I was fortunate enough to be able to visit Leavenworth Washington in January with the girls and do multiple things I’ve never done before! I love love love snow trips and hadn’t been on one in awhile. I used to go skiing with my family when I was younger so this brought back so many fond memories for me. We worked with the city of Leavenworth and stayed right in town so everything was pretty much walkable. It’s the most charming town that leaves their Christmas lights up until Valentine’s Day! It’s about 2.5 hours east of Seattle, so we flew into Seattle, rented a car, grabbed lunch and then headed out. I had never been to Washington state so this was such a great first experience. Renting a car is probably the best thing to do. It was so easy to get around town to go to our activities (everything is 5-10 minutes away). They do have an Amtrak that goes to Leavenworth, but this was more time friendly. Leavenworth is a town I would have never thought to plan a trip too, but now that we went, I cannot wait to bring my family back. Yes, it’s so family friendly! There were a lot of children there, and they could really have done everything that we did. Here are a few things we did, and a few things I wish we could have done, but next time right?!
5 Things to Do
Sleigh Rides
One of the highlights of my trip for sure! This amazing farm where the owners have lived for nearly 40 years and raised their children in a one room cabin! They started out in a tepee, then a small cabin and finally built a larger house on the property. You get to ride around the property and learn about the family for about 45 minutes. You’ll see the horses, lots of dogs, other animals and see the wedding venue as well.
Snowshoeing
Another first for us! This was such a great tour, we chose ours at the National Fish Hatchery, and our tour was a little longer at about 2 hours, but you go slow and at your own pace. You have a tour guide who stopped to show animal tracks, different trees and even poured us hot chocolate. We LOVED this! Dress in ski attire for this sport, but get your snowshoes at the fish hatchery. $12/person. To reserve call Katie Churchwell at (509) 548-0181 ext. 3, AmeriCorps@WenatcheeRiverInstitute.org
Cross Country Skiing
There are multiple trails you can take for cross country skiing but the Enzian Inn gave us the Icicle River Trail as their favorite place and it was very easy to get too and the trails were doable as well! None of us have been cross country skiing, so it was a very much do at your own pace sport. It costs $15 for the day, and the grounds are so nice. Make sure you drive past the trail entrance and see all the cabins!
Reindeer Farm
We saw this on the way to our sleigh rides and didn’t have enough time to go but I’m so bummed we didn’t! I’ll definitely have to go back with the kids. The tours run through June, so this isn’t just a winter activity. See more information here.
Wineries/distilleries/brewery
The town of Leavenworth had quite a few places to visit and taste wine and liquors. We visited one, the Goose Ridge Tasting Room and it was so amazing. Try the Pinot Grigio if you like white. The bottle was $20! We wished we could have gone to the Blue Spirits Distillery that’s separate, past the town, on HYW2 but we didn’t get too. This would be fun to do as a girls’ trip or with your partner. The Icicle Brewing house was a great time too-get the pretzel! It’s a huge place, and make sure you don’t “ring the bell” like I did. Because then you have to buy everyone shots.
Where to Stay
We stayed at the Enzian Inn which was very affordable, with amazing views, and charming, quiet rooms. A huge breakfast buffet is included each day for two hours so we were able to fill up on this each morning before we headed out. This is great if you’re traveling with other people and you’re on different sleep schedules, and easy with kids and it’s a money saver! Also, a huge plus, if you want to go cross country skiing just ask the front desk and they will give you all your gear complimentary. This is a huge saving compared to ski resorts in other states!
Where to Eat
Tumwater bakery
Mozart’s
Icicle Brew House
Whistlepunk Ice Cream
What to Wear
You can see my full blog post here on what to wear on ski trips, but we had very good weather for the month of January. It’s usually about 12 degrees with much more snow, and we had 37 degree weather with a little snow. Enough that the ground was definitely covered, but not many feet like they were used too! It was very mild and very doable for walking about the town. When we skied we were even taking off our jackets. You need to be prepared with hats, gloves and waterproof snow boots, but you won’t be freezing if you dress like this!
**So much thanks to the city of Leavenworth and the Enzian Inn for hosting us**