Anderson Island, WA

Anderson Island sits at the southern end of Puget Sound in Pierce County, Washington, and is the most southerly island in the sound. With a year-round population of roughly 1,000 residents, it has the feel of a small, woodsy coastal community where deer outnumber stoplights and waterfront cottages mix with evergreen forest. The island serves as a quiet gateway to southern Puget Sound, reachable only by boat, and offers visitors a slower, more rural alternative to the busier San Juan islands farther north. The mainland jump-off point is Steilacoom, a small town in Pierce County about an hour's drive south of Seattle and roughly twenty minutes from Tacoma.

The journey to Anderson Island begins at the Steilacoom Ferry Terminal, where Washington State Ferries operates the Christine Anderson–class ferry Steilacoom II on the run across the sheltered waters of Balch Passage. The crossing takes about twenty minutes, and the trip itself, with views of Mount Rainier on a clear day, is part of the appeal. Riders can find current schedule and fare information through Washington State Ferries. Once ashore, the island unfolds into a network of quiet country roads, salt-water vistas, and community parks.

On the island itself, Anderson Island County Park offers a stretch of shoreline, picnic areas, and walking paths typical of the small public spaces Pierce County maintains in the southern Sound. The Anderson Island Historical Society operates a small museum complex that preserves the community's pioneer and steamboat-era past, including the restored Johnson Farmhouse, which gives visitors a sense of what life looked like when early homesteaders cleared the island in the late 1800s. Just offshore, the historic cellblock lighthouse on nearby McNeil Island — a former federal penitentiary site — remains a recognizable silhouette for boaters exploring the surrounding waters.

On the mainland side, Steilacoom itself is one of the oldest incorporated towns in Washington, with a handful of 19th-century buildings, a waterfront promenade, and views back toward Anderson Island across the passage. From there, Tacoma is a short drive north, where visitors can explore the waterfront Museum of Glass, the Washington State History Museum, and Point Defiance Park, one of the largest urban parks in the country.

Anderson Island appeals to short-term-rental owners because it offers something increasingly rare in the Puget Sound region: genuine quiet, dark-sky nights, and a genuine sense of escape, all within a roughly 90-minute trip of downtown Seattle. The combination of a ferry-only setting, walkable shorelines, and proximity to Tacoma's cultural attractions gives the island a niche but durable appeal for travelers seeking a Pacific Northwest retreat that feels a world away from the mainland.