There are so many best things to do in Port Townsend, WA that I’m surprised it took me so long to actually visit this historic Victorian town on the Olympic Peninsula. It has a ton of cute shops and beautiful views of the Puget Sound and Whidbey Island in the distance. Plus there are a lot of restaurants, wineries, breweries, and walking trails just begging to be explored.
So if you’re curious about what there is to do in Port Townsend, consider this your ultimate guide!
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Port Townsend is on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington state, right at the mouth of the Puget Sound. It was inhabited by the S’Klallam tribe until the late 1700s when white folks came and claimed ownership.
Originally called “Townshend”, the young community considered itself the “New York of the West”. It was a bustling seaport that made a deal with the Oregon Improvement Company, a subsidiary of the Union Pacific Railroad, to route its line from the Columbia River to Port Townsend. As a result, people flocked to the area and built an impressive Victorian waterfront district.
However, the railroad company decided to end its route in Seattle. This made the population in Port Towsend fall and the city become just shy of a ghost town. Luckily the area was refurbished in the mid 1950s thanks to the efforts of the Jefferson County Historical Society, which you can visit today to learn more about the area during your visit. History Link is another good resource for a more in depth look at Port Townsend’s history and Indigenous people.
Nowadays the area is a quaint seaside town with vibrantly restored Victorian buildings filled with charming boutiques, restaurants, and drinking establishments. It’s not very big, so it’s the perfect day trip or overnight stay on your way to Olympic National Park.
Getting to Port Townsend
There are two ways to get to Port Townsend. Both take about 2 hours without traffic, so when you plan to visit should dictate which route you take.
If it’s rush hour, consider driving north from Seattle to Edmonds to take the ferry. You’ll be going against everyone driving in for work and it’ll be smooth sailing. You don’t need a reservation for the ferry and it shouldn’t be too crowded on a weekday. Get there about 35 minutes before your departure if it’s a summer weekend, though.
The other option is to drive around the Puget Sound through Tacoma. It’s about 100 miles farther, but it takes about the same time given the lack of ferry. We did this on our way back from Port Townsend in the evening because there was no traffic. Check Google Maps at the time you plan to leave to determine if this route is feasible.
Things to Do in Port Townsend
Here are my favorite things to do in Port Townsend, Washington. You can easily fit this into a day trip, or stay the night to explore the nearby Washington coast attractions.
Explore the quaint downtown shops
It’s fun to spend a few hours meandering along Port Townsend’s main street. It sits right on the water so you get beautiful views while surrounded by stunning Victorian architecture. As you meander, consider stopping at some of these historic buildings on a self-guided walking tour.
The beauty of this activity is popping into shops that catch your eye, but make sure not to miss:
- Port Townsend Gallery for beautiful work from local Pacific Northwest artists
- Mike Biskup’s art stand next to Dogs-a-Foot
- Conservatory Coastal Home for beachy home goods
Visit Fort Worden State Park
This is one of my absolute favorite things to do in Port Townsend, Washington. Fort Worden State Park has more than 430 acres of forest and beach right along the coast. It used to be a military base, but now you’ll find 12 miles of forested hiking trails and 2 miles of walkable beaches. There are also 73 historic buildings dotting the grounds.
Don’t miss Point Wilson Lighthouse at the tip of the park. Across the way you’ll see Fort Casey, one of my favorite places to visit on Whidbey Island.
Another not-miss attraction at Fort Worden are the artillery batteries. There are a bunch on Artillery Hill that you need to hike to, but Battery Kinzie is near the lighthouse and accessible from a small parking lot in front of it.
I was absolutely obsessed with Battery Kinzie.
It has intense ghost hunter vibes, which both scares and thrills me. In fact, I saw a group of guys with a bunch of gear that looked like ghostbuster packs and had a small inner melt down. Thankfully I realized they were just there to play laser tag.
How they could muster the courage to run around this fort is beyond me. There are a bunch of halls barely wide enough to walk straight that create a maze through the battery in complete darkness. I had an actual panic attack in one when my dad and boyfriend played a trick on me that resulted in us standing in the middle of one in total darkness. In retrospect I loved the memory, but at the time it was definitely intense!
If tunnels aren’t your thing you can also stay on the outskirts and climb to the second story to get some views of the water. That’s where I stayed after our incident, so no judgement!
Fun fact: You can stay at Fort Worden! They turned the historic buildings into one of the most unique hotels in Washington state.
Eat at the best restaurants
There are quite a few restaurants in and around Port Townsend. Here are the best ones I tried.
Finistére
website | 1025 Lawrence St | best for: finer dining and happy hour
Finistére was the one restaurant everyone I knew kept recommending. Well, the people are right, this place is awesome and a restaurant worth the drive from Seattle.
Owners Scott Ross and Deborah Taylor have more than a decade of high-end restaurant experience in New York and Seattle. For example, chef Taylor worked at Canlis and Staple & Fancy while front of house manager Ross was at Tilth and Goldfinch Tavern. They moved to Port Townsend from Seattle to start their own restaurant after falling in love with the quaint town.
You’ll find farm-to-table food with a slight Italian bend thanks to the consistent presence of excellent homemade pasta on the menu. Reservations for indoor and outdoor dining are available for dinner, but the best time to visit is as a walk in during happy hour. When it’s nice out the patio has great English garden ambiance and you can get menu items for a steep discount.
I can’t recommend what to get because the menu changes regularly, but you really can do no wrong here. I liked every single dish we ordered and was amazed we spent under $65 for 3 people. That pricing is unheard of in Seattle!
