La Conner is a great day trip an hour away from Seattle and 45 minutes inland from Whidbey Island. This cute harbor town is charming with its brick architecture and is known for hosting the annual Skagit Valley Tulip Festival in Washinton. La Conner is filled with cute shops, restaurants, coffee shops, and bars its quaint downtown.
Things to Do in La Conner
There are also some great hotels in La Conner. If you are looking for restaurants, you should check out Calico Cupboard, which is a delicious restaurant and a great dinner spot or Seeds Market which has great food and a fancy cocktail bar decorated with old school tiles.
My favorite store in the downtown is Handmade La Conner, a shop as well as a kitchen lab space where they make all of their skincare, cleaning, and body products. Only natural ingredients and essential oils are used. I love their lip balms, salves, room sprays, and makeup removers. They have all kinds of other cute mugs and home decor as well. Nasty Jack’s Antiques is a fun spot to browse and then grab an ice cream outside at the old school La Conner Ice Cream Tower. Nasty Jack’s has a huge collection of vintage signs and is located right across the street from a cool outdoor gear store called Step Outside. There is a lavender shop from the lavender farm on San Juan Island called Pelindaba Lavender, and a cool ethnic travel store with things from all over the world called Africa Mama.
For drinks, you can head to La Conner Brewing Co which is a great place to take a shopping break in the small downtown. Otter Bay Espresso is a super cute bay themed coffee spot with quality coffee. Ramblin Rose is a cute kid apparel shop that is across from The Planter Hotel which is a beautiful vintage hotel you can stay in with big picture windows and with beautiful flower boxes out front.
La Conner Hotels
Two of the best hotels you can stay at are the La Conner Lodging or Wild Iris Inn. La Conner Lodging is a beautiful lodge located right along the river. It’s got great views and authentic PNW feel. The Wild Iris is a little boutique located along the which is a beautiful lodge located right along the river. The Wild Iris is a little boutique hotel just off downtown. It’s a great place to relax while staying close to all of the shops and restaurants.
Read my top 10 things to do Whidbey Island here.
How to get to La Conner
La Conner is on the mainland of WA about 40 minutes off the island from Oak Harbor. This is a great day trip from Whidbey Island and is one of my favorite towns in WA. La Conner is right outside the Swinomish Indian Reservation near Shelter Bay. You can take the 20 north from Oak Harbor/Whidbey Island and exit onto Reservation Road.
Places to Visit in La conner
Handmade in La Conner Shop
My favorite store in the downtown is Handmade La Conner, a shop as well as a kitchen lab space which makes all their own skincare, cleaning, and body products. They only natural ingredients and essential oils. I love their lip balms, salves, room sprays, and makeup remover products. Their shop is light and airy, with a very clean aesthetic, which matches their tremendously trendy selection of sleek home decor. Find their site here to order.
Hours
10am-6pm daily
Price
$-$$$
Seeds Bar & Bistro
This is a charming local northwest bistro and bar with a patio & a beech tree serving farm-to-fork American fare, local beer, and wine. Seeds has beautiful vintage honeycomb floor tiling and is a beautiful wood light-filled interior. They make fresh and delicious food. Their steak salad is one of my favorites, and they are known for their fish tacos, and chicken Madeira. They make craft cocktails in their full bar at the back of the restaurant. This is a great place to come for lunch, dinner, or drinks. See their full menu here.
Hours
11am-8pm daily
Price
$$-$$$
La Conner Ice Cream Tower
This is a historic ice cream shop on first street behind Nasty Jack’s Antiques. It’s a fun spot with outdoor seating and 16 different ice cream flavors to choose from, as well as shaved ice and milkshakes. They do events and catering as well. Check out their site and options here.
