City life, nature, hotsprings, and not too much driving -- where to get them?

Posted by Barkinpark (Bay Area, California) on 04/09/23 04:29 AM

I have the following airline/hotel freebies that are expiring and just wonder how I can best utilize them:

Alaska Airlines Companion Ticket for $121 (must issue the ticket by late April but have a full year to travel)
IHG Hotels free nights x 2 (one expires in mid-July and one expires in mid-August)

I think Alberta or BC in Canada offer great cities (hence great food) and nature. However, Alaska's airfares to west Canada are not competitive. Even with the Companion Fare (all flights transit via Seattle), the total expenditure will be higher than flying direct to Vancouver or Calgary on Air Canada or United.

OR and WA look like great candidates. But airfares from the Bay Area (where I live) to Portland or Seattle are usually low. So, using the Companion Ticket for flying to these cities seems like I am not fully taking advantage of this ticket.

I considered Chicago, which offers great urban life without the nature part. However, Chicago hotels are so pricey! The only IHG hotels that qualify for the free nights are ones next to the two airports.

Hawaii--I have never been to Hawaii, but its high costs scare me off.

Mexico--it's a beautiful country, but I am deeply concerned about safety.

Another alternative is to use these benefits separately in two trips. This is OK, but I will have to plan twice.

I would appreciate any ideas of yours. Happy travels!

Posted by Claudia

Land of La

04/09/23 05:28 AM

8680 posts

Nova Scotia

Utah

Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas

Posted by lanlubber

04/09/23 05:37 AM

585 posts

You could fly to Seattle and then take the Seattle/Victoria Clipper to Victoria. Spend some time in Victoria or rent a car right off the bat and head up-Island (you are on Vancouver Island) and visit the beautiful West Coast, Uclulet and Tofino spring to mind. Then back to Victoria. Alternatively take the Clipper from Seattle to San Juan Island and ride Washington State ferries on day trips to some of the other Islands.

Have you considered Alaska itself? Lots to see and do there.

Posted by travel4fun

Bend, Oregon

04/09/23 05:43 AM

2324 posts

Check out Bend, Oregon. While not a “big city”, it’s beautiful and there are several hot springs within a couple hours. What kind of “city life” are you looking for? If you’re looking for over-priced restaurants catering to rich transplants, we’ve got you covered ;)

June/July is usually a great time to visit. You would fly into RDM.

Posted by Barkinpark OP

Bay Area, California

04/10/23 12:11 AM

1441 posts

Thank you for your replies.

@travel4fun: how do you compare Bend with Portland, other than size? I see your point about overpriced restaurants, because everything is overpriced in the Bay Area.

Posted by mikliz97

Snohomish, WA

04/10/23 01:43 PM

2035 posts

There are hot springs here in WA as well as OR, but yes you would still be driving a bit for most of these.

How long do you have for your trip? I ask because Iceland actually fits exactly what your title says. Yes, you can do a lot of driving there, but you can also stay very close to the city center and still have numerous hot springs/lagoons within minutes from you. The only issue would be the international flight of course, depending on whether you are up for that or not.

Posted by Barkinpark OP

Bay Area, California

04/10/23 03:48 PM

1441 posts

@mikliz97: thank you for the Iceland suggestion. Too bad that I won't have much time (about 1 week) to enjoy the country. Iceland is on my bucket list for another longer trip.

Posted by Lola

Seattle, WA

04/10/23 11:57 PM

16318 posts

You might take another look at Vancouver. I just priced priced it for the last week of June (6/25-July 1.). For flights at reasonable times (not departing at 6 am nor after 7pm, Alaska came to $600 for the full-fare ticket. With the companion ticket at $121, the total would be $721 for two, or $360 per person.

For the same dates, and excluding early-morning flights ( like 6 am), Air Canada came to $517 pp RT, or $1034 for 2. I assume that is CDN, but could not tell for sure, with my iPad in the US it may display prices from a US airport in USD.

Again for the same dates and excluding super-early flights, United came to $580-$620 RT, or well over $1000 for two.

Harrison Hot springs just east of Vancouver is very nice and offers spring getaway prices for midweek nights until June 29.

https://www.harrisonresort.com/

Another option might be Boise, Idaho, a very nice small city with great brewpubs and restaurants downtown, and usually lots of events on offer. The Boise River runs through the downtown and is very popular for rafting. Hotsprings within a 1-3 hour drive from Boise are listed here:

https://www.weknowboise.com/blog/hot-springs-near-boise-id.html

https://boiseriverraftandtube.com/

Our kids who live in Boise love Burgdorf for a very rustic experience (log cabin, byo food), and Idaho City for a more upscale venue. Stanley is a bit further, (2.5-hour drive) but if you love mountains this is the place. The Mountain Village Resort on the blog list is in Stanley. That little town often has music events on weekends in summer.

The direct flight from SFO to BOI departs at 6 pm, arriving there @8:30 pm ( time change of one hour). Price for two using the companion fare would be about $400. Car rentals there are usually very inexpensive.