Portland


 * Travel Tips for Portland, OR:**
 * Portland, OR Wikitravel Website**: []
 * Oregon Coast Wikitravel Website:** []
 * Oregon Coast Wikitravel Website:** []


 * Mike Summers - September 2011**

I did a day trip, and I've done an overnight trip to Portland. As Cheryl mentioned below you can buy an all-day pass that's good for the light-rail, trolleys, and buses for $5.00 per day (Website: [] and [] ). For my recent day trip, I rented a car through Thrifty for $28.00 that included taxes. I chose to drive south to Corvallis (about one and one-quarter hours on I-5) and visit the Oregon State University Campus. Along the way, you drive past the capital city of Salem. Websites for Salem: [] and Corvallis: []. I had lunch at a brew pub in Corvallis called Block 15 (website: [] ). It was busy for a Monday lunch-hour -- I know why after eating there. The OSU campus is on the west side of Corvallis (Website: [] ). I picked up a T-shirt for my son at the bookstore. Corvallis is a nice college town (50,000 population). By 2:30 pm I was back in Portland. Portland is home to many breweries (Websites: [] and [] ). I chose to visit the Deschutes Brew Pub on NW 11th Street (Websites: [] and []). It had a great environment. It is located in the Pearl District of downtown Portland. The McMenamin Pubs also have good eats and drinks (Website: [] and [] . Websites for Portland: [] and [] and []. Things to do and places to visit in Portland include: (1) Portland Spirit River Cruises (Websites: [] and [] ), (2) The Grotto (Websites: [] and [] ), (3) Oregon Zoo (Website: [] ), (4) The Portland Art Museum (Website: [] ), (5) Portland Japanese Gardens (Websites: [] and [] ), (6) Oregon History Museum (Websites: [] and [] ) and in Beaverton, which is 9 miles west of Portland (7) Uwajimaya Plaza (Website: [] ). Beaverton is nice to visit (Websites: [] and [] ). Portland is a nice day trip, but you can easily make it a two or three or four day trip and also include a trip to the (1) Oregon Coast (Website: []) or (2) head east about 60 miles to Mount Hood National Forest (Websites: [] or [] ), or (3) drive about 50 miles north and visit Mount Saint Helens (Website: [] and [] ), which I have done. As Cheryl mentions below, bring a raincoat. Enjoy! Mike Summers


 * Becky Crozier - October 2008:**

I really like the McMenamin pubs and hotels. The McMenamin Brothers (a couple of old hippies who seem to be good businessmen) buy old institutions like schools and sanitariums and convert them into very cool wineries and hotels. The Resort at Edgefield, for instance, is east of Portland (website: [] and [] ) and overlooks the Columbia River. It was a "poor farm" during the Depression. Now it is a hotel and hostel with beautiful grounds, a winery, a brew pub, and an 18-hole par-3 golf course that you only carry a putter & a wedge and balls. There are some beer sheds along the way, so by the time you have a couple beers, you hardly care that you've lost some balls in the thorny berry bushes. Inside the hotel features both fine and casual dining. You can also go upstairs to the old theater and watch a pretty recent movie and get a cheeseburger & beer. After the movie, you can stroll out to their wine tasting parlor. All of this while walking along beautiful pathways, listening to music, and maybe warming up next to their outside firepit and admiring the hops that climb up their watertower. I've been to the Edgefield twice and you can tell I love the ambience. My next stay with be at the Schoolhouse in Portland, where every room was a classroom. I just noticed they opened St. Francis School in Bend, Oregon. I've been to a "Gentlemen's Club" in Centralia, WA too. That was a hoot with each room dedicated to a certain lady of the night.


 * Becky Crozier - March 2009:**

Also, I recommend going to Powell's Book Store (Website: [] ) in the heart of downtown Portland. It is huge and unique with used books shelved next to new books. I've seen some signed used copies on the shelves that I know were collector's items.


 * Cheryl Hydrick - April 2009:**

Transportation is easy and cheap in Portland. An all day ticket from the airport on the max is $5.00 and it is also good for busses and trolleys. I ususally stay at the aloft at Cascade Station. The third stop from the airport and in the IKEA parking lot. They have free transport to and from the aiport as well. Always get a good price on priceline for this hotel. (65ish).

Be sure to eat at the food carts in Portland they are everywhere. Jakes Famous Crawfish (Website: [] ) is the oldest seafood restaurant and makes the best marionberry martini, and have a wonderful happy hour. About a block from Powells. Shopping is good in the artsy districts and there is no sales tax in Portland, so making good deals better.

