Downtown Portland in Oregon

The urban planning gods were in top form when they created Portland, a compact gem of a city that encapsulates all that is great about North America's West Coast - it has the liberalism of San Francisco, the cultural kudos of Seattle and the laid-back outdoor lifestyle of Vancouver in Canada.

Throw in small-town friendliness, some first-rate microbreweries and the Pacific coastline just 70 miles away, and Portland is one of the most livable cities in the United States.

As well as having more green space than any other American city (check out the seven-square-mile Forest Park - a playground for hikers, bikers and coyotes), the Portland skyline is dominated by snow-capped Mount Hood, a fairytale vision that rises 50 miles east of town and offers year-round skiing and snowboarding.

A pedestrian's dream, Portland also has one of the best transit systems in the United States. Its highly efficient Streetcar is a free service within the city center.

Portland straddles the Willamette River; the former port district of the Old Town and Chinatown make ideal places to start your explorations. Northwest of the center lies the upmarket neighborhood of Nob Hill as well as the chic converted warehouse galleries, theaters and eateries of the Pearl District.

From downtown, cross the Willamette River to bohemian Hawethorne Boulevard, where Portland's hipsters congregate for shopping, eating and drinking.

Portland's half a million or so residents cope with the city's notoriously dark and damp winters by retreating downtown to Powell's City of Books. This is apparently the largest bookstore in the world, taking up an entire block and stocking more than a million new, used and out-of-print books.

Portland International Airport is nine miles northeast of downtown.