Things To Do
Powell's City of Books
The largest bookstore in the US! It takes up a whole city block and is within walking distance to the hotel (0.4 miles). There are quite a few different areas to explore within walking distance of Powell's if you want to stay within Portland and only have a few hours.
Portland Saturday Market
This is a wacky Saturday tradition for Portland that has been ongoing for decades! Local artists and craftsmen set up booths along our Willamette waterfront in downtown and sell their wares. Every booth has to be handmade by the seller in order to get a booth. Note: there are booths across the street from Saturday Market where people sell easily bought drop-shipped items. For the full Saturday Market experience, stick to the Naito Parkway area/under the Burnside Bridge. Feel free to take a walk up and down the Tom McCall Waterfront Park (a few blocks from the hotel) and enjoy the Willamette River views!
Food Carts
Food carts are a major part of Portland's food scene! There are food cart pods all over downtown, but I highly recommend this one specifically for several of the food carts housed here. They also have a nice tent and beer garden for nice summer hang out spot. This is a few blocks from the hotel!
Forest Park
Forest Park is one of the largest urban forests in the US. It's easily accessible from Portland either through car, bus, or train. I would highly recommend the Lower Macleay Park which has a beautiful trail that extends into Forest Park with easy access to the Witches Castle. You can stay in the lower section (about 2 miles roundtrip from the park to a bridge) or continue up to Pittock Mansion (about 5 miles roundtrip, more strenuous since it's uphill).
Washington Park
Washington Park is very accessible from downtown via the MAX line (Red or Blue)! Once you get up to Washington Park MAX stop, there is quite a bit to do including: Oregon Zoo, Hoyt Arboretum (where the ceremony and reception is!), Portland Japanese Garden, International Test Rose Garden. The Hoyt Arboretum has a large network of trails that bleed into Forest Park (I can give you a 5 mile loop from Hoyt to Pittock Mansion if you are interested). The Japanese Garden does cost money, but is one of the most authentic Japanese Gardens outside of Japan. The International Test Rose Garden is free and is the largest Rose Garden in the world! The Japanese Garden and Rose Garden would require a little bit of a walk from the MAX station (a little over 1 mile) or using the free shuttle.
Newberg
Newberg, Dundee, and McMinnville contain the majority of wineries making up the Willamette Valley wine scene. This will require a rental car since it's about 45 min - 1 hour from Portland. Some of our favorite wineries include: Maysara Winery, Adelsheim Vineyard, Alexana Winery, ROCO Winery, Antica Terra, Coeur De Terre Vineyard, or Durant Vineyards (Durant also grow their own olives and make olive oil on the property!) There are a number of different companies that offer wine tours that leave from Portland and take you to several wineries around the Willamette Valley - this is a great option if you don't want to rent a car!
Multnomah Falls
This area is world renowned for our "waterfall corridor". Multnomah Falls is the tallest waterfall in Oregon, and is about 30 minutes outside of Portland within the Columbia River Gorge. There are several hikes in and around this area. One of our favorites is Latourell Falls (a few minute drive from Multnomah, so you can see both in one fell swoop if you want). Latourell is a "fairly easy" 2.5 mile loop hike. Feel free to message Janessa if you want a full list of hike options in the area at various difficulty levels.
Hood River
If you are spending a few days in OR and want to rent a car, I highly recommend a day trip to Hood River. It's about an hour from Portland and is nestled right along the Columbia River. There are some fun things to do in Hood River including breweries (Pfriem Brewery is right along the water or Solera Brewery which has the best views of Mt. Hood), wineries (Hiyu Wine Farm which has some of the best organic wines and food or Wy'East Vineyards a more laidback vineyard that doesn't require reservations). You can go on a hike around Mt. Hood and then grab food/beverages in Hood River in the afternoon!