Pok Pok Restaurant has the best Thai food that you'll ever find (Website: [] ). Ike's Wings are great too!

Be sure to go to VooDoo donuts (Website: [] ). If you are lucky enough to be there on Saturday, do the Farmers Market and Saturday Markets. (accessible by train) Always take an umbrella.


 * Mike Summers - Oregon Coast Trip from Portland - August 2009:**

About 90 miles west of Portland on the Pacific coast is Cannon Beach. From Portland, you follow Highway 26 (The Sunset Highway) from Portland to Highway 101. Head south on US 101 to Cannon Beach. Cannon Beach is a wonderful place to walk with large, igneous rocks, tidepools, and marine life. The city is quite nice with a couple of wine bars and some art galleries to visit. Here's some websites: [] and [] and []. North of Cannon Beach along US 101 is the city of Astoria (Website: [] ). Near Astoria is Fort Clatsop, where Lewis and Clark spent the winter of 1805-06 (Website: [] ). There's quite a few things to see and do in Astoria beyond visiting Fort Clatsop (Visitor Website: [] ). US Highway 30 is a direct connection from Astoria to Portland. Between Cannon Beach and Astoria is the quaint little city of Seaside (Websites for the city of Seaside: [] and [] and [] ). The Relief Pitcher Tavern has fabulous cheeseburgers (Menu: []). Seaside has a nice two-mile boardwalk along the beach. Visiting these three cities makes for a nice two-day or three-day vacation. Oregon's most famous beach resorts - Seaside, Cannon Beach and Astoria - are all in the north.

If you want some unspoiled, timeless, sleepy coastal towns, head south from Cannon Beach for a few day's of travelling. Oregon's Pacific Coast Forest, mountain, beach, ocean and river all meet through a prism of mist and green forrests along the 300-mile Oregon coast. In this region south of the three cities above, check out the Three Capes Scenic Route (Websites: [] and [] and [] ), and the rugged, wind-whipped tiny community of Yachats (Websites: [] and [] ) and its surrounds. The southern coast is a near-continuous succession of dramatic seascapes and is serviced by few roads. Highlights include the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area (Websites: [] and [] ), the largest expanse of coastal dunes in the country; the little town of Bandon (Websites: [] and [] ), one of the jewels of the Oregon coast; the small protected bay and dramatic cliffs of Sunset Bay State Park (Websites: [] and [] ); and jet boat trips up the Rogue River or whitewater rafting down the Rogue (Websites: [] and [] and [] ). Either one of these trips (north or south) is really a lot of fun! Enjoy!


 * More Oregon Coast Information:**

From Portland, head 80 miles west to the coast. US 101 hugs the coast and affords great scenery, as well as eateries that offer a variety of healthy, homegrown dishes. Take US 26 to Cannon Beach where offshore rock momoliths form an otherworldly seascape. In Cannon Beach you'll enjoy Waves of Grain ( [] ). They use family-grown wheat to make biscuits, muffins, and cheese sticks. Nearby at Ecola Seafoods ( [] ) is a no-frills market and restaurant with a menu that includes crab, salmon, and halibut, caught by the restaurant's own fleet. From there continue south to Tillamook Valley, a region with some of the finest cheesemakers in the Pacific Northwest. Visit the Tillamook County Creamery, which boasts a cheese shop, a factory tour, and the Creamery Cafe ( [] ), which is the place to go for the best grilled cheese sandwiches and dairy fresh ice cream. Heading east to Otis, OR on the Salmon River Highway brings you to the Otis Cafe for specialties such as pork chops, applesauce, and homemade molasses bread ( [] ). Farther down the coast in South Beach is the South Beach Fish Market ( [] ) which serves yummy burgers made from shrimp, crab, or salmon. Lastly, in Yachats is the Green Salmon Coffee Shoppe ( [] ). The Kope Jahe and Cafe Oregonian are two great coffees. But you must also try the maple-glazed croissants! For beer visit the Rogue Ales Brewers in Newport, Oregon (Website: [] ). Have fun!


 * Mike Summers - July 2012:**

Just returned from a two-day trip that included a visit to Crater Lake National Park (Website: [] and [] ). From the Portland airport it's a 4 1/2 to 5 hour drive, but it's a stunning place. I spent some time in Eugene, Oregon (Website: [] ) mostly to visit the University of Oregon campus and grab dinner. I ate at the Steelhead Brewery (Website:[] ), which had a nice atmosphere inside and out. The Pearl Street and 5th Avenue area has other restaurants that looked nice. From Eugene you can head to the coast and drive north toward the Portland area. Enjoy!


