ridge.
- The Cirque Rim Trail is paved and stroller-friendly, so it works for all ages and every kind of footwear.
- Port Angeles is close to the park entrance and has good restaurant options, making it an easy first base.
Lake Crescent & Marymere Falls
Lake Crescent is one of the most beautiful lakes in the Pacific Northwest: impossibly blue, surrounded by old-growth forest, and calm enough for kayaking most mornings.
Walk the Marymere Falls Trail (2 miles round trip, 200 ft gain) through old-growth forest to a 90-foot waterfall, perfect for all ages, then stretch your legs on the short Storm King Ranger Station loop along the lakeshore. Kayak or paddleboat rentals at Lake Crescent Lodge are essential with kids.
- 2 mi RT · 200 ft gain · old-growth forest to a 90-foot waterfall
- Short lakeshore walk · benches & lake views
- Available at Lake Crescent Lodge · essential with kids
- Book months ahead · or stay in Port Angeles
- Lake Crescent is calm enough for kayaking most mornings, so get on the water early before any afternoon breeze picks up.
- The Marymere Falls Trail is just 2 miles round trip with 200 ft of gain, an easy old-growth walk to a 90-foot waterfall that works for all ages.
- Lake Crescent Lodge books months ahead. If it is full, base back in Port Angeles for the night.
Sol Duc Hot Springs
Sol Duc Valley is one of the most lush places in North America. Giant sword ferns, 300-year-old Sitka spruce, and a famous waterfall, plus natural hot spring pools the kids will love.
The Sol Duc Falls trail is 1.6 miles round trip, a flat walk through old-growth to a spectacular 4-tiered waterfall and one of the best easy hikes in Olympic. Afterward, warm up in the three hot spring pools at Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort (open to day visitors). Bring swimsuits. The drive from Lake Crescent is just 45 minutes.
- 1.6 mi RT · flat · old-growth to a 4-tiered waterfall · best easy hike in Olympic
- Three hot spring pools · open to day visitors · bring swimsuits
- 45 minutes
- Cabins available at the resort · or push west toward Forks
- Sol Duc Falls is just 1.6 miles round trip on a flat trail through old-growth, one of the best easy hikes in the whole park.
- The three hot spring pools at Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort are open to day visitors, so pack swimsuits and warm up after the trail.
- It is only a 45-minute drive from Lake Crescent, and the resort has cabins if you want to stay; otherwise continue west toward Forks.
Hoh Rain Forest
The Hoh Rain Forest receives 12–14 feet of rain per year, and it looks like it. Maple trees draped in club moss, 200-foot Sitka spruce, and a silence so complete you hear your own footsteps. This is the park's most iconic environment.
The Hall of Mosses is a 0.8-mile loop, completely flat, through the most photogenic old-growth grove in North America. Budget 45 minutes and bring a camera. Then walk as far as you like into the valley on the flat gravel Hoh River Trail, turning around at 1 to 2 miles for families. The visitor center runs a great junior ranger program where kids can earn their first Olympic badge.
- 0.8-mi loop · completely flat · most photogenic old-growth grove in North America
- Flat gravel path along the braided river · turn around at 1–2 mi for families
- Great junior ranger program · kids earn their first Olympic badge
- 10 miles from Hoh · small town with all the basics
- The Hall of Mosses is a flat 0.8-mile loop through the most photogenic old-growth grove in North America, so budget about 45 minutes and bring a camera.
- The Hoh River Trail is flat gravel along the braided river. Walk as far as you like and turn around at 1 to 2 miles with kids.
- Stop at the visitor center for the junior ranger program, where kids can earn their first Olympic badge.
Rialto Beach & Tide Pools
Olympic's Pacific coast is unlike any other beach in the US: sea stacks, driftwood forests, starfish in the tide pools, and almost no development. Rialto Beach and Ruby Beach are the most accessible.
At Rialto Beach, walk 1.5 miles north to Hole-in-the-Wall, a rock arch you can walk through at low tide. Check tide charts the night before, and watch for seals and bald eagles. Then drive 45 minutes south to Ruby Beach, the most photogenic beach on the coast, with sea stacks, abbey island, and brilliant sunsets. Tide pools are best at minus tides: look for sea stars, anemones, and hermit crabs.
