Olympic National Park
Olympic National Park is a large and diverse national park located located on the Olympic Peninsula, which is surrounded by the Pacific Ocean and Puget Sound.
Olympic National Park is known for its diverse landscape, with a variety of ecosystems, including temperate rainforests (Hoh and Sol Duc Falls are the two most popular spots), alpine meadows, and coastline. The park is home to a variety of plant and animal life, including Sitka spruce, Douglas fir, and elk. It is also home to a number of rare and endangered plant and animal species, including the Olympic marmot and the Pacific giant salamander.
The park is a popular destination for hiking, with a network of trails that lead through the park’s many forests, mountains, and waterways. It is also a popular destination for camping and backpacking, with a number of campgrounds and backcountry campsites available. The park is also home to a number of beautiful beaches, which are popular for beachcombing and tidepooling.
VISIT Olympic National Park:
Park Details
Olympic National Park was established on March 2, 1909, and has a total area of 922,650 acres (1,442 square miles, or 3,735 square kilometers).
| Address | Olympic National Park Visitor Center, Port Angeles, WA, 98362 |
|---|---|
| Phone | 360 565-3130 |
| Hours | Open all year, 24-hours a day |
| Entrance Fee | $30 per vehicle, valid for 7 days |
| Learn More | Official Website |
When to Visit: Weather vs. Peak Visitation
Olympic National Park is the 41st most visited park in the country.
We crunched 30 years of historical weather and/or park service data to find the best months to visit Olympic National Park. We looked for the optimal temperatures, the least amount of snow and rain, and stayed away from peak visitation months if we could help it. All this data then helped us paint a picture as to what the absolute best time to visit Olympic National Park is.
Our data shows the best months to visit Olympic National Park are July, August, September & February.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Park Visits | 74,962 | 75,915 | 116,649 | 92,336 | 110,700 | 216,260 | 534,345 | 795,063 | 334,522 | 182,884 | 103,802 | 81,487 |
| Precipitation | 172 | 153 | 222 | 236 | 231 | 183 | 91 | 97 | 107 | 160 | 209 | 157 |
| Avg Temp | 32 | 34 | 36 | 41 | 47 | 51 | 58 | 59 | 55 | 45 | 35 | 30 |
| Max Temp | 42 | 45 | 49 | 57 | 64 | 67 | 72 | 71 | 69 | 60 | 47 | 40 |
| Avg Temp | 23 | 23 | 25 | 29 | 34 | 38 | 43 | 43 | 41 | 34 | 27 | 23 |
| Min Temp | 10 | 11 | 16 | 20 | 25 | 31 | 35 | 36 | 32 | 23 | 15 | 10 |
Olympic National Park Road Trips
Many family vacations consist of stringing one or more national parks together during a week-long trip. Creating these types of trips is our specialty! Here are the road trips we've created where Olympic National Park is visited.
| Trip Name | Trip Miles | Trip Days |
|---|---|---|
| 4-Day Olympic National Park Loop Trip | 390 | 4 |
| Visit Olympic National Park from Seattle in One Day | 276 | 1 |
| The Seattle Area Ski Trip | 441 | 7 |
| Olympic, Mount Rainier to Mount St. Helens | 396 | 7 |
Other Nearby National Park Sites
From national monuments, to historic sites to seashores and more, here are the other parks closest to Olympic National Park.
| Name | Distance |
|---|---|
| San Juan Island National Historical Park | 41 mi |
| Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve | 41 mi |
| Gulf Islands National Park Reserve | 61 mi |
| Pacific Rim National Park Reserve | 74 mi |
| Mount Rainier National Park | 112 mi |
| Lewis and Clark National Historical Park | 128 mi |
| North Cascades National Park | 132 mi |
| Fort Vancouver National Historic Site | 167 mi |
| Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area | 177 mi |
| Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area | 244 mi |
Nearby Campsites & RV Parks
If you are looking to pitch a tent or park an RV at a campsite near Olympic National Park, here is a list of the closest campsites in the surrounding area. They all have slightly different amenitites, so its best to check them all out instead of just chosing the first on the list.
| Name | Details | Miles Away |
|---|---|---|
| Altaire - Olympic National Park | Port Angeles, WA more | 5 miles |
| Heart O The Hills - Olympic National Park | Port Angeles, WA more | 6 miles |
| Elwha - Olympic National Park | Port Angeles, WA more | 6 miles |
| Deer Park - Olympic National Park | Sequim, WA more | 11 miles |
| Salt Creek County Rec Area | Port Angeles, WA more | 16 miles |
| Sol Duc - Olympic National Park | Port Angeles, WA more | 16 miles |
| Dungeness Forks | WA more | 18 miles |
| Dungeness Rec Area | Sequim, WA more | 19 miles |
| Lyre River- State Forest | Port Angeles, WA more | 20 miles |
| Fairholm - Olympic National Park | Port Angeles, WA more | 20 miles |
Nearest Ski Resorts
For those of you who are the diehard outdoors type, visiting a national park on a ski trip can be quite the adventure. Here are the ski resorts within 100 miles of Olympic National Park:
| Name | Location | Summit | Difficulty Score™ | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hurricane Ridge | Port Angeles, WA | 5,500 ft | 48% | 0 mi |
| Mt. Baker | Deming, WA | 5,000 ft | 48% | 96 mi |
| Grouse Mountain | North Vancouver, BC | 4,100 ft | 43% | 98 mi |
| Cypress Mountain | West Vancouver North, BC | 4,751 ft | 62% | 99 mi |
Nearest Airports
When visiting a National park, many people are faced with either a very long drive across country, or a much shorter flight. For those of you looking to fly into Olympic National Park, we've listed the closest airports in the area.
Large Airports
A large airport has scheduled major airline service with millions of passengers per year. This type of airport always accepts international flights. Here are the closest large airports to Olympic National Park.
| Name | Code | City | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seattle–Tacoma International Airport | SEA | Seattle, WA | 66 mi |
| Vancouver International Airport | YVR | Vancouver, BC | 86 mi |
| Portland International Airport | PDX | Portland, OR | 170 mi |
| Calgary International Airport | YYC | Calgary, AB | 476 mi |
Medium Airports
A medium-sized airport has scheduled regional airline service. This type of airport may or may not accept international flights. Here are the closest medium-sized airports to Olympic National Park.
| Name | Code | City | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| William R Fairchild International Airport | CLM | Port Angeles, WA | 10 mi |
| Victoria International Airport | YYJ | Victoria, BC | 47 mi |
| Snohomish County (Paine Field) Airport | PAE | Everett, WA | 56 mi |
| Boeing Field King County International Airport | BFI | Seattle, WA | 63 mi |
| Bellingham International Airport | BLI | Bellingham, WA | 72 mi |
| Nanaimo Airport | YCD | Nanaimo, BC | 77 mi |
| Abbotsford International Airport | YXX | Abbotsford, BC | 90 mi |
Credits: Campground data provided by USCampgrounds.info. Map shapes from CartographyVectors. Weather data from NOAA. Airport data from OurAirports.com. Images from Unsplash, Flickr and Parks&Trips. All data has also been updated and augmented by Parks&Trips.