As local Washingtonians, we made it our mission to explore every Washington Beach that the stunning Washington Coast has to offer and explore the nearby forest and little towns that call the Pacific Coast home.
So join us as we uncover the beautiful salty waters of the expansive Pacific Ocean. We’ll also make sure to come back and edit this post with our new finds! So far we have visited over 10 beaches in Washington and these 11 are our favorites!
This post is all about the best beaches in Washington and what you can find while visiting them and things to do while in the area. we hope you enjoy reading our guide to the Best Sandy Beaches and Rocky Beaches in Washington!
The Most Popular Beaches Along The Washington Coast
- Long Beach
- Ocean Shores
- Rialto Beach
- La Push Beach
- Ruby Beach
- Kalaloch Beach
- Alki Beach
- Rosario Beach
- Seabrook Beach
- Golden Gardens
- Lincoln Park
Now For The Most Beautiful Washington Beaches
*Please make sure to double-check hours for parks and for random closures before heading to a beach as they happen randomly.*
Long Beach Peninsula, Long Beach
Long Beach is situated in far southwest Washington and has excellent connectivity with the vast Long Beach peninsula. This 28-mile sand beach is surrounded by quiet beaches. Alongside an abundance of opportunities in the salt water, this region has five state parks.
This state park’s crown jewel, Cape Disarray was located south of the peninsula and failed to live up to its title. The Long Beach Boardwalk runs a quarter mile from downtown and provides excellent views of the ocean.
Furthermore, the boardwalk provides an excellent view of the Washington State Kite Festival. If you have time to stay we recommend booking a room in this cute little vacation town!
Things to do in Long Beach:
- You can rent bikes and take a ride through the beach stretches such as the discovery trail.
- Go bird watching!
- Explore the beach by horse rides! Such a fantastic experience and it was relatively cheap.
- Head on over to North Head Lighthouse a spooky and rumored haunted place 👀. It’s a quick 13 minute drive from Long Beach to get to Cape Disappointment area which is where it’s located.
- Get some fantastic seafood; the Long Beach is known for its bountiful seafood assortment; we recommend the oysters, salmon, or clams since they are locally gathered.
Ocean Shores: Best Beach in Washington
Ocean Shore has an idyllic coastal town about 2.5 hours away from Seattle. This vast section of ocean waters draws everyone to the Pacific Coast and is an excellent location to go fishing for families or on romantic excursions. Everyday activity at the beach includes kite flying, sand-dollar hunting & generally relaxing when waves hit the shoreline.
Other ways of enjoying surfing can be found in the community like guided horse rides, boat rentals, and charter fishing excursions. The street of Ocean Shore offers entertainment as a charming shopping district and a local gastronomy venue. The North Jetty provides a nice place in Ocean Shores to watch large waves work on their jobs.
Ocean Shores is a gorgeous sandy beach and also coincidently what we consider the best beach in Washington! It’s located in an amazing central area that can be reached from Olympia National Park fairly easily or if you’re coming from the Oregon coastline it’s also pretty close!
Also, if you’re not a fan of walking in the sand for long distances or don’t like crowds, this beach just like Long Beach is drivable. Also, there are a ton of hidden spots for beach access, in case you want to avoid crowds or find better parking.
Things to do in Ocean Shores:
- Grab some delicious food at the local restaurants, they have killer seafood and even better burgers.
- Have a baby campfire (make sure to follow rules) we love sitting back in our camping chairs and roasting hotdogs and smores over the little campfires we make. It’s definitely a vibe and helps when the harsh wind becomes a bit much.
- Become a kid again and go kite flying! It’s pretty windy at Washington beaches so kite flying is always a popular activity on ocean shores.
Rialto Beach
Rialto Beach is pretty close to the nearby La Push Beaches: First Beach, Second Beach, and Third Beach. It’s fairly secluded and cell reception is hard to come by when driving along the forest routes. However, the beautiful views of the Washington coast make it totally worth being left to your own thoughts as you stumble upon the rocky shores that are littered with impressive sea stacks.
When you’re done exploring Rialto Beach, head on over to La Push its a quick drive!
La Push Beaches Near Forks:
La Push is 13 miles west of Fork and is a little fishing community at the edge of the Quillayute River. Quileute residents operate commercial salmon fishing operations from the reservation that includes La Push and its surrounding communities.
Loved for its raw and untamed beaches, La Push attracts surfers and sea kayakers that are very interested in riding the stunning Pacific Waves, particularly during February, and whale-watchers during the spring season.
We swear we didn’t just add this soft sand beach because its name is featured in Twilight … La Push beach is actually a nickname gained from the Twilight series, but the real name of the beach is the first beach.
