Goonies Never Say Die

If you read through my original article detailing all the stops of our PNW 2.0 trip this past August, then you probably read my little mention of Astoria and Holiday Inn Express – Astoria. For transparencies sake, I will mention that the first night of our stay was arranged and comped by Travel Astoria-Warrenton. I normally tuck this notice somewhere in at the bottom, but I’m mentioning it now because I want those reading to know that while we were hooked up by Travel Astoria, the hotel and the CVB went way above and beyond our expectations. I was not asked to write a blog about them or the hotel, but our experience was just so outstanding I knew the moment I left I had to. 

So now that we’re past all the formalities, I’m going to jump right in. We were headed to Astoria from our short overnight in Port Angeles and I can’t tell you how excited I was. Now, Astoria at the time meant nothing to me. All I knew was that it was home to a cute coffee shop I wanted to check out and a brewery that Meghan wanted to stop in. I also knew that Deadman’s Cove was a short jaunt north of us and Cannon Beach was just a little ways south — it seemed like the perfect spot in-between Port Angeles and Portland.

We had spent the day leading up checking out some amazing waterfalls I missed last time in Olympic National Park. Marymere Falls may be, hands down, the most gorgeous little fall I’ve ever seen. And Sol Duc falls was equally impressive with lots of spots to explore and different angles to capture from. All this adventuring meant we wouldn’t hit the bridge into Astoria until dark. 

I’ll say this — if you’re afraid of heights and you’re afraid of bridges, you might wanna close your eyes for this one. The bridge into town is super long, super tall and super narrow. Driving in we were all freaking out cause it was dark and terrifying. haha! But once you get to the other side, everything is perfectly quaint. 

It was late, so we quickly checked in and got settled into our room. This was the first of many surprises. I don’t know if all the rooms in the Astoria are like this, but I can tell you the bottom floor rooms have FIREPLACES in them. Plus our room was facing the water, so we had this epic view of the bridge as well. Wouldn’t expect less than modern and fashionable at a Holiday Inn Express, but the fireplace and ambience of the HI Express Astoria really raised the bar. We watched a little Discovering Bigfoot on Netflix before heading to bed. 

The next day we enjoyed our continental breakfast and opened a sweet goodie pack from Travel Astoria-Warrenton that had maps and info on the town. We quickly learned that a bunch of different movies were filmed here, including the Goonies! Erika had brought a cold with her, so we decided to take it easy that day as we were all starting to feel super cruddy. 

Astoria is the perfect coastal town you always imagine and probably never have actually found. It’s just been casually hiding between all the big stuff people head to the coast for. Bright colors, beautiful streets, a trolley and the cutest harbor seals were all featured on our short 10 minute walk to Astoria Coffeehouse & Bistro. If you’re looking for a delicious latte and some yummy cake, this is definitely the spot to pop into. Around the corner you’ll find Godfather’s Book’s and Espresso, a quirky book store with tarot cards and field guides on Sasquatch. Highly recommend. 😉 

As the day progressed, at some point we decided we were all too sick to drive on and instead of backpacking Rialto beach, we would instead reserve another night at the HI Express Astoria and just roll out the next day. We’d use the next day to check out a local hidden gem, Youngs River Falls. This swimming hole and waterfall spot are on the way to Cannon Beach from Astoria, so if you’re looking for a short detour while on your way there, I definitely recommend this spot. 

While being sick was a huge factor for staying, we honestly were just enjoying the hotel and the town so much it was hard to leave. 

Photo by Kimberly Crist

We took it easy that night, ate pizza and made plans for Portland. It was a great way to reset before we jumped back into our trip. Great food, great atmosphere and the staff at the Holiday Inn Express – Astoria were hands down the friendliest hotel staff I’ve ever interacted with. 

If you are considering places to stay in the Washington/Oregon area, you must check them out. Give them a call and mention you read this article or found out about them through my Instagram and you may get a special discount.