Best Time to Visit Olympic National Park

Pick a month. Best months are in bold.

The best months to visit Olympic National Park are April, May and June — computed from official NPS visitation (2021–2025 average), NOAA weather normals and daylight. August is the crowd peak (625,799 monthly visits); January is quietest at 13% of peak.

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Best months for fewer crowds

The quietest months at Olympic, leaving out harsh weather and months when main access is typically closed.

Monthly crowd curve

Average monthly recreation visits, 2021–2025 (NPS Visitor Use Statistics). Amber bar = current month.

Olympic month by month

Crowds: NPS Visitor Use Statistics, mean of 2021–2025 (2020 excluded as a COVID-19 anomaly). Weather: NOAA 1991–2020 monthly normals, station QUINAULT 4 NE, WA US (13 mi from park coordinates). Daylight: computed for the 15th of each month at the park's location. Methodology.

How many people visit Olympic each year

Olympic National Park had 3,584,187 recreation visits in 2025, 4% fewer than 2024 (NPS Visitor Use Statistics). The busiest year since 2015 was 2024, with 3,717,267. Over 2021–2025 it averaged 3,080,172 visits a year, which makes it the 9th most-visited of the 63 national parks.

Calendar-year recreation visits as published by NPS Visitor Use Statistics. 2020 is shown here but left out of the monthly averages above, because the COVID-19 pandemic makes it unrepresentative. See how every park compares: all 63 parks ranked by visits.

What to pack for Olympic in April

Computed from April's weather normals — Olympic's best month above. Visiting another month? Each month page has its own weather-computed list.

• Warm mid-layer (fleece or light puffy) — mornings average 39°F
• Rain shell + pack cover — 12.4″ of precipitation is normal this month
• Waterproof boots — plus navigation and a basic first-aid kit — 12.4″ of precipitation is normal this month

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Common questions

Olympic month by month: notes from the park service

• January: In January, Hurricane Ridge is the center of Olympic's winter activity: the park service says snowshoeing, cross-country skiing and sledding draw visitors in the winter months, and the Hurricane Ridge Winter Sports Club runs two rope tows and a Poma lift when the weather allows. The road up can close at any time for weather, so check the alerts or call 360-565-3131 before you drive.
• March: March is still the reduced-service season at Olympic. The park service says some roads, campgrounds and other facilities are closed or have shorter hours from October through May, and that the busiest months are June through September, so you trade services for quiet.
• May: Spring at Olympic's Hurricane Ridge means wildflowers in the subalpine meadows and blacktail deer grazing among them, the park service says. The road to the ridge can still close at short notice for weather, and from October through May some of the park's roads, campgrounds and facilities are closed or keep shorter hours.
• June: Mid-June is when Obstruction Point Road usually opens at Olympic: the park service lists it as open from mid-June through October 15, weather and snow permitting. It branches off at the entrance to the Hurricane Ridge parking area and leads to more trailheads.
• July: In July, the easy way up to Olympic's Hurricane Ridge may be the bus: Clallam Transit runs a special summer route between downtown Port Angeles and the ridge, which the park service says is a popular summer destination where planning ahead helps avoid crowds. If you camp, Heart O' the Hills, with 105 sites in old-growth forest, is the closest campground; Port Angeles, 17 miles north, has the lodging.
• August: August at Olympic's Hurricane Ridge brings ridgetop walks and steeper trails down to subalpine lakes and valleys, and Obstruction Point Road open (mid-June to October 15, weather permitting) for more of them. The park service notes the Day Lodge was lost to fire, so plan on fewer services at the top.
• September: September follows Olympic's most popular months, July and August. The park says snow can appear in the high country as early as late September, temperatures start to drop and rain increases, and some campgrounds and roads begin closing for winter.
• October: October starts Olympic's reduced season: the park service says that from October through May some roads, campgrounds and visitor facilities close or cut hours. Obstruction Point Road, open from mid-June, closes on October 15, weather permitting, and Hurricane Ridge Road can close at any time for weather.
• November: Plan November at Olympic around road closures. The park service says some roads, campgrounds and facilities close or cut their hours from October through May, and its road page (updated November 3, 2026) lists Hurricane Ridge, Obstruction Point and Deer Park roads as closed, while Sol Duc, Upper Hoh and Staircase roads are open.
• December: December at Olympic is in the park's October-to-May stretch, when the park service says some roads, campgrounds and facilities close or cut their hours. The road to Hurricane Ridge can close at any time for weather, and both it and the visitor centers are closed on Christmas Day.

Each month page carries the full note and the NPS page it comes from.

Dive into a month

Comparing parks for the same trip? See how Olympic ranks against all 63 parks in April, May and June.

Last verified 2026-09-24 · all parks