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Great vacations don't only have to be in far away expensive
places. |
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Here's a lovely varied experience
in the nearby Pacific Northwest, taking less than a week, and
costing under $1000 (plus air fare). |
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Pacific Northwest Explorer
A five plus day exploration of David's favorite places
in his home area
|
This tour around the Pacific Northwest can be enjoyed by
itself, or can be combined with extra time in Seattle, or
perhaps Portland OR, Vancouver BC, or just about anywhere else
you'd like to add.
We offer you a kaleidoscopic
exposure to the very varied scenery and experiences in the
region. From cool rainforest in the Olympic National Park
to the hot dry plans of Eastern Washington, from cosmopolitan
Seattle to quaint Victoria, and with three ferry rides through
different parts of beautiful Puget Sound as well as comfortable
luxury coach touring. And, as a special bonus, time at the
beautiful natural mineral hot springs at Sol Duc Resort.
There's truly something in this
tour for everyone. Come join us and enjoy/experience the
best of the beautiful Pacific Northwest region.
|
 Tour
Itinerary
(Click map for
a larger image)
The tour starts in downtown Seattle and ends
either at the Seatac airport or again in downtown Seattle.
Overnight stops are at Sol Duc,
Victoria BC, and Leavenworth. Total road distance
traveled is just under 500 miles, plus three ferry rides. |
Tour Dates
The tour allows you to make
your own way to Seattle any way you wish, and to add extra time
in Seattle before or after the tour.
The tour is conveniently
timed from Monday morning 1 October to Friday afternoon 5 October allowing you the weekends
on either side to variously spend time in Seattle and/or travel
between Seattle and your home.
The tour starts in downtown
Seattle at 9.30am on Monday 1 October and ends either at Seatac
airport at 4.30pm on Friday 5 October or in downtown Seattle at
5.15pm.
If you're flying in to
Seattle Monday morning (not recommended due to the unreliability
of airline schedules) you should arrange for a flight that
arrives perhaps no later than 7.30am, and if you're flying out
of Seattle on Friday afternoon you should probably arrange a
departure after 6.30pm.
Tour Options
You can add extra time in
Seattle before or after the main tour, which is all conducted outside of
Seattle itself.
Another thought would be to
fly in or out of either Portland OR and/or Vancouver BC,
spending time there before or after the main tour, and taking
the very pleasant Amtrak tilt-train between that city and Seattle.
Small Group Size
The group is limited to a
maximum of 30 persons.
We'll be
traveling on a 50 seater coach so there'll always be lots
of room for everyone to spread out.
Because we're a small group
of like minded people, you'll enjoy the fellowship of your
fellow group members, adding to the pleasure of the tour, and
because the tour is exclusively for us, if we wish to make any
itinerary changes during our time, we can do that with no
problems, too.
Tour Price
The tour is priced at $895
per person, share twin. There are no taxes or other fees
to add to this price.
If you are traveling alone,
you can either have us match you up with another person of the
same gender and share the accommodation, or choose to have
single accommodation. The single supplement, if traveling
by yourself and not sharing, is $395.
These prices reflect a 3% discount
for cash/check.
A $250 per person
non-refundable deposit is required to confirm your places on
this tour.
You are responsible for
arranging your travel to and from Seattle. This gives you
the best chance/choice of choosing your preferred airline,
cashing in frequent flier miles, or whatever, and traveling when
and how you wish.
