Mike Tobia and Maggie Davis searched the country for their first hotel and found it on Leif Erikson Drive. Their 39-room Herondale is built around saunas, cold plunges and river views.
Rockaway Beach grew up as a Portland vacation spot in the early 1900s. Today its businesses balance second homes, vacation rentals and a small year-round population.
With about 1,500 residents and a summer population many times that, Cannon Beach depends on lodging taxes and day visitors, and has rules to manage both.
Astoria’s Riverfront Trolley runs a restored 1913 streetcar on old railroad track along the Columbia River, staffed largely by volunteers.
Seaside has been a resort since the 1870s. Its 1.5-mile Promenade and Broadway strip still anchor a tourist economy built on families and day trips.
Founded in 1962, the Columbia River Maritime Museum draws visitors year-round and anchors Astoria’s east waterfront along with the lightship Columbia.
Built in 1924 after the fire that leveled downtown Astoria, the Hotel Elliott was restored as a boutique hotel and helped revive Commercial Street.