Where to Stay at Mount Rainier National Park: Complete Guide

For our purposes here, there are four parts of the park that you should know about. 

Paradise: When we think about Rainier, this is what we picture. Located on the southern side of Rainier, Paradise is full of beautiful lush meadows filled to the brim with wildflowers (in the summer), the Skyline Trail (our favorite hike in Mount Rainier National Park), four amazing waterfalls, and a nice collection of alpine lakes.

It’s the best region for first-timers, and the place we’d recommend focusing on if you’re planning a day trip to Mount Rainier.

Sunrise: While the Skyline Trail is our favorite, Sunrise has the best collection of hikes in the park.

It’s on the eastern side of Mount Rainier, and is the highest point you can drive to in the park.

At Sunrise, you can hike to a historic fire lookout, a series of rocky outcroppings that are up close and personal with Rainier’s eastern face, or lush wildflower meadows. And they all leave from the same trailhead!

Ohanapecosh: More old growth forests, less alpine, but there are some nice shorter hikes to do here, and the biggest campground in the park. The main benefit of Ohanapecosh is that it’s equidistant to both Paradise and Sunrise. 

Mowich Lake: Two amazing hikes here on the west side of Rainier (and a lake, hence the name), but not much else.

Plus, it’s at the end of an 18 mile potholed gravel road, so it’s less accessible than most of the park. (NOTE: Mowich Lake is closed indefinitely due to a road washout).

Here’s a map to help you visualize.

The biggest issue with Rainier is that the two most interesting and exciting areas – Paradise and Sunrise – are basically on opposite sides of the Mountain, which means that it takes a full 90 minutes to drive between them.  

This is why it matters where you stay when you visit Mount Rainier.

Where to Stay at Mount Rainier: A Complete Guide

Now, we’re well aware that a few of you are currently ready to throw your left shoe at the screen, saying “I don’t have time to read all of that, JUST TELL ME THE BEST PLACE TO STAY!” 

Staying Inside the Park: Convenient & Competitive

Oftentimes, the best way to really immerse yourself in a national park is to stay within the park boundaries, either at one of the campgrounds in the park, or one of the park’s historic lodges. 

If you’re up for camping, that’s our favorite way to experience the park, and there are some really nice campgrounds inside Mount Rainier National Park (along with a couple of excellent Forest Service campgrounds right outside the park’s boundaries). 

If you’re not up for camping, the options are more limited (and more of a mixed bag). 

While staying at the lodge inside a national park is about as convenient as it gets (you can literally walk to the trailhead for the Skyline Trail from the Paradise Inn in about five minutes), it’s often very expensive and the facilities leave a bit to be desired. 

Mostly because they have been continuously occupied for years and years, and need a little bit of TLC (or even a complete makeover). 

At Paradise, there are three options if you want to stay inside the boundaries of the park: camping at Cougar Rock Campground (this is our top pick if you’re up for camping), or staying at one of the park lodges (which tend to be expensive and competitive), the Paradise Inn or the National Park Inn. 

At Sunrise, the only option is to camp at White River Campground, which is first-come, first-served and can make planning a little tricky. 

The last option inside the park is Ohanapecosh Campground, which is at the southeastern corner of the park and is both the biggest and nicest campground in the park. 

It’s roughly equidistant between Paradise and Sunrise, which is nice if you don’t want to pack up and move around over the course of your trip. 

If none of those options within the boundaries of the park are screaming your name, we don’t blame you.

Luckily, there are a couple of good options just outside the park with significantly better places to stay (especially if you’re not into camping). 

Packwood: The Best Place to Stay for Access to Paradise & Sunrise

If you’re looking for a home base to use to explore both Paradise and Sunrise without having to pack up and move around, the answer is probably Packwood. 

It’s a small town on the southeast side of the mountain, and it has a small grocery store, a gas station, a coffee shop, and a brewery, which are more amenities than you’re going to find in many mountain towns of a similar size. 

While the other two areas we’re talking about below are closer to a single section of the park, Packwood is roughly equidistant to both at roughly an hour to both visitor centers. 

In our ideal scenario, you would break up your time and spend a few nights in Ashford just outside the Nisqually Entrance, and a few nights up near the Sunrise Entrance to minimize the amount of driving you need to do.

This would save you about 30-60 minutes of driving a day, depending on exactly where you stay. 

However, not everyone enjoys packing up and moving around as much, and it’s certainly more convenient to pick one home base and explore from there. 

