Car-free getaway | Scenery, a free shuttle, tribal art — and slots

Is $4 gasoline blowing a hole in your budget? Then ditch that gas burner and go green. Here's a summer getaway that gets you there with no time behind the wheel.

The objective: A trip across the Sound to a tribal casino.

The place: Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort, near the small community of Suquamish on the Kitsap Peninsula (just across from Bainbridge Island).

What makes it special: A scenic ferry ride, a free shuttle that crosses Bainbridge Island and the narrow waters of Agate Passage, and a collection of tribal art around the casino and hotel. The casino (www.clearwatercasino.com) offers slots, roulette, poker and other games. Want to stay the night? The lodge-like, 85-room hotel nestles among firs by the waterfront. A short taxi ride (or maybe the casino's van, if you ask nicely and/or gamble enough) gets you to the nearby Suquamish Museum, with historic photos, carvings and other artifacts telling the history of the Suquamish people who have lived around central Puget Sound for thousands of years.

What makes it tasty: Get a casual, all-you-can-eat meal at the Longhouse Buffet or burgers and beer at the Beach Rock Sports Lounge. For dinner, go fancier at the Cedar Steakhouse (www.clearwatercasino.com/dining).

Getting there with no car: Take the bus to the downtown Seattle ferry terminal, walk aboard Washington State Ferries to Bainbridge Island ($7.10 round-trip; www.wsdot.wa.gov/ferries). The casino has a free shuttle to and from the Bainbridge ferry dock.

— Kristin Jackson