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Centralia, WA Road Trips

Plan drives from Centralia, WA with practical route pages for distance, drive time, fuel cost, road character, and places to stop along the way.

city in Lewis County, Washington, United States

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Trip Routes

1

Longest Drive

236.1 mi

Pasco, WA

Quickest Drive

4h 40m

Pasco, WA

Plan Around Centralia, WA

Popular Incoming Routes

Useful if Centralia, WA is the arrival point and you want the strongest routes into the city first.

Centralia, WA by the Numbers

Recent demographic snapshot from the US Census Bureau's American Community Survey.

Population

18,457

Median Income

$52,387

Median Home Value

$267,600

Median Age

37.8

Source: US Census Bureau ACS 5-year (public domain). See our methodology for details.

Centralia, WA at a Glance

Founded

1852

Elevation

187 ft

Area

0 mi²

Notable People from Centralia, WA

A sampling of people born in Centralia, WA.

Merce Cunningham

Merce Cunningham

1919–2009

American dancer and choreographer (1919–2009)

Craig McCaw

1949

American businessman

Don Butterfield

1923–2006

American tuba player (1923–2006)

Lyle Overbay

Lyle Overbay

1977

American baseball player

Brock Peterson

Brock Peterson

1983

American baseball player

Landmarks & Historic Sites

Attractions and heritage-registered places located in Centralia, WA.

Centralia station

Centralia station

train station in Centralia, Washington, USA

National Register of Historic Places contributing property National Register of Historic Places listed place
Centralia Downtown Historic District

Centralia Downtown Historic District

historic district in Centralia, Washington

National Register of Historic Places listed place
Main Post Office

Main Post Office

U.S. Post Office in Centralia, Washington

National Register of Historic Places listed place
The Sentinel

The Sentinel

national Register of Historic Places statue in Centralia, Washington

National Register of Historic Places listed place

City data from Wikidata (Q868700), available under CC0. Photos from Wikimedia Commons under their respective licenses. See our methodology for details.

Traveler Guide to Centralia, WA

Centralia is a city in southwestern Washington State. It is a great place to stop for food and supplies when traveling between Seattle and Portland, as it is almost exactly halfway between the two. It is a twin city with Chehalis to the south.

1 Great Wolf Lodge (Grand Mound’s Water Park), 20500 Old Highway 99 SW, Grand Mound, toll-free: +1-800-640-9653.

There are many restaurants along Harrison Ave, west of I-5. 1 Burgerville, 818 Harrison Ave, ☏ +1 360 736-5212. Daily 7AM-11PM. Founded in 1961, the NW's own fast food chain with a decidedly NW flavor promoting sustainable practices and fresh, local ingredients. Great burgers and traditional fast food fare. Amazing seasonal items including sweet potato fries, asparagus, strawberries, blackberries, onion rings and more. The original Burgerville USA was established in Vancouver, WA.

1 Olympic Club Pub, 112 N Tower Ave (former card room of the Olympic Club Hotel, along Tower Ave between Main & Pine), ☏ +1 360 736-5164. Su-Th 7AM-midnight, F Sa 7AM-1AM. One of the McMenamin's bar and hotels. (updated Dec 2018)

The following are off Harrison Ave (Exit #82), surrounding the Factory Outlet Mall northwest of downtown 1 King Oscar, 1049 Eckerson Rd (NW of the I-5/Harrison Ave junction (Exit #82)), ☏ +1 360 736-1661. (updated Sep 2019) The following are off Mellen St (Exit #81), close to the Greyhound station: 2 Peppermill Express Inn, 1233 Alder St (SW of the I-5/Mellen Ave junction (Exit #81)), ☏ +1 360 330-9441. Off of Exit #81 on Elsbury & Alder, behind Shell gas station. The following are downtown, close to the Amtrak station: 3 McMenamins Olympic Club Hotel, 112 N Tower Ave (former card room of the Olympic Club Hotel, along Tower Ave between Main & Pine in downtown Centralia), ☏ +1 360 736-5164. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: 11AM. One of the McMenamin's bar and hotels. (updated Dec 2018) 4 Centralia Square Grand Ballroom & Hotel, 202 W Centralia College Blvd (W Centralia College Blvd & S Pearl St, downtown), ☏ +1 360 807-1212, [email protected]. (updated Sep 2021)

Centralia is just east of Interstate 5 (I-5). From the northbound lanes, it is accessed from Exits #81 (Mellan St/City Center) & 82 (Harris Ave/Factory Outlet Way). From the southbound lanes, it can be only be accessed from Exit #82. To get to Mellan St (where Exit/Mile Marker #81 is at) continue along the parallel lanes after exiting off at #82, follow the signs. US Highway 12 (US-12) goes east through the mountains, south of Mt. Rainier, towards Yakima from Exit 68 of I-5 and west to Aberdeen through Tenino from Exit 88 of I-5. Between Exits 68 and 88, US Hwy 12 goes along I-5 through Centralia and Chehalis. State Route 507 (SR-507) goes through town as Pearl St (SB) & Tower St (NB). At 6th St, north of downtown, Tower St joins Pearl where SR-507 continues north into the countryside towards Yelm. From the south end of the downtown core, SR-507 goes west as Cherry St which becomes Alder and then Mellan St and ends at its junction with I-5 (Exit #81). South of Cherry St, Pearl & Tower St merges and continues south as Kresky Ave towards Chehalis. On some parts of the way Kresky Ave splits with the southbound traffic going south as Gold St which becomes National Ave into Chehalis while northbound traffic remains on Kresky. 1 Centralia Union Depot, 210 Railroad Ave (downtown). (updated Sep 2022) Amtrak, ☏ +1 215-856-7924, toll-free: +1-800-872-7245. Operates train service around the United States of America.

Lewis County Transit (formerly Twin Transit), ☏ +1 360 330-2072. They also offer local bus services between Centralia and Chehalis with the following: (updated Sep 2019) Blue Line, Outlets Malls,Amtrak, Downtown Centralia, B St & 6th Red Line, Wal Mart North side, Lewis County Courthouse in Chehalis, Port of Chehalis, Chehalis Recreation Center, Corner of Bishop & Studervant Yellow Line, Lewis County Senior Center, Lewis County Mall, Providence Medical Pavillion, S Market & 1st, Chehalis Library, Amtrak, Centralia College Orange Line, Outlet Malls, Centralia Middle School, Centralia High School

Travel tips adapted from Centralia (Washington) on Wikivoyage, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Content summarized; visit the source for the full article. See our methodology for how we use it.

Trips to Centralia, WA

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