Oregon Coast Road Trip From Vancouver (the Frugal Way)

We decided this summer to embark on a road trip to the Oregon Coast from Vancouver, BC. It was a frugal trip as we only spent about $1000 CAD for accommodation for 10 nights for a family of four. We did camp for six of the nights and redeemed some Scene+ points for another $1000 off of hotels (hotels are very expensive in the peak season of summer).

Oregon Coast Road Trip from Vancouver

Here’s the itinerary of our Oregon Coast road trip from Vancouver.

• 2 Nights in Centralia Washington (Great Wolf Lodge) (this took us about 5-6 hour in Seattle traffic to get here from Vancouver)
• 2 Nights camping in Nehalam State Park (3 hour drive from Centralia)
• 2 Nights camping in South Beach State Park (2.5 hour drive from Cannon Beach area)
• 2 Nights in Portland, Oregon (3.5 hour drive from Newport with stopover in Florence, OR)
• 2 Nights camping in Birch Bay State Park in Washington (a long 5-6 hour drive from Portland)

In hindsight the initial drives were very long and difficult with two kids who don’t do car rides very well. Maybe they will get better next road trip.

Here are some cheap things to do on the Oregon coast with kids.

Cheap Things To Do On the Oregon Coast With Kids

McClure Park slide in Astoria

Astoria seems like a sleepy town when you drive through it but if you head to the residential areas, the views are beautiful and it feels like you are in a mini-San Francisco. McClure park has a slide that is 45 feet long which will entertain your kids for free for a while.

Our kids stared fighting about who would go down the slide first so we had to leave.

Self Guided Tour at Tillamook Creamery

A trip to the Oregon Coast with kids is not complete without a trip to the Tillamook Creamery. It has been completely renovated in recent years and looks very modern. It is open daily from 10am to 6pm. You can get free packaged cheddar cheese samples near the end of your self tour!

It’s very crowded and your children will inevitably want some have some ice cream.

Lincoln City Community Center

If you buy a ticket for swimming at the Lincoln City Community Center (which is great by the way, they have a rope swing and fun water slides, in addition to a warmed wading pool area for younger kids) you can use their rock climbing wall for free.

They have staff to make sure your child is harnessed in properly to rock climb up to what looked like 20 feet or so.

Crabbing at Newport

If you are under 12 years old you do not need a license to crab, but an adult should get a license. You can get a license here. There is crabbing at the fishing pier on Abbey Street and Bay Street at the Newport pier area.

It was fun to chat with other people visiting and have some clam chowder from Mo’s for lunch.

Here’s a primer on how to crab, you’ll need a crab caliper and some nets and bait and you’ll need to make sure the male crab you pick up are the right size (there’s a guide at the pier).

Tidepools at the Yaquinna Head Lighthouse

There are tidepools to explore at the Yaquinna Head Lighthouse. The Yaquinna Head Lighthouse was built in 1872. The tidepools are fun for kids to explore, but make sure you check the tide tables. It’s a bit rocky to get to the bottom, flip flops are not a good idea when you’re walking down to the tide pools.

Our kids liked checking out the harbor seals hanging out on the rocks.

Sand Sledding in Florence

We went as south as Florence on the Oregon Coast. It’s about an hour drive from Newport.

Sandmaster Park (opens from 9:30am to 6pm) has sandsled rentals for $16 for 24 hours. They even have an area behind the shop where you can sandsled (or you can take it to nearby Honeyman State Park). Sunglasses, tights or leggings and socks are recommended. Sand will get everywhere. Sand sledding is not as exciting as it seems (you go slower than it looks) but it’s perfect for younger kids. Sandmaster Park gives you a nice bumper sticker too!

There are more expensive activities like an ATV of some sort, but that’s not a frugal activity.

Westmoreland Park Playground in Portland

Portland was nice, we didn’t do too much but we did check out a playground.

Joe from Retire By 40 recommended this playground (he lives in Portland), our kids liked it and there were lots of shady spots to sit around and watch your kids climb boulders or explore the natural looking playground.

I didn’t think that when I had kids, finding playgrounds on your trips would be part of the travel itinerary, but there you have it.

I was able to enjoy about 30 minutes of time where I could rest my brain and didn’t have to answer questions from my kids.

The playground has a ‘natural’ rugged theme and doesn’t look like your typical playground.

How to Save Money On Oregon Coast Accommodation

We saved hundreds on accommodation by camping instead of staying in a hotel. I was very impressed with Oregon State Parks.

Here are some of the reasons why:

• The bathrooms are heated and warm (and clean)
• The showers have true hot water and are free
• There are ranger shows (there was a S’mores night with a sing along from a ranger). My kids still sing that song that they learned from the summer and it’s been 3 months since our trip
• It’s only $48 USD per night for a tent site
• A lot of the campsites have water and electrical hook up (I plugged in my phone to charge it and we plugged in a kettle for hot water)
• A lot of the campsites seem to face a playground in the middle (perfect for relaxing at your campsite while watching your kids play at the playground)
• They even have yurts (we were not able to book a yurt though)

We even had a lovely deer sighting at this Nehalem Beach State Park campsite one morning.

The only downside to camping on the Oregon Coast is to make sure you bring enough warm clothing- it’s colder than you might think, especially in the evenings.

Also, some of the campsites are quite large and noisy- for example South Beach State Park felt like there were a lot of high school or college kids parties going on.

Do you have any tips for an Oregon Coast road trip from Vancouver?