Once a year a few members of the family get together and go on a trip somewhere. Last year it was the Wildlife Safari near Roseburg but this time we decided to try the coast, or more specifically, Newport. The decision was made that a reservation would be necessary since often in July the hotels/motels at the coast are packed.

At first we didn't know where to make reservations, but I discovered that there was a Best Western about 10 minutes north of Newport right on the beach. Since the last Best Western I stayed at was very nice, I suggested we make reservations there. Someone else said that years before they had been to a place called the Whaler at Newport, and they thought it was a nice place.

Well needless to say that the BW was full on the date that we needed a room, the Whaler however had rooms available so we made the reservation. The price of $135 surprised me, I thought maybe $80, as the place advertised itself to be a motel but I never imagined $135! I figured it must just be very nice for a motel.

Two days later we arrived at Newport, happy, albeit a little cranky after being crammed in a Ford Focus for the three hour drive from Vancouver where we had originally met up. It took very little time to find the motel once we had crossed highway 101. It's three stories, with balconies on some rooms. Parts of the motel has apparently been renovated recently, the lobby, while small, is nice and there is an indoor pool in a separate building across from the lobby that looks to have been recently added.

Service: Way above average. I found the ladies at the front desk to be very courteous, and went out of their way to be helpful.

The Room: So we climbed the outside stairs to our second floor room. The first thing I noticed is how spacious it was. Apparently some of the rooms have fireplaces, but the ones that don't are equally large, with no extra furniture so there is a large space of empty wall where a fireplace would be. Then begins my complaints. There was nothing wrong per say with the room, but it was just not a $135 room! The "decor" and furnishings were unimpressive. Apparently they have updated the lobby and pool area, but not the most important part, the rooms! They seemed unchanged from about the mid-eightees, the walls were typical motel-white with a couple pictures above the beds. There were some extra amenities added including a small fridge, coffee maker and hair dryer. The beds were comfortable, but there was no A/C, so we had to leave the window open all night. The room also had a TV with cable and high speed internet which I wasn't able to use because I didn't bring a wireless adapter for my notebook. The only major defect in the room was that the lamp between the beds didn't work, which wasn't a big problem. The motel also has ocean access if you feel inclined to take a stroll on the beach after breakfast.

At the end of the room opposite the front door was a large window with a table and some chairs. Beyond that was, in my opinion, the best feature of the motel. The view was nothing short of magnificent! We could see way out over the ocean, and we spotted many different boats and kites. At dusk we ended up gathering around the table and watching the sun set over the horizon. The sound of the buoys and the waves crashing on the beach was actually a little mesmerizing.

Continental "breakfast": I don't know why places even try to get away with that term anymore. At most motels you find bagels, muffins and juice, likewise with the Whaler. While not offering a real breakfast what they did have was decent. I ended up with a large chocolate muffin and orange juice which were good, but ended up being supplemented with MC Donalds on our way out of town.


If you are looking for a great seafood restaurant at which to eat, don't ask me. Some of the people in our group (including me) didn't care for fish so we ended up at Izzys, about 10 minutes north of the Whaler on highway 101. It wasn't as excellent as other Izzy's I've been to, but was still better then most places. There was also a Shilo Inn within sight of our motel that has a restaurant overlooking the water.

And finally... My problem is that this was just basically a nice motel, and I can't understand why they charge so dang much! The Best Western was $20 cheaper, and was also on the beach! You might go to the exact same motel I did and say, "he's crazy, this place is just fine!". But I think that when they are pulling in that much for every night someone stays there, they should at least be doing some updating!

Recommended: No