We have a week or so set aside in mid-August for a vacation. We currently have ff reservations to STT in order to go to St. John, USVI, and stay at Caneel. I'm starting to second guess myself as I've never been to Portland, Seattle, or wine country in Oregon. I've been buying some good OR wines recently, and thought, I would really like to go to OR as I've heard it's beautiful.

I know that such a trip is doable. I don't know if I can fly open jaw on AA ff miles; I haven't asked yet. If so, would it be best to fly out of Portland or Seattle, and fly out of the other?

Also, what would your recommended itinerary be with 7 or 8 nights total? We would like to relax, see awe inspiring scenery (including waterfalls, etc.), drink some wine, and eat some good food. We are coming from New Orleans so we are really just looking for the nature and scenery that I've heard the NW offers.

Should I change from St. John to the Pacific NW?

Hi
I think Portland would be a nice trip and a day or two at the most for the wine area..it is not in any way like Californias wine region, you can do it in a day trip if you like..out of Portland.
My friend mms just spent a weekend in Seattle and made me feel bad that I did not get up there before we moved out of the area.
August is a great time of year to visit that part of the US..sunny and dry and warm in Portland..
Have fun planning ...and if you go, buy some Pinot Noir for me ~

I think the drive from Seattle through Snoqualmie Pass on I 90 is really beautiful. You might want to drive to Snoqualmie Falls, which are quite impressive. Other than that, I would probably stay west of the Pass, though.

My absolutely favorite drive in the state is via highway 20 through the Cascades--probably as far as Winthrop, which is a western-themed town.

I'm also very impressed with the drive along the Columbia River, which is the border between Oregon and Washington. The first part of the drive is very green and lush. Multunomah Falls is in there somewhere. As you drive farther inland, it's quite dry but impressive nevertheless.

Visiting Mt.St. Helens is awesome!

Hello,
I have been to both St. John and Seattle and for your week vacation, I would definitely recommend you keep your St. John reservations. We had an amazing week on the island and it was completely relaxing, wonderful, beautiful trip. Seattle was a fun trip but we easily did it in a weekend. I think you could do the area in a shorter amount of time, perhaps over a long weekend. St. John definitely gets my vote! Have a great trip!

I live here and I would definitely prefer to go to St. John.

Seattle's a great place to LIVE but honestly I never have seen the attraction as a tourist destination. Sure the surrounding countryside is gorgeous but it ain't a beach in the Caribbean!

Seattle to Portland is a straight shot on I-5 freeway of just 3 hours, so which airports you use really don't matter that much in your situation. Likely you'll have many more flight choices using SeaTac.

On the other hand there's no record of hurricanes in Seattle or Portland in August. The Virgin Islands... well...

Meant to add, I can see a lot of availability for frequent flyer seats on Alaska Airlines (AA partner) throughout August from various locations; I doubt you'd have much difficulty getting flights if you're a wee bit flexible on timing.

Nothing wrong with Seattle as a tourist destination! We spent some pleasant time there last year. We flew into Seattle and spent 2 days at Burien, in a very nice bed and breakfast, overlooking Puget Sound (towards Vashon Island). We were lucky with the weather; granted - but it was most pleasant and relaxing. An easy drive into Seattle (via Alki Beach, with a splendid view over to Seattle and to the Olympic Mountains), where we did the Duck Tour, which gave us a very nice outline of the city. We then fled off for 3 weeks, on a circular 'to Yellowstone, Banff and Vancouver back to Seattle route', and on the way we took in Mt Rainer (which is a fabulous place to visit) as well as the awesome Mt St Helens. Would highly recommend both. When we returned to Seattle, for a couple of days (before flying home), we stayed in a hotel overlooking Lake Union and would've liked to have taken a seaplane trip (but, by then, funds were limited!) - but we enjoyed strolling along the Seattle waterfront, eating fish and chips, watching the magnificent sunset, shopping in Pike Place Market and in downtown - going up the Space Needle! We would be happy to return, as there was plenty we didn't have time to see (including, unfortunately, the Olympic Peninsula).

Gardyloo- do you mean flying into Alaska via the OneWorld AA partner Alaskan Airlines? That is an interesting idea...never thought of that. I will see if they fly from MSY.

Thanks.

As for the issue of hurricanes, we always get trip insurance and prefer going in the off season when prices are cheaper and there are virtually no crowds. STJ weather in August (or virtually anywhere) will be better than the hell that is New Orleans in the height of the summer.

Alaska isn't a Oneworld member but they have a very strong partnership with AA, and AA flyers have access to award seats on virtually all available AS flights just as AS flyers have award access to AA flights. AA's presence on the west coast is lousy, so they codeshare with AS on umpteen flights between the Pacific NW and California, as well as Chicago and Dallas.

Although the AA website award machine shows availability to Seattle (at the 25K saver rate) for several days in August, the site doesn't show partner award inventory, only seats on AA-operated planes. So you'd need to phone AA for access to AS seats if the available "AA-metal" dates don't work. You'd also need to phone them for open-jaws (although I can see some AA inventory PDX-DFW for a few days in August too.)

If they've pulled the miles (ticketed you) for the STT trip you may have to pay a fee for re-doing the award booking.

Yes, it would be subject to a $100 fee. I'm thinking we are going to stick with STJ. I've had a lousy day at work today, and thinking about which one I need more (STJ v. OR/WA) is a no brainer for STJ. Plus, Seattle & Oregon would probably be a good trip to save for when we have a kid down the road.

Fair enough. My only additional thought was a vegetation alternative with an Alaska cruise out of Seattle or Vancouver - unpack once, romantic balcony, spa services on the boat, probably cheaper than Caneel...

That is a good idea. Do you have any specific boat recommendations? My boss is going on an Alaskan cruise next month and we were talking about it today. It sounds pretty cool. I'm worried that it is just an over 40 activity (we are 26 and 27 years old)? Would we be the youngest ones there?

Would we be the youngest ones there?

Nah. Some lines tend to market more heavily to older crowds (Holland America for instance) but Alaska is not that sort of destination.

In ports, there are umpteen choices for activities suited to sub-30s - hikes, fishing, glacier flights, etc. Excursions can jack up the price, as can the bar tab, but that's the case everywhere.

It's also a low-risk introduction to cruising. If you don't like cruises after you've been on one, then at least you've had a scenic week.

We did a similar type of trip in September 2004 and had a wonderful time. The Pacific Northwest is my favorite part of the country (so far!). We flew into Portland and out of Seattle. We stayed in Portland for two nights and also went to Multnomah falls (and the gorge drive) for the day. We then drove from Portland to North of Seattle to catch the ferry to the San Juan Islands. On the way, we stopped at Mount St. Helen. This was very interesting and a week later it actually "woke up" and they closed the observation center.

We stayed on Orcas Island in the San Juans for three nights. This was our favorite part of the trip, because the scenery is amazing and it is very relaxing. We went hiking, sea kayaking and whale watching.

Then we returned to Seattle for two nights. I had been here before so chose not to make it a long stop.