Portland is the biggest city in Oregon, perfectly situated between the Columbia River to the North. Beautiful Mountains in the background, and a river running through the town.
Portland is one of the fastest-growing cities in the world. You can find any fun activity and beautiful environment within an hour and a half drive, isn’t it great to have everything in one City.
Portland is the greenest city in all of America, making it even more entertaining and a beautiful city to visit. There are many spots to visit in Portland, but I will mention only the most famous and best. These places are visited by many tourists and locals every year, and these are great places to spend time and enjoy the life of Portland.
Here is Quick List for You
- Food Tour
- Explore Mississippi Neighborhood
- Eat Delicious Ice Cream
- Board Game Cafe
- Explore Portland By Bicycle
- Alpaca Farm
- Sauvie Island
- See Sunset
- Look For Street Art
- Japanese Garden and International Rose Test Garden
- Powell’s Books
- Mill Ends Park
- Oregon Historical Society Museum
- Portland Aerial Tram
- McMenamins Kennedy School
- Lan Su Chinese Garden
- Tom McCall Waterfront Park
- Voodoo Doughnuts
- Rocky Butte
- The Grotto
- Multnomah Falls
- Cathedral Park/ St.John Bridge
- Witch’s Castle
- Food Recommendation
- Pip’s Original Doughnuts and Chai
- Pine State Biscuits
- Pok Pok
- Salt And Straw Ice Cream
- Huber’s Cafe
- Coffee Shops
Contents
Food Tour
If you are a food lover like me and want to taste every delicious food you see, then you should have a lot of money and a great digestive system, Big NO? Then it would be best if you found a “Food Tour” operator.
If you want to taste and also don’t want to spend money on a whole meal when you are just looking for a sample, then there is a great way to eat and taste everything without spending a lot of money is by taking a “Food Tour.”
You can easily find “Food Tour” Operators like Lost Plate with the price of 85$ for 1.5 miles walk If you want to tour on foot. You can also go on a Food Tour by bike and Van; the choice is yours.
This is a great way to taste a lot of food in a short time, with a low budget and with the human digestive system.
The food tour Operator you will get will be friendly and well aware of the food of Portland.
I want you to know Portland has the best Doughnut and the best Ice Cream.
Explore Mississippi Neighborhood
Mississippi Neighborhood in Portland holds many things to see for visitors. You can dine, go shopping, and enjoy a meal in famous restaurants.
I will recommend eating some famous delicious taco in this area; this particular shop is always almost full of people; it is a major sign of delicious food being served. porquenotacos
When you go visit the Mississippi neighborhood, then don’t waste time and have some delicious tacos; you can thank me later in the comment box.
Also, there is a lot to explore, and I can’t mention all of it effectively in this little overview subheading, visit this link to know more about this fantastic location. Travelportland.
Eat Delicious Ice Cream
If you are an Ice Cream lover like me and don’t care about the season, then you will love the ice creams available in Portland. They are super good at making delicious ice cream.
If you are visiting in season, you will have to stand in a long line to get Ice Cream, but don’t worry, it will be worth waiting for that delicious Ice Cream.
There are many great spots for ice cream, and all of them are very good at making ice cream.
But some of them are legendary Ice Cream makers don’t forget to visit them, visit the link below to know more about the spots.
Here is brief information for you, don’t forget to try Ice Cream even if you don’t usually eat Ice Cream. Ice Cream Spots.
Board Game Cafe
If you love board games and wish to visit board game heaven in your life, then of course your wish will come true in Portland city. If you don’t care, you should still visit and try to experience something new.
There is another option if you don’t want to visit a board game café. That is Arcade-Kontrol, hang out with your friends and refresh your childhood memories, and enjoy some beautiful childhood nostalgia.
Visiting Board Game Cafe and Arcade Kontrol will be a memorable experience. So enjoy your time doing a weird thing because Portland city’s slogan is “Keep Portland Weird.”
So it is okay if you are doing some weird stuff in Portland, just enjoy your time, and have a great visit with your friends or family.
Explore Portland by Bicycle
As you already know, Portland is the greenest beautiful city, and the city is also very bicycle-friendly.
Grab a bicycle and enjoy the greenish beauty of the city of Portland; you will love this bicycle experience.
When you explore Portland while bicycling; it will be an experience of a lifetime.
There are many spots where you can grab a bicycle by renting one, the prices are affordable, and the staff is friendly.
Remember, try to enjoy it as much as you can, and don’t be afraid to experience new and weird things when you are in Portland.
You will not forget your bicycle experience. Most visitors explore this beautiful city on a bicycle. Because there are not many big cities where you can ride a bicycle and enjoy the scenery and incredible greenish beauty.
Don’t miss this opportunity when you are in Portland.
Alpaca Farm
You should visit the beautiful Alpacas at Marquam Hill Ranch in Molalla, Oregon to see some cute alpaca and take some photos.
