Oregon Coast Getaway

Our Seaside Trip this June was celebrating so many things in my family. Mainly, we celebrated my parent's 50th anniversary. While their anniversary is in November, summer was the best time to get the whole family together. Getting the family together was their number one priority for celebrating. We also celebrated my 40th birthday, father's day, and my sister and BIL's anniversary. We were a big group of six adults and two kids. We had a great time together!

Lodging:

We opted for an Airbnb to maximize our family time together. We found the perfect place for us at "Our Cottage at the Cove." It was just one row of houses from the beach. There was a small path across the street, and there was the beach. It was at the very end of the West side of the Seaside promenade.

We had never been on this part of the Oregon coast before, so we had a lot we wanted to see and time to relax. Here's what we did:

Day 1: Drive & Arrival

The drive takes about three hours from Tacoma to Seaside. We stopped about three times for the bathroom and to stretch our legs. We had to power through the drive quickly to get there at a reasonable time (due to my sister and brother-in-law's arrival time, we took off to go down around 2 pm). However, the kids hadn't gotten out at a gas station, nor had the whole gas station experience, so that was fun. We bought a pack of gum, which was pretty thrilling (I say this somewhat sarcastically, but for a 3- and 6-year-old, it's pretty awesome).

We needed an easy and relatively fast dinner, so we opted for pizza! We were pretty impressed with Angelina's pizza. It was thicker and softer crust - maybe like an upgraded Farelli's Pizza. The boys ate it up, and so did the adults!

The photos below are the early excursion of Wesley, Josh, and I our first morning to the beach near our Airbnb. We were near the Painted Rock garden in Seaside as well.

Breakfast & Lunch: At Home, Pre-trip

Dinner: Angelina's Pizzeria & Cafe

Beach near Airbnb

Painted Rock Garden

Day 2: Hug Point & Tillamook

We originally had Tillamook slotted for day 3, but given the weather, it was better to go on our first day. Yes, more driving, but not too bad. On the way, we made a stop at Hug Point State Recreation Site, which was worth it. It was hard for my mom, who had to be in a wheelchair - you can't even get to the sand without stairs. However, it would work with little ones because it's just down the stairs and to the sand, and then there is just like some couple hundred feet to the caves and waterfall.

Yup, caves, and waterfall; It's not deep caves, but enough to duck under and look out or squeeze through for a cavernous feel. Very cool for a young kid. Then there is a small-ish waterfall. You should check the tide schedule for the best time to stop - so be sure it's low tide.

Back in the car and out to Tillamook Creamery (about one hour total). I've not been before, but my husband went as a kid and said it's done a significant overhaul. It's a massive production now with a restaurant, ice cream, retail, and then a viewing section with descriptions and views of the cheese-making process. Next time, I would try to work ahead and schedule a behind-the-scenes tour to get a closer look.

The lunch was quite delicious. There were cheeseburgers, chicken burgers, grilled cheese, fried cheese curds, and fries. After the factory viewing section, tasting, and some shopping, we grabbed ice cream. Dairy overload, but so good (please tell me you know this French Kiss scene, LOL).

We ended the day cooking dinner at the Airbnb. We picked up some groceries on the way home from Tillamook at Fresh Foods in Cannon Beach. Then we cooked some steaks, grilled asparagus, and roasted sweet potatoes. So fancy.

Note: We were traveling as a pack - six adults and two kids - so we moved very slowly (and not to throw my mom under the bus, but she had a wheelchair, so we were even slower). As a smaller group, you might be able to squeeze in more to your day. If there was time, we planned to go to the Tillamook Air Museum.

Breakfast: Bodega-style Egg and Cheese sandwich with a pour-over coffee

Lunch: Tillamook Creamery

Dinner: Airbnb Grilled steaks, asparagus, and sweet potatoes

Day 3: Cannon Beach

Day 3 was my birthday - woohoo! So my husband and I snuck away to grab breakfast at Sea Level Bakery in Cannon Beach. It's only about 15 minutes from Seaside, so totally doable. Also, totally worth it. The acai bowl was incredible, and the cinnamon roll to-die-for. It was so good that we had to return the next day with the kids so we could have the cinnamon roll again. The coffee was delicious as well.

