Road Tripping from Seattle To Glacier
The road trip from Seattle to Glacier National Park is not too long surprisingly, despite driving through 3 different states!
The trip is only ~9 hours with great views!
I personally don’t love driving and really do hold onto the belief that the journey should be as great as the destination, so I made the trip over 4 days but made plenty of stops. If you are thinking of visiting Glacier from Seattle, here is a great itinerary for your trip!
Stopping at North Cascades!
Seattle -> North Cascades National Park (2.5 - 3.0 hours)
If you plan on driving everything in just a day, I would still recommend making this stop through North Cascades National Park as it is beautiful! This will be a little bit of a detour and add about 2 - 3 hours onto the total length of the trip, but hey, you’re going to Glacier so you must already like the outdoors, so why not visit another National Park?
I stayed 3 nights in the North Cascades and spent a good amount of time hiking and climbing. I camped those 3 nights right outside the east side of the Park. Check out my post on where to camp here!
Shot of Coeur D’Alene, taken from Cruise America
North Cascades -> Coeur D’Alene (5.5 - 6.5 hours)
You could send it all the way to Glacier of course, but why not break up the drive and spend a day in beautiful Coeur D’alene! If it is really hot, this is a perfect stop as you can go visit the beautifully refreshing lake. We camped one night here and stayed on a forest service road for free (Idaho Panhandle National Forest).
Coeur D’Alene -> Missoula (2.5 - 3.0 hours)
I had to stop by Missoula to pick up friends at the airport who were joining us for Glacier but were not apart of the roadtrip yet. I think that Missoula is also just a nice place to stop by if you haven’t been before. I had a few hours to kill so I spent time at their local climbing gym, gear shop, fabric store and simply walked around. Of course, if you don’t need to pick up people, or there is no real need to stop by Missoula, send it straight to Glacier and it will be about ~4.0 - 5.0 hours
West Entrance of Glacier!
Missoula -> Glacier (3.0 - 5.0 hours)
The last leg of the trip depends on where in Glacier you are visiting. The west entrance will be the closest and easiest to get to. The east entrance will add about 1.0 - 2.0 hours to the trip. Make sure you know which entrance your plans require you to go in through!
Garden Wall Hike with the Crew!
Overall, the trip can vary significantly and really depends on whether you have a few days to spare. Whichever way you choose to go, you will be greeted with great views and beautiful scenery!
I hope you enjoy your time in Glacier!
