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Although Seattle is one of America's most likeable and vibrant cities, well worth a few days of anybody's time, perhaps its greatest asset for visitors is its proximity to the glorious rural scenery of Puget Sound . The islands here are stepping stones to the Olympic Peninsula to the west, whose mountains are home to rare elk and lush vegetation that merges into rainforest, and whose wilderness beaches have remained unchanged for centuries. The Olympic National Park , which occupies the bulk of the peninsula, is dazzling, and a hike along one of its clearly laid-out trails can be a highlight of any trip. Just make sure that you don't mind the wet, often stormy weather of western Washington, which only offers predictably warm temperatures and blue skies during the summer.

Not quite as rainy as the mountains to the northeast, the southern coast is flatter and more accessible but not as appealing, littered with industrial towns and glum holiday resorts. The nearest worthwhile destination lies a few hours east, where you can marvel at the wasted volcanic scenery of Mount St Helens .

Much drier and more desolate, the sprawling prairie-plateau that makes up most of eastern Washington is a long, slow grind with little of interest, though if a cross-country trek takes you through Spokane , the Grand Coulee Dam is worth a detour. Otherwise you're only likely to come out here if you're traveling the Cascade loop, a memorable 400-mile round-trip through the stunning Cascade Mountains .

Seattle is well served by both trains and buses . Amtrak (tel 1-800-USA-RAIL, ) runs its Coast Starlight train once daily south to LA, while its Cascades line runs four times per day south to Eugene, Oregon, and north to Vancouver in British Columbia. Amtrak's daily Empire Builder route heads east (to Chicago), just as Greyhound (tel 1-800/229-9424) provides bus service east across the Cascades to Spokane and beyond, with other routes to Wenatchee (for Chelan), Ellensburg, Yakima and Walla Walla. Areas not covered by Greyhound are usually accessible on local buses, though this can be time-consuming and inconvenient.

Getting to and along the coast is more difficult and requires some planning. Ferries from Seattle shuttle across to Winslow, on Bainbridge Island , from where Kitsap Transit services link with Jefferson Transit for access to Port Angeles, Port Townsend and Olympic National Park. In the Seattle and Puget Sound area, ferries (mostly run by Washington State Ferries; Washington: tel 206/464-6400 or 1-888/808-7977; British Columbia: tel 250/381-1551, ) are a reliable and enjoyable method of getting to such places as Whidbey Island and the San Juan Islands. There are also long-distance services, to Canada from Seattle, Anacortes and Port Angeles, and to Alaska from Bellingham.

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