Nye Beach is the older, beachy half of Newport — a small neighbourhood of weathered wooden cottages, art galleries, second-hand bookshops, and seafront cafés set back from a long stretch of sand. It has been a coastal escape for Oregonians since the 1890s, when the first hotels were built here.
Walk down to the beach at low tide for an easy hour of sand and tidepool. The Sylvia Beach Hotel (each room named after a writer) and the Newport Performing Arts Center anchor the district. The cluster of restaurants — Cafe Stephanie, Nana's Irish Pub, Panini Bakery — make this the obvious place to base yourself if you are not staying near the bay.