Lewiston, Idaho? Missoula, Montana?

May 23, 2008 10:10 AM

Help me pick between Lewiston, Idaho or Missoula, Montana for a weekend getaway?

This fall, I'm attending a meeting in Idaho which starts on a Monday. So I would like arrive a bit earlier and spend the weekend in either Lewiston, Idaho or Missoula, Montana. I won't have access to a car at this point, so I'd probably lean to the town that's most pedestrian-friendly.

Love nature, light hikes, photography, great food, shops with local crafts. Prefer small hotels under $100 a night if possible (this I would cover on my own since it would not be a business expense).

Tell me what you love enough about either town to make me want to stay there. Recommendations are welcome and will be paid back by good karma.

posted by HeyAllie to Travel & Transportation (10 answers total)

Best answer: Hands down, Missoula. I haven't lived there for a few years, but I would return in a heartbeat if the winters weren't so cold.
Anyway... Good bus system for getting around, great hikes within minutes of town (Waterworks Hill, the M, Rattlesnake), great food (Taco Del Sol was a cheap favorite, also across the street from Worden's which is a great deli/Missoula staple, Red Bird is delicious if you're up for spending a bit more---it's worth it!; Bernice's is great for morning fuel--coffee, quiche, danishes, muffins, pies; The Staggering Ox is another Missoula staple and a place to get a killer sandwich--or something else--super cheap).


NewWest-Missoula is a good resource.
Flickr's Missoula group will give you a good insight on photography opportunities...
Missoula Farmer's Market
posted by hulahulagirl at 10:30 AM on May 23, 2008

Unless you are extremely keen on rafting, fishing, or other Hell's Canyon-related activities, you definitely want Missoula, without a doubt. Both places have what you are looking for, but Missoula has way more of them. It also lacks the sulfurous stench of the Potlatch paper mill that makes a visit to Lewiston such a memorable experience.
posted by HotToddy at 10:49 AM on May 23, 2008

If you really want to cut costs, I stayed at a nice hostel in Missoula (Birchwood Hostel on Orange Street) when I was there around 2000. I also believe the University rents some dorm rooms during the summer. If you don't mind the reduced amenities, you can then spend the money on renting a bicycle and riding to some trailheads.
posted by desjardins at 10:50 AM on May 23, 2008

While you're in Missoula, you can contemplate what happened there 15,000 years ago.
posted by lukemeister at 10:58 AM on May 23, 2008

Jesus, there isn't even an argument here. There really is nothing to recommend Lewiston. It's a dull, featureless nothing of a town, and it quite literally stinks if you get close enough to Potlach.
posted by Skot at 11:15 AM on May 23, 2008 [1 favorite]

Lewiston is the under-pitty of Idaho...go to Montana, enjoy the non-stench.
posted by Jenny is Crafty at 12:45 PM on May 23, 2008 [1 favorite]

just out of curiosity---where's your meeting?
there is more than one way to get to missoula.
Hwy 12: gorgeous.
Interstate: not so much.

**Lewis & Clark trail info
**an example of the view from Hwy 12, be on the lookout for kayakers--there are pullouts along the highway so you can see them barreling down the river
posted by hulahulagirl at 2:27 PM on May 23, 2008

Also, Lolo Hot Springs is 35 miles west of Missoula on Hwy 12 (toward Idaho) if you're driving.
posted by hulahulagirl at 2:30 PM on May 23, 2008

It's been twenty years since I lived in Missoula. Did something happen to the stench from Stone Containers?
posted by faceonmars at 4:39 PM on May 23, 2008

No, I think it's just far enough out and on the side of town where it doesn't matter as much. But it does still help out with the inversion.
posted by hulahulagirl at 6:32 PM on May 24, 2008