If that’s you, stay in Packwood. 

Pros and Cons of Staying in Packwood

Here are the pros and cons of staying in Packwood as we see them. 

Pros of Staying in Packwood

It has good access to both Paradise and Sunrise. As we already mentioned, from Packwood you have a manageable drive to both Paradise and Sunrise, which is not necessarily true if you stay in Ashford, for example. 

There are great hikes outside the park. We’ve actually visited Packwood to explore the area outside the park, which includes the spectacular Goat Rocks Wilderness.

There are some excellent hikes outside the park, like Packwood Lake (which is an easy backpacking trip) and the Snowgrass Flats Loop to Goat Lake. 

It has a nice selection of places to stay. Between the hotels in town, the campgrounds, and the cabins fanning out into the forest, you have a nice range of places to stay. 

There are a fair number of amenities in town. There’s a grocery store, a gas station, a brewery, and a coffee shop right in town (plus a couple of other places to eat). What more do you need? 

Cons of Staying in Packwood

There is no park access in the winter. Both Stevens Canyon Road (access to Paradise) and Mathers Memorial Parkway (access to Sunrise) close in the winter, so if you’re visiting in the winter, you’re better off in Ashford because Paradise is the only accessible part of the park for six months (or more) of the year. 

It’s furthest from Seattle. We’re generally coming to Rainier from Portland, which means Packwood is the closest of these towns to us.

However, if you’re coming from Seattle, it’s on the opposite side of Rainier, which means you’re basically going to have to drive half way around the mountain to get there. 

The Best Places to Stay in Packwood

Here are our top picks in Packwood when it comes to places to stay. 

Packwood Lodge & Cabins: A Nice Lodge-Style Option in Packwood

The Packwood Lodge and Cabins is the closest lodge to the entrance to the park, and is also our top pick because of the nice range of different room types, from compact hotel-style rooms to bigger suites with full kitchens and standalone cabins. 

The location is nice, though it is outside of town, so you’ll have to drive into town for dinner, coffee, etc. 

They have two basic room types, the lodge rooms (which include hotel-style rooms with various configurations and bigger apartments) and the mountain cabins (standalone cabins with kitchens that sleep 2-4). 

Several of the rooms are dog-friendly, though it should be noted that you’re not able to leave your pet alone in the room unattended. 

Cozy Cabins in and Around Packwood

If you’re more into the idea of immersing yourself in the area’s natural beauty and staying in a cozy cabin in the woods, we have some great news: Packwood is full of them! 

If you’re a couple, look at this cozy-but-modern tiny home, with a lofted bed and full kitchen, or this beautiful riverfront guest suite with plenty of space, lots of windows, and a nice view from the porch. 

If you’re traveling as a group, there are some bigger cabins with two or three bedrooms to accommodate groups of 4-8. 

We like the look of this newly remodeled two bedroom cabin, with a beautiful deck (perfect for enjoying the long, warm summer days post-hike) and a full kitchen (including a washer and dryer).  

There’s a wide range of options, and you can see them all here. 

La Wis Wis Campground: Camping Right Outside the Park

La Wis Wis is one of the best campgrounds we’ve ever stayed at in Washington State, and the location just outside the park entrance is truly excellent. 

If you can’t (or don’t want to) get a site at Ohanapecosh inside the park, this is a great option. 

There’s a swimming hole in the campground, which was great for a summer visit, and the sites are protected in a grove of old growth forest with plenty of shade. 

One important thing to know is that there is no potable water here, so you need to bring your own water. 

We have some big containers that we brought along and refilled at Ohanapecosh as we came and went from the park, which worked pretty well for us. 

You’ll want to reserve in advance for the summer and fall because it’s a popular spot thanks to the location. 

Ashford: The Best Home Base for Exploring Paradise

If it’s your first time at Mount Rainier, we think Paradise is where you should start your explorations because it has it all.

Sweeping mountain vistas, never ending wildflower meadows, and towering waterfalls – everything we love about Rainier. 

If you’re like most people that visit Mount Rainier, you’ll be coming from Seattle and entering the park through the Nisqually Entrance on the southwest side of the mountain, which is the busiest entrance in the park, and heading up to Paradise. 

The town that sits just outside the Nisqually Entrance is Ashford, and it’s the best town on the park’s border both in terms of access to Paradise and in terms of amenities like gas stations, restaurants, and grocery stores. 

