Hi all

My two best girlfriends (all in our 30's) and I are planning a short trip to Portland, OR, in early August and looking for recommendations.

We want to do prob 4-5nights in total, 2-3 of these in Portland itself and 2 on the coast.

Portland Accomodation:
Happy to share beds in a hotel or to go self catering, area is most important (prob downtown or the Pearl I assume) as is budget - we all are mums so child-unfriendly area is welcomed and we can make the most of it, but close to good cafes and bars. I've been before with my family so very much looking forward to not having to take the children into account.

Coast: we're really looking for a beach house in a quite seaside town that has a lovely beach but importantly great hikes and a beautiful view. 2 of us are vegan s we can skip the Tillamook factory We could hire a car but if there's somewhere we can get to by train from the city all the better

Budget is definately a consideration, I think we'd like to try to get away with spending $1500 absolute max on accommodation in total

Any thoughts?

I think the beach house might be a problem. Minimum night stay is usually longer than 2 nights. Maybe you'll find something during the week though. Maybe a small boutique hotel? Manzanita or yachats. I like cannon beach and Newport better but neither are quiet.

300 per night is a decent budget, although may be complicated by the fact you need a room for 3 people. My favorite hotel in portland is Chrystal Hotel. It's funky, has a great soaking pool, not a family hotel really.

Here in Portland, take a look at either downtown or the NW area (around 21st/23rd streets). An Air BnB would work well for you. Otherwise, take a look at the Inn at Northrup Station. The location is great, it is not expensive (by Portland standards) and has free parking. It is in the NW area. If you want downtown, there are many good hotels, but when I have had girlfriends come visit and we wanted to stay in downtown and do like you are planning, we stayed at the Monaco (a Kimpton property). That is our go to hotel in town anyway, but it works really well for a girls trip as almost all of the rooms are suites, so they are spacious and have a separate sitting area etc.

As for the coast, Cannon Beach is my favorite area, and again I have done girls trips there many times. Like MM mentions, a house will be tough for a short stay, but there are some great hotels. Our favorite is the Surfsand Resort. It is a bit south of downtown, but an easy walk, so not in a bustling area like if you stayed at a place closer to the shops/restaurants. A couple blocks north of there is the Blue Gull Inn that has a wonderful 2 bedroom cottage. It has a full kitchen, as well as a murphy bed, so all 3 of you would have your own bed. Schooner's Cove is another good option. I have done girls trips at all 3 of these places and they worked well.

Manzanita is quieter, with only a few shops/restaurants and the only ocean front motel is a dump. Cannon Beach has much more, plus Haystack Rock and Ecola State Park, so great hiking opportunities.

Just remembered- The Monaco has these studio suites- a king bed and then a fold out couch, and I doubt those are over 300, as we would stay there if they were! Love the Monaco!

That's supposed to say "wouldn't" lol

these are great starting points, thankyou - we actually stayed as a family at the Inn at Northrup Station so while I highly recommend it, I'd like to stay in a different area this time to get a different feel.

I've heard mixed reviews about Cannon Beach but Ecola across the board sounds amazing, so maybe that's our best bet? And probably threrefore requires a car maybe?

should add we'll be there in the week, not the weekend (Mon-Fri)

I love Cannon Beach. It's not quiet but it's classy. Higher end shopping, usually some better food options. And ecola is great. You generally will need a car for any hiking you do on the coast, anyway.

Cannon Beach is the most upscale town on our entire OR coast. The Surfsand is also the only resort on the entire coast that has (seasonal) cabana service. They provide adirondack chairs and beach umbrellas, volleyball net, beach toys, etc all complimentary. CB is popular not only because of it's proximity to Portland, but because it is a beautiful area both for nature as well as the shops/restaurants. The only drawback is that most hotels and motels have 203 night minimum stays during the high season, so I would get that booked asap. Yes, you would need a car for anywhere on the coast. No train service at all, and extremely limited bus service. You WANT a car

LOL, MM and I are saying the same things

hmmm ok thanks all - I don't know if we want to stay right in CB if we're going to hire a car anyway, I've found a few AirBnB's that seem to be along the coast but not neccessarily in a town as such so maybe we'll go for that. But def that kind of area for the hikes in Ecola - or how about being a bit closer to Oswald West State Park, what's that like?

