Best Place to Stay in Willamette Valley, Oregon

I visit Oregon’s Willamette Valley every year because it really is one of my favorite wine regions. With the amount of sparkling wine popping up every visit is a truly unique wine tasting experience.

I try to stay in a different place each visit. I have stayed at the Dundee Hotel, a luxury boutique hotel, and I have been pampered at one of the best hotels, the Allison Inn. I have also enjoyed the free bikes that come along with the unique stay at the Vintages. But this trip, I wanted to find the absolute perfect place to pull off this surprise.

It had been about 7 months since I had seen my friends in Oregon. And one of my most favorite things is to create surprises for people I love. I mean in Bubbly Side of Life world, there’s always a reason to celebrate, so why not turn it into a surprise? I recruited a partner in crime to help me create the perfect bubbly surprise celebration.

The key to pulling this off and creating the celebration I was dreaming up in my head was finding the perfect vacation rental. There were several features I was looking for in my search:

Easy access to wineries, downtown McMinnville and Wilsonville (where I’d be planning something else super fun…stay tuned for that).
Spacious rooms since there would be 6 of us getting together.
All the comforts of home so that we could have the perfect girls’ night in.
Cozy Rooms so that everyone could stay overnight if they wanted to
Free wifi since I would be working while I was there.

The surprise bubbly celebration was going to be a fried chicken, french fry and veggie tempura pairing dinner, so the kitchen area would be key to ensure there was enough space to not only prep and cook the dinner, but to comfortably enjoy it as well.

The Perfect Place – 3rd Street Retreat Airbnb Property

3rd Street Retreat in Newberg was perfect for so many reasons.

First of all, it had the most perfect kitchen. Lucky for me two of my friends are chefs and they truly loved cooking in this kitchen. But if you don’t have chef friends, the owner Paige, can certainly help you find a private chef to create the perfect girls’ night in experience.

We did so much grocery shopping because, of course, we needed food to munch on while we were creating the perfectly paired dinner, plus everything for dinner, but let’s not forget dessert and breakfast the next day. There was so much room to put away the groceries and now have any clutter on the counters. We could prep in clean spacious areas while others were enjoying some appetizers and socializing. And the entire time, the chefs had plenty of room.

Next, the entertaining space was awesome. There was plenty of space inside and outside for entertaining. We spent most of our time together in the kitchen/dining area because it was huge and quite comfortable for all of us to be around the table together.

We also found ourselves cozied up on the couch and chairs in the living room in the morning enjoying our coffee.

Now, if it wasn’t so cold when we were there, you better believe we would have been outside because that space is awesome! The side yard has great cozy seating area with bocce ball for entertainment.

In the backyard, there’s a big outdoor farm table that would truly be perfect in the summer. There’s also a seating area with a big sectional couch under a covered area. The backyard area could easily be used for more yard games because it is so spacious.

And at the end of the night, we all had a comfortable bed to sleep in. There are two bedrooms downstairs, the master bedroom with a king bed and one with a queen bed. Upstairs, you’ll find a double bed and two twin beds.

There’s a full bathroom downstairs off the kitchen and another upstairs. This definitely helped getting us moving and out the door in the morning.

Even though there is no fitness room and not really one close, there were plenty of yoga mats and a tv that you could roll around if you wanted to do your own workout.

The owner of the home, Paige was great! Super responsive and very thoughtful. She takes such pride in this house and wants to ensure your stay is absolutely perfect in every way. With a personal touch of welcome flowers upon arrival, she’ll also help you create custom events for your stay.

This historic home with a completely remodeled kitchen and dining area is such a great place to stay for any bubbly celebration. This home truly lends itself to celebrating the everyday moments in life as you can gather everyone together to create special memories with this home as the backdrop.

And if you’re looking to explore different areas of the Pacific Northwest, this is the ideal location to make your home base. Check out our full house tour on Bubbly Side of Life’s Instagram account and then go and book 3rd Street Retreat for your next trip….you will love it as much as we did!

Wine Tasting

With easy access to the heart of Oregon wine country, you will be wine tasting within minutes of leaving this vacation rental.

Obviously Willamette Valley Wine Country is known for the best pinot noir and pinot gris which, of course, are delicious, but as I have mentioned, the amount of sparkling wine producers in the Willamette Valley are growing by the day.

Sparkling wine is a true labor of love and what we’re seeing in the Willamette Valley is those producers who have been producing bubbly for years are now creating even more to expand their portfolio. And this is why every visit to this wine region can be a very different experience.

World-Class Wineries

Some of my favorite wineries within 10ish minutes of 3rd Street Retreat:

Furioso Vineyard-This winery is stunning. The tasting room is absolutely beautiful and their sparkling wine is delicious. We paired Furioso’s blanc de blancs with our fried chicken dinner and it was so dang good.
Argyle Winery-the first sparkling wine house in the Willamette Valley which has delicious bubbles! The extended triage is a personal favorite.
Adelsheim Vineyard-One of the original wineries in the Willamette Valley with 4 different sparkling wines. And if you know me at all, you know I don’t love sweet wines, but their demi sec cuvée did come home with me to pair with dessert.
Sokol Blosser Winery-If you don’t know why I love this winery so much, check out this blog. They just released several new sparkling wines that you will want to try. Their sparkling rosé is one of my absolutely favorites.

Downtown Newberg

If you’re wanting to go out and about after a fun day of wine tasting, this vacation rental is also a short walk to downtown Newberg where you will find more tasting rooms and lots of great restaurant options.

Now if you have had your share of wine tasting and want to enjoy something else in the evening, be sure to stop into Social Goods for a cider or a beer and some appetizers. What a cute little place, and perfect if you need to tire out your kids as they have an upstairs play area. Downstairs you will find your favorite game on a flat-screen tv where you can walk right up to the bar and taste something new.

Downtown McMinnville

The location of this vacation rental is in close proximity to downtown McMinnville, making it a very short drive of less than 25 minutes.

Of course, you will find several tasting rooms on 3rd street, but also many different types of restaurants and of course, plenty of shopping. Here you will find everyting from live music, to a fine dining restaurant, to a diner and everything in between.

Some of my favorite places in downtown McMinnville are those that I repeatedly visit every time I’m in the area for lunch and dinner.

Humble Spirt-a seasonal farm to table restaurant
La Rambla-a tapas restaurant
Pura Vida Cocina-Latin American food
Grain Station Brew Works-take the beer lover here
The Sage Restaurant-my favorite lunch spot with great sandwiches and soups
Pizza Capo-Neopolitan-style woodfired pizza

How fun it is exploring these historic downtown areas like McMinnville and Newberg right in the heart of the Willamette Valley.

Where to Next?

I headed back to Portland International Airport for a super early morning flight after a whirlwind trip full of surprises and bubbly. My heart was full, my stomach was full and I am already scheming what’s next.

There is a good reason I visit Oregon’s Wine Country every year, I mean not only is there incredible pinot noir (which I typically drink in sparkling form), but also just has some of the best places less than an hour away, like the Oregon Coast.