If you want to get close and want to feed them, you only have to pay a few dollars to get close and feed them with your hands.
If you love animals, then I will recommend you to visit this beautiful farm and have a great time with these cute and innocent animals.
These farms aren’t located far from Portland; this is one of the best things about Portland.
Every one of these must-visit locations is within an hour and a half drive, which makes it the best city in all of America.
You can enjoy any activity and environment in Portland without going far from your home or where ever you are staying.
Take some photos with the cute alpaca and make beautiful memories, don’t be shy to visit new places and try new things in Portland.
Sauvie Island
The US’s largest Island is located just 10 miles away from Portland, this Island is very beautiful, and there are a lot of farms and a beach to relax.
If you are in Portland and the weather is beautiful, then you should visit this Island, or go for a picnic on that beautiful Island. There are a lot of berry farms, so you can enjoy yourself by picking some berries.
You can hire or rent a kayak and get into the water, enjoy the experience, and have a great time.
The environment on this Island is peaceful and relaxing. I will recommend going there and spending some quality time and have a lot of fun. Sauvie Island is a must-go place for many tourists when they visit Portland.
See the Sunset
There are many vantage points for you to see a beautiful sunset, but Pittock Mansion is the best place to see Mount Hood in the background of the City and a beautiful sunset.
This will be a spectacular experience on that vantage point; you should experience the sunset when you are in Portland.
Look for Street Art
You will find many street arts in Portland, every neighborhood in this city has street art. It will be an enjoyable activity if you go on a ride to see these beautiful pieces of art.
You can find street art in many neighborhoods, but the Alberta art district is on another level you should visit this neighborhood, you will find art everywhere in this neighborhood.
Japanese Garden and International Rose Test Garden
The Japanese Garden in Portland takes up 12 acres with eight garden spaces in a small Museum.
This is a beautiful area to explore, and there are a lot of places to see, like the pond garden, the sand, and the stone garden and the flat garden.
This is a fantastic place for both photography and relaxation. After you finish exploring it, don’t forget to walk across the street to the International Rose Test Garden.
The International Rose Test Garden is located in Washington Park in Portland, Oregon, United States. They have around 10,000 bushes with around 650 different varieties.
The roses normally bloom from early April through the end of October with it peaking in June, but it depends on the weather. It is free to check out and to walk around.
Powell’s Books
Powell’s book is claimed to be the world’s largest independent bookstore, and it has over 6,800 square feet of retail space.
It is located in downtown Portland, and it’s such a fun place to wander around. With all of the books, board games, and magazines, there are all sorts of different things to explore.
There’s even a cafe inside where you can get a drink and a lot of tables where you can check out one of the new books you just purchased.
Mill Ends Park
Mill Ends Park is a small urban space in downtown Portland that’s the Guinness Book of World Records’ smallest park in the world. It is very small, probably less than a 3 x 3 circle, and it even has a little plaque to commemorate the park.
It’s a shortstop, but it’s a fun part of Portland’s personality. If you would like to read more. https://oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/mill_ends_park/#.XsxDd2hKiM8
Oregon Historical Society Museum
This museum was created in 1989, and it features three stories of exhibits on Oregon and its history.
The main reason to go through it is to see the Portland penny, which supposedly was used to decide the name of the city.
In 1845 they were considering both Portland and Boston as the city’s name, and two out of three flips of the penny made it so that the city became Portland instead of Boston.
Portland Aerial Tram
This tram carries people from the waterfront to the Oregon Health and Science University. But it’s worth going up even if you don’t need to go to University.
For a couple of bucks you can grab a ticket and take a ride up to where they have an observation deck. That gives you a great view of the city and Mount Hood in the distance if it’s clear.
Plus the aerial tram is fun to ride and gives you some great views of the city as well.
McMenamins Kennedy School
McMenamins Kennedy School was an Elementary school that opened in 1915 in the north part of Portland.
After being purchased by McMenamins, the school has been completely remodeled to include a 50 room hotel.
There are multiple restaurants, a bar in the old boiler room, a cigarette lounge in the detention center, and the movie theater in the auditorium.
It’s a ton of fun to walk around and explore even if you are staying in Portland.
Lan Su Chinese Garden
Lan Su Chinese Garden is the place of relaxation that encompasses an entire city block in the Chinatown area of Portland. It features beautiful gardens, a teahouse, and a few small ponds with a lot of Koi fish.
It’s a very tranquil place to explore and to spend 30 minutes to an hour in the city.
Tom McCall Waterfront Park
Portland is known as a city with a bunch of bridges.
One of the best ways to see them all is to walk along the water on this 36-acre park. It’s a popular waterfront spot for bikers and joggers, and they often have events and fairs down by the water.
Don’t forget to go see the White Stag Portland sign in the north part of the park near the Burnside Bridge.
