Grand Coulee Dam

Grand Coulee Dam in Washington State is one of the best free dam visits in the country. The Bureau of Reclamation's visitor center is open daily all year apart from Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day, and in summer the season adds free public tours of the John W. Keys III Pump-Generating Plant and the "One River, Many Voices" laser light show projected onto the face of the dam after dark. Timing matters here. The light show ended for 2026 on September 30 and is due back in May 2027, and the plant tours are seasonal too, so a winter visit means the visitor center and the view, while a summer evening gets you the full program.