3-4 day breaks in Canada/US recommendations

[PickleFish]

I'm looking for ideas to go for 3-4 days in Canada or the US in early August. I'll be visiting a relative in western Canada and going from there. We've already visited places in BC and Alberta many times so looking further afield. I've briefly seen Toronto but wouldn't mind going back; my relative has seen more of it. I've also been to Ottawa, Halifax and a bit of the surrounding area, and in the US, have been to Boston and New York. She's seen a bit of Newfoundland as well, though I've not.

I'm not keen to drive there; she might in Canada, not the US, but is 80 now and hiring a car might prove difficult. So city breaks with public transport and places with tours might be better, though driving wouldn't be out of the question for her perhaps in some places - I was wondering about perhaps Charlottetown/PEI. Other thoughts I had were Quebec City, Montreal, Toronto again (perhaps to Niagara as a day trip), San Francisco. Wasn't sure about cities like Washington DC in August, not too keen on heat. I imagined visiting Quebec and Montreal in the winter with lots going on, but we're unlikely to go then really, and I imagine lots to see in summer too.

Thoughts on those? Any where else that would be good? We like historical stuff to visit; natural scenery perhaps, I like city stuff, museums and galleries etc, though less so for her; classical music for use both.

Seattle or Portland Oregon? Both relatively cool in August and plenty to do. Halifax Nova Scotia is also a possibility.

Chicago?

thanks, I will have a look at what there is to do in all of those

The West coast is usually more comfortable in August than the East coast, which gets very humid, especially as you get further south to places like Washington DC. On the other hand, East coast cities are generally more compact and easier to navigate without cars than West coast ones.

Not knowing what sorts of things you'd be looking to do, I'd recommend Portland, Oregon. It's got a decent public bus system (for US values of decent), a relatively flat & walkable downtown with a pleasant riverfront park to stroll through, lots of food carts and restaurants, and Powell's Books (Literally the whole city block is a bookstore. I love it.). You might have a hard time getting to Multnomah Falls without a car (which isn't too far out of town, and which is incredibly touristy, but pretty enough to be worth it), but public transportation will take you to the rose garden and the Japanese garden, which are close to each other on a hill above the city and have stunning views on a clear day.

A bookstore that is a whole block long is my idea of heaven!

Sometimes hotels have tours to the places that are just outside of cities, so we could always look into that too.

If you’re in western Canada then somewhere like NYC or DC is not a good idea for 3 or 4 days. We live just outside Seattle and to fly to NYC is almost 6 hours. It’s 3000 miles away. You’ll be exhausted. I’d definitely say Seattle - possibly Portland (wouldn’t be my choice but the Seattle/Portland rivalry is strong here ). Remember that August is in the middle of the wildfire season here on the west coast. Despite what the news might tell you it’s not just Malibu, California that has wildfires. Here in Washington State we lose thousands of acres to wildfires every summer. And Canada suffers badly too.

I’m in Alberta. I’d stick to the western seaboard of the US.

Although, having said that, I’ve always wanted to visit Yellowstone NP.

Me and DH are going to Canada in the summer. We are going to Vancouver and Vancouver island, Whistler, Kamloops, Jasper, Lake louise, Banff, Calgary then flying to Winnipeg for a week in Manitoba. All of those places are amazing so plenty to choose from and do!

Thanks, I will keep looking up stuff in Seattle and Portland, and those sounds like strong contenders both weather and distance wise.

Wildfires I know can be a risk; in Alberta too, but I guess there's not much to do about planning in advance, just have to be lucky or not. A couple of summers ago I was in Alberta and they were quite bad.

Yellowstone is interesting, never really thought much about going north!

The Alberta/BC places are all v familiar already. I think my relative has spent time in Winnipeg already, though I have to admit it's not somewhere I have ever thought about going myself - maybe I should!

I mostly visit at Christmas or in August, so opportunities for short breaks elsewhere are limited by weather - hard to plan when there is a good chance things will be badly snowed under, or too hot!! But it would be nice to build up some future ideas as well, as there may be more chances in the future.