Visiting Couer D' Alene this weekend (Coeur d'Alene, Post Falls: fit in, rent, hotels)

[chrisb19]

Hello everyone, I will be taking a weekend trip to Couer D' Alene this weekend with my wife and 2 year old son. We are coming from the Seattle/Tacoma area. Our primary focus of the trip is to simply get a feel of the area. I would also like some feedback from locals about the local Auto Dealerships. How many big brand dealerships are there? IE: Chevy/Ford/Dodge/Toyota/Honda/Nissan etc..

I have the possible opportunity to move to the Couer D'Alene area in the coming year, and my job will be following me (How cool is that). However, in order for my job to follow me, I need there to be a serviceable amount of auto dealers in the area. I would prefer not to travel to Spokane for work, but it's not out of the question.

A little info on myself. We are in our late 20s, have a 2 year old, an old chocolate lab etc. We moved to the Seattle/Tacoma area from Phoenix, and have been here a few years. While we still love the natural beauty of the area, there are becoming an increasing number of things that I am realizing I do not particularly care for in WA. (That's another thread/story). I have never been a big fan of big cities. If it were up to me, I would have acres and acres of land in the middle of nowhere. Unfortunately, the middle of nowhere doesn't provide many job opportunities, so the I have always had to reside around big cities.

My company has done very well in Western Washington, and is looking to expand to other states nearby. When I learned of this, I immediately volunteered to lead the way. (I am a Field Manager). I was basically told, "Tell us, where you want to go, and when you want to go". So herein lies the beginning of the search.

Everything I have researched about Couer D' Alene seems to be excellent. I have read absolutely no negative comments about Northern Idaho in general.

We will not be viewing any properties (We will rent for a while at first), during this trip. It will be strictly just to meander about the area, view the sights, scout auto dealers.

We are looking for specific areas that people would recommend we explore to give us the best feel of the area. Obviously the Lake etc. We are big outdoors people. I imagine there is lots to offer around the area. What are some state parks or other things we could check out within a reasonable distance from CDA? Also, we will be staying overnight Saturday. Any reasonably priced hotels that are recommended?

I didn't mean for this to be such a long thread, but I appreciate any info given!

[Para]

I spent a couple of nights in CDA while doing my own recon of the area at the beginning of October. I stayed at the Day's Inn on Northwest Blvd. it's not fancy but I found it to be reasonably priced and good for me and the dog. They also had free breakfast but I didn't try it.

I did see at least one large car dealership, Toyota off of Government Way.

The locals can chime in on the other questions but I loved my visit there and can't wait to return (hopefully for good the next time).

[chrisb19]

Thank you..So, Day's Inn is dog friendly? We were debating about whether or not to take the dog, or let the neighbors watch her for the weekend. Dog friendly hotel was our primary concern.

[Para]

It is dog friendly. Can't leave them alone in the room though. Mainly in case they start barking uncontrollably and bother the other guests. That's why I didn't try the free breakfast, didn't want to go lock her up in the truck alone while I went and had breakfast. She travels well but any longer than 5 minutes in the truck alone and she starts going batty.

I actually called and made reservations on my trip to insure they'd have a pet friendly room available at the various motels, I could see them only having a set number and selling out of them.

We did a beautiful hike up into the hills by Beauty Bay, south east of town. The views from the top were very nice and it was a pleasure not to be in such a hot dry place like Colorado usually is. We then drove around Lake CDA which was great too.

Have a good trip.

[fleeNY]

we stayed at the Days Inn as well back in Sept!... saw a few dogs there

Have a good time and lets us know how it goes! We loved it and we're moving to Post Falls Dec 3rd

[Shaner]

Days in works, we have every major dealership besides infiniti, and Beauty bay is a great trail system, tubbs is nice because it is down town, I would take one of the Lake cruises and enjoy the scenery.

[fearnofish]

There is only one large dealer I would shy away from if you are looking to buy a new vehicle. Most of the dealers are fine. We have bought from Tom Addis Lake City Ford and Parker Subaru and have good things to say about both.

If you are looking to see the area you will need much more than a weekend but a quick trip will be fun and busy. If you can book a cruise on Lake Coeur d'Alene. If you have the time and want to go fishing contact Fins and Feathers Fins & Feathers Tackle Shop and Guide Service and you can book a trip to go out fishing for a afternoon.

About 15 miles north of CDA is Farragut State Park on Lake Pend Oreille. It is a great state park, this is the off season so don't expect everything to be open, and bow hunting is allowed in the state park right now and general rifle season is open for deer all around CDA so if you are in the woods take the normal precautions.

If you want a lot more detailed outings for a afternoon in the woods or around the lake let me know and I will give some suggestions.

[chrisb19]

Thanks for the feedback. We ended up tacking on a few miles to our trip and went all the way out to Missoula to check it out. We left early Sat Morning, decided to just drive through CDA at first and go straight to Missoula. As we passed through CDA my wife was driving and not paying attention to fuel. We rolled into the gas station in Rose Lake literally breathing on fumes!

We got to Missoula pretty late, my 2 yr old was bored out of his mind, so we found a room, got some dinner at cracker barrel and called it a night. Sunday morning we were out of the hotel at sunrise to check out Missoula before heading back to CDA to check it out. I logged over 1000 miles in 2 days..I obviously would have preferred more time, but it was a mid-week decision to make the trip, plus I figured this might be the last window of good weather for a bit, so we went for it.

We will be going back most likely in June and spending a week or so exploring the areas. However, just based on initial impressions...Missoula won hands down.

CDA honestly just didn't do much for me. It felt way too touristy and fake for lack of a better term. Missoula felt authentic, and IMO was hand's down the better place.

I will say, everyone we met in Idaho/Montana was incredibly nice. This is something we are looking for. In Western WA, it's super rare to even by acknowledged by a random person. In Montana, everyone would at least say "hello", or "how's it going", etc. Perhaps it was my beard that made me fit in with the locals

So, anyways..That's about it, it was a good trip, but exhausting just due to time constraints. I really believe we will end up in Montana somewhere.

[Para]

There's a nice dog park on Jacob's Island Park over by the University. The dog and I stopped in Missoula on the way to the panhandle last month.

[Clark Fork Fantast]

CdA is a town, Missoula is a city. They have different vibes, and you're obviously looking for something that a city has to offer. (The city ambiance that CdA lacks is provided by Spokane, but there aren't many Idahoans I know who would like to live there...). Anyway, glad you seem to have found what you were looking for. Worth the long drive.

One thing that you may want to keep in mind: You will find extremely helpful and friendly people in both NID and NW MT, but the amount of people in NW MT who just don't like people moving in from elsewhere is (anecdotally, but also factually) a tad higher in MT than in NID, due to so many Californians (and others) buying up land in NW MT and building huge mansions/lodges there before the Recession. The resentment is lingering, in some areas.