Leavenworth – A Modern Day Winter Wonderland

The busy streets of downtown.

Olivia Miller

The busy streets of downtown.

by Olivia Miller, Reporter, Editor-in-Chief

The drive to Leavenworth, Wash. is one of winding roads and snow frosted mountains, with giant evergreen trees lining the path. 

Tucked away in the Cascade mountains, the Bavarian styled village with a population of about 2,000 attracts around 2.5 million people annually. 

With its twinkling lights that seem to cover the entire Swedish inspired town and the clomping of sleigh-pulling horses always in the background, it is not hard to see why the town is constantly compared to a winter wonderland. 

 

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Gallery • 8 Photos
Olivia Miller
The Gingerbread Factory.

However, despite the idyllic quaint stores that surround the streets, the lack of parking is apparent throughout the entire town. 

In regards to dining, there are a variety of options to choose from, from homemade pizza at Tumwater Bread & Pizza to spicy enchiladas at Los Camperos or huge German sausages at Munchen Haus.

For dessert, the Gingerbread Factory has a variety of cookies and pastries to choose from, despite the lack of actual gingerbread.

The History of Leavenworth

Before Swedish inspired agriculture and skiing resorts came to dominate the piece of land nestled in the Cascades now known as Leavenworth, the Yakama, Chinook, and Wenatchi Native tribes resided there. However, settlers soon came in search of gold and fur and overtook the land. Before the 1960’s, when the mayor decided to turn the town into a tourist destination, it was a simple logging town. However, after the strenuous makeover, the Bavarian Esque town now attracts millions of tourists annually.

There are a variety of activities to choose from depending on the season, with tubing and ziplining being popular in the summer and sleigh rides and skiing in the winter. 

With such a vast amount of tourists, the town has several options for lodging, including the Icicle Village Resort and the Bavarian Lodge with a variety of budget accommodations available.

Mainz House of Rock & Etc has a variety of crystals available for extremely affordable prices and also an accommodating and gracious staff. 

However, the best part of the town in winter is the hundreds of thousands of Christmas lights that decorate the entire town, illuminating the streets and lighting up the sky.