My wife and I are planning to take our three kids to Olympic National Park in June this year. We were hoping to find a vacation rental near the park. I've noticed there seem to be a lot of small towns along the periphery of the park. Does anyone have a suggestion for a good spot to get a rental that's convenient to the park?

Also, I'd appreciate any suggestions for must-see items.

The Cabins at Beaver Creek

The park is spread out be we based ourselves at the above and loved the cabins! Forks was close enough to stock up on food. I loved the cabins and were never bothered by the others staying there. Very peaceful and well maintained.

I can't say enough good about the Cabins at Beaver Creek . . . great cabin with kitchen and on a river with plenty of areas to explore on foot. I loved feeding the goats . . . and s'mores every night by the fire the owner built nightly! The owners were super nice and did not bother us at all. If we needed something they were on site but again everything was supplied in the cabin! No wifi or TV but did have a TV/DVD with a shelf of many movies if you wanted to watch at night.

I wanted to add a list of things we did while in the area. My son wasn't with me on this trip but if he would have been he would have enjoyed what I did.

Before we went to Olympic National Park we went to Mount Rainier NP and Mount Saint Helens too. Both were amazing and on my list. The kids would probably enjoy the lava tubes at Mt St Helens but really sort of out of the way.

We drove from Lacey to Olympic with our first stop being at the beaches. We spent two nights in the area which was not enough but did what we wanted to do and moved on. When we left the ONP area we took a ferry from Kingston to Edmonds. It was super easy, quick, and fun too.

Some of the places we visited in ONP:
Rialto Beach
Hoh Rain Forest
Ruby Beach
Hurricane Ridge (several hiking trails) (there was still some snow in late June)
Marymeer Falls trail
Solduck Trail

We also drove to Cape Flattery which was out of the way . . . long and slow but glad we went. It was very crowded and hardly anything along the drive so take food and a full tank of gas.

Picked berries (raspberry and blackberry) in Sequim . . . short stop on way to catch ferry

When we arrived in Edmonds from the ferry, we went to Boeing for the Factory Tour. Pretty cool!

Feel free to ask any questions.

I've only ever stayed in the park camping, but have had many people suggest the Cabins at Beaver Creek. Sounds like the best place

We were up there a month hosting a State Park on the OP. The grandkids went crazy when we told them we were going to Forks, but I suspect that has run its course. Cape Flattery is a long drive but pretty amazing views and one of those "I've been there" moments. My wife wanted to take a whale watching tour and I wasn't so thrilled, but it turned out pretty interesting. Lots of water and whales here and there, but to watch one of those beasts break the surface is a rush. If you drive the loop, it's a beating and eleventy billion trees. But, if you have never been to the Pacific NW, it is interesting in the culture, architecture, etc. The rain forest is a must see.

If you have time, the Naval Ship Yard at Bremmerton is interesting. If you have any naval history interest, just driving by and seeing that line of ships and some of the names you recognize immediately. I really wanted to see the museum there but it was being renovated when we were there. My Dad was stationed there in WW II so I had a nostalgic attachment to the facility and the museum. There is also a submarine base there but not sure what you can see as we never drove over there.