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I am in the process of planning a late Spring trip. The planned itinery is LSL from Springfield, MA then SWC to Los Angeles (with a brief stop in Williams,AZ to visit family). I then plan to take the Coast Starlite to Portland then on to Seattle then the Empire Builder back home. I would welcome suggestions for minimum length of stay needed -- sights to not miss -- hotels for both Portland and Seattle. I am a Senior citizen with some mobility problems. (Asthma and an arthritic knee has slowed the body but not the spirit.)I prefer not to rent cars and tend to depend on local day tour companies or local transportation. Hotels,to me,are simply a place to sleep so clean,moderate expense and proximity to sites are what I look for. I have sent for the usual tourist packets from local tourism groups but know that those who have been there can offer the best tips. Dee p.s. Since I am retired I have the luxury of not being held to rigid time constraints,(Within reason of course.) Unfortunatly however I do not have unlimited funds.
Posts: 460 | From: North Central CT | Registered: May 2004
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I assume with family in Williams you have been to Grand Canyon National Park, only 65 miles away. If not then you definately should go, and allow a long day to enjoy the scenery, good food and some wildlife.
Posts: 467 | From: Prescott, AZ USA | Registered: Mar 2002
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DeeCT, that's quite a trip you have planned.
Some comments about Portland, Oregon: I usually stay at the Mark Spencer Hotel. Rooms have fully equiped kitchens, and there is a Whole Foods (a foo-foo food grocery chain) close by. If you're not into cooking, several great eateries are close by (if you like seafood, try Jake's Restaurant). Powell's Bookstore (it's huge--grab a map as you enter) is also just a block or so away. You can check out the hotel at www.markspencer.com.
Portland has very good public transportation (light rail, street car, bus). I go there two or three times a year, and seldom find a need to rent a car.
As for things to do, the tourist packets you've ordered will cover the major attractions. I suggest Chuck Palahniuk's book Fugitives and Refugees: A Walk in Portland, Oregon for attractions that, let us say, are not usually covered in travel guides.
Speaking of unusual books, Jenny Diski's Stranger on a Train: Daydreaming and Smoking Around America with Interruptions might be of interest. It's not your usual Amtrak trip report. But I enjoyed it on one of my trips to PDX.
I think you'll find Portland pretty user-friendly.
Posts: 445 | Registered: May 2002
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Dee, I was just in Portland for the first time on a summer western trip (Capital Ltd to CA Zephyr to Coast Starlite to Portland, then Empire Builder from Portland to LSL back east). I stayed in the Mark Spencer based on people's recs here and it was fine. It's at 407 SW 11th Av, 503-224-3293, tollfree 800-548-3934, www.markspencer.com. The rates were pretty reasonable; the taxi fare from the Amtrak station (a VERY nice station, btw) was under $10; the rooms included a pretty decent Continental Breakfast, free NY Times, and I think even free afternoon tea, though I never was there to take it. My room itself was older & like a little apartment, with a kitchenette & even a walk-in closet, good TV, bed perfectly comfortable. Location was pretty good--right near Powells, not far from Pioneer Square; in fact, I was able to walk all over downtown, though your knee could present problems in that regard. There was also a streetcar nearby (downtown Portland has good transportation).
If you want to look into a posher older downtown hotel that could perhaps still have one of those on-line discounts (as at hotels.com or whatever), you might check out the Governor Hotel, 614 SW 11th, 503-224-3400, tollfree 800-554-3456, built 1909 & recently renovated; or the Benson Hotel, 309 Broadway, 503-228-2000/9611?, tollfree 888-523-6766, www.bensonhotel.com, built 1912 by local timber baron Simon Benson & again, recently renovated; rooms said to be on the small side but very nice lobby. There is also the fashionable Heathman, with whose lobby I was personally less impressed. I of course did not see any of the rooms in these hotels; I just nosed around when I was walking downtown. If you want to look for a cheaper-than-Mark-Spencer downtown hotel, that could be the Days Inn City Center, 1414 SW 6th, 503-221-1611, 800-899-0248, motel-ish but an excellent downtown location; however, I believe it is often booked far in advance.
