Leavenworth – Washingtons’ Bavarian Village
How did we ever discover Leavenworth Washington? Our son David gets all the credit for that. While visiting David in Tacoma, he said let’s take a drive on Sunday to a small town in the mountains named Leavenworth. We left after breakfast and a three hours later we were literally in Bavaria! The town is constructed as a Bavarian village with the architecture, food, grounds and shops.
We only spent the afternoon there walking, eating and purchasing a German cuckoo clock, that now hangs in our entryway. On the drive back to Tacoma, we discussed have the family visit David and as part of the trip return to Leavenworth. A couple of years later, that is exactly what happened.
Maureen and I, Alex, Nick, Stephanie and our 3 grandsons (Robbie, Matthew and Wesley) all invaded David’s house in Tacoma for a visit. We spent a couple of days exploring Tacoma, Joint Base Lewis-McChord and playing games, then on to Leavenworth.
We loaded everyone in two cars, headed to State Road 18, then I-90 East toward Spokane for the three hour drive to Leavenworth. Interesting fact: I-90 starts in Seattle and ends in Boston. (I guess if you live in Boston, you would say it ends in Seattle.)
Be mindful of what time of the year you plan to visit. Using I-90 you have to travel through the Snoqualmie Pass, which in winter can become impassable. We went as close to Christmas as possible to experience Leavenworth Christmas decorations and to hopefully get to play in the snow. Got to do both. Snoqualmie Pass updates: Snoqualmie Pass Conditions
The plan included spending two nights in Leavenworth and driving back after breakfast the last day.
How did a town of 3000 people in the mountains of Washington state become a Bavarian Village?
The area was originally inhabited by the Wenatchi indians. Western settlers arrived in the nineteenth century. Originally known as Icicle and Icicle Flats, due to it being where Icicle Creek joins the Wenatchee River.
With the arrival of the railroad, the area grew in population. In 1892, the Great Northern Railroad began construction of a rail route across Stevens Pass, 35 miles west of Leavenworth. The railroad followed the Wenatchee River and a town site established.
The city is named after Charles Leavenworth who owned the land that occupies the present day downtown. The city is surrounded by conifer forests with Ponderosa Pine being the principal tree species. By 1903, Leavenworth had the second largest sawmill in Washington State. Incorporated in 1906, it was the headquarters of the Great Northern Railroad.
Railroad and timber drew more people and the town grew to 5,500 residents. The 1920’s economic decline and the decision by the railroad to move its headquarters to Wenatchee caused the city to struggle for decades.
In 1962, the Leavenworth Improvement for Everyone (“LIFE”) Committee was formed. The Committee recommended transforming the city into a Bavarian style themed village to attract tourists and revitalize its economy. The combination of authentic Bavarian architecture with Leavenworth’s alpine setting would become a resounding success.
Leavenworth attracts over two million visitors per year and its Oktoberfest celebration is one of the largest in the world outside of Germany.
The hotel is one the main street running through town, great location for walking and exploring. Free parking is provided with the reservation. The hotel is older and lacks an elevator. However the rooms are more than adequate and have the feel of a hotel you might find in Europe. Good location for our visit as we parked the cars and were able to walk everywhere except the Reindeer Farm which is located outside of town.
The Bavarian Lodge is the most popular hotel in town and unfortunately was fully booked when we planned our trip. If you plan on visiting Leavenworth, I would recommend booking at the The Bavarian Lodge
One of the joys of Leavenworth is eating German food. Growing up with a grandmother who was of German descent, I looked forwarding to eating in the local restaurants.
First stop after getting settled in the hotel, lunch at Andreas Keller. It helps to have a German head chef when you crafting authentic Bavarian cuisine and that is what you will find at Andrea Keller. The Menu is extensive and gives you ample opportunity to enjoy traditional German dishes you are familiar with and also try something new and different. The family ordered a variety of dishes, I ordered the Spätzle, which was excellent. My recommendation would be to order a variety of items and share with each other.
After lunch, we began exploring Leavenworth’s shops, sites and other restaurants. There is roughly 50 German style shops located in downtown, selling sausage, cheese, wines, chocolate, cuckoo clocks, European nutcrackers and of course beer steins.
