Off the northwest corner of Washington State lies an archipelago of some 400 islands and rocks famous for stunning sunsets, pristine wilderness, sandy beaches and stellar wildlife viewing. The San Juan Islands, accessible by boat or plane, get half the amount of rain as Seattle, making them a popular escape.
Photo courtesy of Jim Maya / San Juan Islands

A 760-acre jewel in the heart of Tacoma, Point Defiance Park is not only a serene green space, it's home to smaller attractions like the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium and Fort Nisqually Living History Museum. Primary and secondary recreational trails wind through the park, and Five Mile Drive gives vehicles access to all the park's attractions.
Photo courtesy of iStock / irina88w

Cape Disappointment State Park occupies the land where the Columbia River meets the Pacific Ocean. The 1,882-acre park features wind-swept cliffs, old growth forest, freshwater lakes and two lighthouses standing watch over the coast. The clifftop Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center features interactive exhibits about the famed expedition.
Photo courtesy of Long Beach Peninsula Visitors Bureau

Built in 1914, Smith Tower has long been an architectural icon in Seattle. Today, the city's first skyscraper still has one of Seattle's best observation decks alongside a speakeasy-style bar serving Prohibition-era craft cocktails.
Photo courtesy of Christopher S. Maloney / Wikimedia Commons

Lake Chelan in Washington is known for its unusual shape and length. This long, narrow lake stretches 50.5 miles long. Fishing is popular here, as is exploring the 25 miles of trails in the surrounding mountains. But many more visitors make a trip out of Lake Chelan to hit up the 20-plus vineyards that dot the perimeter. Lake Chelan Wine Valley relatively new, but it’s already been named an American Viticulture Area.
Photo courtesy of Stepanov Photography

Towering 14,410 feet above sea level, Washington's Mount Rainier has become a symbol of both Mount Rainier National Park and Washington State. An active volcano and the most glaciated peak in the lower 48, the mountain is ringed by subalpine meadows of wild flowers, giving it a distinctive look, particularly in spring.
Photo courtesy of NPS Photo/ Jasmine Horn

The Hiram M. Chittenden Locks, also called the Ballard Locks, were built over 100 years ago to establish a commercial navigation route into Seattle. Today, the locks rank among the busiest in the country. Some 1.3 million people visit each year to take a guided tour, watch the ships come and go or see leaping salmon at a built-in fish ladder.
Photo courtesy of iStock / SEASTOCK

A centerpiece of Tacoma's downtown revival, the Museum of Glass appears to have sprouted right out of the bank along the Thea Foss Waterway. The huge cone is both the roof and the chimney vent of the museum's Hot Shop Amphitheater glass studio – a working studio complete with stadium seating from which visitors witness a continual schedule of glass-blowing demos. World-renowned glass sculptor Dale Chihuly is a Tacoma native, and his hand was behind the Bridge of Glass, an elevated pedestrian walkway connecting the glass museum to the nearby Washington State History Museum.
Photo courtesy of Casey Yee / Flickr

A single day in Olympic National Park in Washington takes visitors to wild Pacific beaches, colorful tide pools, alpine glaciers, pristine rainforest - some of the oldest in the USA - and meadows covered in wildflowers. Since no roads divide the interior of the park, the natural habitats remain largely untouched and the ecosystem rich with life.
Photo courtesy of NPS Photo

It could be argued quite persuasively that Pike Place Market is Seattle's heartbeat. It's on everyone's must-see list, and it's worth the hype. Situated along the water, the market was originally founded to allow produce growers to sell directly to consumers. Today, it's a protected historic district that inundates visitors with sights, sounds, smells and the best people-watching in town. 
Photo courtesy of Tiffany Von Arnim / Flickr