Ashland

Understand

Ashland is a small town, home of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, one of the largest and oldest regional theaters in the country. Southern Oregon University balances the tourist population with students throughout the year. The weather is relatively mild, with a few days of snow in the winter, several days of 100F weather in the summer. Some believe that the town resembles northern Italy or Switzerland, with snow-covered peaks in the winter, a lake not too far away in the valley, and a nice, small-town, community feel that is oh-so-rare these days in the States.

There are two main business districts: one downtown, centered on the Plaza and running southwest along Main Street toward the library. This old-fashioned boutique shopping area is home to many amazing restaurants. In fact, you'll have a hard time finding a bad meal. Connected to this area is 93-acre Lithia Park which was designed in part by John McLaren (also the designer of San Francisco's Golden Gate Park) in 1914. The other business district is around two miles to the southeast along Siskiyou Boulevard where it meets Ashland Street/Highway 66, near the Southern Oregon University campus and the Ashland Shopping Center. Ashland has a limited number of drive-through permits, and thus fast food joints. Wendy's, Taco Bell, Subway and other chains are still open in Ashland.

Outside of the business districts, Ashland offers a host of outdoor attractions. The famous Pacific Crest Trail, Crater Lake, rafting, biking and Mount Ashland ski slope are all nearby.

Many public places, including most hotels and B&Bs, coffeehouses and even pubs offer free wireless Internet access.

Get in

By car

Exit 11 (Northbound only), 14 or 19 from Interstate 5 in Oregon.

By bus

Greyhound stops in nearby Medford. The local RVTD bus Route 10 stops at Mr. C's (where the Greyhound bus stations is) at :26 & 56 past the hour. The bus ride into downtown will take you about 10 minutes. Buses run between 5:26AM and 6:56PM, Monday-Friday. You pay when you get on the bus.

By taxi

Taxi service is available from Ashland Taxi Cab +1 541 890-8080 or Yellow Cab +1 541 482-3065.

By plane

The Medford International Airport is located 15 miles north of Ashland and is serviced by Allegiant Air, United Air Lines, and Alaska Airlines/Horizon Air. Cascade Airport Shuttle +1 541 488-1998, taxis and some hotels provides service from the airport to Ashland for a nominal fee.

If you are flying your own plane, you can use the Ashland airport (S03).

By train

The closest Amtrak station is located in Klamath Falls, approximately 80 miles away. A shuttle meets the Coast Starlight from California at 10:20AM each day arriving in Ashland at 1PM If you are traveling from the north you must take the connection bus from Portland to the Ashland shuttle. Both shuttles arrive at Safeway about a half mile from downtown. Check www.amtrak.com for more information. *Note:* The Southwest Point shuttle from Klamath Falls to the area is much cheaper than adding the bus leg on an Amtrak ticket

Get around

Parking is free, and easy to find in the wintertime, but summertime availability is a different story, with downtown parking getting quite scarce on evenings when the Shakespeare Festival has shows (i.e., every night but Monday). Many hotels and B&Bs are located close enough to the center of town to make it an easy walk. There are bike lanes downtown and extending outward from the downtown area, making this an easy town to bike around in.

Most days, the Rogue Valley Transportation District operates buses running from one end of town to the other; these buses are $2.00. Be aware, however, the buses run limited hours (5:30AM to 7PM) and do not run at all on weekends.