 * Mike Summers - October 2013:**

Can't get enough of Portland. We did an overnight trip. I'd again recommend a hotel near the airport. If you do that, you can use the hotel's shuttle service to and from the terminal, and use the TriMet (Website: [] ) to get you to/from the airport using lite rail. The $5.00 day pass is good for the lite rail, buses, and trollies throughout the city. The Sheraton Portland Airport Hotel (Website: [] ) has a shuttle that it shares with the Aloft Portland Airport Hotel. They allowed us to check-in well before the 3:00 PM check-in time. The Sheraton is not adjacent to the Cascade Station. You'll need to take the Sheraton hotel shuttle back to the terminal and catch the TriMet there. The Aloft (Website: [] ) is currently the Frontier Crew Hotel, and it is within walking distance to the TriMet Cascade lite rail stop. The Residence Inn is also within walking distance of the Cascade lite rail stop (Website: [] ) with a free airport shuttle. Also there is a Hyatt next to the Aloft and Residence Inn that offers easy access to the Cascade Station (Hyatt Website: [] ). It's about 35 minutes from the Airport to Downtown Portland (Mall SW 5th Stop) by way of the lite rail. Once into town there are numerous dining options. On this trip we tried Henry's (Website: [] ). The beer selection is amazing, and the food selection is just as good. We also enjoyed sitting outside at McMenamins Crystal Hotel (Website: [] ) at the Zeus Café. At the back of the hotel you can head downstairs to Al's Den where you'll find a live music venue named for Al Winter, Portland's gambling overlord who, in the 1940s, managed his vast empire that spanned the Pacific Northwest and into Las Vegas from this very location. Enjoy Portland!


 * Mike Summers - May 2014:**

Went back to Portland because seats were available and discovered a couple of new places: Multnomah Whiskey Library (Website: [] ) is a speakeasy-like bar in a former piano store complete with stained glass skylights and over 1000 types of whiskey. The Library is open from four o’clock until Midnight, Mondays through Thursday and four o'clock until one am Friday and Saturday. Their host is on site Tuesday through Saturday, starting at 1:00pm, to field all inquiries. The address is 1124 SW Alder Street in downtown Portland. It's a bit pricey, but fun. The second new spot is a Thai street food noodle shop called Pok Pok (Website: [] ) at 3226 SE Division Street in Portland. Try the coconut rice curry noodle soup! For a place to stay, try The Nines (Website: [] ), which is located on the upper floors of the Meier and Frank Department Store building in downtown Portland. At night head up to Departure (Website: [] ), the roof top Pan Asian restaurant and bar at the hotel with great views of Mt. Hood and Mt. St. Helens. Another nice hotel is Riverplace, which is tucked on a bend of the Willamette River (Website: [] ). Borrow a bicycle to explore the waterfront. Then return to the lobby lounge for a classic negroni. Portland is a great one-day or two-day trip!


 * Mark Roemer - November 2014:**

Decided to do a trip out to Portland. It's really easy to get around. I followed the above advice and purchased a TriMet day pass at the Airport Terminal for $5.00 each. We took the TriMet Red Line into the city and on to the Oregon Zoo (Website: http://www.oregonzoo.org/ ) at the Washington Park stop. If you're not into a zoo, there are plenty of trails around at this stop that you can walk/hike/run. Once back to the city center, we used our TriMet day pass to ride the two trolleys around the city to get a feel for different neighborhoods. Portland is a nice place to visit.


 * Mike Summers - January 2015:**

My wife and I found open seats and did a return trip to Portland on a Friday. We ran into some locals who recommended Casa Diablo - The World's First Vegan Strip Club. The owner is pretty sly. This place has as much to do with Vegan food as Home Depot has to do with Italian food. There's a good mix of couples, guys, and girls (Website: [] ). It's located in the middle of a rather creepy industrial wasteland, pulling up to Casa Diablo may call to mind ominous scenes from True Blood or Walking Dead. But while the parking lot could use some lighting (and maintenance), the club itself is actually fairly nice--not fancy, but clean and reasonably well-designed. If you order something, all change is given in $2.00 bills so that you can tip the dancers/strippers. It's a really, really different place. Pretty much every travel guide suggests you check out Portland's strip clubs, since they are the strip club capitol of the world and the strip clubs in Portland don't carry the stigma that they do elsewhere in the world. If you are visiting Portland you should stop in...what is more Portland than a vegan strip club? The next day we checked out Huber's (Website: [] ), the oldest restaurant in Portland, which is known for their traditional turkey dinners and their Iced Spanish Coffee. The coffee was great! It included Kahlua and Bacardi. Later in the day we went to the Shanghai Tunnels in Chinatown (Websites: [] and [] ) and took a tour of Underground Portland. Under two hours and about a mile of walking, it's a bit of a hoot. When we visited there were two tours daily at 11:00 AM and at 2:00 PM. Later in the day, we headed to one of our favorites, Henry's (Website: [] ). Before leaving on Sunday afternoon, we visited the Portland City Grill for their all-day Sunday Happy Hour and noon Brunch (Website: [] ). The 360 degree view of the city is a great way to say goodbye to the city.

