Family travel in Washington

States Inn and Ranch, San Juan Island, Washington State (courtesy woodleywonderworks on Flickr CC)Every Tuesday until we run out of states, I plan to post about family-friendly travel ideas, attractions and events in each one of the US states, taking input mostly from Twitter and Facebook.

We’re going in alphabetical order but started with the end, so our first state for the series was Wyoming, then we investigated Wisconsin and West Virginia and now we’re moving on to….the state of Washington!

You can find their state tourism folks on Twitter at @ExperienceWA and here is their Travel and Tourism Facebook page.

When I asked for input, here’s what came in (no one responded on Facebook….)

Twitter Travel Tips for Washington State

***   From @ExperienceWA via Twitter  —  Yes of course we have kid-friendly WA ideas! Seattle Children’s Museum, Pacific Science Center, Ride the Ducks, Pike Place [kid-friendly suggestions from Visit Seattle]…Other WA kid-friendly ideas: Riverfront Park in Spokane, whale-watching in San Juan Islands and Forks (home of the book/movie Twilight) on Olympic Peninsula.

***   From Annemarie Dooling via @TravelingAnna on Twitter  — you’ve got Forks, right? It’s all I know of WA! [Yep, thanks, I got it!]

***  From Thomas J. Brown via @MWProductions on Twitter  — And if you visit Forks, be sure to check out the beautiful Quileute reservation!

***  From Peeples Ink PR via @PeeplesInk on Twitter  — Has anyone mentioned the San Juans? Orcas Island is a great place for families: Moran State Park, kayaking, nature tours…

***  From @KevinAshby on Twitter  — Poulsbo is a great old Norwegian fishing village on the Kitsap Peninsula where you can rent kayaks and eat in some great bakeries.

***  From Team Marco Polo via @TeamMarcoPolo on Twitter  — [In Seattle] Maybe the underground tour as well? Ballard Locks?

***  From Carol Peacher via @peachergraf on Twitter  — The Experience Music Project/Science Fiction Museum in Seattle is really cool and educational with fun hands-on things to do.

Our own BootsnAll Travel Network has a lot of resources  —  the WhyGo Seattle site and a bunch of articles and links under Washington Things to See and Do Travel Stories.

Oh, and I must mention the Seattle channel on Alltop and Washington-based travel bloggers Pam at NerdsEyeView, WanderMom Michelle at Wanderlust and Lipstick and Mary Jo Manzanares at Fly Away Cafe.  If I’ve forgotten someone, please remind me in the comments.

Thanks so much for the contributions – the next state in the series is Virginia.

Send your highlights to @SheilaS on Twitter or my Facebook page (tell me you’re a 50 state-er if you want to friend me.)

Yes, I know how to search for family travel ideas on a destination or attraction Web site, but a tweet or Facebook recommendation is a much more engaging and public way to spread the word.

My purpose for this series is not only to highlight worthy kid-friendly vacation destinations in all 50 states, but by using Twitter and Facebook I want to also encourage tourism organizations to learn more about connecting with their visitors using social media and online networks.

Please add your own Washington suggestions in the comments below, if we’ve missed anything. Thanks!