Port Angeles Forum: staying at Port Townsend, Sequim or Port Angeles

It will help us answer you better if you tell us a little about what you're looking to do here and what you find to be "expensive". Compared to Switzerland you might find it "bargain basement".

For me the drive out to Neah Bay isn't worth it and I would concentrate on other areas. But maybe you're a "I've been to this extreme, that extreme" oriented person. Sequim Bay SP is very nice, but mostly campground.

Are you looking for hiking? Camping? Oceans? Alpine wilderness? By the way don't expect a bierstube at the end of the trail; there won't be one.

funny pala32 ... a bierstube !! we are from the french part, not the german part of CH ...so we prefer drinking a good glas (or more) of wine ...In fact the ONP is a little part of our journey planned for june 2012, on the program other parts of the Washington State, as Leavenworth (well maybe 'ill try one ....beer) and the Mount Rainier area, Winthrop and the north cascades, and we are also looking to visit Victoria, taking the ferry from PT, and 2 full days at Vancouver, then back with the cascade train, and of course 2 more days at Seattle.

About prices, yes you are right, Switzerland lodging is very expensive as a lot of other world parts. I become old and fixed on the past, so wake up Phil.

thank you Rickandplat, by the way Jackson Wyoming ? if yes is the Cadillac Grill still in action ?

The Hoh Rain forest is 3 hours and 15 minutes each way from Port Townsend. Do not stay in PT if you want to visit the Hoh RF, Hurricane Ridge or Lake Crescent. Sequim is also too far. It is 30 minutes east of Port Angeles, so the Hoh RF is 2 hours and 30 minutes away; the summit of Hurricane Ridge is 1 hour and 15 minutes away, and the middle of Lake Crescent is 1 hour and 5 minutes away. Port Angeles is your best choice.

Sequim Bay Park is not worth visiting, or at let it is not a reason to stay near Sequim. The Dungeness Spit is lovely, but it is not the equal of Rialto Beach and Second Beach, both of which are on the Pacific as opposed to the much less scenic Straits of San Juan de Fuca.

Yes, the luxury B&Bs like Colette's and Domaine Madeleine are expensive. However, they are in beautiful settings and represent the best lodging the area has to offer. There are less attractive but perfectly acceptable hotels in Port Angeles.

I would not drive all the way to Neah Bay in June, which tends to be damp and cool, unless I were spending at least a week in the area, There are other, more accessible, places to visit. You might want to look at www.kaleberg.com for information about the area. By the way, we have several wineries here. Some, frankly, do not produce very good wine. However, if you like the California style of big, high alcohol reds, Camaraderie makes good wine. Harbinger produces a wide variety of wines, including some berry wines, that range in quality from pleasant to very good.

What makes the Olympic National Park unique is the Westside of the Penninsula. The temperate rainforests and the wild coast. As Kaleberg has stated you want to be at least as far west as Port Angeles form a base. Unless you want to do a lot of hiking you want to be in Port Angeles. I prefer staying around Forks on the coast side for visiting the Hoh and the ocean beaches. If eating out is important then do not stay in Forks. If for one night you can do without a decent restaurant and want more time to explore the Hoh and the Ocean beaches then spend a night around Forks. Three nights would be better then two IMO.This is logging country so the beauty is in the Park not the surrounding areas and towns. I visited Switzerland the first time in 72 and 74 when outside the cities it was so cheap. I have been back many times as the Swiss Alps are my favorite place to vacation. Was in Geneva two years ago. Going to the Dolomites this year as it is so much more expensive in CH compared to Austria and Italy. Get back to us when you get closer to finalizing your plans.

Phil:

That's JACKSON, MICHIGAN, not Wyoming. Our little town is definitely not known for its restaurants!

thanks all of you for your friendliness. I'll be back later when my program is more complete, i usually need 1 or 2 monthes when preparing such a trip. As Pala32 say "i've been to this extreme, that extreme".

And for you Glaciermeadow, i understand that holidays in Switzerland are actually out of price due to the poor performance of the us$. Sorry about that. Dolomites are a wonderfull place to stay as are the Italian and Austrian Tirol.

All above advice is excellent, so I'll just throw in a wrinkle or two.

Take a look at Lake Quinault Lodge and Lake Crescent Lodge, both in ONP I think. I have stayed at the former and eaten at both. Definitely pricey but they have the advantage of being good quality, plus not being on the ocean or the Strait ... an advantage because so often in the summer the ocean fog lingers along the coasts all morning.

I too would skip Cape Flattery unless, as Pala says, you are into extremes. I have been there as well as Cape Alava (hike from Lake Ozette) and would go again but then i live here so don't have to ration my time as much.