Seattle & Puget Sound Vacation Rentals | City Stays, Hood Canal & the Kitsap Peninsula
Nine towns around the water, from the city itself out to the far side of Hood Canal. Most of what we manage here is within sight of saltwater, and the question that decides your trip is which shore you want to wake up on.
Where our Puget Sound Vacation Rentals are Located
Nine towns around the water, from the city itself out to the far side of Hood Canal. Most of what we manage here is within sight of saltwater.
Whole houses rather than downtown apartments, in Ballard, Queen Anne, the Seattle Center and West Seattle.
An hour across the sound by state ferry, or about thirty minutes on the Kitsap Transit fast ferry. The easiest car-free arrival in the region.
Mid-canal on the western shore, and the turn-off for the Staircase entrance to Olympic National Park.
At the southern end of Puget Sound. Often described as Hood Canal, but it sits on Hammersley Inlet, which is a different body of water.
About Hood Canal
Four of our towns sit directly on it: Belfair, Union, Hoodsport and Brinnon.
Despite the name it is not a canal and nobody dug it. It is a natural glacial fjord, a long narrow arm of saltwater that runs south down the eastern edge of the Olympic Peninsula and then hooks sharply east at Belfair.
It is best known for shellfish, and that is the thing worth being current about rather than romantic about.
Getting around
The single most useful thing to know is that the Seattle ferries do not take vehicle reservations. Washington State Ferries only runs reservations on the Port Townsend/Coupeville and Anacortes/San Juan Islands routes. Everything from Seattle is first-come and you queue, which on a summer weekend is a real wait. Walking on is straightforward.
Crossing times from downtown Seattle: Bainbridge Island around thirty-five minutes, Bremerton around an hour. Kitsap Transit's passenger-only fast ferry does Bremerton in roughly thirty.
FAQs
Not at present. All public beaches in Hood Canal have been closed to clam, mussel, oyster and scallop harvesting since 12 June 2026 because of potentially lethal levels of Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning. An update on 12 August 2026 reopened part of Admiralty Inlet but confirmed biotoxin levels remain elevated in Hood Canal, which stayed closed. Shrimp and crab are not affected. This changes through the season, so check the Washington Shellfish Safety Map before you plan around it.
Two things must both be true: the Department of Health must show the beach as safe, and WDFW must have the season open for that species. Either one closed means no harvesting. The Washington Shellfish Safety Map is the single place to check.
Yes. A shellfish/seaweed licence or a combination fishing licence, available online, through the MyWDFW app, and from licence dealers across the state.
No. Cooking, freezing and cleaning do not destroy them, which is why a closure means do not harvest rather than take extra care.
No, and you cannot make one. Vehicle reservations exist only on the Port Townsend/Coupeville and Anacortes/San Juan Islands routes. Seattle to Bainbridge and Seattle to Bremerton are first-come. Arrive early on summer weekends or walk on.
About thirty-five minutes to Bainbridge Island and about an hour to Bremerton on the state ferry. Kitsap Transit also runs a passenger-only fast ferry to Bremerton in around thirty minutes.
No. It is a natural glacial fjord rather than a dug channel — a long narrow arm of saltwater running down the east side of the Olympic Peninsula, hooking east at Belfair.
Belfair, Union, Hoodsport and Brinnon. Shelton is often described as Hood Canal but sits on Hammersley Inlet at the southern end of Puget Sound, which is a different body of water.
The Staircase entrance, inland from Hoodsport, is the nearest way in. The developed area — the ranger station, campground and the Staircase Rapids Loop trail — is open, though all other trails from there remain closed. Access is via Forest Service Road 24 along Lake Cushman, which is gravel. Check conditions before setting out.
Yes, and it is the most straightforward car-free arrival in the region. Walk onto either the state ferry or the Kitsap Transit fast ferry from downtown Seattle and you arrive in the middle of town.
See What's Available
- No guest service fee. Airbnb adds roughly 20% on top of the nightly rate and Vrbo around 15%. Book here and you pay none of it.
- Best Price Guarantee. The best rate for the same property and dates is the one on this site.
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- Door-code check-in. Nobody to meet and nothing to coordinate.
- Check-in instructions 24 hours before you arrive, by email.
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