Fifteen
flying in · driving around · ferries · fuel
Which airport, what rental car, which ferries to reserve, where to gas up, and the mountain passes that decide your route.
The PNW is a big region. Three states, four time zones if you count Idaho splitting (you should), and geography that throws actual obstacles in your way. Mountains that close roads for six months. Ferries that book out two weeks ahead. Towns with one gas station for sixty miles.
This chapter is the practical answer to "how do we get there and how do we get around when we are there." Real numbers, real routes, real timing.
flying in
Five real options. The right one depends on where your trip starts. Sometimes the cheaper flight is worth two extra hours of driving, sometimes it isn't.
| Airport | Best for | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| SEA Seattle-Tacoma |
Olympic, Puget Sound, North Cascades, Rainier | The biggest PNW hub. Direct flights from almost everywhere. Rental car center is a 5-minute train ride from terminals. Expect crowds and traffic getting in and out. |
| PDX Portland |
Oregon Coast, Columbia Gorge, Willamette Valley, Crater Lake | Smaller, friendlier, more navigable than SEA. The MAX Light Rail goes downtown for $2.80 in 38 minutes. Rental cars on-site, no shuttle needed. |
| GEG Spokane |
Eastern Washington, Idaho, Sawtooths | Underrated entry point for Idaho-focused trips. Smaller terminal, less crowded. Direct flights from Denver, Phoenix, Seattle, Salt Lake. |
| BOI Boise |
Sun Valley, Sawtooths, Hells Canyon | Best entry for any Idaho-only trip. 2-3 hours from Stanley, 2.5 from Ketchum, 4 from Hells Canyon. Limited international. |
| EUG Eugene |
Crater Lake, Oregon South Coast, Southern Oregon | Tiny regional airport. Direct flights from Denver, Phoenix, San Francisco, Seattle, Las Vegas, Salt Lake. 15 minutes to downtown Eugene. Saves 2-hour PDX drive if your trip is southern Oregon-focused. |
The 90% rule: SEA for Washington-and-Olympics trips, PDX for Oregon trips, BOI for Idaho-only trips. Don't overthink it.
The 10% exception: If your trip covers both Oregon and Washington, fly into one and out of the other. One-way rental car fees ($75-$200) are usually less than the gas + time of backtracking. Especially good for the "Olympic-to-Oregon-Coast" loop or the "Seattle-to-Portland-via-Cascades" route.
rental cars
Family of four: A midsize SUV (Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V class). Fits four people plus a week of luggage with room for a cooler. Don't pay for a full-size SUV unless you have five or more people.
Family of five or six: Minivan. Period. The minivan beats the giant SUV for road trips every time. More usable cargo space, easier loading with kids, better mileage. Toyota Sienna or Honda Odyssey. Book early because PNW rental fleets run thin on minivans.
Two adults, no kids: Standard sedan or compact SUV. Nothing fancy needed. Most of your driving is on paved highways. You don't need 4WD for almost any of this guide.
Honest answer: you usually don't need it. 99% of the routes in this guide are on paved highways or maintained gravel roads. The North Cascades Highway, Crater Lake Rim Drive, Hurricane Ridge Road, the Columbia River Gorge, the Oregon Coast. All paved.
You need 4WD or AWD if: (1) You're going to Stehekin in winter, (2) You're driving Hells Canyon backcountry, (3) You're going to the Painted Hills via the unpaved Highway 207 shortcut, (4) You're traveling November-April and might encounter snow at a mountain pass.
Book 2-3 months ahead for summer. PNW rental fleets are smaller than tourist hubs like Vegas or Orlando. Prices double in July-August if you wait until the last month.
Check both rentalcars.com and Costco Travel. Costco usually beats the direct booking site by 15-30%. Check the airline's bundle pricing too, sometimes a flight+car combo is cheaper than booking separately.
Renting in Seattle and returning in Portland (or vice versa) is doable but expensive. Expect $75-$200 in one-way fees, plus tax. Sometimes it's worth it (saves a 3-4 hour backtrack day). Sometimes it isn't.
Boise to Seattle or Boise to Portland one-way: often $200-$400 in fees. Usually not worth it. Better to fly into Boise and out of Boise even if your trip ends in another state.
ferries
Washington State Ferries (WSF) runs the country's largest ferry system. Some routes take reservations, some are first-come-first-serve. Know which is which before you go.
Vehicle + driver: $27.00 each way (standard vehicle, summer 2026 rate). Walk-on adult: $11.35 round trip ($5.65 senior, free for kids under 19).
No reservations available. First-come, first-served for vehicles. Walk-on passengers never have to worry about boarding.
35 minutes each way. Schedule runs every 50-60 minutes daytime.