Head to Portland!


 * Elise Goshorn - April 2015**

I was able to spend the night in Portland with a flight attendant friend who had a 17 hour layover. We took the light rail downtown and just bummed around. There was a PDX Carpet event, yes, that is weird. There were Keen shoes, Rogue Beer and numerous T-Shirts & mugs with the PDX Carpet pattern on them. I did not know Portlanders have such nostalgia for the carpet in the airport!! LOL! Funny thing, I asked where the Keen Shoe factory was and most people had no idea what Keen Shoes were, strange indeed. Head to Portland, bring your light rain jacket and check it out.


 * Mike Summers - June 2017**

Returned to one of my favorite cities. After taking the light rail from the airport to downtown for $5.00, we hung out in the Pearl District. It's an easy walk from the Chinatown Station. We did our own beer tour. We started at Mcmenamins Crystal Hotel (Website: https://www.mcmenamins.com/crystal-hotel ) and the Ringlers Annex around back (Website: https://www.mcmenamins.com/crystal-hotel/ringlers-annex ) where we enjoyed a Never Surrender Cherry Chocolate Stout. They had thirteen beers on tap on the day of our visit. In the same building is Al's Den, which is a music and comedy venue (Website: https://www.mcmenamins.com/crystal-hotel/als-den ). If it's too chilly or rainy, the Zeus Café in the same building is a second place to enjoy a drink (Website: https://www.mcmenamins.com/crystal-hotel/zeus-cafe ). You can actually spend a night at the Crystal Hotel with it's 51 comfortable guestrooms, each inspired by a song or performance from the Crystal Ballroom's past 100 years. Colorfully painted panels and headboards anchor the rooms, while deeply-hued walls, black velvet drapery and animal print upholstery lend a rock ‘n' roll vibe. There are 9 king suites with bathrooms. They also offer 39 queen rooms and 3 double twin rooms with convenient access to individual bathrooms down the hall. Large windows afford views of the city from all angles. All overnight guests receive complimentary use of the subterranean, saltwater soaking pool, which sounds pretty cool (Website: https://www.mcmenamins.com/crystal-hotel/lodging/guestrooms ). From there we walked over to 10 Barrel Brewing (Website: https://10barrel.com/ ) and enjoyed a Sinister Dark Lager beer on their rooftop. Nice view of the Pearl District. We enjoyed a Portland Salad while enjoying our beer. Across the street from 10 Barrel is Rogue Brewery. There are three Rogue Brewery Meeting Halls in Portland. This particular one is called the Rogue Distillery and Public House (Website: http://www.rogue.com/roguemeetinghalls/ ). Like our two other breweries, it's located in Portland's Historic Brewing District in the Pearl. This particular Rogue Meeting Hall building is the former home of Portland Brewing and Bogart's, a long-time institution in Portland. They feature Rogue ales and lagers on 36 taps and cocktails crafted with Rogue Spirits which were once distilled right on site. We tried the Chocolate Stout. From Rogue we walked about two blocks to Fat Heads Brewery (Website: http://fatheadsportland.com/ ). We switched gears a bit and tried the Goggle Fogger Wheat Beer. The Potato Skins were pretty good too! Another two-three block walk and we were at Deschutes Brewery Portland Public House (Website: https://www.deschutesbrewery.com/pubs/portland/ ). It seems that Deschutes Beers are all a little higher on the IBU Scale. So, I tried the American Wheat Ale and paired it with the Brewery Board consisting of meats, cheese, breads, fruits, and pickles. Our last stop is slightly outside of the Pearl District and about an eight block walk east on Burnside St to a Portland original, the Tugboat Brewery, which is at 711 SW Ankeny St. It's more like an alley than a street. The place opens at 4:00 PM. This place feels like an independent coffee shop...except they have beer instead of coffee. They have a friendly hipster staff with twenty beers on tap with three being their own. They also serve wine. It has a dark ambiance with old furniture and booths, but they have lots of used board games. (Website: http://www.tugboatbrewco.com/home.html ). Portland is a great environment for enjoying many types of libations. Enjoy!