Cool, local anniversary getaway ideas...

[superjohn]

New Orleans is like that all the time and it never stops me from having a great time there.

Seriously though, we go to NYC a lot in the summer and I don't find this to be accurate (at least not the smell part); it must depend on where you are. As for hot and sticky, if it's that way there, its that way here. You just have to dress for it. I have very fond memories of running some 20 blocks with my daughter on a sweltering mid-July late afternoon to make an earlier train home, and then changing my shirt once we were on the train because I was soaking wet.

Hot and humid in the city is different than hot and humid in the country/burbs in my experiences.

New Orleans it's all a part of the fun, you're pigging out, drinking hurricanes, dancing to brass bands. It's alnost supposed to smell like piss. NYC you're dropping serious coin to do anything, the hot garbage and urine just lose the appeal for me. I guess for a weekend it's fine, I thought living there in the summer kind of sucked (packed subways a nightmare) but at least a lot of people left on the weekends.

 

[8893]

Hot and humid in the city is different than hot and humid in the country/burbs in my experiences.

New Orleans it's all a part of the fun, you're pigging out, drinking hurricanes, dancing to brass bands. It's alnost supposed to smell like piss. NYC you're dropping serious coin to do anything, the hot garbage and urine just lose the appeal for me. I guess for a weekend it's fine, I thought living there in the summer kind of sucked (packed subways a nightmare) but at least a lot of people left on the weekends.

Yeah, I'm talking day trips or overnights on summer weekends. It's refreshingly uncrowded and there is still a ton of stuff to do--especially free outdoor concerts at Lincoln Center, Central Park and Brooklyn, among other places.

 

[huskypantz]

I just got back from an anniversary overnight in Portland last weekend so I figured I'd leave my review.

• Stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn in Old Port. The location was great - easy walking distance to everything we were interested in. No issues with the hotel but almost $500 per night. Thinking back, I've stayed in similar hotels in NYC, Paris and London and paid much less.
  
• Grabbed lunch at nearby Sebago - we picked it because it was close by and they brew their own beer. Nothing special.
• Harbor cruise with Portland Discovery - this was enjoyable. We had some nice photos of the 4 lighthouses on the tour and saw a bald eagle as well. I'd only do it once but would recommend it.
• Dinner at DiMillo's. You're on a boat, okay. Touristy experience but somewhat unique and since my attempts to book dinner at a few other places went south we did it. Food was just decent.
• Drinks at Liquid Riot brewing co. Two thumbs up, we had outdoor seats looking out on the wharf.
• Morning run by the eastern promenade - hilly with nice views.
• Breakfast at Bayside American Cafe - best meal of the trip.
  
• Summer festival with parade, street vendors, food - modestly entertaining.
• Quick hike at Fore River Sanctuary and Jewell Falls - "largest falls in Portland" are also the smallest we've ever seen designated as "falls". We just wanted a local hike so it was fine for what we wanted before heading home.

Overall thoughts:

• This is an adult's city. Really nice downtown area with plenty of shops, restaurants and bars. I would not take my kids here, they would have been bored. But I would definitely return, book a restaurant or two in advance and kick back.
  
• The big surprise - vagrants, peddlers and addicts, oh my. The peddlers are spaced out throughout the tourist areas, holding signs, guitars and puppies on leashes. We walked from old port to bayside for breakfast and our directions led us by what was either a meth clinic or halfway house. I decided to go in the opposite direction leaving the restaurant and my wife and I are greeted by a man on the corner of the street who was having an extremely difficult time picking up a lighter off the ground and remaining perpendicular to the street. At 9am. Not great optics.

 

[8893]

I just got back from an anniversary overnight in Portland last weekend so I figured I'd leave my review.

• Stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn in Old Port. The location was great - easy walking distance to everything we were interested in. No issues with the hotel but almost $500 per night. Thinking back, I've stayed in similar hotels in NYC, Paris and London and paid much less.
  
• Grabbed lunch at nearby Sebago - we picked it because it was close by and they brew their own beer. Nothing special.
• Harbor cruise with Portland Discovery - this was enjoyable. We had some nice photos of the 4 lighthouses on the tour and saw a bald eagle as well. I'd only do it once but would recommend it.
• Dinner at DiMillo's. You're on a boat, okay. Touristy experience but somewhat unique and since my attempts to book dinner at a few other places went south we did it. Food was just decent.
• Drinks at Liquid Riot brewing co. Two thumbs up, we had outdoor seats looking out on the wharf.
• Morning run by the eastern promenade - hilly with nice views.Forums
• Breakfast at Bayside American Cafe - best meal of the trip.
  
