I’ll be in Portland OR for a conference in February and will have a very short time (about a half day) for sightseeing. What one thing would you advise someone traveling to Portland OR to see/do?
I like good beer, local food, museums, history. But if your favorite Portland OR thing falls outside those categories please still tell me what it is!
Also tell me your favorite thing/place to eat. I’m an omnivore.
Plenty of breweries and a few distilleries.
If the weather’s nice, go up to the Japanese Garden for a view of Mt. Hood.
There’s a Chinese garden as well.
Powell’s City of Books is not to be missed.
Find some food trucks–the food is generally good and inexpensive.
I should probably ask how to avoid being eaten by Wesen.
For that answer, you’ll need a Portlander who watches television.
I was just there a couple weeks ago, and loved it.
Being that 1) it will be February, and 2) you only have one half-day, I’d recommend Powell’s bookstore. Easily the largest bookstore I’ve ever been to. Both new and used, and pretty much any topic you can think of. Pretty easy to spend an afternoon just browsing (and trying to find your way around).
If the weather is reasonable and you have a car, I’d recommend driving out to see Multnomah (sp ?) Falls. It’s only about 30 min. drive from downtown (conditions permitting).
As to what to eat, I can’t speak to the quality of all of them, but for some reason there seemed to be a disproportionately high number of Thai restaurants in the downtown area. We picked one for lunch and it was very good (but I can’t remember the name).
We also hit a Sizzle Pizza, and that was pretty good too.
Not much chance of good weather or a view of any mountains, but I agree with everything else stated.
Thanks for the suggestions so far. Love books, so Powell’s is on the list of possibilities.
For car travel, I will check to see if Portland has Zipcars!
Good weather for me is anything between 40F and 70F. Light precipitation and overcast is fine by me. I grew up in Ithaca so I’m used to weeks of grey weather and actually kind of like it.
They do at Portland State, but I have no idea if they are for students only, or the general public.
Just checked - plenty o’ Zipcars in Portland!
And plenty of excellent brewpubs near Powell’s.
Better pack an extra suitcase. I tend to spend way too much money on books when I am under the influence.
Ask for the free map-you’re going to need it. No joke.
The Portland Art Museum is worth a visit, if you have time. Also, Voodoo Donuts. There’s a reason Portland is also known as Beervana, by the way. I’ll second the Japanese Garden. A stroll along the Waterfront Park would give you an idea of the cityscape.
Powell’s has free shipping over $50.