Coeur d'Alene
Coeur d'Alene is the largest city in Northern Idaho.
Understand
A century ago Coeur d'Alene was at the epicenter of bitter mining and timber-forestry labor disputes which dominated the state's early history and politics. Fortunately for visitors, much of that blight is long gone. Today the city is known as a tourist haven for outdoor pursuits. Coeur d'Alene also features a renowned golf course with a free-floating island green, the only such hole in the world. Several other public and private golf courses abound. World class snow skiing is within a 90-minute drive of downtown Coeur d'Alene. Lake Coeur d'Alene offers boating and water-skiing as well as fishing for bass, trout, and salmon.
Often referred to by locals as simply "CDA," Coeur d'Alene, while an anchor of a metro area in its own right, is often considered the easternmost edge of the greater Spokane area. Like much of northern Idaho, Coeur d'Alene often relates more to eastern Washington than it does to southern Idaho and the capitol.
As a result of its close ties to the Spokane area, Coeur d'Alene and an area known as the Idaho Panhandle follows Pacific Time (UTC−8 during the winter, UTC−7 during the summer) instead of Mountain Time (UTC−7 during the winter, UTC−6 during the summer) like the rest of Idaho.
Get in
By plane
The Spokane, Washington International Airport (GEG IATA) is just 40 minutes west of Coeur d'Alene with non-stop flights arriving daily from cities including Chicago, Minneapolis, Denver, Phoenix, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, Boise, Vancouver, Calgary and others. There is ground transportation available from the Spokane Airport to Coeur d’Alene. The following airlines provide service to Spokane International Airport: United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Horizon Airlines, Air Canada, Big Sky Airlines, and America West Airlines. The Coeur d'Alene Airport serves private aircraft and is located just north of Coeur d'Alene.
Airport Shuttles Call Omnibus ☏ +1 208 667-6664 for ground transportation from Coeur d'Alene to the Spokane Airport.
By train
Amtrak is stationed in Spokane, WA, just 30 miles west of Coeur d'Alene. For information, call Amtrak at 800-872-7245 or visit www.amtrak.com
Get around
City Link provides free bus transportation to select areas, including the movie theatres and casinos
See
- [formerly dead link] Air Idaho Charters, Coeur d'Alene Airport, ☏ +1 208-304-0883. 24 hours. Air Idaho Charters provides on demand charter flights into and out of the Coeur d'alene Airport.
- 1 Museum of North Idaho.
- 2 Fort Sherman. A 19th-century fort of which a few buildings remain. Now on the campus of North Idaho College.
Do
- 1 Lake Coeur d'Alene. Swim on one Coeur d'Alene's long public beach, or travel to other parts of the lake. There is also a parasaling business in CDA. The Lake also offers great watersports such as cycling, kayaking, skiing or wakeboarding.
- 2 Silverwood Theme Park, ☏ +1 208 683-3400. The park is in Athol, a short drive north of Coeur d'Alene. Awesome place for the kids great rides for all ages. Or visit the adjacent Boulder Beach waterpark. You can easily spend 2 days here at the two parks.
- Red Horse Mountain Dude Ranch, 11077 East Blue Lake Rd, toll-free: +1-888-689-9680, info@redhorsemountainranch.com. Red Horse Mountain Ranch offers a western dude ranch experience from dining to a wide array of seasonal activities.
- Lake Coeur d'Alene Kayaking, 202 E Sherman Ave, toll-free: +1-800-451-6034. ROW Adventure Center is the only outfitter who offers kayak trips on Lake Coeur d'Alene.
- Harrison Pontoons & Rentals. JC Tritoon 246 pontoon boat rentals. These fully-loaded beauties offers comfort, luxury and, most of all, incredible performance. Fuel efficient 225+ HP 4-stroke outboards allow you to pull tubers and skiers with power to spare. Features: 16-person capacity, in-dash GPS, ski bar, swim platforms, iPod connectivity, bimini top. We also offer boat/waterfront home rental packages.
Buy
Eat
- 1 Hudson's Hamburgers, 207 E Sherman Ave, ☏ +1 208-664-5444. M-Sa 09:30-17:45. Almost every local has been there, so it shouldn't be too hard to ask for directions. They only serve hamburgers, with or without cheese, onion, pickle, and pies, but their hamburgers are renowned for their best taste.
Drink
Sleep
- 1 The Roosevelt Inn (The Roosevelt School), 105 East Wallace (just blocks from downtown), ☏ +1 208-765-5200, toll-free: +1-800-290-3358, Info@TheRooseveltInn.com. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: 11AM. Relax in historic elegance in this turn of the century re-brick school house converted into a luxury Coeur d’Alene bed and breakfast. Easily walking distance to downtown and the lake. $99-249.
- CDA GetAway, Downtown Coeur d'Alene (near the Ironman course), ☏ +1 208-819-7415. CDA GetAway has dozens of vacation rentals available for Ironman CDA and throughout the year. $200-600.
- Grandma's Cabin, E. Harlow Pt. Rd (near Harrison, ID). Check-in: 4PM, check-out: 10AM. 100' of private Coeur d'Alene Lake waterfront and an expansive yard overlooking the lake make this an ideal vacation home for your next summer getaway. Grandma's Cabin is a fully-furnished lake home with indoor and outdoor dining tables, 3bed, 1.5bath, AC, HDTV, and Gas Grill. Grandma's Cabin $1,550/wk.
Splurge
- 2 The Coeur d'Alene Resort, 115 S 2nd St. Located on the lake, in the middle of downtown, the CDA Resort also has a golf course with a "Floating Green" and a Marina.
Cope
Go next
- Sandpoint, Idaho
- Spokane, Washington
- Missoula, Montana
- Kalispell, Montana
- Glacier National Park
| Routes through Coeur d'Alene |
| Seattle ← Spokane ← | W  E |
→ Wallace → Missoula |
| Cranbrook ← Sandpoint ← | N  S |
→ Moscow → Payette-Fruitland |