This beach is actually situated on a reservation, specifically the Quileute reservation. It was closed to the public for a while but it finally reopened to the public a few summers ago. This beach reminds of us foggy ruins with its distressed driftwood and enormous rocky cliffs.
Things To Do at the La Push Beaches:
- Stay at a cabin near the waterfront, and enjoy the world at its rawest: no electronics just natural beauty and sounds. Sit back and enjoy the spectacular sunset over this must-see gorgeous beach.
- Go beachcombing, you never know what you’ll find at this wild beach ?
- Enjoy water sports, the locals and tourists love to go kayaking or surfboarding!
- Go hiking through the nature trails and visit the other beaches in the area such as the second beach.
- You can either hed backwards and make way to Rialto Beach or go further north to see Ruby beach and Kalaloch beach.
Ruby Beach
Ruby Beach is just stunning and I’m so glad we made the trip out to visit this absolutely breathtaking view! I have to say the best part about making the trip out to this neck of the woods, is that there’s various large rocks that have had had holes carved into them from the natural aggressions of the rough waters.
Just be careful as when the tide starts to rise the waves can smack into you at a moments notice so it can be pretty dangerous during this time. We suggest watching the waves from a safer spot instead and visiting during low tide.
Things To Do At Ruby Beach
- Go Whale Watching!
- Admire the Sea Stacks but be careful and don’t try to climb them.
Kalaloch Beach:
Kalaloch is home to seven beautiful beaches that each varies from another ever so slightly. Located in the Olympic National Park near Forks Washington, lies the Tree of life. The Tree of life is the main tourist landmark that everyone should drive out to see as soon as possible because the tree is holding on for dear life. This beach is our must-visit again for our Washington state beaches lists!
Things to do in Kalaloch beach:
- Visit the tree of life which is an amazing and unique tree that almost seems like it’s suspended in air rather than gripping onto the edges that hold it. The roots create a tree root cave above the ground and are short of a miracle since we still have no clue how this tree is living when it has almost no sources of nutrients.
- Visit destruction island lighthouse a cute lighthouse full of history
- Discover tide pools, they are pretty cool to see! they also contribute to the beauty of this sandy beach.
- Visit the nearby Pacific beaches Ruby Beach or Rialto Beach when you are done!
Alki Beach
Alka Beach is an amazing beach for a good reason. This West Seattle beach park defines summer in city life. Alki Beach has more than a million swimmers in its swimwear during the extended summer season. Activities that we all enjoy include sand volleyball, blanketing, and bonfires at the beach.
The Olympic Mountains and Puget Sound back up to beach landscapes, as do regular ferry and boat fleets. A walking trail leads through the Park and is popular with joggers, cyclists, and strollers. South of Alki Beach Park, Alki Point Lighthouse offers good photography opportunities and potentially guided tour opportunities.
This popular sandy beach in West Seattle is probably most notable for its gorgeous view of the Seattle skyline. This view is both perfect on a sunny day and at night time.
Alki beach is pretty small, compared to most other beaches, but you can get some awesome photos of the sunset or of the Seattle skyline. Some popular activities at Alki beach are kayaking, flying kites, and sunbathing.
Plus if you’re in the mood for coffee, bubble tea, beer, mixed drinks, ice cream, burgers, pizza, pasta, or fish and chips, there are a ton of options for you to try located conveniently right on Alki Ave.
There’s a unique lighthouse that you can tour during tour periods that run during the summer or you can even catch the Seattle water taxi at Alki beach park and be taken directly to downtown Seattle to have some more Seattle fun. All in all, Alki is one of our favorite ocean
Things To Do at Alki Beach:
- Visit the lighthouse and snap some sunset photos with it. (Summer Time Only)
- Explore Alki during the later evening when it’s the liveliest, you’ll find dance classes and beach bar hopping to be very popular around this time of the day. ‘
- Go kayaking near Salty’s Restaurant and then grab some yummy food at Salty’s traditional seafood and American entrees or marination which offers Hawaiian-Asian fusion food!
- If you have time and spend a couple of days in the Seattle area, we recommend stopping at Lake Washington. While it’s not a beach, it’s an amazing lake that a ton of locals visit.
Rosario Beach, Deception Pass State Park
More than 2 billion visitors per year agree that deception passes are Washingtons’ greatest state park. It spans Whidbey and Fidalgo Island in Puget Sound connected by Deception Pass Bridge. Rosario Beach offers great swimming pools with great views over the ocean and a hiking path along the shoreline.