Re things to do & see: one not-to-be-missed thing for me was The International Rose Test Garden, up in Washington Park; you can take the light rail up to the zoo, then there is an elevator from the station to outdoors (ask anyone), then there is a local bus, all very very easy and the bus driver may give you a mini-tour! It's a botanical garden devoted to roses only, with a great view of the city; BUT I'm not sure what the roses will be like when you go, depends on how late in spring. There is a lot of other stuff up here, if you are interested--an arboretum, Vietnam Memorial, the zoo itself, and so on--but what I liked was just seeing the homes around here; I really liked the Nob Hill area and also the older houses and shops in a part of Portland called NW 23rd (area around NW 23rd St). I walked around there, but maybe there is a bus tour of the city you can take if you are less mobile. You also should try to see the renovated Pearl District, and of course Pioneer Square (there's a tourist info there, down some stairs, opened 8:30 in season; and they run walking tours, not sure if you could do that but I enjoyed one) and especially should try to walk a little along the Willamette River on the walks put in for joggers, bikers, etc. Don't know if your knee etc will preclude this, but it was nice in both directions, the newer stuff built E of the Hawthorne Bridge and the older going the other way, up to the RR bridge, where you might see an Amtrak crossing the river and heading for the station! Note that street people abound in Portland in summer, but I had no trouble with them. There are also nice buildings around a downtown area of streets with center islands called South Park Blocks, including the Portland Art Museum, a historical museum, and some other museums, theaters, etc, but I didn't go inside (except to view the theater lobby on the walking tour); the weather was too good (and that can be rare in Portland; I gather it does rain a lot).
For eating, I liked Jakes Famous Crawfish, recommended to me here; it's at 401 SW 12th Av at Stark, just a block or two from the Mark Spencer Hotel, 503-226-1419. My Coast Starlight was only a couple of hours late (apparently a miracle) so I was able to enjoy dinner here the night I arrived! I ate in the bar (the wait for tables was too long) and had appetizers since the main dishes were a little pricey, but you can get a very reasonable lunch here. It's no longer privately owned, it's part of the McCormack & Schweck chain, but it still looks pretty authentic. A Jake's Grill in the Governor Hotel is part of the same chain, and also said to be good; I didn't go, but lunch prices were again the big bargain here.
I enjoyed also dim sum in Chinatown, at a popular place called Fong Chong, 301-309 NW 4th Av at Everett, Chinatown, 503-228-6868. Of course, dim sum is more fun when you have someone with whom to share the mini-dishes; if you are traveling on your own, maybe you can meet someone on the local bus tour who would join you. In Chinatown too is the fairly new Classical Chinese Gdn, NW Everett St & 3rd Av, 503-228-8131, a garden oasis with nice plantings that should be lovely in spring; it also has a (somewhat overpriced) teahouse inside. Note that between Chinatown and the train station are a few streets that are little dumpy but really, I had no trouble at all!!!
I also enjoyed going up for a drink at the Portland City Grill, 111 SW 5th Av at Burnside, on the 30th floor of the Unico Bank Tower, Downtown, 503-450-0030. I did not eat here but the food looked good and I think you can get appetizers and such rather than expensive entrees (it's a steakhouse but with some Asian fare, nice looking egg rolls and so on).
I also met a friend who lives in the area, and we drove to Mount Hood and had lunch at the Timberline Inn, a famous WPA project hotel the outside of which was used in the film The Shining. The mountain is of course gorgeous and everyone kept telling me I could see it from Portland but it was fogged over on top the whole time I was there. Ditto Mt St Helens, which we saw from a distance--and I don't think that was fog! We then drove to the Columbia River Gorge, really nice, went to Multnomeh Falls and the Bonneville Dam--all worth visiting (and later, when I took the Empire Builder out of Portland, I traveled along the same gorge on the other side--really gorge-ous!). You might be able to find a little bus tour that does some of this.
One thing I didn't do but wish I had was take a little bus tour myself to the Pacific, roundabout Astoria, to see the end of the Lewis & Clark exhibition; there are also beachy resorts and restaurants that people go to here.
