Portland, Oregon - A Great Getaway

by Plaza Travel Consultant, Rita Rocklin

Just over 2 hours by plane from Los Angeles, Portland is a fantastic city and great getaway for 3-5 night stays. I know we all think of San Francisco, Seattle, Sedona, New Orleans and Santa Fe for short stays - now you can definitely add Portland to your list.

From the minute I arrived at the airport, I felt welcome. I was greeted by an airport volunteer, who told me which carousel my luggage would arrive at. Another volunteer escorted me to the met rail that took me to Pioneer Square (main area of downtown and 2 blocks from most of the hotels). It is a beautiful train, very clean and takes 38 min to downtown Portland. What a bargain, $1.25 and 60 cents for an honored citizen (that is the word used there for senior citizen).

I stayed at Paramount Hotel, which is a coast property in a great location. It is 2 years old, and has a young friendly staff. They address you by name and are very helpful. The rooms are large with Heavenly beds and oversized jet tubs. The hotel is diagonally across from Nordstrom�s. The transportation in the downtown area is free to everyone by rail, trolley and bus. It is a great walking city. I am not a walker, and I walked everywhere. The city is very clean with a great art and science museum. They have opera, ballet, and legitimate theatre. I saw one of the few plays I had missed, Jesus Christ Superstar, and had a 5th row center seat for $ 63.00 with most of the original NY cast. A real bargain. I took one cab during my 5-day stay and it cost $3.90. Rates are cheap since they have to compete with the free transportation. Another bonus is no sales tax.

Wonderful restaurants - most of the fine chains, such as Morton's, Ruth�s Chris and McCormick & Schmick. I ate one night at Jake's Crawfish and the service was outstanding as was the food. One of the best things about the area is the beautiful scenery along the Oregon Coast and the Columbia River Gorge.

You could rent a car for one day and really get into the beautiful scenery and drive up to Mt. Hood. The scenery is spectacular, lot of falls and hiking trails for those who want to get away from the city for a day. The Bonneville dam and fish hatchery is really worth seeing. It is in a park setting with an abundance of flowers and very educational. You will see all types of salmon there. I took a 4-hour city tour, which took in the rose gardens (the best I have seen anywhere), the Japanese and Chinese gardens, Chinatown and the Pittock Museum.

Portland is loaded with parks and fountains. very colorful people, lots of artists and it�s a great people-watching city. Nightlife includes lots of jazz and salsa as well as piano bars.

You need to make sure you go at the right time of the year...from mid June to early October.

Rita Rocklin