February is clearly the best month of the year (how could it be otherwise when it signals my entrance into the world?) and every year I try to make sure my birthday provides an occasion for everyone to recognize February’s awesomeness. This year’s flu season actually loosened its grip on me long enough to allow me to properly celebrate, so I headed off to Portland, Oregon.
Originally, I didn’t plan to do much for my birthday, but then I remembered I now have the power of Southwest’s Companion Pass* at my disposal, and I couldn’t miss the chance to use it. Helloooo short getaway!
Once I remembered the Companion Pass, I started thinking about what would make a good weekend trip, with a flight that’s not too long or expensive, and a destination that would be low-key and relaxing, with new experiences. Several years ago I spent a weekend in Portland, which has a great downtown, beautiful nature nearby, and an amazing restaurant scene, and I’ve been looking for a good excuse to go back. Less than 7,000 Southwest Rapid Rewards points and $120 later, my sorority sister Rosio and I were booked on a round trip flight to Portland for the day after my birthday!
*If you’re not aware, the Companion Pass is a travel budget gamechanger. It allows you to buy a ticket on Southwest Airlines, and then add your designated companion to the itinerary for just the taxes on the ticket. For most domestic U.S. flights, that means your companion flies with you for $5.60. We’re talking essentially BOGO flights to anywhere Southwest flies, and this also applies to award travel.
Typically, earning a Companion Pass means accruing 110,000 eligible Rapid Rewards points within a calendar year, but last fall there was an incredible limited-time promotion for California residents, which offered a Companion Pass in exchange for signing up for a Southwest Credit Card and making a single purchase. Once I realized that I could change my companion up to three times per calendar year, applying was a clear win.
The Nines, A Luxury Collection Hotel, Portland
Following a painless and economical light rail trip from the airport (I adore cities with affordable transportation options to get to and from the airport), we arrived at The Nines Hotel in downtown Portland. The Nines is a truly impressive building with a lot of history and effortless style. It’s a Starwood hotel, part of the Luxury Collection, and I was super excited about having the chance to stay there because for years, I’ve been reading wonderful things about this location. As a Platinum member with Starwood, I was able to use two of my ten Suite Night Award benefits to upgrade my stay to a one-bedroom suite a few days before arrival.
After a delicious brunch in the lobby at Urban Farmer while waiting for the room to be readied, we were just in time to catch an art tour of the property and nearby area. It was a great way to get a bit more familiar with the history of the property (it used to be a massive department store) and with some of the more unique features of the hotel (like the quirky library off the lobby). Afterwards, we headed to the concierge lounge for complimentary wine and hors d’oeuvres.
Lounge freebies are one of my favorite benefits of Platinum status with Starwood Preferred Guest, so I was thrilled that The Nines has one. Sadly, they kept running out of things – pretty basic things like charcuterie and cheese – and the breakfast offerings were severely underwhelming, and you had to specifically ask for basic items like bagels or condiments. It was just kind of silly on the food front, but the wine and dessert offerings in the evening were on point. I’m hopeful that these were just atypical supply issues that cropped up during my very short stay, but based solely on my experience, I wouldn’t get too excited about the existence of the lounge on a future visit.
Portland Japanese Garden
It’s a good thing we ended up with a fabulous room, because Portland’s weather would not let me forget the most unfortunate thing about February – it is, inarguably, a winter month 🙁 Here I’ve managed to avoid real winter for years, and almost as soon as I arrived in Portland, it began snowing. Typical. But what can you do but roll with it and try not to freeze or end up with unfortunate snow-ravaged hair. *shrugs*
We decided to brave the elements to go explore the Portland Japanese Garden, and we weren’t disappointed. The garden is absolutely gorgeous, and in the snow, it was downright picturesque.
We didn’t get to see all of it before my toes about froze off, but we did make time for a really cool bamboo basket exhibit called Hanakago: The Art of Bamboo and Flowers. We were cutting it close to closing time, but the staff the were unbelievably gracious and happy to answer any questions we had. I love this kind of art, and stumbling upon this exhibit was an unexpected treat.
Eat Alllll the Food
One of the major reasons for choosing Portland as a destination had to do with the culinary options – Portland is more and more becoming known for great food. I didn’t venture out a ton since I was pretty focused on being relaxed and comfortable and thus it was far too cold for me outside, but the hotel had some awesome food available right on property, and we also ended up at a great little spot called Boxer Ramen at the recommendation of one of our Lyft drivers. If you ever end up at Urban Farmer in The Nines, do yourself a favor and order the Honey Biscuit. #NoRegrets #OrderedItTwice
Of course, no trip to Portland is complete without getting lost in Powell’s City of Books. I’ve been before, but the place takes up an entire city block and is downright impressive. I’d be in awe even if I wasn’t a longtime bookworm – I think I could visit ten times and never get to everything. For this trip, I took advantage of the massive selection of books to grab some pocket guidebooks for my upcoming travels.
We wrapped up the trip with complimentary wine from the concierge lounge, sugar overload from Voodoo Doughnut, and the groundbreaking new Pixar movie Coco. My two days in Portland made up exactly the birthday trip I was looking for (except for the whole frozen precipitation part…but now I at least have gorgeous winter wonderland pics), with the perfect combination of budget and luxury. Until next [summer]time, Portland!
If you haven’t seen Coco…I can only side-eye your judgement. Go get your life.
