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With Seattle as its cultural and artistic hub, Washington State enjoys a diversity that caters to nearly any type of traveler. From the Cascade Range to the Puget Sound, natural attractions in the state shine, but manmade offerings like the Pike Place Market or the Space Needle have become just as characteristic.
We asked USA TODAY 10Best readers to vote for their favorite Washington attractions, and after four weeks of voting, we have a winner.
The top 10 winners in the category Best Washington Attraction are as follows:
- San Juan Islands
- Point Defiance Park - Tacoma
- Cape Disappointment State Park - Ilwaco
- Smith Tower - Seattle
- Lake Chelan
- Mount Rainier National Park
- Ballard Locks - Seattle
- Museum of Glass - Tacoma
- Olympic National Park
- Pike Place Market - Seattle
A panel of experts partnered with 10Best editors to picked the initial 20 nominees, and the top 10 winners were determined by popular vote. Experts Lara Dunning (Small Town Washington & Beyond), Mary Jo Manzanares (Traveling with MJ), JoAnn Roe and Corinne Whiting (10Best) were chosen based on their knowledge and experience of travel in Washington State.
Congratulations to all these winning attractions!
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The Experts
Lara Dunning
Writer Lara Dunning is a small town enthusiast who... Read More
Writer Lara Dunning is a small town enthusiast who lives on an island in the Pacific Northwest. She enjoys history, foodie spots, hidden treasures and hiking with her Australian Cattle Dog. She has an MFA in Creative Writing and writes for several travel publications including Northwest Travel & Live Magazine, WanderWithWonder.com and her own blog Small Town Washington & Beyond. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram.
Lara Dunning

Writer Lara Dunning is a small town enthusiast who lives on an island in the Pacific Northwest. She enjoys history, foodie spots, hidden treasures and hiking with her Australian Cattle Dog. She has an MFA in Creative Writing and writes for several travel publications including Northwest Travel & Live Magazine, WanderWithWonder.com and her own blog Small Town Washington & Beyond. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram.
Mary Jo Manzanares
Mary Jo Manzanares writes about value luxury... Read More
Mary Jo Manzanares writes about value luxury destinations and experiences at Traveling with MJ. When she’s not traveling you’ll find her in Seattle, lingering over a cup of coffee, wandering in a museum or sipping wine at a cafe. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram.
Mary Jo Manzanares
Mary Jo Manzanares writes about value luxury destinations and experiences at Traveling with MJ. When she’s not traveling you’ll find her in Seattle, lingering over a cup of coffee, wandering in a museum or sipping wine at a cafe. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram.
JoAnn Roe
JoAnn Roe is the author of 650 diverse magazine... Read More
JoAnn Roe is the author of 650 diverse magazine articles (covering some 45 countries around the world) and 17 books, one selected for the Smithsonian Collection. She's also a small plane pilot, mountain horse trail rider and Rotary Club and National Assistance League member. Based in Bellingham, Washington, JoAnn has four children and 11 grandchildren.
JoAnn Roe

JoAnn Roe is the author of 650 diverse magazine articles (covering some 45 countries around the world) and 17 books, one selected for the Smithsonian Collection. She's also a small plane pilot, mountain horse trail rider and Rotary Club and National Assistance League member. Based in Bellingham, Washington, JoAnn has four children and 11 grandchildren.
Corinne Whiting
Corinne hails from the other Washington, where she... Read More
Corinne hails from the other Washington, where she caught the travel bug early on. Corinne studied abroad in Strasbourg, France (undergrad) and in Edinburgh, Scotland (graduate school). She's backpacked around Australia, taught English in Argentina and explored (so far!) countries from Cambodia and Egypt to Turkey and China. Corinne served as associate editor at Where magazine for five years; as a freelancer, she now writes for publications like National Geographic Traveler and Amtrak's OnTrak. Here in the lovely Northwest, she's attempting to debunk the rain myths, up her coffee and live music quotient and find her Zen near/on the water.
Corinne Whiting

Corinne hails from the other Washington, where she caught the travel bug early on. Corinne studied abroad in Strasbourg, France (undergrad) and in Edinburgh, Scotland (graduate school). She's backpacked around Australia, taught English in Argentina and explored (so far!) countries from Cambodia and Egypt to Turkey and China. Corinne served as associate editor at Where magazine for five years; as a freelancer, she now writes for publications like National Geographic Traveler and Amtrak's OnTrak. Here in the lovely Northwest, she's attempting to debunk the rain myths, up her coffee and live music quotient and find her Zen near/on the water.