Hours
Open extended hours July–August 2018!
| Monday | 12:30 pm to 6 pm |
| Tuesday | 12:30 pm to 6 pm |
| Wednesday | 12:30 pm to 6 pm |
| Thursday | 12:30 pm to 6 pm |
| Friday | 12:30 pm to 6 pm |
| Saturday | 12 pm to 6 pm |
| Sunday | 12 pm to 6 pm |
Price
$
Nasty Jack’s Antiques
This is a cool retro store filled with all sorts of vintage things to peruse including magazines, books, metal signs, furniture, and posters. Nasty Jack’s is right next door to the La Conner Ice Cream tower so you can grab a cone before or after shopping.
Hours
10am-5:30pm daily
Price
$
Calico Cupboard
This is one of my favorite PNW restaurants that is filled with fresh baked goods, coffee, gluten-free options & seasonal meals served in a homey, country-style space. Their salads, burgers, sandwiches, and soups are all homemade and delicious.
Hours
8am-4pm daily
Price
$$-$$$
Stompin Grounds Coffee
This is the cutest little PNW cabin coffee spot that I have ever seen! It’s a cozy spot with big windows and lots of light in a little wood cabin themed building. They have an outdoor garden that feels like a jungle and a cute courtyard with lots of seating. There are lots of plants inside as well that make the whole place feel like you are outdoors. They serve Bluestar coffee, Espresso, Teas, Toddy, Nitro Cold Brew, Lopez Island Ice Cream, assorted pastries, Bagels & Cream Cheese, Frappucinos, Smoothies, and Milkshakes. There is a wood fire place and lots of seating in windows. Find their site here.
Hours
6:30am-5:30pm daily, opens 7am Saturday and Sunday
Price
$
Walk the Pier & Mall to shop
La Conner is a harbor town with a short pier where you can see the boats. The pier area is filled with shops, a small strip mall, and lots of restaurants along the water. The pier is a fun part of walking around town and a great place for a meal. The pier mall is where you can find Otter Bay Espresso shown below which is one of the cute spots for coffee in town.
Otter Bay Espresso
Otter Bay Espresso is inside the pier mall on the water in La Conner. This is a wood filled, ocean-themed nautical coffee spot. They are known for their baked goods in the shop like cookies and fudge. This is a great spot to grab a coffee at Pier 7 mall and then walk the town.
Hours
8am-3pm daily
Price
$
Pelindaba Lavender store
This is the lavender store of the famous Pelindaba lavender farm on the San Juan Islands. It’s a huge beautiful lavender farm that is on the main San Juan Island outside of Friday Harbor. The store is large and beautiful filled with quality products like room mists, creams, perfumes, salves, lip balm, and much more. They sell home products, skin care products, and make their own essential oils. This is a quality gift shop. Shop on their site here.
Hours
10am-5pm daily
Price
$$-$$$
La Conner Brewing Co
La Conner Brewing Co serves locally made beers that you can drink in a terraced garden. It has a cozy pub atmosphere with strung lights and a warm wooden interior with chalkboard menus. Their happy hour is Mon-Fri 4-6pm. Pints are $3.75 and a glass is $1 off the regular price. They are known for their pizzas, burgers, and other pub food. Full menu here.
Hours
11:30am-9pm daily
Price
$$-$$$
Whale Tours
Island Adventures is one of the main whale watching tours companies that offer a quality experience. They operate out of Anacortes, La Conner, and Seattle. If you board the whale tour in La Conner, then you get to go under the Deception Pass Bridge and see the gorgeous national park as a part of your tour through the islands in that area. Gray whales or Orca whale tours depend on the time of year. You can check their whale report on their site for free and see what whales are in season and what they saw on their tours recently. Find more information on Island Adventures, click here.
2019 Rates
February 15th – May 24th: 11:30 AM
Adults: $99 | Discounted Adults: $89
May 25th – June 14th: 10 AM and 4 PM
Adults: $99 | Discounted Adults: $89
June 15 – September 2nd: 10 AM and 4 PM
Adults: $109 | Discounted Adults: $99
September 3rd – November: 11:30 AM
Adults: $99 | Discounted Adults: $89
Children (ages 3-17): $69 | Children under three: $1