• Summer festival with parade, street vendors, food - modestly entertaining.
• Quick hike at Fore River Sanctuary and Jewell Falls - "largest falls in Portland" are also the smallest we've ever seen designated as "falls". We just wanted a local hike so it was fine for what we wanted before heading home.

Overall thoughts:

• This is an adult's city. Really nice downtown area with plenty of shops, restaurants and bars. I would not take my kids here, they would have been bored. But I would definitely return, book a restaurant or two in advance and kick back.
  
• The big surprise - vagrants, peddlers and addicts, oh my. The peddlers are spaced out throughout the tourist areas, holding signs, guitars and puppies on leashes. We walked from old port to bayside for breakfast and our directions led us by what was either a meth clinic or halfway house. I decided to go in the opposite direction leaving the restaurant and my wife and I are greeted by a man on the corner of the street who was having an extremely difficult time picking up a lighter off the ground and remaining perpendicular to the street. At 9am. Not great optics.

Not exactly a ringing endorsement. $500 a night for a Hilton Garden Inn in Portland is shocking.

 

[superjohn]

Not exactly a ringing endorsement. $500 a night for a Hilton Garden Inn in Portland is shocking.

I was there last summer and the hotel prices are ridiculous, the Holiday Inn downtown is also $500. You can stay at the Palmer House in Chicago (one of the nicest hotels you'll find anywhere) for $150 a night.

 

[8893]

I was there last summer and the hotel prices are ridiculous, the Holiday Inn downtown is also $500. You can stay at the Palmer House in Chicago (one of the nicest hotels you'll find anywhere) for $150 a night.

Wow. I don't understand that at all.

 

[Fishy]

Portland is a nice place to visit, but for the prices you pay for a decent hotel, it’s not worth it.

My gold standard for insane hotel prices is generally Vancouver during cruise season, but at least your $500-$600 a night is getting you a Pacific Club room at the Pan Pacific. Paying $500 for a the Hilton Garden Inn is somewhat less luxurious.

The Hilton Garden Inn did have a better selection of cereals at breakfast, however.

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

Wow. I don't understand that at all.

Likely projected full house on the dates, minimal quality alternatives or vacancies, people willing to pay whatevah? 1/2 grand for Portland? For a blah Hillton Garden Inn? With my own dinero, NFW!

 

[8893]

Likely projected full house on the dates, minimal quality alternatives or vacancies, people willing to pay whatevah? 1/2 grand for Portland? For a blah Hillton Garden Inn? With my own dinero, NFW!

That's what I don't get. Sounds like it's the rule there, not the exception. I haven't been there in years and the only overnights I've done in the area were in Freeport, because we had our dog with us and needed a pet friendly hotel--which were surprisingly more common than I thought they might be, but not in Portland. I think we stayed in a Best Western for less than $100 and it was around 20 minutes from town.

For $500 I'd want something a helluva lot nicer than a Hilton Garden Inn.

 

[superjohn]

That's what I don't get. Sounds like it's the rule there, not the exception. I haven't been there in years and the only overnights I've done in the area were in Freeport, because we had our dog with us and needed a pet friendly hotel--which were surprisingly more common than I thought they might be, but not in Portland. I think we stayed in a Best Western for less than $100 and it was around 20 minutes from town.

For $500 I'd want something a helluva lot nicer than a Hilton Garden Inn.

 

[Waquoit]

We like Portland in December after shopping in Freeport. Rooms are much cheaper and they have the G-League.

 

[huskypantz]

For $500 I'd want something a helluva lot nicer than a Hilton Garden Inn.

It's really not about the room, moreso the location. For a one-night getaway, I am just sleeping and showering in my hotel room. And there is no need to hang out in the hotel lobby, bar or restaurant as there are a myriad of places across the street and throughout the downtown.

 

[8893]

Sounds like a place to look for airbnb or similar options.

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

Sounds like a place to look for airbnb or similar options.

Or, uber to a nearby, reasonably priced place away from downtown Portland if multiple drinks are on tap. Once you've been to so-so Portland a time or so, reallocating a few hundred to decent meals, drinks, etc. or just saving some dinero makes sense.