Living Downtown: Beyond Portland Boutique Hotels

To be sure, downtown living isn't everyone's cup of tea. The bustle of a vibrant metropolis asks a lot of people. The popular perception is that you have to be prepared to move quickly and not let anyone get in the way. While that may be the case in cities like New York or Los Angeles, in Portland, Oregon, you might find downtown residents quite friendly.

An obvious benefit to living in downtown Portland, is location, location, location. Step out of any Portland boutique hotel and you can see what makes the city so great. You're instantly in the middle of everything -- and nothing requires hopping into a car. Most downtown Portlanders don't bother with more than a pair of walking shoes, a bike, or a bus pass. The light rail system, known as the TriMet, is nationally known as one of the greenest. Green rails, no cars, and plenty of walking -- it's a pedestrian's dream.

Unlike other cities, Portland has benefited from a number of pedestrian-friendly incentives. The city planners intentionally designed the city blocks to be smaller than other cities. The average Portland city block is 200 feet, as opposed to 300 or 800 feet. This means you don't have to walk very far to find a cafe or corner store. Who needs a car?

Downtown is home to a number of cultural attractions, like the Museum of Contemporary Art. You can find any number of cafes, restaurants, and fashionable night spots to pass away the cool days and humid nights. And, again, the best thing is: you can walk to any one of them. Just be sure you have comfortable footwear.

Now, while there any number of places to live in the city and surrounding suburbs, the hipster heart of the city is downtown. Now, that being said, the nearby Pearl District is a hipster hotbed. Irreverent fashion, trendy eateries, and more irony than you could shake a copy of NME at -- that's the Pearl District in a nutshell. Welcome to Portland, downtown Portland, that is.

Article Source: TravelFreeGuides.com

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The beauty of Portland boutique hotels is that they tend to be very reasonably priced and are located in prime parts of the city.

by: Errol Grange

Total views: 2 Word Count: 349 Date: Mon, 19 Jul 2010 Time: 5:38 AM - 0 comments

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