Visiting the Pacific Northwest? 3 Big Decisions to Make!
The Pacific Northwest is a terrific region for a vacation, with a great deal to offer year-round whatever your interests are. You may have been tempted by photos of or articles about the terrific skiing or hiking or perhaps about the cultural buzz in such cities as Portland and Seattle, but whatever you have in mind, there’s still probably more to explore than you imagine. The Pacific Northwest is actually a very diverse area, and if you want to travel there, there are a few big decisions you should make first.
First, decide what exactly you mean when you think about visiting the Pacific Northwest. It’s a somewhat fluid term that encompasses Oregon, Washington state parts of British Columbia, as well as Idaho and sometimes parts of Montana. However, the experience of visiting a ranch in the high desert country of Eastern Oregon is very different from that of working your way through dim sum restaurants in Vancouver’s Chinatown. Start narrowing down the places you would like to visit within the larger geographic designation.
How much can you spend? Budget is often a limiting factor when you’re planning a vacation, so knowing how much money you have from the start can help you figure out how long you’ll go for and what you can do. At the same time, if you’re badly in need of some time away but you’re also short on cash, you could explore options for getting money, including taking out a personal loan. You can review a guide that provides information on the process of getting a personal loan as well as potential alternatives.
The Pacific Northwest is known for its outdoor activities, but its cities have a lot to offer as well, even when you move beyond the three biggest ones. There are several hidden gems in some of the smaller cities, such as the Oregon Bach Festival in Eugene and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland. On the other hand, there are unbeatable opportunities for hiking, skiing, and other recreation, including a substantial portion of one of North America’s great long hiking trails, the Pacific Crest Trail. Figure out whether you and your traveling companions would prefer a more rural or urban experience as you start your planning. If you’ve got a mix of temperaments, the good news is that there’s enough wilderness in the region that you could stay in the city and make a few day trips into rural areas or vice versa.
There’s an enormous amount to do in the region, but there are a few activities either unique to or particularly associated with it that are worth mentioning. You can visit Mount St. Helens, an active volcano that famously erupted in 1980. You can go whale watching or simply visit the San Juans or some of the other islands off the coast of Washington. In Idaho, check out one or more of the many ghost towns you can find in the state. There are also the rare temperate rainforests of the Olympic Peninsula.