Walla Walla Travel Guide

  Vineyards in Walla Walla, Washington
by karenincalifornia
 
  • Vineyards in Walla Walla, Washington
      Vineyards in Walla Walla, Washington
    by karenincalifornia
  • aMaurice Cellars, Walla Walla, Washington
      aMaurice Cellars, Walla Walla,...
    by karenincalifornia
  • Mansion in Walla Walla, WA
      Mansion in Walla Walla, WA
    by karenincalifornia
  • Fort Walla Walla Museum grounds
      Fort Walla Walla Museum grounds
    by karenincalifornia
  • Selection of Walla Walla wines
      Selection of Walla Walla wines
    by karenincalifornia
 

Explore Walla Walla

Things to Do  

Whitman Mission National Historic Site

Whitman Mission National Historic Site, Walla Walla

 karenincalifornia Says:  The Whitman Mission National Historic Site is a moving memorial of the life of Marcus and Narcissa Whitman from the time they established a mission in 1836 to the time they were killed by the Cayuse tribe members in 1847. They arrived with what they considered good... 

aMaurice Cellars

aMaurice Cellars, Walla Walla

 karenincalifornia Says:  After leaving the drunken SUV revelers at Walla Walla Vintners, we went next door to aMaurice cellars. What a calming change of pace! The winemaker, Anna, was pouring the wine, and she was delightful. We learned much about their wines and her experience as we were sampling... 

Wineries / Tasting Rooms in Town

Wineries / Tasting Rooms in Town, Walla Walla

 Sunshine64 Says:  While it's fun to visit the wineries in the rural areas around Walla Walla, if you're not up for all the driving, several wineries have tasting rooms in town.Amavi has good wines, and there's a good story about the building. It's located at 635 N. 13th Avenue.Canoe Ridge is... 

Hotels  

Restaurants  

Luscious by Nature: Local wines and delicious food

Luscious by Nature: Local wines and delicious food, Walla Walla

 karenincalifornia Says:  Luscious by Nature is a casual eatery near downtown featuring fresh ingredients and creative dishes. I had a caprese salad and a glass of a local reisling that was perfect for lunch.People are so friendly in Walla Walla. I guess we look like outsiders, not sure what it is,... 

Merchants, LTD: Don't even think about it

Merchants, LTD: Don't even think about it, Walla Walla

 Globaldiver Says:  Be prepared to wait and have bad service while in line to order; be prepared to drink bad coffee while you wait and wait and wait for service after you order; be prepared to not be offered refills, water or anything else while you wait; be prepared for the most singlarly bad... 

Whitehouse-Crawford: Good place for dinner

Whitehouse-Crawford: Good place for dinner, Walla Walla

 karenincalifornia Says:  At first, I didn't want to eat at the Whitehouse-Crawford because it sounded so stuffy. We decided to go there anyway after someone recommended it. We were surprised by the contemporary decor and how good the food was. It has no connection at all to that old house on the... 

Colville St. Patisserie: Cinnimon Roll and Coffee

Colville St. Patisserie: Cinnimon Roll and Coffee, Walla Walla

 skpr Says:  Matthew Zack the pastry chef and owner of this wonderful shop is amazing! The pastries, french maccaroons and the goodies are out of this world! The cakes and confections will satisfy the fussiest dessert lovers and a wonderful wine selection for evening dessert and wine... 

Creektown Cafe: Skip this place!

Creektown Cafe: Skip this place!, Walla Walla

 bioguyxx Says:  We started eating here 4 years ago while in Walla Walla on our weekend wine tasting visits. The place is decorated in casual bistro style, but the food and wine price not - more like fine dining. Too bad the atmosphere isn't so fine. Upon entry, there is no reception area.... 

Transportation  

Racing Limos of Tri Cities

Racing Limos of Tri Cities, Walla Walla

 garydavis77 Says:  We just recently used a Limousine service call "Racing Limos of Tri Cities' they were fantastic, the car looks like a NASCAR and is very luxurious on the inside. The driver was great and was able to get us around with no troubles. This is the only way to ride to the wineries... 

By Covered Wagon

By Covered Wagon, Walla Walla

 karenincalifornia Says:  If I were writing this tip 160 years ago, I would be telling you this is how you get to Walla Walla. Follow the Oregon Trail in your covered wagon and mules until you reach Walla Walla after a few months of travel.The Oregon Trail crosses through the Whitman Mission National... 

Flying time

Flying time, Walla Walla

 karenincalifornia Says:  Walla Walla is a four hour drive from Seattle or Portland and a three hour drive from Spokane. Walla Walla has its own regional airport, but it only accommodates commercial flights to and from Seattle. You CAN fly in from elsewhere by making connections, but your travel time... 

Shopping  

La Colombina: Gotta shop

La Colombina: Gotta shop, Walla Walla

 skpr Says:  There are a ton of great shops in Walla Walla and a wonderful market - kitchen shops, coffee shops, clothing, art and I hear very soon a Harley Store. I do have to put in a plug for my mom's store - La Colombina. It is very small and intimate and she carries great footwear -... 