The biggest downside of Ashford is that it’s not really a good home base for Sunrise, because it takes ~90 minutes to go around the mountain to get there.

For Sunrise, we’d stay in one of the two other places to stay we’re covering in this guide. 

It’s also worth noting that if you’re visiting in the winter and spring, Ashford is the best place to stay because the only access to Rainier is through the Nisqually Entrance and up to Paradise. 

Pros and Cons of Staying in Ashford

Here are the pros and cons of using Ashford as your home base for exploring Mount Rainier National Park as we see them. 

Pros of Staying in Ashford

It has great access to Paradise. It’s 40 minutes from the Henry M. Jackson Visitor Center (the main parking lot at Paradise that serves as the trailhead for multiple good hikes). There are plenty of other places that are closer, like several of the waterfalls.  

It has the best amenities. There are multiple restaurants, a couple of places for groceries, and a couple of gas stations (the 76 outside of town to the west is your best bet). Plus a coffee stand.

They’re not all Michelin star quality, but they’re more than you’ll find in Packwood. 

It has the biggest selection of places to stay. There are tons of hotels, lodges, and cabins lining the road through Ashford up to the park entrance. 

Cons of Staying in Ashford

It’s far from Sunrise. Like we said, if you can organize your time to stay elsewhere for exploring Sunrise, we would. If you’re only planning on heading up to Sunrise for a day, it’s doable, but certainly not ideal. 

It’s the busiest town of the three here. Combining all of the factors above – the access to Paradise, the proximity to Seattle, and the selection of places to stay – this is by far the busiest border town in terms of tourists. It’s a zoo in the summer. 

The Best Places to Stay in Ashford

Here’s a collection of places to stay in Ashford that caught our eye. 

We’re not including the options inside the park, the Paradise Inn (the historic lodge right at the Henry M. Jackson Visitor Center), the National Park Inn (in Longmire, which is 15 minutes closer to Paradise), or Cougar Rock Campground, which are all good options (though the lodges, while cool, aren’t a great value). 

Mountain Meadows Inn: Our Top Hotel Pick in Ashford

If a more traditional hotel stay is what you’re looking for, this charming inn right along the road is our top pick in Ashford. 

It’s almost a B&B in the way that it’s set up, with several guest suites in one craftsman-style home and a common area with a kitchen and living area. 

There are two room types here: chalet suites (bigger with more space) and normal suites (more like a hotel room). 

Each of the chalet suites is pretty spacious, with a kitchenette (mini fridge, microwave, toaster, no stovetop or oven), a seating area, and the bedrooms (some have two separate bedrooms!). 

The regular suites are a little more compact (and the price reflects that), and do not have those kitchenette amenities (though you’re able to use the common kitchen, just no using the oven or stove). 

Cabins and Cottages in the Woods

If a cabin in the woods is more your style (or you need a full kitchen, which is hard to come by at the lodges and resorts in Ashford), there are tons of options to choose from scattered around town. 

If you’re a couple, we’d head straight to this beautiful treehouse, which would be an incredibly unique place to stay and has a full kitchen and plenty of space. 

We’d also look at this charming A-Frame cabin, which is just outside of town on the south side of the road and has everything you need for a nice alpine getaway, or this modern cabin, which looks brand new, has a hot tub and some nice outdoor seating, and is in a similarly great location. 

If you’re traveling with a group, there are several great options near Ashford that we have saved to our own personal wishlist as we’ve written this guide. 

First is this cozy log cabin, which has two bedrooms (plus a sofa bed option) and can sleep 4-6 people and has all the modern amenities in a rustic-feeling environment. 

Second is this modern spacious house with three separate bedrooms, which is perfect for bigger groups and has a BBQ and hot tub in its outdoor patio area. 

Third is this charming farmhouse, which has two bedrooms and a whitewashed minimalist aesthetic with plenty of space, a full kitchen, and… a pool table in one of the bedrooms? 

Paradise Village: Lodge Rooms and Cabins

On the eastern edge of “town”, you’ll find Paradise Village, a nice little resort with a variety of room types to suit different group sizes and styles. 

What really caught our eye here is the newer cabins – both tiny homes (think the size of a shipping container) and bigger A-Frames – but we were a little disappointed to find that they don’t have full kitchens (there is, however, an onsite Ukrainian restaurant). 