Rosario beaches actually include two beaches at each end, Rosario Head. Both sections of the northern curved coast feature rugged shorelines capped by driftwoods that encircle them.
Moreover, the beaches offer good tide pools near Rosario Head. A looped walking path takes you from Rosary Head to a beautiful spot overlooking the Puget River & Deception Pass Bridge.
This beach is located in deception pass state park and is a beautiful park that offers a variety of natural occurrences such as the commonly found driftwood that litter Washington beaches, and tide pools.
This beach feels more in tune with mother earth out of all the beaches in Washington we’ve been to, and we think it’s because of the rustic no-nonsense neatness that other beaches have and this one avoids.
Things to do in Rosario beach deception pass:
- take a photo with the rustic picnic tables that have been at this park for ages.
- Go wildlife watching and see sea animals, birds, and land animals via the hidden hikes in this area.
Seabrook Beach
This is a newer town in Washington and we were so surprised to see all the tastefully developed houses and the community in this hidden part of Washington. Since this little Washington beach is relatively new, we would recommend staying the night in one of the hotels and rentals they offer to really get a feel of the town.
Things to do at Seabrook:
- Get delicious food in a town where they have wood-fired pizzas, street hot dogs that taste divine, and gourmet ice cream.
- Go Whale watching!
- Take a ghost forest tour! this looks so cool!
Golden Gardens Park, Seattle
Golden Garden is a popular beach on Puget Sound in Ballard, Many things attract people from around the world, especially sand beaches. In addition to the usual beach lounging, there are some sandy activities like volleyball and fire.
The breathtaking views of Puget Sound remind us of the reason we wrote this guide. Visitors enjoy the beauty of the cement promenaded shoreline. The park includes wetland areas as well as trails for walking through the beautiful surroundings. Expect large crowds along the beach during the Summer weekend.
This beach is located in North Seattle and has a lot to offer from small hiking trails, beach volleyball, kayak rentals, bonfires, picnic tables and grills, hand-carry and motorized boat launches, and fishing piers. The park consists of sandy areas, ponds, wetlands, beach volleyball courts, 300′ of shoreline, and a 1-acre off-leash dog area.
Things to do in Golden Gardens Park:
- This beach is where all the college students go, it was a favorite of ours while attending college and is the funniest on weekends or late summer evenings.
- Play some sand sports like beach volleyball!
- Head over to Lake Washington or Lake Union!
- Grab some yummy food that is not too far from the beach. Variety of food types such as Asian, America, Mexican, and more
Lincoln Park
This beach park features wooded areas, baseball fields, trails, picnic tables, grills, a small playground, an outdoor heated saltwater pool, and of course some shorelines filled with rocks, driftwood, and sand.
This park is a must for people who love the outdoors. Whether you like bike riding, fishing, hiking, picnicking, playing, or simply taking a stroll this park offers it all and more!
Things To Do in Lincoln Park:
- We used to take our pets walking here all the time when we lived nearby, its a great park/beach because of the forest area of trails tucked away and defined pathways near the waterfront
- Get down with some barbecue! this beach always has a large number of parties and get-togethers.
Commonly Asked Questions for Beaches in Washington:
Does Washington have good beaches?
Of course! While beaches in Washington aren’t going to be your typical sunny tropical vibes beaches that the Caribbean or Hawaii have, they are still amazing in their own way. Washington beaches come in a variety of types such as rocky beaches, sandy beaches, wild and natural beaches, and man-made beaches such as Alki beach.
What is the most popular beach in Washington State?
This is definitely up for debate and depends on who you ask, we believe Ocean Shores is the best beach but also love Kalloch beach for its unique tree of life. While others will defend Owen beach as the number one beach, honestly we just don’t see it as being the steller and we’ve been there. Owen Beach is situated in the Puget sound and is a sandy beach that offers amazing views, especially at sunset.
Are there swimmable beaches in Washington State?
There a swimmable beaches like Alki, Long Beach, and others, the water is very cold in the Pacific Northwest so you’ve been forewarned. The non-swimmable locations would be beaches such as La push where the water is too wild and the currents are strong.
Are there sandy beaches in Washington?
Most definitely there are sandy beaches, wild Washington has an abundance of rocky and wild beaches. it also has a few sandy beaches which are absolutely beautiful, ocean shores, and long beach are among our favorite sandy beaches.
Washington Beaches Wrap Up!
For now, that wraps up what we have found to be the best beaches in Washington! We hope you enjoyed this post and if you did make sure to share it on social media for us ☺️.
I would like to visit most of these, but I would prioritize the ones with a lighthouse! It would be so cool to photograph at sunset. Thank you for putting this together, well done!
I loved these recommendations! 🙂