While planning a trip to Mount Rainier National Park, you may realize that the Paradise Corridor is known as the park’s showstopper. Even with the crowds, every hike, lake, and sunset make it a truly unique place to visit, with access to rich mountaineering and an incredible variety and abundance of wildflowers.
My name is Lukas Gott, and I worked at Paradise Inn in the summer of 2024. After living in the Paradise Corridor for 5 months, I have a list of must-dos for everyone visiting the park, so follow along to get the details before visiting!
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The Skyline Trail Loop is the MUST DO activity in Mount Rainier National Park. If visiting the park for one day, do this hike and you’ll be well satisfied with the full Mount Rainier package. This 6-mile hike is far from a stroll in the park, but when a hike offers valleys of blooming wildflowers, 360-degree mountain views, ample curious marmots running amok, and Mount Rainier’s glaciers cracking like thunder in the background, you’ll barely notice the hike.
The Skyline Loop starts from the Paradise Inn parking lot near the visitor center. Take the trail that goes straight up from the trailhead, and once you’re over the first hill, the trail becomes slightly less confusing. Most Paradise hikes are interconnected, but as long as you stay east instead of heading southwest, there’s no reason to fret about losing a trail, as they all lead to similar areas and have amazing views.
The Alta Vista Trail intersects with the Skyline Trail and makes a small loop. You can explore parts of Alta Vista, then rejoin the Skyline Loop. This trail offers similar views.
Mount Rainier is famous for its wildflowers, and their diverse colors paint the hillside below Mount Rainier. The prime of Mount Rainier wildflowers is in late July to early August, where they’ll be a hard attraction to miss, as wildflowers of diverse color and species will spread throughout the Paradise area.
I’d recommend the Skyline Trail hike to view the wildflowers, but really, all that’s necessary is to walk near any trailhead, and I can nearly guarantee there will be wildflowers. To find out more about when to see the wildflowers, read our article Absolute Best Time to See Wildflowers at Mount Rainier + Where to Find Them.
Myrtle Falls is the hike to do if you don’t like to hike. This “trail” is more of a lovely stroll to a beautiful waterfall just 30 minutes from the Paradise parking lot. Myrtle Falls is a perfect fit for a last-minute hike or an evening walk, and the reward is very satisfying for such little effort. The falls sit in a valley that beautifully displays Mount Rainier and its wildflower variety. It also always, and I mean always, has marmots in it.
WARNING: Do not feed the marmots or attempt to jump over the fence to take pictures in the valley. With this hike being so short, it experiences large amounts of tourism, which tends to crush the fragile ecosystem that brings wildflowers around every year.
Unlike most other activities on this list, Comet Falls sits below Paradise just after the Cougar Rock Campground. Look for a small parking lot on the left side of the road that seems almost too small for a hike parking lot (it is too small, so beware). Comet Falls is a beautiful hike where you’ll be crossing small bridges and wandering through a thick forest beaming with life, all while dealing with less foot traffic than in Paradise.
Be aware that in the early season, snow patches are likely, and even in the summer, there is a makeshift wood stairway (it’s almost a ladder) that can get quite slippery, along with any other wood feature on the hike. But if you are successful, the Comet Falls hike has direct access beneath the waterfall, where I suggest bringing a raincoat as the thick mist will soak you. The time I hiked the trail was in the early season (regrettably) when a trip under the ice cave beneath Comet Falls left my whole body frozen by the time I returned to my savior, the heater in my car.
DISCOVER: Best Places to Camp In and Around Mount Rainier
When it comes to food and accommodation, Paradise Inn is not highly rated in my opinion. Although the one thing they do well is having a great evening ambiance in the main hall. With the 1900s-style wood lodge, crackling fireplace, and professional-level piano music in the background, it’s a great place to take a rest and have a drink, or eat that packed lunch over a game of cards. If looking for a drink, sit back, a young traveller in the form of a drink server (once my friends and I) should approach you with a full bar menu and service, no matter where you’re sitting.
PRO TIP: Sit outside on the cafe deck for the best views if bugs aren’t present!
The visitor center is the main information and history center in Paradise. Downstairs, you’ll find an NPS information desk where Rangers have printed papers on almost every hike in the park and are almost overly enthusiastic to lay a small stack of those papers on you. Upstairs, you’ll find an informative geological board on Paradise and Mount Rainier, as well as the better of the two gift shops in the area.
Snow and Bench Lakes are both shallow, calm lakes that, while cold, make for the best swimming in the area.
Bench Lake is quite small but has a tremendous view of Mount Rainier, and in the same fashion as another lake to be mentioned on this list boasts some of the best reflective photos of Mount Rainier.
Snow Lake sits just below Unicorn Peak, which can’t be missed from the valley below with its horn-like nature poking out from the mountain. All in all, this is a short, fairly easy hike, but due to shallow areas of the lakes, your main battle will be against mosquitoes.
