Best of Portland

Tom McCall Waterfront Park [1]: Portland’s riverside park is home to lots of summer festivals, great people watching, a magical fountain, and over a mile of seawall strolling.

Portland Art Museum [2]: Portland’s green and shady South Park Blocks are home to this excellent collection of art and artifacts, and just across the park are the Oregon History Center and the stages of the Portland Center for Performing Arts.

International Rose Test Garden [3]: The most spectacular sights in Washington Park are these famed gardens containing 10,000 rose plants. You can’t beat the postcard-perfect views or Mount Hood and downtown either.

Portland Japanese Garden [4]: Five gardens in one, this is one of the most authentic Japanese gardens in the United States.

Portland Classical Chinese Garden [5]: A magical enclave in historic Chinatown, this replica of a Ming Dynasty garden was built by craftspeople from Suzhou, Portland’s sister city in China.

Pearl District [6]: Oregon’s most densely populated neighborhood is this upscale shopping, dining, and condo district, where 20 years ago abandoned warehouses and rail yards once slumbered. Many of the city’s top galleries and restaurants are now here.

Oregon Museum of Science and Industry [7]: This hands-on museum and showcase of science is more than just for kids, with plenty of exhibits (and an Omnimax Theater) that will fascinate any visitor.

Hawthorne District [8]: Hop on bus 14 and ride across the Hawthorne Bridge to explore one of Portland’s eastside neighborhoods. Hawthorne, with its kicked-back hippie vibe, is a good place to sip coffee and people-watch. The corner of SE 37th Avenue and Hawthorne Boulevard is the heart of the district.

Forest Park and the West Hills [9]: Hit the trails of Forest Park, the nation’s largest forested urban park. Mountain bike or walk on Leif Erikson Drive, or explore part of the 30-plus-mile-long Wildwood Trail.

Powell’s City of Books [10]: Long before the Pearl District was developed, book lovers ventured to the edge of the neighborhood to visit Powell’s. As the surrounding neighborhood has flourished, so has this huge bookstore, known for its mix of new and used titles.

Portland Farmers Market [11]: On Saturdays, come to the South Park Blocks as they explode with the fresh bounty of the Willamette Valley — you have to experience this to believe it.