Vehicle line can fill, especially summer weekends and Friday afternoons. Arrive 30-45 minutes before sailing for busy times. Walk-on and bike are always available.
Since March 1, 2026, WSF charges a 3% card payment fee on all credit/debit transactions. Pay cash or with an ORCA card to avoid it.
Vehicle fares round-trip charged at Anacortes. Standard vehicle + driver runs $55-$80 round trip depending on length. Walk-on passengers $14-$19 round trip.
RESERVATIONS REQUIRED for vehicles. Walk-ons don't need reservations.
Reservations are free and released in 3 tiers: (1) seasonal release 2-3 months ahead, (2) two weeks before sailing at 7 AM Pacific, (3) two days before at 7 AM Pacific.
Anacortes to Friday Harbor: 1 hour 10 minutes direct, longer with island stops. To Orcas Island: 1 hour. To Lopez: 35-40 minutes.
Park free at the Anacortes ferry terminal ($8+/day) and walk on. Day trip from Anacortes works perfectly. Get around the islands by bike rental, moped, taxi, or Island Transit bus.
Vehicle + driver: $15-$22 one way. Walk-on: $4-$8 each way.
RESERVATIONS RECOMMENDED. Released 2 weeks and 2 days before. Free.
35 minutes. One of the most scenic crossings in the system.
Connects Olympic Peninsula trips with Whidbey Island and Deception Pass. Saves a 2-3 hour drive through Tacoma traffic.
Vehicle + driver: $15-$20 each way. Walk-on: collected only Edmonds-to-Kingston direction.
No reservations. First-come, first-served. Same as Bainbridge route.
If you're north of Seattle and headed to the Olympic Peninsula, Edmonds-Kingston saves driving around Tacoma. Drops you closer to Hood Canal Bridge.
Walk on: Day trip to Bainbridge from Seattle. Day trip to a single San Juan Island. Quick errand run anywhere within ferry-walking-distance.
Drive on: Multi-day trip. Anything where you need a car at the destination. Most Olympic Peninsula trips. Anything with kids and luggage.
mountain passes
PNW geography forces traffic over mountain passes. Knowing which close and when shapes your route.
| Pass / Highway | Closure window | What it connects |
|---|---|---|
| Highway 20 · North Cascades | Mid-Nov to mid-May | Burlington to Mazama. Closes annually for snow. Adds 3-4 hours to any Methow Valley trip in winter. |
| Highway 21 · Stanley to Lowman, ID | Mid-Nov to mid-May (typically) | Boise to Stanley winter route. Often closes for snow. Use Highway 75 via Ketchum as winter detour. |
| Crater Lake Rim Drive | Mid-Oct to mid-July | The 33-mile loop around the caldera. Snow-bound most of the year. Plan summer trips only. |
| Hurricane Ridge Road | Weather-dependent winter | Port Angeles to Hurricane Ridge. Open year-round but closes daily for snow conditions. Check Olympic NP alerts. |
| Sunrise Road · Mt. Rainier | Closed until early July | White River entrance to Sunrise. Last to open in the park each year. Usually mid-July through October only. |
| Mt. St. Helens Spirit Lake Hwy | Johnston Ridge sometimes closed | Johnston Ridge Observatory closed since 2023, when a landslide destroyed the access bridge on SR 504. Bridge repair work started April 2026 and is now targeted for spring 2027, with more work needed after that before the observatory itself reopens. Coldwater Lake area still open. Check ahead. |
| Stevens Pass · Hwy 2 | Open year-round, chains required winter | Seattle area to Leavenworth. Carry chains November-March. |
| Snoqualmie Pass · I-90 | Open year-round, occasional brief closures | Seattle to Eastern WA. The most reliable winter pass. Closes only for major storms. |
| Cayuse & Chinook Passes · Hwy 410 | Mid-Nov to late May | Mt. Rainier east entrance and the Sunrise side. Closes for snow. |
WSDOT and ODOT require chains or 4WD when posted on mountain passes. Conditions can change in an hour. What's a clear road at 10 AM can be a chain-required pass at 2 PM.
Three rules: (1) Carry chains November through March if you're crossing any pass. Rent them at any auto parts store for $30-50. (2) Check TripCheck (Oregon) or WSDOT travel alerts (Washington) before you leave. (3) If they say "chains required," they mean it. Tow trucks won't come fast on a closed highway.
fuel strategy
Oregon has a unique state law: an attendant pumps your gas at most stations. You sit in the car (or get out to use the restroom while they pump). Don't try to pump it yourself, they'll come over and ask you to step aside.
Tip the attendant a dollar or two for full-service. They appreciate it but don't expect it.