If we want to do hikes I guess we're better going inland and doing Mount Hood and the Gorge, I'm just trying to steer towards the coast because I've done Hood etc with the family already and would like to do something different

any other thoughts on areas in Portland? As I say, Ive stayed in NW and would like to stay somewhere different - which area counts as "hawthorne"?

Os West is a good area as well. One hike that I really like that is near the coast is Saddle Mountain. It is right off of highway 26, about 13 miles east of 101. At the top is a beautiful panoramic view of the coast. Our family loves to hike and are on the trails whenever possible. The gorge and Mt Hood of course have way more hikes. If you let me know what you like as far as elevation and mileage, I can give more personal suggestions if you want.

Hawthorne is fine. It is on the east side of the river, so not walkable to downtown if that matters.

MMS thankyou recommendations for hikes would be great. we're happy with 5-10miles, not sure about elevation but we like a good workout and fantastic views!

mymatemarmite--Oh good, someone else that likes to really get out there!!! For really good views in the gorge, there are two that are just across the river on the WA side. Dog Mountain and Hamilton Mountain. Both are really good workouts and have stunning views!!! Dog is a bit more popular than Hamilton, but both are super busy on the weekends. Go early, but SO worth it! There is a shuttle you can take if parking is an issue for Dog Mtn, and in Stevenson there will be signs telling you if the parking lot at the trail head is full or if you would need to take the shuttle. Eagle Creek is really good, and it is on the OR side. Again, go early as it gets busy. At a minimum, go to Punchbowl Falls on that hike. Right now the trail is washed out just past there, but you can still cross the creek even if it is not repaired in time. There is a cable along the rock wall where the trail is narrow, but be careful as in a couple areas the cable is frayed. I sliced my hand open on it last time. Also in OR, just south of Hood River a bit off of 35 is Tamanawas Falls which is beautiful. Easy hike, but also washed out so going over the boulders takes a bit of navigation but is doable. Triple Falls is really nice too. Further out in the gorge is Rowena Crest. There are two hikes there, and the easy one (the plateau loop) has stunning views. You need to watch for rattlesnakes though. The other hike there is McCall Point which also has great views, but the trail is really narrow in a few areas and you really need to watch for poison oak and ticks. Not trying to scare you at all, just know what to look for and water taller socks or gaitors and you will be fine.

There are two HI hostels in Portland. My favorite is the Northwest on 18th just off Glisan. http://nwportlandhostel.com/
The other is on Hawthorne in the eastern part of the city.
Be sure to rent a car to go see both the Columbia Gorge east of the city and also the coast.
Seaside is a bit cheaper than Cannon Beach IMO.
I did stay in a hostel in Seaside that was about 4 blocks from the "prom".
If it happens to rain, head for Powell's World of Books.
10th & Burnside.
My favorite Jewish Deli is Ken & Zukes a couple blocks south of Powells.

Thanks all - MMS this is AWESOME! ugh fine maybe we'll do hikes and waterfalls instead of coast and just stay in Portland......I mean, it IS beautiful

mymatemarmite--Glad to help Yes, you could easily do that and you could do a day trip over to the coast. It is only about 90 minutes from downtown over to Cannon Beach and makes for a nice day. If you did that, you could go out 26, then down 101 and do the Three Capes Loop and then head back on 6, which meets up with 26. It is a nice loop with some good scenery, and would give you some variety vs going back the same way.

The best of Hawthorne is 25th-50th -- it's a funky, fun, grungy/boho area and we visit frequently with our kids because that's where our (child-free) friends live but it's not a stroller boulevard. Sunnyside runs along Belmont and is just to the North of Hawthorne and also has great restaurants, cafes, markets. If you do an AirBNB map search, there are some great places to stay along Hawthorne. I wouldn't want to stay in downtown Portland, I have a friend who lives downtown for convenience because she walks to work but she says the area lacks the character and vibrance of other neighborhoods.

...we all are mums so child-unfriendly area is welcomed and we can make the most of it, but close to good cafes and bars...

Well, what about the Edgefield? https://www.mcmenamins.com/Edgefield

All sorts of activities on site (spa, golf, movie theater, gardens, cool art...) and umpteen places to eat and drink; on-site brewery, winery and distillery, affordable and comfortable accommodations, and right on the edge of the Gorge (but also very easy drive to PDX or into downtown Portland.)

Also look at McMenamins' sister property in Portland, the Kennedy School - https://www.mcmenamins.com/kennedy-school