Downtown Walla Walla: Shopping wars

Downtown Walla Walla: Shopping wars, Walla Walla

 karenincalifornia Says:  Walla Walla is a case study for a typical US town with a tussle between downtown shopping and outlying shopping malls. From Walla Walla's hey day at the turn of the century to mid 1900's, downtown Walla Walla was the place to shop if you lived in the area. In the 1970's, it... 

Local Customs  

Whitman College
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Whitman College, Walla Walla, Washington

Out in this seemingly outpost of Walla Walla is great deal of culture, largely due to its centerpiece, Whitman College.

Whitman College is a highly touted small liberal arts college located in the middle of Walla Walla. It is very hard to get into. It was established in 1882 and named after Marcus Whitman, the missionary/settler who lived among the natives in the 1830's and 1840's. Marcus Whitman and his wife Narcissa were killed in 1847 by natives blaming him for a measles outbreak which resulted in deaths of a large part of the native population. The Whitman name now appears all over Walla Walla in his and his wife's honor.

The campus is beautiful and well-tended, very tranquil, with many old brick buildings and large grass lawns. It reminded me a lot of the small liberal arts colleges one would find on the east coast. Total enrollment is 1,454 students from 44 US states and 30 countries. It's got a tuition to match those exclusive east coast schools to boot, too.

Updated Sep 10, 2007

Website: http://www.whitman.edu/content/about/

Related to:
 Historical Travel

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Warnings and Dangers  

Bad or missing information on hiking trails

Bad or missing information on hiking trails, Walla Walla

 karenincalifornia Says:  We sure were challenged in finding information about Walla Walla, SE Washington and NE Oregon hiking trails. There is some information on the Umatilla National Forest website, but we later found out it was wrong in parts. We looked for an outdoors store in Walla Walla so we... 

Smoke Gets in My Eyes

Smoke Gets in My Eyes, Walla Walla

 karenincalifornia Says:  Walla Walla gets hot and dry in the summer and all the wild grasses turn yellow or brown. Two days before we arrived, Walla Walla was hit with a thunderstorm and the lightning ignited four wildfires in the area. One was still raging when we arrived, so unfortunately, the air... 

Off The Beaten Path  

Take a hike in the Blue Mountains
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Hike through Blue Mountains in NE Oregon
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The Blue Mountains are a small mountain range to the east and southeast of Walla Walla and include the Umatilla National Forest. This range isn't large or high (peaks are only around 6,000 feet) like the Cascades to the west or the Rockies further east, but it is a scenic range nonetheless with some pretty hikes with some sweeping views and trails through meadows and old growth forests.

From Walla Walla, there are two primary ways to get to the hiking trails. Drive east along Mill Creek to the end of the road to the trailhead. Alternatively, drive south to Oregon and exit near Weston, go to Tollgate, drive south for 8 miles, take the Summit Road to the trailhead.

From there, the elevation change is minimal, so it is more like a beautiful walk in the park. If you want to make it more strenuous, drive south into Oregon to Gibbon (lower elevation than Summit Road). The trailhead is 1900 feet lower and you can hike up to the upper trailhead on Summit.

We chose to be lazy and went through Tollgate. We found a nice trail and hiked for 2 hours (about 6 miles).

Updated Sep 8, 2007

Related to:
 Hiking and Walking

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Sports & Outdoors  

Bicycling
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Touring on Russell Creek Road near Walla Walla, WA

Walla Walla is a great place for bicycling, both around town and around the countryside. The streets are wide with good shoulders, many bike lanes are marked, and the auto traffic isn't too bad. In town, you can bicycle around the old turn of the century neighborhoods, Whitman College and downtown. Outside town, you can bicycle for miles in all four directions through wheat and onion fields, vineyards and rolling hills.

Equipment: For a place that is so great for bicycling, Walla Walla has a shortage of bike rental places. Bicycle Barn is the only place I found that rents a few bikes, but they said they wouldn't let us take them overnight. Fortunately, our B&B had 4 touring bikes. We hopped on two of those and rode all over town, and then out in the countryside.

Updated Sep 10, 2007

Related to:
 Cycling

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Favorites  

Sharpstein School

Sharpstein School, Walla Walla

 karenincalifornia Says:  Walla Walla hit its apex around the turn of the century (20th) and still has many beautiful buildings from that era. The oldest still standing school in Walla Walla is Sharpstein School, near Pioneer Park, built in 1898. It is in amazingly good condition. I now live in a... 

No California Wines

No California Wines, Walla Walla

 karenincalifornia Says:  We didn't see a single California wine on any wine list anywhere in Walla Walla. They were mostly from Walla Walla or other places in Washington, and Oregon. Some wine lists added some variety with token French, Italian, Argentinian or Spanish wines. But no California wines.... 

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Map of Walla Walla