Portland travel guides
Browse and explore the best travel guides in Portland.
Portland travel facts
Portland sits where the Willamette meets the Columbia, with Mount Hood on the eastern skyline and the Pacific 90 minutes west. It is a green, walkable, low-rise city built around independent businesses: Powell's City of Books occupies a full block and claims to be the largest independent bookshop in the world, and the food cart pods scattered through downtown are a genuine institution.
Oregon charges no sales tax, which makes shopping noticeably cheaper than in neighbouring states. The city has more breweries than almost anywhere in America, a serious coffee culture that predates the national wave, and the Alberta, Hawthorne and Mississippi corridors each hold their own concentration of restaurants and bars.
The outdoors is close and varied. Forest Park is one of the largest urban forests in the United States at over 5,000 acres, the Columbia River Gorge and Multnomah Falls are 45 minutes east, and the Willamette Valley's pinot noir vineyards start an hour south.
Country
United States
Region
Oregon, Pacific Northwest
Population
~635,000 (city), ~2.5 million metro
Elevation
~15 m
Time Zone
Pacific Time (UTC-8, UTC-7 in summer)
Currency
US Dollar (USD); Oregon charges no sales tax
Language
English
Nearest Airport
PDX (Portland International, 15 km northeast)
Airport to City Centre
~38 min on the MAX Red Line light rail; ~25 min by car
Typical Cost Level
Mid-range
Transport Pass
TriMet Hop Fastpass, valid on MAX light rail, buses and the streetcar
Spring (Mar-May)
5-18°C, wet but green; roses and rhododendrons from late spring
Summer (Jun-Aug)
13-27°C, reliably dry and sunny, the best season by some margin
Autumn (Sep-Nov)
7-19°C, fine in September before the rain returns
Winter (Dec-Feb)
2-9°C, grey and persistently drizzly; snow is rare
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Do you need a visa for United States?
Entry rules, stay length and passport validity by nationality.
Climate averages · 1991–2020
When is the best time to visit Portland?
Monthly temperatures, rainfall and sunshine — not a live forecast.
See Portland weatherLatest travel guides
Portland Destination FAQ
July to September is by a wide margin the best window, with warm, reliably dry days and long evenings. June is lovely too and brings the Rose Festival. Winter and early spring are grey and persistently drizzly rather than dramatically wet, and daylight is short, though hotel rates fall accordingly and the city is at its cosiest. October offers good colour before the rain settles in.
The MAX Red Line runs directly from a station inside Portland International to downtown in about 38 minutes for a low flat fare, with trains every 15 minutes. It is one of the easiest airport rail links in the United States, with the platform a short walk from baggage claim. A taxi or rideshare takes around 25 minutes and costs considerably more.
Not for the city. Portland is compact, flat in the centre and one of the most bike-friendly cities in America, with MAX light rail, buses and the streetcar covering everywhere you are likely to go on a Hop Fastpass. A car earns its keep for day trips: the Columbia River Gorge, Mount Hood, the Willamette Valley vineyards and the Oregon Coast are all within one to two hours and poorly served by transit.
Correct, Oregon has no state sales tax, so the price on the label is the price you pay. This makes shopping noticeably cheaper than in neighbouring Washington or California, and it is a genuine reason people cross state lines for larger purchases. Note that hotels do charge lodging taxes, and restaurant bills still carry the usual tipping expectation of 18 to 20 percent.
The Columbia River Gorge is the classic, 45 minutes east, with Multnomah Falls and a string of waterfalls along the historic highway; timed permits apply to the corridor in peak summer. Mount Hood is 90 minutes for hiking or year-round skiing at Timberline. The Willamette Valley starts an hour south and is one of the world's great pinot noir regions. Cannon Beach and Haystack Rock on the coast are about 90 minutes west.
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