Visiting friends for the first time in Portland and a must see is the Oregon's Coast. It is very different from the California Coast so I was looking forward to it. Wasn't sure if I would be able to see it, but I went online and found this company that offers day trips to the Oregon Coast. My first choice was to book the Cannon Beach day trip only but it was sold out, so my 2nd choice was the full Oregon Coast experience. What a great experience!! Andy was our tour guide and you couldn't tell that he was only doing this for a couple of months. He had loads of information to share with us about Oregon itself. Super nice guy as well.
There have been some recent changes to this trip that I wanted to share since you might notice that in some older reviews a stop at the Tillamook Cheese Factory is mentioned. It is NO LONGER a stop on this tour. According to Andy, in their comments from past customers, many of them said that the stop at Tillamook was not a highlight for them. They felt that the place was overrated and they would rather have the additional time at a beach/coast instead. So the company listened and took the stop out. I was disappointed to hear that because I was looking forward to it but have to agree that more stops along the coast are definitely better.
Some things to keep in mind on this trip:
Wear sturdy shoes with you (ladies, no heels) but have some flip flops with you in case you want to go into the sand or ocean. You will thank me.
It's the coast so dress appropriately. It could be as much as 20 degrees cooler than in Portland itself.
You only get 1 hour in Cannon Beach town (it's the lunch over stop), so if you want to so some shopping, be quick about it.
I went on the tour solo so I would highly recommend it for any solo travellers. Don't be scared. It's a perfect way to experience the Oregon Coast. Don't let being alone stop you!!