Merry Christmas Everyone!!
Back to the topic of West Coast Roadtrip Extravaganza!
Here I’m going to walk you through how I planned the 2-week long trip from San Francisco, CA to Vancouver, BC. For the two weeks of traveling, I can say that I spent a little over a thousand bucks. This includes everything. Not too bad but I could have saved a little more with more careful planning. Learn now to do better next time around.
Here’s how we did it:
Car Rental: We rented our 4WD from Avis. This was the most affordable option we can find. Avis also allows their cars to be driven into Canada. Plus, we were able to get a discounted rate with a free upgrade from a bunch of promo codes listed on their website. The total cost of the rental for the 2 weeks came out to be a little under $700. Sweet deal!
1. From San Francisco, CA to Medford, OR
Drive time: 5.5 hrs
We stayed here for one night through airbnb.com. The cost of the airbnb place was around $50 for the night. We got an entire cottage to ourselves which was nice. In the evening, we went to one of Medford’s popular bars called 4 Daughters Irish Pub on a Monday night. There were plenty of folks playing darts, shooting pool, and others hanging around the digital fireplace sipping their drinks. It’s definitely a cozy and fun bar to check out if you’re around the area. During the day time, we drove another 1.5 hrs away from Medford to check out Crater Lake National Park. What a snowy and semi-slippery drive it was, but afterall, the lake is absolutely stunning. Definitely worth the hassle getting there.
2. Medford, CA to Portland, OR
Drive time: 4.5 hrs
Oh Portland! We stayed at a friend’s place for 2 nights. We love you Paul! What a great friend he is. He introduced us to tons of bars and restaurants that were usually the basement of some house. Sounds strange but it’s actually the up and coming scene in Portland. I remember we stopped by a famous Vietnamese restaurant called Pok Pok (also belonging to a house). Everything we ordered was freaken mind blowing. Fried chicken was my favorite. Most of the time we were there, we biked around town. The wind was freezing cold but it was a great way to explore many parts of Portland, which includes visiting Burnside Skate park. The folks there were uper friendly.
3. Portland, OR to Seattle, WA
Drive time: 3 hrs
Seattle! I left my heart in Seattle…I swear. Originally, we were only supposed to spend 2 nights there but I think we stayed for 3 nights. We stayed at City Hostel that is conveniently located on a busy street where there are tons of bars, restaurants, clubs, etc. The district is called Belltown. It was around 30 bucks per night to stay at the hostel. I met many new friends from Australia, Brasil, and Switzerland during my stay there. I had a blast. Many restaurants in Seattle have happy hour all day long which means you’ll be served great food for a good price (I’m comparing this to San Francisco price). Restaurants I often ate at is Japanese Cocina and Local Pho. Affordable and delicious. As for the night life, Capitol Hill is where all the parties are at. This location has a little mix of everything. Other than that, we explored the “gum wall”, public market where the original Starbucks started, Columbia Tower for the view, Space Needle, and so forth. O by the way, free parking can be found in the residential area behind the Space Needle.
4. Seattle, WA to Vancouver, BC
Drive time: 2 hrs
Vancouver is absolutely stunning. It is a huge city! It’s very clean, full of new condominiums, and everything is so convenient. We stayed for 4-5 nights. The first night we stayed at Samesun Hostel for around $35 per night. The rest of the nights we stayed at an airbnb location near Stanley Park for $50 per night (split between my friend and I, it was more affordable than the hostel). If you’re in Vancouver, check out Robston Street! There are many cool shops there with beautifully lit up trees lining up along the street. We also stopped by Stanley Park, Lion Gate Bridge, Museum of Anthropology, English Bay, Yaletown, and Chinatown. There are many many great asian restaurants in Vancouver. Theie Dim Sum will make you touch the sky. Unfortunately, we did not get to visit Whistler and Capilano Suspension Bridge. The last 3 days of our trip kicked our asses. Yup, we caught the cold flu. One more thing to keep in mind, parking is a problem in Vancouver, just like any other busy city. Every parking space is either metered or restricted to limited hours.
Anyhow, I hope this helps if you’re thinking about a west coast road trip! It was definitely a great and affordable way to go out of the country for a little.
Traveling Photographer 