Tour Inclusions
Your $895 per person tour
price includes all the following :
-
Coaching from Seattle to Sol
Duc (via Port Townsend) in a luxury coach with toilet,
driver/guide, and live commentary
-
Ferry crossing from Seattle
to Bainbridge Island
-
One night accommodation at
Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort including cooked breakfast the
next morning
-
Olympic National Park
Entrance Fee
-
Unlimited access to the hot pools
at Sol Duc
-
Welcome party at Sol Duc
-
Coaching from Sol Duc to Port
Angeles and on to Victoria, BC in a luxury coach with
toilet, driver/guide, and live commentary
-
Ferry crossing from Port
Angeles to Victoria
-
Two nights accommodation in
the heart of Victoria in a suite at the Hotel Grand Pacific
-
Coaching from Victoria to
Sydney, then from Anacortes to Leavenworth in a luxury coach
with toilet, driver/guide, and live commentary
-
Ferry crossing from Sidney BC
to Anacortes
-
One night accommodation at
the Linderhof Inn, Leavenworth including continental
breakfast the next morning
-
Farewell party in Leavenworth
-
Coaching from Leavenworth to
Seattle, either to the airport or to downtown, in a luxury
coach with toilet, driver/guide, and live commentary
-
Possible extra inclusions
: If our group reaches 25 people, we'll add a dinner
in Victoria on the Tuesday. If it reaches 30, we'll
add something further.
Itinerary
|
Day 0 (Sat/Sun 29 or 30 Sep) :
Travel to Seattle |
A classic picture of Seattle, with the Space Needle center
left, downtown buildings, and Mt Rainier in the background.
|
Our tour starts on Monday morning at 9.30am, so most people
will choose to travel to Seattle on Sunday (or even
Saturday).
Make your own way to Seattle as
you wish and enjoy some free time in 'the Emerald City'
before the start of the tour on Monday morning.
You can of course stay anywhere in
Seattle you choose to, but we'd recommend the Seattle
Sheraton - it is in a great location, and has good rates for
this weekend - Expedia is quoting $169 for Saturday night
and $209 for Sunday night.
A more budget choice could be the
Holiday Inn on Dexter Ave, which has a two nights for one
deal through Seattle Toursaver (below).
If you're spending time in Seattle
before or after the main tour, our information about
Where to Dine in Seattle might be of help to you, and
the
Seattle Toursaver could save you substantially on your
touring and accommodation. |
|
Day 1 (Monday 1 October) :
Seattle to Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort by ferry and coach |
Seattle recedes into the background as our ferry takes us to
Bainbridge Island.
Port Townsend's impressive architecture, with a ferry in the
distance.
The hot springs at beautiful Sol Duc Resort.
|
Join the group this morning at 9.30am and then travel the
short distance by coach to the Ferry terminal.
We'll take a short 35 minute ferry journey across Puget
Sound, giving you beautiful views of the city skyline from
the water.
We then travel by our luxury
motor-coach to the quaint little town of Port Townsend,
known for its grand buildings and antique shops, where we'll stop to give you a chance for some shopping and
lunch.
After lunch we continue on to Port
Angeles and then go inland into the Olympic National Park -
a UNESCO World Heritage Site -
and to our destination - Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort.
This is a lovely place, nestled in
a valley in the heart of the national forest, with a river
running alongside, and with natural volcanic hot springs
that flow up into a series of pools you can soak in and
enjoy the alleged restorative powers of the mineral rich
waters.
Weather permitting, we'll hold an
outdoors party at Sol Duc this evening.
Note that due to its remote
isolation, Sol Duc has no internet and only a couple of pay
phones. |
|
Day 2 (Tuesday 2 October) :
Sol Duc to Victoria, Canada by ferry and coach |
One of the cabins at Sol Duc Resort. Accommodation is
rustic but comfortable, in a series of cabins set around the
grounds.
Coho entering the inner harbor in Victoria. The
black hole in its side is one of the two loading doors,
opening in readiness for docking.
The Hotel Grand Pacific, our home for the next two nights.
|
You've a little time this morning to enjoy breakfast and to go soak some more
in the hot pools, or perhaps to walk on one of the many
nature trails around the area.
Mid morning we'll travel back to Port Angeles in time to
take a ferry across the Strait of Juan de Fuca and to
Victoria, BC in Canada (be sure to bring your passport with
you!).
This is a 90 minute crossing with beautiful views to the
Olympic Mountains, across Puget Sound, and to Vancouver
Island.