As I said, another lake is known for its reflective qualities, and Reflection Lakes’ namesake follows through. Technically, you can access this lake via Paradise and its interconnecting trails (Snow and Bench Lake as well), but a quick 5-minute drive down the road allows direct access to Reflection Lake. This area is known for its picture prowess and wildflower shows in midsummer.
Nisqually Vista is the easier alternative to the Skyline Loop Trail if you’re not looking for a big hiking day. This short stroll takes a trip past several different Mount Rainier viewing points and is full of wildflowers similar to the Skyline Trail.
The last view is what makes this short hike so great. The view of the huge canyon left behind by the Nisqually Glacier is worth the hike. Nisqually Vista may not get you as close to Mount Rainier or get quite the same attraction, but with how short this hike is, it should be on your list of things to see in Mount Rainier.
CHECK OUT: Quick and Easy Guide to Hiking in Mount Rainier
Now, the entire road to Paradise Inn via the Nisqually Inn is Paradise Valley Road, but there’s a special section called the One Way Road just past Paradise Inn. The track loops around Paradise Valley, where there will be tremendous amounts of wildflowers and possibly wildlife. The One Way Road eventually reconnects with Stevens Canyon Road, making it a great exit plan if headed towards Stevens Canyon or the Sunrise Corridor.
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The Mount Rainier Night Skies program is an NPS educational stargazing program that happens just outside the visitor center in Paradise. This event usually takes place every Friday through Sunday, from the end of June to the end of July, in the late evening.
This event is led by astronomy interns who will lead discussions about the night sky while telescopes and “star finders” will be available for free public use. In my summer in Mount Rainier, the Northern Lights passed over us late one night, and while I may or may not have already been asleep that particular night, the night sky photos never disappointed. Find out more information at the National Park website.
The town of Paradise is the area surrounding Paradise Inn, which can be accessed via the Nisqually or Stevens Canyon entrances. The Paradise Corridor is any area between the two entrances, so not all of these activities are in “Paradise”.
If you’re looking for last-minute entrance tips or more information on booking in advance, read my article Which Entrance Should I Use to Visit Mount Rainier?
Once you get through the gates, either Paradise Valley or Stevens Canyon Road will drop you off at the doorstep of Paradise Inn. Make sure to arrive early in the morning (preferably before 9:00 am) or later in the evening (later than 3:00 pm) as the parking lot in Paradise is packed during the summer, and be sure to check the overflow parking lot below Paradise first, as it’s far more likely to have parking.
Once arriving at Paradise, all hikes will stem from the Skyline Trail Loop Trailhead just next to the visitor center, which, along with Paradise Inn, will hold most non-hiking activities. Food and coffee can also be found in the visitor center or Paradise Inn, although if you read my article, Paradise Inn: An Honest Review, and its food quality, I would pack a lunch.
When visiting Paradise, there are two other options besides the Inn for food or lodging, Ashford and Packwood.
Packwood is a small town (but the biggest town you’ll find in the area) that sits on the Southeastern corner of the park. What makes Packwood so ideal is that it has the best access to both the White River and Stevens Canyon Entrances, with the White River leading to Sunrise and the Stevens Canyon to Paradise. With only a 15-minute drive to Stevens Canyon and just under an hour’s drive to White River, it’s the closest you’ll get to both corridors of the park.
Packwood has several accommodation options, such as Historic Hotel Packwood and Packwood Lodge (book here) (They’re not the same thing, trust me, I double-checked), as well as plenty of Airbnb cabins or houses nearby.
The real kicker on Packwood is the food, with a grocery store, a few different style restaurants to choose from, as well as a Brewery, it provides more than anywhere else near or in the park. My favorite restaurant is Cliff Droppers, where large burgers are meant to be devoured after big hiking days.
Ashford is small, but the best accommodation option on the western side of the park. It has its own Airbnbs and hotels, with my favorite being the Hobo Inn just before Ashford, which features a night’s stay in a converted train car. The best food options in the area are the BaseCamp Bar and Grill at Whittaker’s Mountaineering and Elbe Bar and Grill.
Camping is also abundant out Skate Creek Road, just beyond Ashford’s city limits, where free camping sites are scattered throughout the State Forest Road.
FIND OUT: Where to Eat In and Around Mount Rainier
Mount Rainier is a high-elevation area. In the winter, it sometimes provides record-level quantities of snow. This snow tends to stick around through spring, even into early July, and too many people plan to visit when snow still covers the trails of Mount Rainier.
The perfect time to visit is when the wildflowers start to bloom in late July and early August. At this point, the snow has melted and the weather has shifted to mostly sunny days. Also, be prepared that even when visiting during midsummer, it will quickly turn frigid when the sun goes down, and there’s always a chance a Mount Rainier storm comes and turns a sunny day on its head.
Most travelers want to visit the most popular sites and still avoid the crowds. We have a detailed itinerary that gives you a step-by-step game plan so you can get to the best places at the right times.
MOUNT RAINIER TRIP PLANNER: To read or watch all of our content about Mount Rainier National Park, check out our Mount Rainier Homepage.
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