After breakfast, we rounded up the troops and went to Cannon Beach for beach time. It was low tide, so the water was far back, and the kids enjoyed splashing in "ocean puddles" left behind. I encouraged them to walk over to the tide pools by haystack rock, but they were too happy splashing around. Maybe you can get your kids out there when you visit.

To access the beach, we parked near Wayfarer Restaurant. The entrance is tricky as you must navigate the "river" of water headed out to the ocean (I forget what that's called). This type of access made it hard for my mom in her wheelchair. We did manage to push her through wet sand to get a view of the ocean.

The lunch scene was crazy, and finding a spot with a larger group was challenging. We landed at Seasons Cafe, which turned out great. We got some tasty sandwiches and enjoyed the little patio tucked away from the street.

While waiting for lunch, I took the kids Bruce's Candy Kitchen to grab some sweets and a candy apple!

After lunch, we had some downtime at the Airbnb to relax and bit. Then we rallied and went back to Cannon Beach to walk around town and shop. My husband particularly enjoyed Pilot House Distilling tasting room. The kids discovered the toy store. Everyone had fun.

We ended the day with a celebration dinner at Wayfarer Restaurant. The food was good; I enjoyed my sturgeon dish quite a bit. The dining room had an incredible view of haystack rock. The restaurant was overpriced, but it was a good celebration spot for our group.

Breakfast: Sea Level Bakery

Lunch: Seasons Cafe

Dinner: Wayfarer Restaurant

Cannon Beach

Sea Level Bakery & Cafe

Acai Bowl at Sea Level

Banana Bread at Sea Level

Cinnamon Roll at Sea Level

Bruce's Candy Kitchen

Wayfarer Restaurant in Cannon Beach

Sturgeon Dish at Wayfarer

Day 4: Seaside

Of course, one of the days had to be in Seaside; we were staying there! As I said earlier, we snuck in another breakfast at Sea Level with the boys. Once we were back, the whole group was ready to head out. Our first stop was the Seaside Aquarium.

The Seaside Aquarium is small, but it was jam-packed with cool things. One of the highlights are the seals at the entrance; you can feed them for a little extra money. Inside is an octopus, which you can see moving around, a touch pool, and many other fantastic sea creatures. Randomly, the aquarium had brass rubbing, which was fun for the kids as well. Overall, we probably spent about an hour at the aquarium.

Next, we went downtown Seaside to check out the arcade and carousel. Believe it or not, the old-fashioned bumper cars are still around for fun. Wesley (3) wasn't old enough, but Caleb (6) was able to join me in a car, and we jostled his Uncle and Dad around.

There is also an arcade and carousel on the downtown strip, which proved to be all the fun the boys ever wanted in life.

It was getting pretty crowded downtown, so we opted to grab lunch at Ruby’s Roadside Grill. It was a pretty casual spot for all of us to chow down.

We ended our day by walking along the promenade, checking out the statue, and then walking the beach back to our Airbnb. We also spent some time playing at the back and flying a kite.

Breakfast: Sea Level Bakery

Lunch: Ruby’s Roadside Grill

Dinner: Airbnb Grilled Chicken, Salad, and Roasted potatoes

Seaside Aquarium

Brass Rubbings at Seaside Aquarium

Day 5: Departure, Fort Stevens, & Astoria

Sadly, all good things must come to an end. We cleaned up the Airbnb and headed out.

On our way home, we stopped at Fort Stevens. There is plenty of activities at this state park, but we opted to check out the Fort Stevens Historic Military Site. The military site is the "only Civil War-era earthen fort on the west coast," where we explored old artillery gun batteries and the fort ruins. There was also a military car to hop in. Caleb loved this little adventure. He wants to go here first when we return to Seaside.

Also, when writing this up, I discovered you could take an underground tour during the summer of a gun battery that served as a World War II command center. I think I'll try this for the boys next time!

We needed to get back on the road home, but I would have enjoyed the chance to check out the remains of the century-old shipwreck, Peter Iredale. Another "next time!" adventure.

We grabbed lunch in Astoria at Fort George Brewery & Public House. Then we drove the long way home!

Breakfast: Make at AirBnB

Lunch: Fort George Brewery & Public House

Dinner: Home!