MJN_in_OZ

My wife and I are travelling to US and will be in Oregon for 12 days in second half of May. Will be travelling the coast, Crater Lake and wine country. Is there likely to be any problems finding accommodation if we don't book ahead. We were thinking we would just "walk in off the street" when we found a nice town. Also what is traffic like? Aggressive or reasonably polite drivers. I only ask this because we drive on the left in Australia and the experience I had on the Washington DC beltway a couple of years ago was fairly dramatic. Thanks.

tomfuller

I'm guessing that you will be flying into the Portland airport (PDX). Do you intend to spend any of your time in the city of Portland either at the beginning or end of your trip?
IMO the heaviest and therefore worst traffic is in the Portland area on I-5, I-205 and I-405. Also you might want to avoid driving on the major streets in the city of Portland.
You shouldn't have too much trouble in the rest of the state.
On the weekends you should plan a list of lodging options and call ahead at least a few hours before you will arrive in the town. The nicer places quite often get booked up sometimes days in advance.
There is plenty to see in your 12 days in Oregon.
There is a light rail system from the airport into downtown Portland if you didn't want to rent a car as soon as you flew in. There are places to rent cars downtown as well as the airport.

sunbum1944

I think that since you are traveling in May, you should not have much of a problem finding places to stay except for maybe Cannon Beach if you plan to stay there- especially on a weekend-

I think you will not experience very aggressive drivers along the coast- maybe a few tailgaters if you are dawdling along taking in the scenery- just pull over and let them pass. The Oregon coast will not be anywhere like the Washington DC Beltway I assure you.

Post a note when its closer to departure for suggestions on what to see and where to go.

Oregon is a beautiful state- it may still be kind of rainy and cool in May although we have had great weather recently.

NorthwestMale

MJN,

Be aware that Monday, May 27 is the Memorial Day holiday in the U.S.

On THAT weekend you would do well to have your reservations cemented in advance.

The rest of late May in rural Oregon should not present any lodging challenges at all.

I too, don't suppose rural Oregon can emulate DC in terms of driving and haste, so don't worry about that.

Fodorite018

Memorial Day Weekend is one of two during the year in which are big events for the wineries. Many are by appointment only, so on these special weekends, almost all open for tastings and special events. It is a lot of fun!

As for traffic, we are not normally aggressive drivers here.

I agree with the others that reservations for Memorial Day Weekend would be recommended, and the worst traffic will be around Portland on 205 and I-5.

NewbE

I found Oregon drivers to be noticeably slower and more cautious than what I'm used to in Florida; even on busy streets in the city, it was not intimidating in the least. There were significant traffic slowdowns leaving the city.

The Memorial Day weekend will present accommodation challenges pretty much anywhere you'd want to go, so do book ahead.

Gardyloo

Crater Lake is quite a distance from the coast, and it's entirely possible that some or all of the rim roads (the roads circling the lake - a big reason to visit) will still be closed in May. You can also drive all the way there, only to find the high elevations so shrouded in cloud and fog that you literally can't see the lake, full stop. (Been there, done that. Twice.)

So I'd strongly suggest you play it by ear, but that you have an alternative plan for the scheduled days for Crater Lake, in case real-time conditions are unfavorable.

Since you're visiting the coast, an easy alternate to Crater Lake would be extending the coast drive a couple of hours into northern California, in order to visit Redwood National Park and the various redwood groves between Crescent City and the Avenue of the Giants (a little south of Eureka.) In the late spring this can be a terrific experience - huge trees disappearing into the mist, wild rhododendrons flowering in the shadows... magic, like nowhere else.

Also, of course, do NOT miss the Columbia River Gorge, Hood River Valley and Mount Hood, all spectacular in the spring, with blooming orchards, waterfalls full of water from melting mountain snows, and the historic Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood, with spring skiing likely still in progress. Worth at least two days to explore.

5alive

If you survived DC, you can definitely drive Portland.

While there can be more traffic on the freeways cited above, it's pretty straightforward. You just drive or crawl along, depending on the time of day.

The trickiest driving in Portland is when three lanes of traffic come together to form the Sunset Hwy 26 West. This is the logical route to Cannon Beach, so you should take it. You go through the tunnel and suddenly you are going up a hill and on curves. There is a simple key to success: Get into the middle lane as soon as possible (before the tunnel ideally). You do not want the far left lane because the locals take this fairly quickly. Even more importantly, you absolutely don't want the far right because the large trucks are in a low gear and barely making it up the hill.

MJN_in_OZ

Thanks for your replies.

We intend to stay in Portland for about five days before picking up the car. Can someone recommend a suburb close to the city attractions which is on the light rail network. We're also like any "must do' advice for Portland and any recommendations for apartments/B&Bs you may have.

Thanks again.

tomfuller

McMenamin's is one of the nicest places in Portland http://www.mcmenamins.com/CrystalHotel
If the weather is nice you should only spend 1 night in Portland to start and come back at the end for 3 or 4 nights to see the things you missed on the first day.
If the weather is poor head for Powell's bookstore.

5alive

McMenamins is great, but the Crystal hosts concerts regularly; are you sure it isn't too loud there? McMenamins Kennedy School might be better since they mentioned neighborhoods.