Midcentury modern, cocktail bar, near MAX train

It's a suburban location but a quick drive or public transit trip to the fun of Portland.

HIGHLIGHTS -Willamette River for hiking, boating, and (June-Sept) swimming -Sellwood village neighborhood of SE Portland nearby -Oaks Bottom wildlife refuge and Springwater Corridor Trail -Downtown Portland and the east side with cafes, restaurants, bars, bike lanes, etc.

MORE DETAIL The house is in Milwaukie, Oregon, a woodsy suburb bordering southeast Portland and is near the Willamette River. It's a quiet suburb, but a quick drive to Portland or an easy ride on public transit via light rail.

You can easily get to the quaint Portland neighborhood of Sellwood and farther north to the food, fun, and culture of inner SE Portland and downtown Portland.

GETTING AROUND Many of our guests have found it easiest to have a car, but it's not hard to get around without one, relying on public transit. We have a beautiful new light rail line connecting us to Portland (the MAX Orange Line).

DRIVING --5 min to charming village-like neighborhood of Sellwood in SE Portland with shops, cafes, bars --13 min to inner Southeast and downtown Portland (longer during rush hour)

PUBLIC TRANSIT --7 to 10 minute walk from house to transit stop at Park Avenue for the MAX Orange Line train. Frequent service. $2.50 for a two and a half hour ticket or $5 for unlimited one-day pass. Visit TriMet website for details. --20 min ride to South Waterfront neighborhood, scenic aerial tram ride, and Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) --25 min ride to downtown Portland at PSU

For airport directions, scroll down to bottom.

BIKE --10 min to downtown Milwaukie with only a few restaurants and bars (but not as many as Sellwood) --20 min to charming village of Sellwood via the Trolley Trail, through Milwaukie Riverfront Park, and north on SE 17th Ave.

CAR SHARING Two of the big car sharing companies do business in Portland -- Car2Go and Zipcar. I find Car2Go to be the most useful, since they allow one-way rentals. You'd have to be a member already from another city. The only challenge is that Car2Go's "home area" doesn't extend all the way south to our house, but it is useful once you're in Sellwood or points north. You can leave a Car2Go at the park and ride lot at SE Tacoma / Johnson Creek if you park it on the far northwest corner of the lot. From there, you can catch the MAX train two stops south to Park Avenue and walk back to our house.

UBER and LYFT Uber and Lyft operate freely in Portland area. Obviously you need to have a smartphone and download the app to use these services. FYI, Lyft requires iOS 8 or higher on your iPhone.

FROM PORTLAND AIRPORT...

Driving: 16 miles / 22 minutes (without traffic).

Taxi: Not sure of cost, probably at least $30 or more. The most direct route is via Interstate 205 south to Clackamas Town Center, then west on Harmony Road.

Uber and Lyft: They both operate in Portland and its suburbs, including for airport pickup and drop off. Obviously you need to have a smartphone and download the app to use these services.

Public transit: Takes about 90 minutes via MAX Red Line and Orange Line. --Take the TriMet MAX light rail Red Line to Portland City Center. --Exit train at Mall / SW 5th Ave MAX station. --Transfer to MAX Orange Line train by walking across 5th Ave to the sidewalk with signs for MAX Orange Line to Milwaukie. It's right there.