Voodoo Doughnuts
When you get to the north part of the park and near the Portland sign, be sure to head inland in Voodoo Doughnuts while people go back and forth on their love for Voodoo Doughnuts.
It is still a Portland institution, and you will always see people carrying the pink box through the airport.
Voodoo Doughnuts is a small shop that’s right across the street from the Keep Portland weird sign, which is good for a few photos, and the doughnuts are unique and cheap.
So, you can try a few different ones. The first time I visited Portland, I went there multiple times, but if you’re a doughnuts fan, be sure to check out the blue star, which is one of my personal favorites.
Rocky Butte
Rocky Butte is one of my favorite spots in the city for sunset.
This volcanic cinder cone has a park on top of it, and you can see Mount St, Helens, and Mount Hood on a clear day.
You can also see down in the city of Portland a little bit, but the trees mostly cover it, and it’s just a great area to hang out and relax and watch the sun go down.
The Grotto
The Portland Grotto is known as the sanctuary of the sorrowful Mother. The Grotto is an outdoor Catholic garden which features a massive auditorium area with a lot of Grotto caves.
It also has shrines, a chapel, and a meditation chapel that looks out over the city, and a peace garden.
It’s a beautiful area to explore near the Rocky Butte and you should plan to spend 30 minutes to an hour.
Multnomah Falls
Multnomah Falls and the gorge is heading east from Rocky Butte. If you’re looking for a great half-day trip, consider going out to the gorge, especially to Multnomah Falls.
This waterfall is one of the most visited destinations in the Portland area. It’s easy to see why the two cascades with the bridge between, it’s very picturesque. Because it’s only a short walk to experience it, it is incredibly busy during the summer.
So, get there early, especially on the weekends.
Cathedral Park/ St.John Bridge
When you are heading back to the city St. John’s Bridge spans the Willamette River in the north part of Portland, and it’s an impressive bridge to see in person.
Below the bridge on the east side, there is a beautiful park that sits in the bridge shadow. It’s an excellent place for a picnic or just to walk around and look at this impressive bridge.
Witch’s Castle
In Portland’s forest park area, there is a short hike that takes you down to the remains of an old house with an exciting history.
You can read all about the history online, but now the house is pretty cool to see in the photographs. Since the plants have grown up around, it and the stone structure is well maintained.
It’s a short hike through a beautiful part of Portland with a really interesting payoff, and it is a part of a large trail system if you have more time to explore.
If you would like to know more click here https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-witches-castle-portland-oregon
Food Recommendation
Pip’s Original Doughnuts and Chai
In the north part of the city, pip’s is a Portland staple, and you will often see people lining up for these Donuts even before the shop opens. It’s worth the wait though, they make those small donuts that you often see at fairs, and they have many different flavors.
My favorite is honey and sea salt. Also, they have a lot of handcrafted chai teas that are worth trying as well. But I usually get the Smokey Robinson as that is my favorite one.
Pine State Biscuits
Pine state biscuit is an excellent spot for breakfast and lunch, mostly because of their awesome homemade biscuits and gravy.
I’ve taken many people here and, and they are never disappointed. You need to be prepared to wait on the weekends though as there is usually a line.
I always get the Reggie Kit myself now, but I’ve had half the menu, and there is a lot of different things to like.
Pok Pok
Pok Pok is a Thai and Southeast Asian restaurant with a large range of options.
But it is most famous for Ike’s Vietnamese fish sauce wings. These wings are marinated in fish sauce and sugar and deep-fried and tossed in garlic.
They’re incredible, and one of these dishes more than lived up to hipe for me.
Salt and Straw Ice Cream
It’s hard to beat good Ice cream, and Salt and Straw have risen to the top for me with flavors ranging from honey lavender and almond brittle there’s something for everyone here.
They also have five to six new flavors each month. I’ve even seen a menu full of Thanksgiving-inspired ice cream in November.
Go in, try a few samples, and check it out. I’m sure you will find something that you like.
Huber’s Cafe
Huber’s Café known for Spanish coffee is one of the oldest restaurants in Portland. Huber’s have become a hugely popular spot for the Spanish coffee drinkers; especially, when they make you drink.
After sitting at the bar or a table and ordering the Spanish coffee, a bartender will come over and put on a 45- seconds show full of fire to make your cocktail. It’s a lot of fun and incredibly popular.
You can watch them make one here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-jq-Y6bUo0U
So you’ll see these being continuously made all night long.
Coffee Shops
Portland is a popular spot for coffee, and I’m happy to say that I indulge in it every time I visit the city.
Stumptown Coffee Roasters is one of the more popular spots and they have multiple locations and one is close to Powell books.
Still, there are many great shops like Cova and Hart, which are also some of my favorites. Regardless of where you go, you’ll find a good spot to get a coffee in Portland, and you’ll probably take home a bag if you’re like me