My friend texted me a link and asked, “Have you ever been to this place?” The headline: “The Historic Sou’wester, Vintage Travel Trailer Resort & Lodge, a getaway on Washington’s Long Beach peninsula.” It’s about 2 hours from Portland, just north of Astoria. The pictures showed an eclectic mix of vintage trailers on green, tree-lined grounds aglow with market lights. “No,” I replied, with a wide-eyed emoji, “multi-family trip?”
Two weeks later we were there. And we’re currently planning our return, so needless to say, we had a good time.
The experience is somewhere between camping and staying at a bed and breakfast — with many of the charms of both, plus some you wouldn’t get at either. Built in 1892, the Sou’wester is full of character and wonder, and as a space that centers art both for guests and artists, it’s a place that feels good to support.
Due to our late booking, we had minimal choices, so our three-person family straddled a full bed in a vintage trailer (The Fireball, $178 per night), but we also had a tent campsite ($60 per night) on the grounds to ensure there was enough space for everybody. We did end up needing it, but there are plenty of trailers with a wide variety of bed configurations, plus cabins and rooms in the lodge, so if you’re booking on a more reasonable timeline you can find something that’ll suit your family. Pro tip: Book your stay at least three to six weeks out for the pick of the litter!
The Fireball was adorable inside and I imagined eating breakfast at the little table and nook, but we spent most of our time at a large picnic table outside our friends’ trailer, The Moroccan, so our two parties could be together around their fire pit and the kids could run to and fro down the paths and in and out of a little play house just kitty-corner of The Fireball.
Waking up on the grounds each day had that same cozy chill in the air as a morning spent camping, except we’d greet our friends at their trailer and then saunter over to the coffee stand and buy some chanterelles on the honor system for the pizza we’d later make in the community kitchen’s oven (trailers have small ovens, but the outdoor community kitchen offers a full-size oven).
Other on-site offerings include arts workshops; a thrift store trailer; an art gallery trailer; two private, community showers with decent water pressure; the Garden Spa (a private, outdoor soaking tub and shower, plus indoor, heated changing room) and Finnish cedar sauna (pro tip: reservations open one week in advance); a karaoke bus ($50 for a 3-hour rental), which also sometimes screens films; a tea trailer; and the nostalgic lodge living room where you can cozy up, play games, or make use of the turntable or VCR/TV.
But truth be told, our families didn’t need most of these amenities — our kids just loved exploring the grounds together, playing with each other and seeing what was inside all the special trailers. My kiddo’s favorite was the exhibit in the Art Trailer Gallery, which had a wishing tree inside and materials to string our wishes to the tree. Pro tip: Look out for monthly $25 hands-on clay workshops for ages 7 to 14 at their dedicated ceramics studio, Ilwaco Artworks, just a 4-minute drive north!
Sou’wester Arts is a 501c3 nonprofit arts organization, which offers artist residencies that include a stay on the grounds. The space also offers art workshops, hosts exhibits in their Art Trailer Gallery and showcases the work of artists-in-residence at the nearby Sou’wester Arts Window Gallery. And they host live music in the lodge every Saturday. We got to take our pajama-clad 3-year-olds to see an indie folk duo perform The Decemberists and Neutral Milk Hotel covers before whisking them down the path to our respective vintage trailers for bedtime.
There’s a case to be made for spending the entire weekend on site, but it’s also a great chance to cross that really cool bridge to Astoria and spend some time in the lovely town just 25 minutes away. We did, and took our kiddos on the historic Astoria Riverfront Trolley (pictured above), where the kindly operator made my little guy’s day by letting him ring the bell up front, and to the Columbia River Maritime Museum, where we got to explore inside an actual ship.
And just down the block from the Sou’wester is Marsh’s Free Museum for the oddity museum/gift shop enthusiast. (Look up Jake the Alligator Man.) And on our way home, our friends compelled us to swing down to Seaside and get a few rounds of Fascination in at Funland Entertainment Center. It’s a game I seriously enjoyed playing with my little one on my lap, belly laughing as we both tried to get the balls across the table.
Now you see why we’re heading back as soon as possible.
Find even more family-friendly travel destinations here!