First Trip to Portland

Hi,

First of all, I would like to thank everyone for the valuable information that has been posted to the forum in the past- it was largely based on this that I decided to book our trip to Oregon in September.

I will be heading out west with my wife and in-laws for a four day relaxation excursion prior to a Labor Day wedding in LA. At this point, I have only booked our flights into town and I%26#39;m looking to firm up the itinerary after arrival. We are big wine country people, but being from NYC, we always look forward to “slowing things down” while on vacation (hence the decision to go to Oregon vs. Napa Valley). Originally I was just going to book four nights in the Willamette valley, but after reading more about Portland itself, am wondering whether we should spend an extra day there. Please see below for a few specific questions:

- We arrive in Portland from NY late Tuesday evening. We were originally going to spend the night in Portland, explore town on Wednesday morning and afternoon, then head out to wine country for Wed/Thurs/Fri night flying to LA on Saturday. I am now considering spending Tues/Wed night in Portland and Thurs/Fri night in Willamette- is this a better plan? Knowing that there aren’t many true “sightseeing” destinations in town, will we be able to fill 1.5 days just puttering around the city? Is two full days in wine country enough time?

- If we do stay in Portland for two days, do we need to have a rental car for those days or should we just plan to pick one up prior to heading out to wine country? How much is a taxi from the airport to Portland? What is the best way to travel around the city? No sense paying for a rental car and then just leaving it in the lot for two days…

- Are there any areas in Portland that are better to stay than others? As I mentioned, we don’t have any specific destinations in mind, so would most likely prefer something that is centrally located and easy to get to. Also, if you have any specific names of can’t miss lodging, that’d be great. We have no real budget per se, but like always, the cheaper the better!

- Heading out to the wine country, I have been able to pick up several good choices for lodging from previous posts, including Youngberg Hill, Black Walnut Inn, Wine Country Farm and B%26amp;B, and Abbey Road Farm. We are typically luxury travelers but not stuck up and pretentious- just like the basics such as cleanliness, A/C, good people, etc. We are also foodies and enjoy wine- are there any that you would particularly recommend for our stay? Centrally located is nice but not required. Please bear in mind that this is the first trip that I’m planning for the in-laws and they have high expectations, so I can’t disappoint!

Once I get the outline of my trip down I’m going to start worrying about specifics like touring companies, wineries, restaurants, etc. and I cant wait to look into the other posts that everyone has submitted that talk about these topics! I apologize for the long post, and I thank everyone in advance for their responses.

First Trip to Portland

For nice lodging in the downtown area, we have enjoyed stays at The Heathman Hotel and The Benson. We also love the Riverplace Hotel down by the waterfront. Check out the www.pova.com website for good rates on hotels and complimentary parking and breakfast. Have fun! :)

First Trip to Portland

I don%26#39;t feel qualified to answer all your questions, but I do think that you will be happier if you stay Tues and Wed in Portland before trekking off. As you state you have a late arrival on Tuesday, its likely that you will be pretty pooped after a long travel day; we always are, especially coming E to W. as the time change is a killer for me.

In my opinion, yes, you can handle a day and a half of puttering around Portland pretty easily. Even though you will be coming from a vibrant metro area, I think that Portland will surprise you with all it has to offer. Some quick thoughts that I know are accessible by our light-rail system are Washington Park, which contains our International Rose Test Garden and the Japanese Garden as well as the zoo; then, The Pearl district, which is ';the'; place to shop downtown; perhaps the Hawthorne neighborhood where the Bagdad Theater is located- our son enjoys going there for the ';brew and view'; theater when he is in town, which are easily accessed through our public transportation system.

Portland is a ';foodie';%26#39;s delight, so you will have no problem finding exciting places to eat- there are choices everywhere for new and interesting foods.

www.TravelOregon.com is the website for the Oregon Tourism commission and I believe that you would find their trip planner very helpful as you get into more detail for your trip.

You picked a great place to relax before going to LA!

Enjoy your visit!

I think you might get bored just puttering around Portland, but if you spent a half day in the Columbia River Gorge, maybe not.... And they%26#39;re making some fine wine out around Hood River now, too. So yes, two nights in Portland. Any downtown core hotel will work, but Hotel Monaco seems to be a favorite of both locals and visitors. For something a little out-of-the-box, consider Hotel De Luxe.

Youngberg Hill is not as well located as other wine country lodgings you list, so all else being equal, I%26#39;d go with one of the other three. But, I don%26#39;t know that all else is equal, so I%26#39;d be safe and choose Black Walnut Inn.

About the in-laws%26#39; ';high expectations';.... What do you think would ';disappoint';?