Upon arrival in Victoria we'll travel no more than 100 yds
to our central downtown hotel, the lovely Hotel Grand
Pacific. There's a special treat for you there - we're
staying in their lovely suites, with great views over the
harbor and surrounding areas. You'll quickly
appreciate why this hotel is my favorite hotel in Victoria.
Free internet provided. |
|
Day 3 (Wednesday 3 October) :
Victoria, BC |
Victoria, looking over to the dome of their Parliament
building. |
You've a full day to spend in
Victoria today, doing whatever you might wish.
See our
three part series on Victoria to get a better feeling
for what you might wish to enjoy during your open day. |
|
Day 4 (Thursday 4 October) :
Victoria to Leavenworth by ferry and coach |
A ferry approaches Friday Harbor in the San Juan Islands
A view as we drive along beautiful Hwy 2 to Leavenworth
The Bavarian village of Leavenworth charms all who visit |
Our stay in charming British style Victoria comes to a
close. We'll take a ferry from Sidney, BC over to
Anacortes, WA this morning, on a beautiful route through the
lovely San Juan Islands, and then will travel on to the
charming town of Leavenworth, traveling over Highway 2 and
Stevens Pass to get there.
Weather permitting, we'll have an outdoors barbeque and
party on the hill overlooking the township. You'll get
to enjoy lovely views over the mountains and valleys, and
look up to see the stars shining brightly above, unobscured
by pollution.
We'll spend one night in Leavenworth, at the centrally
located Linderhof Inn. Free internet access is
included.
|
|
Day 5 (Friday 5 October) :
Back to Seattle |
Another view of the lovely town of Leavenworth, nestled in
the a valley with mountains towering on all sides.
Your first or last impression of Seattle may be this view
from a plane (looking over downtown and to the north).
|
Our hotel offers us a complimentary continental breakfast,
and then we have the rest of the morning free to explore the
lovely Bavarian styled village of Leavenworth and to enjoy
lunch at any of the many different restaurants in town.
Our
three part series tells you more about Leavenworth.
After lunch we'll return back to
Seattle a different route to the one which took us to
Leavenworth yesterday. We'll cross two mountain passes
(Blewett and Snoqualmie) and enjoy more gorgeous scenery
before arriving first at the airport at approximately 4.30pm
and then downtown Seattle at approximately 5.15pm.
If you're choosing to fly home
this evening, we suggest you schedule a flight departing no
earlier than 6.30pm. |
|
Day 6 + (Saturday onwards) :
Seattle, go other places, do other things, or return home |
Maybe ride the Amtrak Cascade Talgo Tilting Train service to
Portland or Vancouver at the end of your time in Seattle.
|
If you've never been to Seattle itself before, you might
choose to spend some extra time in Seattle before or after
our tour around the region.
You might want to experience the
famous Underground Seattle tour in Pioneer Square, go for a
harbor cruise or Duck tour, visit the locks, stroll the
waterfront, stop at Pike Place Market, or do any of the many
other things that can be enjoyed around the Seattle area.
Perhaps take a day tour down to
see where Mt St Helens erupted, or go by train down to
Portland or up to Vancouver to spend more time in another
area. |
Tour Terms and Conditions
Our
standard terms and conditions
apply to this tour.
In addition, please note
these extra terms :
1. The 45 day
payment due date is considered to be Wednesday 15 August.
2. US citizens require a
current passport that will not expire for at least six months
after the date of their planned return back to the US in order
to be admitted to Canada. They do not need a visa. Citizens of other countries should check
to see if they need a visa.
3. Triple share
rates may be available. Ask for a quote if this is
required.
4. There's
plenty of room in the coach's luggage bays for as much luggage
as you choose to bring. But you'll find it easier if you try and limit
yourself to one main suitcase and one smaller item per person.
The Travel Insider is
licensed by the State of Washington as a seller of travel -
registration number 602 036 247.
Originally published
26 Jul 2005, last update
30 May 2021
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