Seattle vs. Portland (houses, neighborhoods, living)

[hgurke]

I made a visit to both cities in November, and I fell in love with the Pacific Northwest. Better weather than my hometown (Anchorage) and my current town (Chicago), plenty of things to do, and beautiful.

For those that are trying to decide between Seattle and Portland: Portland it is one of the cleanest, greenest, most well-run cities I have ever been in. Public transportation seemed efficient and was a pleasure to utilize. Everyone was friendly. And, best of all, there was a myriad of things to do, from the Oregon Zoo to Washington Park to the plethora of small shops and coffeehouses surrounding the downtown area.

Seattle surprised me. I expected to fall in love with the city, and, while I am a big fan of the national parks I visited while in Washington state, something about Seattle just seemed lacking. Although the view from the Space Needle was amazing, and I liked Pike Place Market, parts of Seattle simply seemed run-down, and the whole city felt like a small Chicago, but without the cool things that makes Chicago awesome.

So, in my book, in comparing Portland to Seattle, Portland definately wins. But I learned a lesson in comparing the city I currently live in to cities around the U.S.: Chicago is a pretty cool place to be.

[PDF]

I agree. That's the vibe I get from Seattle. But I can't speak because I haven't been to Portland and have to go by the internet here. And I was one of the many people trying to decide between SEA and PDX.

[findingmesomeday]

I've lived in both and I like them both very much but for very different reasons. I always thought that, if I ever got the opportunity to move back, it would definitely be to Seattle, but in the past 5 years or so, I've changed my mind. I don't like what's happened to Seattle in terms of growth, traffic, cost of living, etc. COL in Portland has also increased, but the city is a model for how to control and direct growth in a positive manner. Downtown and various neighborhoods are cool and much more accessible than Seattle's. If I had blue sky today, I'd move to Portland.

[jr75]

If you want to live in a city that is one step up from a small town but with public transit move to Portland. If you want to live in a big city (warts and all) then move to Seattle.