I don’t know about you, but when I’m searching for a hotel, it’s all about the location. I guess it’s because growing up (and to this day), my family never booked hotels in the city center to save money. We often stayed in some suburb and hit traffic in and out of the city (be it Orlando, San Francisco, Toronto, or Boston). That bothers me to no end, so for my solo trip, I made the rules.
Being solo and carless, I wanted to be smack dab in the middle of the city within walking distance to my main attractions. This is something I picked up from my business travels. If you land on some great travel deals, the costs almost always even out.
I like to use Booking.Com to reserve my hotels. I swear this site gives me great deals time and time again.
The Sentinel had high ratings, a great location, fit my price range, and wasn’t haunted, so boom, booked.
Upon checkin, I spoke with the kind people at the front desk who upgraded me to this palatial room with a bathtub and fireplace. YEAH. Talk about lucky.
This hotel was absolutely amazing – the decor was cozy and warm, yet distinctly cool with reading nooks and paintings at every turn. Best of all, it was in an unbeatable location. Lucky for my taste buds and unfortunately for my summer bod, The Sentinel delivers ice cream to guest rooms from Salt & Straw, a super popular local ice cream shop where the lines are known to be crazy. I may have taken advantage of that service nightly … it depends who’s asking.
Wondering where to stay in Portland? My top picks are as follows:
1. The Nines Hotel – for the traveler who wants to spare no expense. Great views and the BEST restaurants inside, but $$$. Didn’t quite work in my budget for a five night stay, but for a shorter one, staying here could be a nice treat!
The Nines Hotel (home of Departures)
2. The Sentinel – for the wanderer who wants to stay in a luxury hotel that justifies the price. There are two restaurants at the property (including the bar JackKnife which turns in to a club on weekends).
After I took this photo I jumped onto the bed. It was amazing.
Bathroom at The Sentinel – loved that there was so much space for my makeup!
3. The Ace Hotel – for the hipster who wants to stay in a hostel (at a cost). Stumptown is connected via the lobby, and also has a killer couch. The photo booth takes a little while, but that’s also a pretty great perk to staying here.
The Ace Hotel in Portland
Booking your trip to Portland? You’re bound to have an amazing time. Hopefully you’ll give one of these a go!
As for me? I might just opt for an apartment and well, just move.
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