Can't decide - summer 2026

[Anonymous]

Seattle resident and it is kind of a no for this summer from my perspective. World Cup is going to be a pain, and the rest of the summer there is a major highway closure (paused for soccer only) that is already impacting traffic pretty badly. It’s a city of neighborhoods and not easy to get to places you’d want to go without being in a car or Uber at some point. The other issue is our low snowpack and predicted drought. Wildfires could be really bad so that takes late summer and September off the table, which are typically the best time of year but cool, smoky and unpleasant when the smoke rolls in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are going to Alaska this summer. A lot of lodging booked up pretty quickly (we booked in Jan) so maybe look into that first.

We went to Norway a few summers ago and it’s stunning and beautiful. Very active / nature-y trip, but you can also do museums in Oslo (only 1 day) and Bergen is also cute. It’s also very expensive.

How does Norway compare in price to Iceland or Switzerland?

All very expensive, but Iceland is way cheaper to fly to. It probably goes Switzerland then Norway then Iceland in terms of cost, with Switzerland way more than the others. Iceland can be done pretty cheap if you don't do many of the pricier tours.

Just as a point of reference, more expensive than, say, London?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Seattle resident and it is kind of a no for this summer from my perspective. World Cup is going to be a pain, and the rest of the summer there is a major highway closure (paused for soccer only) that is already impacting traffic pretty badly. It’s a city of neighborhoods and not easy to get to places you’d want to go without being in a car or Uber at some point. The other issue is our low snowpack and predicted drought. Wildfires could be really bad so that takes late summer and September off the table, which are typically the best time of year but cool, smoky and unpleasant when the smoke rolls in.

OP here- thank you! This is really helpful.

[Anonymous]

Alaska
Iceland and take advantage of hoping somewhere else since I think you can do Iceland in 5 days.
Aruba
Vancouver
Amsterdam

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Norway - your money just doesn’t go that far. So $ that in the US would get you a Marriott level hotel would be like a Hampton Inn in Norway. And the food is largely only OK. But the fjoirds were amazing.

I’m usually not a fan of cruising in Europe because I feel llle you miss much of the best stuff, but the combo of expensive lodgings and largely just OK food would make me lean more towards a cruise.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Seattle resident and it is kind of a no for this summer from my perspective. World Cup is going to be a pain, and the rest of the summer there is a major highway closure (paused for soccer only) that is already impacting traffic pretty badly. It’s a city of neighborhoods and not easy to get to places you’d want to go without being in a car or Uber at some point. The other issue is our low snowpack and predicted drought. Wildfires could be really bad so that takes late summer and September off the table, which are typically the best time of year but cool, smoky and unpleasant when the smoke rolls in.

OP here- thank you! This is really helpful.

Happy to help! For the record and for the future, usually July 5th-early August is reliably gorgeous and the first couple of weeks of September are often sneakily nice. The water is at its warmest in the lakes in the last two weeks of July and the long summer nights are fabulous for exploring and eating outdoors (in a sweater, though). Mosquitoes are more present than they used to be but are nothing like on the east coast.

June is risky because it is often foggy and cool and late August is the biggest risk for smoke.

[Anonymous]

Let the high school senior decide or weight their choice heavier. This is a milestone in their life.

[Anonymous]

You’ve been to “all” of Western Europe? I find that hard to believe. Surely there are some undiscovered spots there and it seems to meet your criteria.

[Anonymous]

Croatia. Google Sail Croatia or another company with the small boats that take you on a weeklong journey. They are not cruise ships. They are just a place to sleep and get you to a bunch of different coastal areas. You enjoy land-based activities during the day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Seattle resident and it is kind of a no for this summer from my perspective. World Cup is going to be a pain, and the rest of the summer there is a major highway closure (paused for soccer only) that is already impacting traffic pretty badly. It’s a city of neighborhoods and not easy to get to places you’d want to go without being in a car or Uber at some point. The other issue is our low snowpack and predicted drought. Wildfires could be really bad so that takes late summer and September off the table, which are typically the best time of year but cool, smoky and unpleasant when the smoke rolls in.

Not Op but we were thinking of doing PNW beg-mid August. Boo.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Seattle resident and it is kind of a no for this summer from my perspective. World Cup is going to be a pain, and the rest of the summer there is a major highway closure (paused for soccer only) that is already impacting traffic pretty badly. It’s a city of neighborhoods and not easy to get to places you’d want to go without being in a car or Uber at some point. The other issue is our low snowpack and predicted drought. Wildfires could be really bad so that takes late summer and September off the table, which are typically the best time of year but cool, smoky and unpleasant when the smoke rolls in.

Not Op but we were thinking of doing PNW beg-mid August. Boo.

Beginning can be ok, but you just never know. What activities and sights interest you? If we could get you out of the city for part of the time it might make the traffic situation less frustrating and the weather/smoke worth the risk.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Seattle resident and it is kind of a no for this summer from my perspective. World Cup is going to be a pain, and the rest of the summer there is a major highway closure (paused for soccer only) that is already impacting traffic pretty badly. It’s a city of neighborhoods and not easy to get to places you’d want to go without being in a car or Uber at some point. The other issue is our low snowpack and predicted drought. Wildfires could be really bad so that takes late summer and September off the table, which are typically the best time of year but cool, smoky and unpleasant when the smoke rolls in.

Not Op but we were thinking of doing PNW beg-mid August. Boo.

Beginning can be ok, but you just never know. What activities and sights interest you? If we could get you out of the city for part of the time it might make the traffic situation less frustrating and the weather/smoke worth the risk.

Not decided between Seattle/Mt. Reiner/Portland or Seattle/Olympic National Park/Vancouver.