- 1.5 mi north to Hole-in-the-Wall · walk through at low tide · seals & bald eagles
- Short walk · sea stacks, abbey island & brilliant sunsets · 45 min south of Rialto
- Best at minus tides · sea stars, anemones, hermit crabs
- Oceanside, inside the park · or continue to Aberdeen
- Hole-in-the-Wall at Rialto Beach is only passable at low tide, so check the tide charts the night before and time your walk accordingly.
- Ruby Beach, 45 minutes south of Rialto, is the most photogenic beach on the coast, with sea stacks, abbey island, and brilliant sunsets.
- Tide pools are best at minus tides. Look for sea stars, anemones, and hermit crabs, and tread carefully around the living rock.
Lake Quinault Rain Forest Loop
The southern Quinault area has the world's largest Sitka spruce and an easy 4-mile loop through a different, slightly drier style of rain forest. Less visited than Hoh.
The Quinault Rain Forest Loop is 4 miles round trip, nearly flat, through old-growth with some of the largest trees in the park, great for younger kids on a wide path with no scrambling. Take the short detour to the world's largest Sitka spruce (a 58-foot circumference tree), then rent a paddleboat on calm, beautiful Lake Quinault.
- 4 mi RT · nearly flat · some of the largest trees in the park · wide path, no scrambling
- Short detour · 58-foot circumference tree
- Paddleboat rentals at the lodge · calm, beautiful lake
- Historic 1926 lodge, great dining · or the Aberdeen area
- The Quinault Rain Forest Loop is a nearly flat 4-mile loop with a wide path and no scrambling, ideal for younger kids.
- Take the short detour to the world's largest Sitka spruce, a 58-foot circumference tree the kids will be appropriately amazed by.
- Lake Quinault Lodge is a historic 1926 lodge with great dining and paddleboat rentals; the Aberdeen area is the backup.
Return to Seattle via Hood Canal
The drive back via US-101 and Hood Canal takes about 3.5 hours with no stops, but there's worth stopping for.
In Hoodsport, WA, oyster shacks and Hood Canal Shellfish serve oysters straight from the water, and kids who have never had one will remember it. Stop at Twanoh State Park for a swimming beach on Hood Canal, warm in July and August, for one last splash. If you want to finish with a Puget Sound crossing, take the walk-on Bremerton-Seattle ferry; cars require a reservation in summer.
- Oyster shacks & Hood Canal Shellfish · oysters straight from the water
- Swimming beach on Hood Canal · warm water in July/August
- Walk-on ferry for a Puget Sound finish · cars need a summer reservation
- The drive back via US-101 and Hood Canal is about 3.5 hours with no stops, so leave time for a couple of worthwhile detours.
- Hoodsport oyster shacks and Hood Canal Shellfish serve oysters straight from the water, a memorable first for kids.
- If you want to finish with a Puget Sound crossing on the Bremerton–Seattle ferry, note that cars require a reservation in summer.
Now build your Olympic loop.
You've seen all seven days. Open the free drag-and-drop planner and tune it for your dates, your pace, and whether you base in Port Angeles, Forks, or one of the historic lodges.
Packing tips for Olympic with kids.
Rain gear is non-negotiable
Even in July, the peninsula can be wet. Pack waterproof layers for everyone so a passing shower never cuts a rain forest walk or beach day short.
Waterproof shoes or rubber boots
Bring waterproof hiking shoes or rubber boots for the rain forest and tide pools. Wet trails, dripping moss, and slick coastal rock are all part of the experience.
Pack bug spray for camp evenings
Bug spray is rarely needed during the day, but bring it for evening camp time when mosquitoes can come out near the water and forest.
Grab Junior Ranger booklets
Junior Ranger booklets are available free at every visitor center. They turn each stop into a small mission and are a great way to keep kids engaged across the loop.
Download offline maps first
Cell service is patchy throughout the peninsula. Download offline maps before leaving Port Angeles so you can navigate the loop without signal.
Check tide charts before beach days
Hole-in-the-Wall and the best tide pools depend on low and minus tides. Check the tide charts the night before any beach day so you arrive at the right time.
Everything you'll actually want to know.
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Olympic Peninsula loop.
Rain forest walks, tide pools, mountain meadows, drive times around the loop, the historic lodges, and the tide-chart timing you need to do Olympic with kids.
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