They also have lodge rooms that are a little older (but still relatively new compared to, say, the Paradise Inn), and are surprisingly spacious. 

It should be noted that the lodge rooms and cabins DO NOT have full kitchens (they have a mini fridge and microwave, no stovetop or oven), so you’ll have to eat all of your meals out. 

Highway 410: The Best Access to Sunrise

As you get into planning your trip and you’re trying to figure out the best way to experience Sunrise, which is the highest part of the park that you can drive to on the eastern flank of Rainier, you’re likely to notice that there are basically zero places to stay aside from the campgrounds inside and just outside of the park. 

It’s true – if you’re not camping, Sunrise is difficult to access. Not as difficult as Mowich Lake (especially now that the bridge is out), but it’s definitely less accessible than Paradise. 

Generally speaking, you have two options here if you’re not up for camping.

“Commute” in from Packwood (or Ashford, but that’s a long commute!), or stay on the stretch of Highway 410 just outside of the park’s northern boundary, towards Crystal Mountain and Enumclaw. 

There aren’t very many places to stay, but there’s a really good resort, a few good forest service campgrounds, and a smattering of cabins tucked away in the woods to choose from that will give you great access to Sunrise. 

Pros and Cons of Staying Along Highway 410

Here are the pros and cons of staying along Highway 410 for exploring Mount Rainier National Park as we see them. 

Pros of Staying Along Highway 410

It has great access to Sunrise. While other places like Packwood and Ashford are 60-90 minutes from the visitor center at Sunrise, staying here means a shorter drive to and from the activities in the park (and even shorter to the Naches Peak Loop and Tipsoo Lake, pictured above, which you shouldn’t miss!). 

It’s pretty close to Seattle. It’s actually only somewhere between 90 minutes and two hours from Seattle (closer if you’re coming from the eastside), and you spend less time on I-5, which means you avoid the mess that is I-5 South anytime other than the middle of the night, for the most part. 

Cons of Staying Along Highway 410

There are only a few places to stay. As we mentioned, your options are basically limited to one resort, a few campgrounds, and a few cabins in the woods. 

It’s far from Paradise. From the boundary of the park to Paradise, it’s about an hour and 15 minutes, which means you’re realistically more like 90 minutes from where you’re staying to the visitor center.

Doable as a day trip, but it’d be better to stay in Ashford or Packwood to minimize drive time, if you can. 

There are ZERO amenities. Unlike Ashford and Packwood, which both have at least one gas station, coffee shop, and grocery store, there are ZERO amenities out here past Enumclaw (which is 30 minutes back the other direction).

Make sure to fuel up and grab groceries in Enumclaw, because there are also no restaurants out here. 

The Best Places to Stay Along Highway 410

As we mentioned, there aren’t really many options out here. Here they are. 

If you’re up for camping, we have camped at Silver Springs Campground just outside the park, and it’s great! 

Loge Alta Crystal: A Resort with Lodge Suites & Cabins

There is exactly one good option in terms of hotel-style resorts along this stretch, and it’s Loge Alta Crystal, which is across the road from Silver Springs Campground (where we’ve stayed – great location!) and has a range of cozy lodge rooms and chalets with more space. 

For what it’s worth, while we haven’t stayed here ourselves, we HAVE stayed at Loge’s Riverside location in Leavenworth and enjoyed it. 

The Lodge suites are comfortable and have full kitchens (which is good, because not many restaurants out here to choose from), but you can tell the rooms probably need a little TLC. 

The cabins are a little more spacious, with separate seating areas, bedrooms, and kitchens, and private hot tubs. 

The location along Highway 410 puts you about 40 minutes from the top of the road at Sunrise (and ~20 minutes from Tipsoo Lake), which will significantly cut down your travel time to get there and allow you to more easily be one of the first people on the trail. 

Vacation Rentals Along 410 near Greenwater

There are a handful of cabins clustered around the tiny town of Greenwater, which puts you about 50 minutes from the visitor center at Sunrise.

They’re generally more rustic than the options in Ashford or Packwood, but they are slightly closer to the activities at Sunrise. 

If you’re a couple, look at this comfortable studio apartment or this rustic cabin.  

If you’re traveling with a group, there are actually more options than there are for smaller units.

Look at this spacious home, which has a nice outdoor patio, a hot tub, a fire pit, and three separate bedrooms, or this pretty A-Frame, which has three bedrooms, a hot tub, and a fully fenced yard. 

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