Mount Rainier Operating Hours & Seasons

When You Can Visit Mount Rainier National Park

Mount Rainier National Park is open to visitors all year round, although getting there isn’t always an easy task! The park is busiest during July and August, the warm dry weather and the beautiful wild flowers really bring out the visitors in force, so if you plan to visit Mount Rainier National Park during those months then be aware that parking might be a bit of a problem on holidays and weekends, it’s usually less crowded mid-week if you can possibly make it.

Summertime isn’t necessarily the best time to visit Mount Rainier National Park though, there’s something new and exciting to see whatever the season.

Spring is the time when the waterfalls are at their very best, but in the fall you’ll be amazed at the brilliant colors which reach deep into the valleys of Mount Rainier National Park. The weather is going to be a little less predictable (although the one thing you can predict about Mount Rainier National Park is that the weather is always unpredictable). Some of the facilities in the park may not be open during these months too, and it’s even more important that you do a pre-check on the status of the roads, the trails, activities and campgrounds before you arrive.

During the winter time you’ll only be able to access Mount Rainier National Park by road from the Nisqually entrance in the southwest corner. There is another entrance which is often open at Carbon River, but you can only park there, then you have to continue on foot or by bicycle.

More current news and information on the Mount Rainier National Park Facebook page.

To check out the road and facility status at Mount Rainier National Park you can always call on 1-360-569-2211 or check the internet.

Mount Rainier Visitor Centers

• Longmire Museum – is open all year round, between the hours of 9am and 4.30pm.
• Henry M Jackson Memorial Visitor Center, Paradise – is only open on weekends and holidays, between the hours of 10am and 5pm.
• Ohanapecosh Visitor Center – is usually open from late May until early October.
• Sunrise Visitor Center – generally opens in late July until early in September.

August, but there’s still plenty of snow around on the high ground.

Mount Rainier Camping Grounds

There are three auto camping grounds available at Mount Rainier National Park, at Cougar Rock in the SW section of the park, Ohanapecosh in the SE and White River in the NE of the park. Although the opening season does vary depending on the weather and/or road conditions, you’ll usually find that Cougar Rock and Ohanapecosh are open from late May until early in October, with the White River camping ground open from late June until around the end of September.