Things to do in Portland
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Portland
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Summer, late June to early September: best for most trips, warm and dry with long daylight, patios, pods and Mt. Hood hiking on.
Late spring, May to mid June: best value and the roses, with near peak waterfall flow and fast lengthening days.
Fall, mid September to late October: second best and locals favourite, harvest in wine country and Japanese Garden maples colouring.
Winter, November to March: wet, dark and cheap, with cosy café culture, Mt. Hood skiing and the easiest restaurant reservations.
What's on
- Waterfront Blues Festival early July, around July 4
Huge waterfront festival weekend in Tom McCall Waterfront Park.
- Portland Pride July
Pride celebrations in July.
- Cathedral Park Jazz Festival mid-July
Free jazz festival under the St. Johns Bridge at Cathedral Park.
- Pickathon first weekend of August
Indie and folk festival at Pendarvis Farm in Happy Valley, rated highest by local music people.
- Portland Rose Festival late May to mid-June
Grand Floral Parade, Starlight Parade, CityFair, Fleet Week and dragon boat races, the city signature festival.
- Oregon Wine Month May
Wine month in the Willamette Valley in May.
- Portland Winter Light Festival February
Free festival when the city lights itself up in the darkest month.
Best things to do in Portland
Portland Japanese Garden
Twelve acres of authentic Japanese garden styles in the West Hills, best paired with the Rose Garden nearby.
Powell's City of Books
A full city block of new and used books in colour coded rooms, and a store locals still use weekly.
International Rose Test Garden
Free garden of more than 10,000 rose bushes, with a city and Mt. Hood view from the upper terraces.
Lan Su Chinese Garden
A walled Suzhou style garden with pavilions, a lake and a teahouse filling one calm downtown block.
Pittock Mansion
A 1914 mansion whose free grounds frame downtown, the river and Mt. Hood in one panorama.
Alberta Arts, Mississippi/Williams, and Division/Clinton corridors
Pick one east side corridor per afternoon for indie shops, murals, breweries, food carts and dinner.
Tom McCall Waterfront Park
Walk the west bank park and Eastbank Esplanade loop to see Portland bridges, its real skyline.
Portland Art Museum
Strong Native American and Pacific Northwest collections on the tree lined South Park Blocks.
Where to stay in Portland
Northwest Portland / Nob Hill and the Pearl District
first trip, all-round base
Leafy and lived in at night, with NW 23rd browsing, the Streetcar and easy access to Powell and the gardens.
Central downtown core south and west of Burnside
downtown convenience, short transit based trip
The big good hotels and the best MAX and Streetcar access, picked carefully block by block.
Central Eastside / East Burnside
food, nightlife and local feel
Across the river in the middle of the restaurant map, with breweries, music venues and cheaper rooms.
Division/Clinton, Hawthorne, Alberta and Mississippi corridors
neighbourhood stay, repeat visitors
A great street outside your door and a food cart pod within a walk, in a legal short term rental or guesthouse.
Pearl District
upscale base in a good building
Lofts, galleries and the Streetcar, safe feeling and convenient, with North Pearl reading better than the Old Town edge.
Think twice about
- Old Town / Chinatown
Street homelessness, open drug use and people in crisis are most concentrated here, especially after dark. Visit Lan Su and the Saturday Market by day and sleep elsewhere.
- Downtown blocks north toward Burnside and Old Town
Blocks further north from Pioneer Square feel markedly rougher, with encampments, open use and shuttered retail. The central core around the better hotels is workable.
- Lents and the far east 82nd Avenue corridor
Flagged for crime and poverty challenges, and far east listings are a long, charmless transit ride from everything.
- Airport / Cascade Station
Functional chains by PDX with no neighbourhood and a long MAX ride in. Fine for a late arrival night, not a base.
Best restaurants in Portland
Kann
Gregory Gourdet live fire Haitian cooking over a wood hearth, Portland hardest table and worth building around.
Le Pigeon
Intimate chef counter tasting menu that has defined Portland fine dining for almost two decades.
Langbaan
A 24 seat reservation only Thai tasting room, seasonal and regional, with no walk ins.
Coquine
Neighbourhood fine dining on Mt. Tabor where vegetables get as much care as the duck.
L'Echelle
French bistro on Division from Naomi Pomeroy team, kept returning to for onion soup and duck.
Rose VL Deli
Family run Vietnamese deli whose rotating weekend noodle soups reward going early on Saturday.
Café Olli
Wood fired bread and pastries and serious café food, the brunch half of a perfect food day.
Rangoon Bistro
Portland Burmese standout, order the fermented tea leaf salad alongside curries and noodles.