Some shops to definitely visit:
Kris Kringl is a year-round Christmas store where you’ll find a vast selection of ornaments, decorations, and gifts. Great place to browse and explore – a must for every Christmas lover!
Cheesemonger’s Shop is a gourmet cheese shop offering an impressive selection of artisanal cheeses. You can sample and purchase the cheeses as well as specialty food and gifts. I love cheese, so definitely a stop for me.
A Book for all Seasons is an independent bookstore that offers a curated selection of new and used books, as well as gifts and cards. The whole family loved this shop and browsed the shelves for a while.
Hat Shop/Wood Shop – two shops next to each other. The Wood Shop offers a large selection of hand made wooden puzzles and toys. The Hat Shop is a must stop for a large selection of functional and fun hats for everyone. Fun place to try on crazy hats.
The whole town is decorated for Christmas, in addition to shopping, we took time to walk and sit and enjoy the decorated trees, Gazebos,and lighted shops.
Lights up for Christmas
It was getting dark and we had explored most of the town, so time for dinner. We rounded everybody up and headed to the Rhein Haus . As you can guess from from name, it is a Bavarian-inspired restaurant located in Leavenworth’s town square. Three bars, multiple levels, large outdoor patio (with heaters) and a large biergarten. The restaurant has a selection of German and local beers, traditional Haus-made brats, giant pretzels and authentic schnitzels. We liked the place so much, we ate there both nights we were in town.
Great menu and beer selection. If you a fan of traditional German food and sauerkraut, it is the place for you. We order a variety of items to try and share. Not disappointed in the quality of the food or beer. If you are going to visit Leavenworth, make plans to dine here.
After dinner a bit more exploring and then off to bed. Tomorrow we head to the Reindeer Farm.
A quick breakfast, then we loaded up the two cars and onto the Leavenworth Reindeer Farm . The Farm is a family run operation about a mile outside of Leavenworth in the foothills of the Cascade mountains. Everyone of us has seen their share of Christmas specials and movies featuring reindeer. The trip to the reindeer farm gave us an opportunity to get up close with these magnificent animals.
I would recommend going to Leavenworth and the Reindeer Farm in the November/December time frame. The town and the reindeer farm are decorated for Christmas, the weather is colder, the hot chocolate taste better, it might snow and the campfires at the reindeer farm are a little warmer. Book your reindeer farm tickets early as days do sell out.
As you enter the farm there is a large barn that has the largest reindeer themed gift shop in the world, antler gifts, souvenirs and home decor. We bought a number of scented candles to use at Christmas dinner. Plenty of photo opportunities in the barn and gifts to browse.
The farm also has a concession stand that is now serving Alaskan Reindeer sausage and hand rolled Norwegian potato Lefse. Maureen and I had reindeer sausage on our Alaskan cruise and it was delicious. Plenty of hot chocolate, espresso and seasonal drinks.
Time with Santa
When you visit Leavenworth, plan your visit to the reindeer farm. One of the few places in the world you have the opportunity to be up-close and feed the reindeer. Take your family, your children and your grandchildren for an experience they may never forget.
Living in Texas, we were hoping visiting Leavenworth in December that it would snow. The morning we were scheduled to leave, we heard knocking at our door at 5:00 AM. David was waking everyone up because it was snowing!
Getting dressed, we headed outside to play in the snow. Being 5:00 AM we had the streets to ourselves. Perfect time for the boys to have snowball fights among themselves and then versus their uncles.
Snowball fight
After a while we headed back to the hotel to pack and a quick rest before hitting the road back to Tacoma. The snow continue to fall, which while beautiful created a bit of a challenge during the drive back to David’s.
The local roads covered quickly and by the time we got to I-90 it was coming down hard and the roads were covered. Remember when I mention Snoqualmie Pass early in the blog, well the pass was closed except for front-wheel drive, four-wheel drive and vehicles with chains. Luckily we had rented a front-wheel drive and four wheel drive vehicle.
Carefully driving through the Pass, the snow eventually stopped and we were on dry pavement the rest of the way to Tacoma. Another little more adventure to talk about as part of our trip.
This was an exceptional two and half-day trip. i would definitely go back and probably spend an extra day or two. There are other sites to see in the area. Our focus was Leavenworth and we loved it!
I had added additional pictures of the Christmas decorations below.
Helpful Links:
General Leavenworth Information
