Portland has about 11,000 hotel rooms and a very healthy occupancy rate - 81 percent in November, normally a slow month in the hotel business.

If a convention is in town, it can be hard to get a room in the hotel you want - so book ahead or be ready to shop around.

Downtown is the most convenient place to stay, especially if you're exploring the city without a car. However, there's a cluster of motels across the Willamette River around the Lloyd Center and convention center. They're about a 10- or 15-minute ride via bus or MAX light rail from downtown.

I stayed at the Riverside Inn in downtown Portland, a comfortable motel in an excellent location on the riverfront in the Yamhill Historic District. Rooms are spacious and comfortable; there's also one giant one-bedroom suite with a kitchen.

I had been hoping to stay at the Portland Marriott, also on the downtown riverfront, but it was filled up by conventioneers. The Marriott is a favorite of many weekenders as well as businesspeople, thanks to its good location, pool and spa. (The Portland Hilton, with similar amenities, is by Pioneer Courthouse Square.)

I also looked (and drooled) at the RiverPlace Hotel, set amid parkland on the downtown riverfront. It's classy, luxurious and pricey.

On her trip to Portland, Seattle Times writer Robin Updike stayed at the Hotel Vintage Plaza, a small, "boutique" hotel three blocks north of Pioneer Courthouse Square. It's owned by the same corporation that operates Seattle's Alexis and Vintage Park hotels. Updike described it as "charming, intimate, tastefully decorated and downright hospitable."

Other luxury "boutique" hotels downtown include the Heathman Hotel, Governor Hotel and the venerable Benson, built in 1912 by a lumber tycoon.

More budget-priced downtown choices include a Days Inn and Red Lion. For rock-bottom-priced accommodations (for women only), consider the downtown YWCA, well-located near the Portland Art Museum.

Hotel prices rise in March when the wintertime "Passport to Portland" discount program ends (it will be available again in January and February next year). Rooms in good downtown hotels can easily cost $100-$150. But always ask about special weekend rates and seniors', AAA or other discounts.

For details on the hotels mentioned above and other Portland accommodations, get a copy of the city's free guide, "The Portland Book." Phone (800) 345-3214.