Pacific Northwest in January?
October 5, 2018 4:41 PM Subscribe
I'm planning to fly up from LA to SF to see Snail Mail at the Fillmore in January, and I'm thinking of adding one or more of her subsequent PNW dates as well. Are Portland, Vancouver, or Seattle especially pleasant to visit in winter? Or are any of these venues particularly good or in particularly nice-to-stay areas: Aladdin (Portland), Imperial (Vancouver), Neptune (Seattle)?
Her schedule of shows is SF Thursday, Portland Saturday, Vancouver Sunday, Seattle Monday. I haven't spent much or any time in any of these places besides SF. I can tack additional time to the end of the trip. I love nature/outdoorsy stuff but not sure what will be available/good at that time of year, and I think renting a car is probably a bit ambitious for a trip this quick. Otherwise, basically just interested in walking around, eating good food and exploring. Any suggestions for which city to visit and which to skip?
Her schedule of shows is SF Thursday, Portland Saturday, Vancouver Sunday, Seattle Monday. I haven't spent much or any time in any of these places besides SF. I can tack additional time to the end of the trip. I love nature/outdoorsy stuff but not sure what will be available/good at that time of year, and I think renting a car is probably a bit ambitious for a trip this quick. Otherwise, basically just interested in walking around, eating good food and exploring. Any suggestions for which city to visit and which to skip?
If you like downhill skiing Whistler is a short distance from Vancouver and would make a nice add-on to your trip if you had extra time.
Seattle is a little drizzly in the winter but still a very cool city to visit. I haven't spent as much time in Portland but would expect it to be about the same.
The climate of the Pacific Northwest is such that in any of those three cities there should be low-altitude hiking options that are snow-free and enjoyable at that time of year (again, as long as you can stand a bit of drizzle..) but other than in-city parks, reaching most of them will require a car.
I don't know about the other two venues but as far as Seattle is concerned.. the Neptune is in the University District. It's not very close to downtown or most of the sites you'd want to see or places you'd want to dine if it was your first visit to Seattle.
posted by Nerd of the North at 5:04 PM on October 5, 2018
Seattle is a little drizzly in the winter but still a very cool city to visit. I haven't spent as much time in Portland but would expect it to be about the same.
The climate of the Pacific Northwest is such that in any of those three cities there should be low-altitude hiking options that are snow-free and enjoyable at that time of year (again, as long as you can stand a bit of drizzle..) but other than in-city parks, reaching most of them will require a car.
I don't know about the other two venues but as far as Seattle is concerned.. the Neptune is in the University District. It's not very close to downtown or most of the sites you'd want to see or places you'd want to dine if it was your first visit to Seattle.
posted by Nerd of the North at 5:04 PM on October 5, 2018
The Ave is one of the last un-gentrified neighborhoods in the north end of Seattle, because of the student population, so there are many cheap places to eat. I like it because it's still kind of funky, but change is rapidly approaching due to the new light rail stop opening in 2021. The Neptune is a great venue to see a concert, converted from an old movie theater. The bus to downtown is frequent, takes about half an hour.
And yes, the weather in January is usually dreary and cold and drizzly and gray, but snow is infrequent. Lots of places to get coffee :-)
posted by plasticpalacealice at 6:44 PM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
And yes, the weather in January is usually dreary and cold and drizzly and gray, but snow is infrequent. Lots of places to get coffee :-)
posted by plasticpalacealice at 6:44 PM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
The Imperial has excellent acoustics and an interesting interior (old converted movie theatre that had a "Chinese" theme; some of the old decor remains). The trendier parts of downtown Vancouver are a bit west of there, but there's a lot to see and do and eat, and Vancouver has excellent public transit so it's super-easy to get around without a car. If you do want a car for a quick daytrip, there's lots of hiking just outside the city and Evo cars are literally everywhere at all times, but you could easily just spend a day in Stanley Park (which is huge and has a seawall to explore and is just a 20-min bus ride from the venue).
It'll probably be raining, but it'll probably be raining in all the other cities, too.
posted by halation at 6:47 PM on October 5, 2018
It'll probably be raining, but it'll probably be raining in all the other cities, too.
posted by halation at 6:47 PM on October 5, 2018
The Aladdin is in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Portland. It's got a little bit of business there, but it's mostly residential. No hotels within walking distance. Maybe some AirBnB's. If you have a car or want to Uber, there's a Motel6 down Powell, or plenty of stuff in Downtown (10-15 minute drive). The Sellwood neighborhood is about 10 minutes south and has a nice business district (no hotels there either).
If I were you, I'd stay in Downtown or Northwest, in a more walkable area. Uber to the show and back, but spend your time near your hotel. Expect cold (40s) and drizzly. January can snow, but hopefully not.
If you hit two cities on your trip, and don't want to fly between, look at the Bolt Bus or Amtrak.
posted by hydra77 at 5:44 PM on October 6, 2018
If I were you, I'd stay in Downtown or Northwest, in a more walkable area. Uber to the show and back, but spend your time near your hotel. Expect cold (40s) and drizzly. January can snow, but hopefully not.
If you hit two cities on your trip, and don't want to fly between, look at the Bolt Bus or Amtrak.
posted by hydra77 at 5:44 PM on October 6, 2018
It's likely to be cool and drizzly in Portland at that time of year, and really in all of these cities, but it typically doesn't rain so hard in Portland you need more than a decent rain coat with a hoodie. Lots of folks in Portland are outside every day of the year. Forest Park is one of the largest urban parks in the country. It has miles of wooded trails, and it's easily accessible via public transportation. If you had decent walking shoes you don't mind getting a bit muddy , you could easily include a visit to Forest Park and a walk in the woods as part of a day in Portland. You can also visit the Japanese Garden if you want to be outside in a smaller kind of place.
But, there's lots of great stuff to do in town as well! You could stay in Southeast, near-ish to the Aladdin, and have easy access to great food carts, restaurants, and interesting stores and such.
posted by bluedaisy at 4:20 PM on October 9, 2018
But, there's lots of great stuff to do in town as well! You could stay in Southeast, near-ish to the Aladdin, and have easy access to great food carts, restaurants, and interesting stores and such.
posted by bluedaisy at 4:20 PM on October 9, 2018
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I'd say all will be pretty dreary and wet most likely. But all three are entertaining enough for an overnight.
posted by humboldt32 at 5:02 PM on October 5, 2018