Help~anniversary destination for young couple?
 

Preferably along the West coast, or Northwest/Southwest...

We are in our young 30's, no kids yet, currently live in Seattle, and are looking for a quick getaway weekend for our anniversary. It would be a stay of approx. 3 nights, we could drive or fly (if reasonable prices). Looking for "last-minute"/late October.

We are looking for a cool town/city with local character, scenery, good restaurants, a decent but not outrageously-priced hotel to stay in (with a spa, or one nearby). We've been to most of the larger cities~ SF, LA, Portland, Vancouver, etc., and are looking for someplace new, preferably...

What about Bend, OR? Or Santa Fe? Northern Arizona? Or somewhere along the CA coast or even inland CA? We're mostly looking to relax!! Open to suggestions on the above locations or otherwise! Thanks in advance!! :)

How about Sedona, Flagstaff, Jerome or Scottsdale all in Arizona? Personally, if you go somewhere that involves airplanes I would only do a non -stop since you only have 3 days. If driving, try Ashland, OR perhaps.

In California the towns around Palm Springs can be fun like Palm Desert and Rancho Mirage. It's best to fly into Palm Springs but Ontario Airport is a viable alternative.

Santa Fe is a terrific weekend destination, but don't know how it is to fly to Albuquerque from Seattle - you fly to ABQ and then drive an hour or so to Santa Fe.

How about Santa Barbara?

Southwest flies non-stop from Seattle to Albuquerque. Rent a car and head up to Santa Fe. End of October should get you some good hotel prices; not sure if you are too late for the cheap airfares on SW.

Download their DING! fare alerter to get good deals on tickets. Follow directions and you may snag a good rate.
Debi

Sedona would be nice. Also the Northern California coast above San Francisco is especially nice.
We are a little partial to a quaint town called Elk, which is just above Gualala. Cute, arsy little town, with spectacular ocean views.

Even before I finished reading your post I was going to suggest Bend, lol! It is a 7 hour drive from Seattle (used to do that a lot), or you could fly into Redmond. There are places to stay in town, or you might consider Sunriver Resort just south of town about 10 minutes. I personally love Sunriver and we go there often. Check out their website as it shows the resort as well as things to do in the area.

I just flew across Colorado and the Aspens were in full gold, mountains dusted white -- so I'd pick a ski resort like Keystone or Breck. Allaire Timbers Inn is very nice in Breckenridge. The resorts should give you a choice of nightlife. Keystone has some great last minute deals. Southwest Seattle to Denver.

Since someone else already raised the Palm Springs area...

How about The Willows? or Villa Royale??

Muuuuy romantico. I did an anniversary stay in the Montgomery House at Korakia Pensione a few years ago, too. That was no slouch in terms of romance and ambiance.

Happy Anniversary, and best wishes no matter where your travels take you.

PSL

Portland or San Diego?

I second Debi's suggestion for Santa Fe.
Perfect for a weekend getaway! Santa Fe offers you all that you are looking for -- restaurants, spa, shopping, scenery and centuries of local character. End of October will be cool and crisp and you will miss the crowds that are currently smothering Santa Fe.

SWA Ding! deals are great -- definitely sign up for that.

How about San Diego or Laguna Beach? This is a gorgeous area of the CA coast with lots to do! ***kim*** ((f))

It's hard not to agree with Santa Fe. It's just a great destination. But, I'm not sure 3 nights is enough to do it justice, since, with travel time, that means just two days there.

How about northern California wine country?

Also have to agree with mms about central Oregon; Sunriver or Black Butte Ranch would both be good. Or, for a little different experience, check out this place: http://www.metoliusriverresort.com/

San Diego/La Jolla
Sedona
Cabo San Lucas
San Francisco/Napa
Palm Springs Area
Scottsdale

If you are looking to drive, you could do Hood River, OR or Skamania Lodge. There's a lot of wine country in the area if you are intersted in wine tasting. The Columbia River Gorge should be brilliant with fall color at the end of Oct.

Flying down to Cabo (if you could get a last minute decent package) would be fine!

We really enjoyed the wine country - went to Napa and stayed in St. Helena; we toured all the wineries and took a hot air balloon ride - would make a very nice long weekend.