Take caution and check for road closures due to wildfires in the North Cascades.

Bellingham

Located on Bellingham Bay with Mount Baker as its backdrop, Bellingham is the last major city before the Washington coastline meets the Canadian border. It’s 85 miles north of Seattle and 50 miles south of Vancouver, B.C.

Named a “Best Place To Play Year Round” and “Adventure Town USA," Bellingham is best known for its outdoor recreation (from the Cascade Mountains to the Salish Sea), world-class brews, and a community that favors locally sourced entertainment, food, and experiences.

Things to Do in Bellingham

Bellingham has an active waterfront port that supports fishing, charter cruises, leisure boating, boatbuilding, shipping and marina operations. It’s also big with paddlers.

Squalicum Harbor is the second largest in Puget Sound, with 1,900 pleasure and commercial boats moored. 

From Bellingham’s ports, passenger ferries leave for cruises around Bellingham and Chuckanut Bays to the San Juan Islands, either for whale watching or beer, wine, history and/or sunset cruises.

Bellingham is home to Western Washington University! For 25 years in a row, it has been ranked as one of the top public, master’s granting universities in the Pacific Northwest, ranking second in 2024.

Western's campus features a sweeping view across the bay to the San Juan Islands, a highly regarded outdoor art and sculpture collection, and nearby trails at Sehome Hill Arboretum

More Bellingham Itineraries & Trip Ideas

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        We acknowledge that Whatcom County is located on the unceded territory of the Coast Salish Peoples. They cared for the lands that included what we’d call the Puget Sound region, Vancouver Island and British Columbia since time immemorial. This gives us the great obligation and opportunity to learn how to care for our surrounding areas and all the natural and human resources we require to live. We express our deepest respect and gratitude for our indigenous neighbors, the Lummi Nation and Nooksack Tribe, for their enduring care and protection of our shared lands and waterways.
Bellingham Whatcom County Tourism
Visitor Center Located at I-5 Exit 253 - Check Hours
904 Potter Street, Bellingham, WA 98229
Phone: 360-671-3990
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