Definitely stay in portland an extra night, and no reason to get the rental car for your stay in the city. You can buy an all-day tri-met pass for $4.75. Based on your post I%26#39;d stay at Monaco, but any of the 4* places are great in the downtown area--and they%26#39;re pretty much within walking distance to each other.

Take a streetcar to Jamieson Park and order a picnic lunch from Fenouil. I just found out that they deliver to the park for free and the menu looks really fun: www.fenouilinthepearl.com/pdf/park-menu.pdf

Regarding rental cars, you can take the light rail (called MAX) into the city from the airport, cost is a couple of dollars each and it takes 30-40 minutes. When you are ready to rent a car, use a rental car office downtown to save about 30%. You can then return the car downtown and take MAX back out. Much of Portland is accessible via public transport.

I agree with staying the extra night in Portland, I recommend the Monaco but I have a list of hotels that would be good, plus all are accessible by Streetcar and that is the way you can get around town without a car.

I never got to but always wanted to stay a weekend at the Black Walnut, it just looks so pretty. The winery area is only about 30-45 minutes out of downtown Portland..

The Coast is 90 minutes from downtown..

The Gorge/Falls is about half an hour from downtown, these are both easy day trips ..

I will post lists of restaurants, you can look at the websites..

oregone, that is so smart of Fenouil to do a picnic menu.

We often had lunch outside which is a few steps from the park/grass/water but with a rambunctious little one, it would make it so nice to be able to eat from Fenouil without having to Be In Fenouil with the little ones...

My lists

Hotels

tripadvisor.com/GoListDetail-i892-Sleeping_i…

Eats

tripadvisor.com/GoListDetail-i1394-Portland_…

tripadvisor.com/GoListDetail-i1395-Portland_…

tripadvisor.com/GoListDetail-i1398-Portland_…

Streetcar

tripadvisor.com/GoListDetail-i1396-Portland_…

As expected, the forum came through again. Thanks so much for all of the valuable insights.

Based on the above, we’re definitely going to stay the two nights in Portland. Hotel Monaco and The Heathman both look wonderful- probably can’t go wrong with either. Just out of curiosity, does anyone know the Hotel Modera? I found it through an association called Small Luxury Hotels of the World- we have stayed at a few of their other properties all over the globe and have always been very happy. Thoughts on property/location versus the Monaco and Heathman?

Looks like there is no reason to pick up the rental car for the first few days in town- seems like there are a couple of local rental car locations that we can use to grab a car before heading out to the wine country. Are there sites to stop at on the way out to wine country, or just drive out and drink?!

As for the best inn, it seems that the Black Walnut is towards the top of everyone’s list- obviously the most expensive! Seems like it might be worth the extra expense…

Thanks again for all of the assistance. Look forward to future communications and eventually our trip to Portland!

If you know the Kimpton Hotels, you will appreciate the Monaco and their luxury hotels but with a younger more cheerful atmosphere than some of the more grand hotels .. old fashioned kind of hotels.

The Monaco has a lot of little perks and treats that they give their guests and the Red Star Tavern is great ..

I don%26#39;t personally know the Modera but read something about it not long ago .. look at the TripAdvisor reviews, you can get opinions from people who have just stayed there..

When you want the car, the Monaco will call and get it for you, it will be delivered to the hotel. We did that a few times. With and without dog :)

Since the wine area is only about 30-45 minutes from town, you probably should just wait til you get there to drink lol..

Of course the B%26amp;B that is most appealing is the most expensive! story of my life :)

Perhaps you can ask them for any discounts that they might have , times being the way they are, they might be happy to have guests and will be willing to be generous in some way..

Did you see www.pova.com ?

Even though we live here, we stayed in town at hotels on occassion. We have stayed at the Monaco several times and the Heathman once. I like the Monaco better. The rooms are much more spacious, the staff are friendlier and less stuffy, the evening wine reception is fun, and if it is rainy the underground valet is great. We have had special requests several times and they always went out of their way to accommodate.

We had a Symphony Suite at the Heathman, in the hopes of entertaining friends before our night out. Nope, that was definitely not going to happen as the room was tiny. Most of the room was fine, but the bathroom left much to be desired. It was in definite need of renovation. The tv%26#39;s were old, which didn%26#39;t fit with the aim for high end. Room service breakfast was bland enough that we went over to the Pearl Bakery instead. And in the morning, despite the ';do not disturb'; sign on the door, the maid came in very early on departure day. So nothing huge, but enough small things to detract from our stay.

As for wine country, there aren%26#39;t any must stops on the way down. I live in a suburb SW of downtown, and right where the winery area starts in earnest. I can PM you some directions that will save a bunch of time if you want. Just let me know.