Outdoor things to do in Portland
Multnomah Falls
Oregon tallest waterfall in a corridor of falls, best done early as a full waterfall day, not a photo stop.
Forest Park
About 5,100 acres of urban forest and the Wildwood Trail, the best hike you can reach by bus.
Timberline Lodge
WPA built lodge at 6,000 feet with year round glacier skiing and summer trails, lakes and views.
Domaine Drouhin Oregon
The Burgundy family Oregon estate in the red hills of Dundee, a first timer pinot noir stop.
Archery Summit
Single vineyard pinot noirs and cave cellars, among the most collected labels in the valley.
Sokol Blosser
A Dundee winery with walkable town tasting rooms nearby, good for a first wine country day.
Argyle
Dundee sparkling wine specialist with a walkable town tasting room, an easy wine day stop.
Cannon Beach
Haystack Rock rises from the surf here, with tidepools at low tide and puffins in spring and summer.
Best hotels in Portland
Inn at Northrup Station
Streetcar line suites in Nob Hill, the locals pick for sleeping in the best all round base area.
Hampton Inn & Suites Portland-Pearl District
A reliable larger hotel at the Pearl end of the best base area, good for a first trip.
Residence Inn by Marriott Portland Downtown/Pearl District
A reliable larger Pearl District option with more room, at the edge of the best base area.
Canopy by Hilton Portland Pearl District
The Pearl District splurge hotel, upscale and convenient in a good building.
Northwest Portland Hostel
Dorms and private rooms in historic buildings on NW 18th, the budget way to sleep in Nob Hill.
The Nines
Downtown luxury in the historic Meier and Frank Building, with a rooftop bar.
Kimpton Hotel Vintage Portland
Wine themed, pet friendly downtown hotel on SW Broadway with strong transit access.
Dossier Hotel
A quieter boutique hotel in the central downtown core, good for a short transit based trip.
Is Portland expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | $110 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | $190 a person |
| Splurge | $380 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Portland Japanese Garden: a few days ahead
- Providence Park: weeks ahead
- CASCADA: a few days ahead
- Multnomah Falls: a few days ahead
- Domaine Drouhin Oregon: a few days ahead
- Archery Summit: a few days ahead
- Sokol Blosser: a few days ahead
- Argyle: a few days ahead
- Reserve Kann, Langbaan, Le Pigeon and Coquine as soon as dates are fixed, weeks out for weekends. L'Echelle and Han Oak need days to weeks.
- Multnomah Falls in late May to early September may need a timed vehicle permit, bookable up to 14 days ahead. Check the current year rule.
- Buy Portland Japanese Garden timed tickets ahead on weekends and in fall colour and cherry seasons. It is closed Tuesdays.
- Book smaller Dundee Hills winery tastings ahead June to October, and book hotels before flights for festival and harvest weekends.
Is Portland safe?
- Car break ins are the most likely harm: leave nothing visible in a car, especially at Gorge trailheads, Washington Park and downtown garages.
- Old Town and Chinatown and parts of downtown have visible homelessness, open drug use and people in crisis, worst at night. Do not walk Old Town late.
- Violent crime against visitors is uncommon in the neighbourhoods where visitors usually stay. Use normal big city awareness on transit late at night.
- Check Gorge ice and wind, wildfire smoke and Mt. Hood road conditions, as each can cancel an excursion day.
- Check your government's current travel advice before you go.
Portland travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Voodoo Doughnut as a destination: the line is long and the donuts are spectacle over quality. Locals go to Blue Star instead.
- Multnomah Falls at noon on a summer Saturday is shoulder to shoulder. Go weekday, before 9am, or add the Wahkeena loop.
- Downtown shopping as an itinerary: chain retail has thinned. Shop NW 23rd, Alberta, Mississippi and Division instead.
- The Keep Portland Weird and White Stag signs and Pioneer Courthouse Square alone are photo stops, not a morning plan.
Getting around Portland: public transport and more
- No car is needed in the city: MAX light rail, the Portland Streetcar and buses cover the sights, stays and restaurants, with a day cap around $5.
- Rent a car by the day for the Gorge, Mt. Hood, wine country and the Coast rather than paying hotel parking all trip.
- Walking is the real system on short downtown blocks and flat east side corridors. Take transit up to Washington Park and walk down.
- From PDX the MAX Red Line runs direct downtown in about 40 minutes. Biketown suits the flat river loop and east side.
Who Portland suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Great |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | Good |
| Families | Good |
| Bachelorette parties | Good |
Make Portland your trip
Swearby drafts the days from places people swear by. Swap any stop, then invite the crew by text, even friends without the app. Vote on dates, track costs as you go, and everyone gets one number at the end.
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