Oregon's 20 rural counties allow full self-serve at every pump. The 16 most populous counties, including the Portland metro, Salem and Eugene, can run up to half their pumps self-serve while keeping an attendant on the rest, and both have to charge the same price. Look for the sign at the pump. When in doubt, wait at the pump and someone will come.
Three rules for fuel prices in the PNW:
Cities are cheaper than rural areas. Costco Seattle, Costco Spokane, Costco Eugene all run 50 cents to $1/gallon below the rural average. Fill up before leaving the city.
Tourist towns charge premium prices. Forks, Stanley, Stehekin, La Push, Crater Lake. Sometimes $1+ above the regional average. The gas station near Crater Lake is famously expensive.
National parks have limited gas. Olympic NP has gas at Lake Crescent Lodge (limited hours). Mt. Rainier sells gas only at Longmire in summer. Crater Lake's nearest gas is in Diamond Lake or Prospect, 20-30 miles from the rim. Fill up at the last town before entering any park.
For most routes you'll be fine. The two stretches that need planning:
Olympic Peninsula outer loop. Port Angeles to Forks to Lake Quinault, then back to Olympia. Roughly 200 miles. Forks has gas, Kalaloch has gas, but at premium prices. Top off in Port Angeles or Aberdeen.
Stanley/Sawtooths/Hells Canyon corridor. Idaho's high country has gas stations 50-80 miles apart. Fill up in Boise, Ketchum, Stanley, or Riggins before extended driving. The road into Hells Canyon from Riggins has no gas for 50 miles round trip.
The North Cascades Highway. Open mid-May to mid-November. No gas between Marblemount and Mazama, 75 miles. Fill up at one end before crossing.
connectivity
I'm not going to give you a carrier-by-carrier breakdown, because it changes constantly. But here's the reality of where you'll lose service no matter what carrier you have:
Olympic National Park is largely a dead zone. Hurricane Ridge has some service. Lake Crescent, Sol Duc, Hoh Rainforest, La Push, Rialto Beach: nothing. Plan offline maps before you go.
Mt. Rainier is mostly dead. Some service at Paradise on Verizon, less on others. Sunrise side is dead.
North Cascades is dead from Marblemount east until Mazama. Highway 20 has no cell service for the 75 miles in between.
Stanley and the Sawtooths are mostly dead. Stanley town itself has some service, the canyon and lakes around it are dead.
Hells Canyon, the Painted Hills, the Oregon Caves area all spotty.
The Oregon Coast generally has service in towns. Forest areas between towns can be patchy. The 101 corridor itself is mostly fine.
Open Google Maps. Search for your destination. Tap the place name at the bottom. Tap the three dots, then "Download offline map." Drag the box to cover your route plus a 50-mile buffer.
Download the whole offline map area for any region you're entering. Free, works without cell service, works for turn-by-turn navigation. Apple Maps does the same thing now. Do this for every region of the trip.
AllTrails Plus ($35.99/year, the old "Pro" tier renamed) downloads trail maps for offline use. Worth it for hiking-heavy trips.
parking
Most national park trailhead parking is free with your park entry fee. The exception: Multnomah Falls parking is part of the federal lot system (free) but the small trailhead lots at Latourell, Bridal Veil, and Angel's Rest now charge an Oregon State Parks day-use fee ($10 in-state, $12 out-of-state) as of March 30, 2026.
Hurricane Ridge in Olympic. Lot fills by 10 AM summer weekends. Arrive by 9 AM or expect to wait.
Paradise at Mount Rainier. Lot fills by 9 AM summer weekends. The most-popular spot in the park.
Crater Lake Rim Village. Plenty of parking even at peak.
Downtown Seattle: Paid garages are everywhere, $5-$15/hour. Most hotels charge $30-$45/night for parking on top of the room rate.
Downtown Portland: SmartPark garages are cheapest, $2-$3/hour. Most downtown PSU and Pearl District streets have 90-minute meters. The "neighborhoods" (Pearl, Hawthorne, Alberta) have free 2-hour street parking everywhere.
Cannon Beach, Bandon, Seaside: Free 2-hour street parking in most coastal Oregon towns. Fills up midday in summer.
Forks: Free everywhere. Park anywhere.
Three things that make parking easier across the whole PNW:
Arrive early or late. Before 9 AM or after 4 PM. Trailheads, downtowns, beaches, ferry terminals all easier on the bookends.
Walk further than you want to. The far lot is always empty. It's a 5-10 minute walk vs an hour of circling.
Use park-and-ride lots. Many tourist towns have free park-and-ride lots on the edge with shuttle service into downtown. The Multnomah Falls shuttle from Cascade Locks is free and bypasses the parking-permit mess entirely.