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| *Travel Tips>>>Portland Travel Tips |
Driving along coast from Portland to San Francisco. Any recommendations? |
Travel Info Can anyone recommend any small towns, beaches, etc I should visit? I've got a week to fill. Thanks Travel Tips I did this drive a few years ago and it was quite lovely. Take the Coast HIghway down for as long as you can. You could even kill a night at Cannon Beach - the Stephanie Inn and the Ocean Lodge are both SPECTACULAR places. Go into town tothe wineshop and see if the owner has any of her own wines to sell. She'll even sign a bottle if you ask nicely. : ) http://www.stephanie-inn.com/welcome.asp... http://www.theoceanlodge.com/ A great stopping place is Gold Beach. There are some adorable rustic lodges (http://www.irelandsrusticlodges.com/... )there that I've stayed in - they have a great view of the ocean. If it's warm and dry enough, consider driving to the dunes and having a dinner on the beach. It's really gorgeous. If you travel through the passes, be sure you are in a 4WD vehicle or have chains. I've been stuck in that pass and it often gets shut down or limited during storms. Be prepared so that you don't have to fight for a cheap motel room during a blizzard. If you like wine, I can't recommend Mendocino enough. It's like Napa was 20 years ago. I've stayed at the Fensalden Inn (http://www.fensalden.com/ )- Breakfast was fabulous and the rates were good. Visit Husch, Artevino (if they are still there), Roederer, and Navarro at least. It's a big white wine area, and they are really really good at making them. You could even do 2 nights in Mendocino - check out this month's NW version of Sunset magazine as they have a good article about Medocino. Napa is one of my favourites. It's not quite "on the way", but you can make it on the way if you try hard. We often stay at the McClelland-Priest Inn (http://www.mcclellandpriest.com/main.php... - it's a B&B in Napa proper. The Roma suite is very nice and her breakfast is fabu. It's a little bit of a drive to St Helena, but you are close enough to Napa Proper to have much of that town's convenience. Consider doing two nights and visiting these wineries: Beringer (great tour, mediocre wine - do this first on day one - they may have tasting coupons on their website) Cosetino - they have a ton of wines that you can taste. Celeste at the B&B may have some free tasting certificates. Raymond - Great quality wines for the price. Napavalley.com usually has some tasting coupons. Beaulieu Vineyards (BV) - they give a great range of wines for a small tasting fee. Day two, start with Schramsberg. They are appointment only, but you can easily share a flight and the tasting price is refundable with a purchase Visit Twomey just up the road - AWESOME Merlot, and I'm not a big Merlot drinker. Stop and get lunch in St Helena, or a secret tip is to get sandwiches and water at the Safeway just behind (east) of St. Helena Proper. Make your way over to the Silverado Trail. Silver Oak is dynamite wine, and you get to keep the glasses. Silver Oak is the sister winery to Twomey and sometimes they have free tasting coupons for it - you can try to work it out so that you visit Silver Oak & the Silverado trail on the first day (after Beringer) so that you have that tasting coupon (if they still offer it). Darioush is a well rated wine and the grounds are pretty cool. Mumm champagne house is over there, so you could go there and compare it to Schramsberg. If you are traveling directly to or from San Fran to Napa at any point, stop at Domaine Carneros. They are the US winery of Taittinger. You can either sit in the cafe like room and order a flight of Bubbly paired with Cheese and/or caviar as a mid-day lunch or snack, or you can head directly down stairs to the stand-up tasting room (if it's open). It's quite a fun place. I'd avoid: Peju Clos Pegase Andretti Opus One (not worth the cost) Stag's Leap (the tasting is not that great and it's a pain to taste there) Coppola/Rubicon - it's $25 A HEAD, not per car, to enter the estate. Yes, it comes with a wine tasting, but it's outrageous unless they are tasting only their upper end stuff Franciscan My problem with most of these places is that they charge too much for the quality of wine you are tasting or buying. It's just a waste of time for me to go to these places. Good luck and have fun! : ) Others Maybe find some out of the way places that most people would ignore and pick up the local flavor. Keep the top up when it is raining and do not drink and drive. The Oregon Coast is gorgeous. you can pick up mile-by-mile guides at Travel Information centers. Seaside, Lincoln City, Newport, Pacific City, and Cannon Beach are some of my favorites. make sure to get some cheese in Tillamook, and you can rent four wheelers and go for a ride in the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area (between Florence and Coos Bay). For more Ideas, go to www.traveloregon.com Oregonian |
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