I have not been to SEattle yet; I'm going this spring too! and then I'm taking the Victoria Clipper to Victoria, BC, to see the city (said to be lovely) and Butchart Gardens and then visiting Vancouver and Alaska too. In Seattle, I think I will stay in the Best Western Pioneer Square, 77 Yesler Way, 800-528-1234, 206-340-1234; their AAA rate wasn't too terrible. There's a lot to see in Seattle itself and I won't be there long enough to see that much. I also think people take little bus tours to Mount Rainier. Also, if you don't have time to take the clipper to Victoria and overnight there, there is a boat you can take to Bainbridge Island.
Posts: 2642 | From: upstate New York | Registered: Mar 2004
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I am getting excited already !! Hope to have this trip booked in next few days.
RRChina - Agree that anyone who has the chance to see the Grand Canyon should. (That from someone who is not crazy about heights and drop offs.) In the area too are The Rainbow Desert and Petrified Forest which are also special. I also recommend to any one visiting in that area to take the time to see Montezuma Castle -- the story of the Sinagua Indians who inhabited them is fascinating.
G. Norman - agreed, sleepers are the best way to go and will do that on this trip with only one exception. Comfort - a Private place to retreat - and meals included - a deal well worth it.
Zephyr and Sojourner -- thank you so much for your suggestions. The hotel you recommend in Portland looks like just what I am looking for. Luckily there are a couple of day trip tour companies there so hope to see the "major" sites and a few more - will be there for probably 3+ days and if I miss something it is an excuse to return. Am probably going to spend 3-4 days in the Seattle area. All in all will probably be a 3 week trip.
Posts: 460 | From: North Central CT | Registered: May 2004
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Booked the trip this weekend !!! Will be leaving on the 25th of April 2006. Still looking for advice for the Seattle part of this trip --- will be there a full 4 days.
Before this trip next Spring --- I am leaving on the 20th of this month for my annual trip to AZ for Thanksgiving. LSL to Chicago then SWC to Williams Junction then reverse the route to return home. (This my "train fix" that will have to hold me until April.)
Dee
Posts: 460 | From: North Central CT | Registered: May 2004
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quote:Originally posted by DeeCT: Still looking for advice for the Seattle part of this trip --- will be there a full 4 days.
As nice as Seattle is, "attractions" that are centrally located and easily accessible are a bit thin on the ground (which is surprising in a city so popular).
Gray Line runs a number of bus tours.
Argosy Cruises and the Ducks of Seattle run boat excursions that will give you a water-based feel for the Seattle area. As someone mentioned above, public ferries run to various islands nearby. However, getting around on those islands (which are primarily residential and/or rural with few attractions) will be difficult -- if not impossible -- if you have mobility difficulties.
There are a handful of museums in the central/downtown area -- the Seattle Art Museum and the Seattle Aquarium are worth a visit.
At "Underground Seattle," you can tour some of Seattle's original streets and see the shopfronts buried when the city's overall street level was raised. I wouldn't call it a 4 star tourist attraction, but it's a way to kill some time.
Take a ride on the Monorail to the Seattle Center, home of the Space Needle, an amusement park, a Science Museum, and the Experience Music Project.
And of course, there's Seattle's famous Pike Place Market -- a very lively waterfront food/crafts/antiques facility, mostly indoors on several levels. It's one of my favorite places on the planet (and I'm definitely not a fan of markets). It's best to visit on a weekday. The solid crush of the weekend crowds is really hard to take.
South of the city, Mt. Rainier National Park is another favorite place of mine -- spectacular and very beautiful, especially in spring. It's possible that a local company runs daytrips (again, try Gray Line). Just be sure to ask in advance if there'll be walking involved (the park's trails range from "extremely easy" to "you've gotta be crazy").
To be honest, I think four full days in Seattle without a car is one day too long. So enjoy the clean Pacific Northwest air and laid-back atmosphere. And definitely take a lot of coffee breaks.
As for inexpensive hotels that aren't dumps, I can't really help you there. These days, I always bid using Priceline.
Posts: 793 | Registered: Mar 2002
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Recent New York Times Travel Section piece regarding Portland
Posts: 9975 | From: Clarendon Hills, IL USA (BNSF Chicago Sub MP 18.71) | Registered: Apr 2002
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