Pane d’Amore Artisan Bakery
website | 617 Tyler St | best for: pizza and bread
You probably won’t stumble on this quaint bakery because it’s off the main drag, but you should make a point to stop here. It has a locals only feel and is serving excellent bread goods.
My favorite items were the Parmesan cheesy bread and pizza. Even served cold, the pizza was so flavorful. It reminds me of the Roman style you get on the streets of Italy, cut into squares and served with interesting Mediterranean flavors.
Note they also have a location on Bainbridge Island. Their Instagram handle references Bainbridge and confused me, so I thought I’d mention in case you find it confusing too!
Elevated Ice Cream
website | 627 Water St | best for: ice cream and candy
Elevated is part ice cream shop, part candy store. On the one side you’ll see a bunch of confections that would make any kid drool. The other side has a case full of homemade ice cream. They use local ingredients and only natural food coloring. For example, their mint chocolate chip is green thanks to chlorophyll, not food coloring.
If available, get the coffee flavor. It’s not mild like other coffee ice creams, but instead tastes like real coffee with flecks of espresso. It also has a great, creamy consistency perfect for a warm day.
Hillbottom Pie
website | 215 Tyler St | best for: pies
This restaurant is tucked off a side street across from the small plaza in downtown Port Townsend with bistro tables overlooking a small beach. While they serve pizza, my favorite thing at this spot is their pies. You’ll fine a rotation of apple, cherry, peach, and more made with the flakiest, butteriest crust. It’s fun to grab a slice to go and sit by the beach taking in the views.
Enjoy Better Living Through Coffee by the beach
website | 100 Tyler St | best for: fresh roasted coffee
Better Living Through Coffee roasts its own coffee using Fair Trade beans from areas like Nicaragua and Sumatra. I love how their menu says whether the coffee is a light or dark roast, as all of my favorite small batch roasters in Seattle are light to medium roast.
Their location also can’t be beat. It’s right in that small plaza with bistro tables by the beach, so you can grab a cup to go and take in the views.
Go wine, beer, or cider tasting
Port Townsend has a cider loop and a bunch of wineries and breweries. Here are some of my favorites.
Propolis Brewing
website | 2457 Jefferson St | best for: farmhouse ales
A visit to Propolis is one of my favorite things to do in Port Townsend. They’re located in a warehouse so you may think the ambiance will be womp womp, but they’ve transformed their outdoor area into a cool urban garden full of wild plants. The vibe is on brand given the type of beer they brew.
Their beers are farmhouse style with a healthy dose of funky sour or grassy flavors. Owners Piper Corbett & Robert Horner source 100% organic malted barley and wheat, then concoct interesting brews using local organic herbs and fruits.
Most of their beers are of the saison or dubbel variety. Saisons are generally more crisp, light, and refreshing while dubbels are darker and maltier. You’ll find styles on the menu that include chamomile, spruce, sage, blackberry, mushroom, juniper, and bourbon. If you’re a true beer nerd or want to taste styles you don’t often see at Seattle breweries, you’ll love this place!
Port Townsend Vineyards
website | 725 Water St (downtown tasting room) or 2640 W Sims Way (winery) | best for: estate wines
Port Townsend Vineyards grows grapes right in the area and turns them into lovely Old World-style varietals. They make everything from a beautifully crisp Roussanne white as well as bold and earthy Cabernet Sauvignon.
You can taste them at their tasting room called Vintage right in downtown Port Townsend. The inside is beautiful and there’s a large outdoor patio with beautiful water views.
Note they only serve bottles and glasses at the downtown tasting room. If you want to try a flight, head to their winery about 10 minutes outside of town.
Finnriver Farm & Cidery
website | 124 Center Rd | best for: cider
You’ve probably seen Finnriver selling bottles at some of the best Seattle farmers markets. Well, you can visit their home operation a little bit outside of Port Townsend. They grow all their own organic apples, grains, and even blueberries and other vegetables. You’ll also find a deep commitment to the land and Indigenous people who came before them.
If you’re interested in checking out other spots on the Port Townsend cider loop, check out Eaglemount and Alpenfire.
Gawk at the historic Victorian homes
There is a lot of Victorian architecture beyond downtown Port Townsend in the surrounding residential streets. Follow this walking map, or take a drive up Monroe and Madison Streets from Water Street.
Go on a hike
Port Townsend and the surrounding area have a lot of easy to moderate hikes. Fort Worden State Park is home to a few of them, but you’ll also find them at Fort Townsend State Park and even Port Ludlow about 30 minutes south.
All Trails has a list of trails in the area. One that intrigues me is the hike to Glass Beach. We didn’t end up doing it because reports made it sound a touch sketchy trying to navigate the moderate hike while timing it with low tide so you don’t get trapped, but I’m definitely hoping to check it out sometime soon all in the name of collecting cool sea glass pieces.
Map of what to do in Port Townsend
Here’s my Google Map outlining the things to do in Port Townsend I talked about in this post, as well as other ideas on my list to try!
Things to do near Port Townsend
Looking for more adventures? Here are places on the way or near Port Townsend that you may be interested in.
- Eat at the best edmonds restaurants before getting on the ferry
- Explore things to do in Tacoma, WA if you drive around the Sound
- Stop at Tacoma’s best restaurants while you’re at it!
- Forage oysters at Hama Hama Oysters a little ways south
- Visit the nearby Washington coast attractions within an hour’s drive
- Explore the unique things to do in Victoria, BC by jumping on the ferry from Port Angeles
Overwhelmed by travel planning?
Delegate the work to me. I’m a licensed travel planner and would be happy to create the perfect itinerary for visiting Port Townsend or other areas around the Pacific Northwest. Most people spend 15-30 hours planning a trip, but you can claim that time back and stick to the best parts of travel: experiencing it all!
