This is my Glorious List of Things to Do in Portland, Oregon

Read about our three-day weekend adventure in Portland here for some ideas on how it’s like to get around, what we did, how to be weird, etc.

1. Shopping at Pioneer Place/Burnside Street

There is no sales tax in Oregon. Dropping those $ like it’s just paper.

2. Have Brunch at Mother’s Bistro

• Wild Salmon Hash
• Mike’s Scramble
• Biscuits and Gravy
• Pumpkin Pancakes (just because if it’s the lovely season of autumn)

Wait times can be long. We arrived in the morning and waited around 45 minutes. They have a texting service to alert us when our table is almost ready, which is great, so we walked around the area and visited the Farmer’s Market on Saturday while waiting.

3. Visit the Japanese Tea Garden

Meditate and find your inner self here

So, there is student discount available (like a $1 discount) if you have student ID. Otherwise the tickets were around $9 per adult.

4. Visit the International Rose Garden (When it’s the end of October, there aren’t that many roses. Don’t expect to see the thousands of roses)

Free, no ticket required. Awesome.

5. Try Voodoo Donuts 

You’ve got to! I love donuts, so this was a no brainer for me.

6. Ride the Oregon Tram

In the autumn, the trees form an iridescent sea that is beautiful to see from 300 feet above ground. Also, it’s like a mini roller coaster. It’s only 4 minutes long though. Tickets were around $5 per person round trip.

 7. Visit the Keep Portland Weird Sign

What other city is cool enough to be proud of this sign? Love it. There are parked cars adjacent to it, so can’t really take a picture WITH it.

8. Go to Stumptown Coffee

There are multiple in the area. It originated here. Pair it with your Voodoo donuts and it’ll be heaven.

9. Try the original Salt n Straw ice cream.

It’s cheaper than the ones in Los Angeles, California. Salt n Straw also originated here.

10. Visit the Portland Saturday Farmer’s Market (also open on Sundays!)

Browse cool hanging trinkets, decorations, cat toy booths, unique clothing, and just an eclectic mix of booths to shop around!

11. Go wine/beer tasting

We went to Enso’s for wine tasting and Deschutes for beer tasting. Good experiences there and not exorbitantly priced.

Any favorites of yours to add? Want to visit Portland yet?