Best Of Portland

Life's A Beach in Pacific City, Oregon!

Less than a two-hour drive from Portland, Pacific City is located in south Tillamook County, and is even closer to Salem. If you prefer “as the crow flies”, there’s a small state owned (unattended) airport in the heart of Pacific City.

Unique gift shops and galleries feature Oregon artisans. Dining in Pacific City caters to a variety of tastes, and lodging options are plenty including public parks, inns, motels or bed-and-breakfasts. Whether you stay the day, the weekend or an extended vacation, Pacific City offers something for everyone.

Things to do:

Beach Combing and Cape Kiwanda Marine Gardens with tidal pools

Bicycling

Bird Watching

Camping

Canoe, Kayak & Motor Boating

Clamming

Crabbing

Dining

Dory Watching

Fishing

Kite Flying

Golf

Hang Gliding & Paragliding

Hiking and Backpacking

Horseback Riding

Marine and Mammal Animal Watching

Monolith Watching

Off Roading

Picnicking

Photography

Sand Dune Climbing

Shopping

Surfing

Whale Watching

*Vehicle beach access

 

Click Here for more details on things to do, places to stay and dine at one of Oregon's coolest beaches.

 

February Events in Portland, Oregon to fall in love with!

                                                                               *photo credit ZsaZsa Bellagio

 2/1-14/14    Chinese New Year - Year Of The Horse.  One of the ways the horse serves human beings is to give people a ride to their destination. Therefore, the horse is not only a symbol of travel, but also a sign of speedy success.

Other events to consider putting on your calendars include:

2/1/14             Seafood & Wine Festival

2/1/14             Jambalaya Creole Cook Off

2/5-9/14         NW Sportsman Show

2/6-9/14         Portland International Auto Show

2/8/14              Astoria Timber Festival

2/8-9/14          NW Family & Kids Festival

2/13/14           Pinot Noir 365 Winter Wine Tasting Event

2/14/14           Open Table List of Restaurants with Valentine's Menus

2/14-15/14      Romance in the Cellar at Eola Hills

2/14-17/14      Valentine's Wine & Chocolate Weekend in The Gorge

2/20-23/14     Portland Spring Home&Garden Show

2/20-23/14     Seaside Jazz Festival

2/20-23/14     Newport Seafood & Wine Festival

2/24-3/2/14    Beer Brawl VII

2/28 & 3/1/14  WurstFest

2/28-3/4/14    Portland Yard, Garden & Patio Show

Food & Wine Magazine names Portland, Oregon's "Oven & Shaker" one of the US's Best Pizza Places.

Pizza and cocktails get equal thought at this serious pizza bar. The Neapolitan-style pies pair with cocktails in three categories: Fresh, Dry and Strong.

Click Here for more details.

Things to do in and around Portland, Oregon in September

Pearl District art festival

September 1 - 2, 2013 (begins Aug. 31)

Art in The Pearl offers 100 booths of fine art as well as music, food, and hands-on art activities along NW 8th Ave in North Park Blocks.

 

Dahlia Festival

September 1 - 2, 2013 (begins Aug. 24)

View 400 floral arrangements of dahlias indoors, 40 acres of dahlias outdoors, and dahlia growing and arranging demos at the Dahlia Festival at Swan Island Dahlias in Canby. Free.

 

Oregon State Fair

September 1 - 2, 2013 (begins Aug. 23)

See farm animals and craft displays, try fair food and fine wine, take carnival rides, and be entertained at the Oregon State Fair in Salem.

 

Pirate festival

September 1 - 2, 2013 (begins Aug. 30)

Tortuga Pirate Festival offers outrageous activities and games for adults in pirate attire at Cheadle Lake Park in Lebanon.

 

Corn maze

September 1 - Oct. 31, 2013

Enjoy the Corn Maize or take a hay ride to see pumpkins at the Pumpkin Patch on Sauvie Island.

 

Zoo concerts

Sept. 6, 2013 (also July & Aug.)

Oregon Zoo Summer Concerts feature world-class performers and include same-day zoo passes.

 

Oktoberfest

September 6 - 7, 2013

Enjoy Munich-style ales, and German food & music at Widmer Oktoberfest at Widmer Brothers Brewing.

 

Sausage festival

September 6 - 8, 2013

Enjoy sausages, beer, arts and crafts, song and dance at the Vancouver Sausage Fest at 6500 Highland Dr. in Vancouver.

 

Horse show

September 6 - 8, 2013

Watch the finest horses and riders compete at Oregon Dressage Society Championship Show at DevonWood Equestrian Centre in Sherwood.

 

RV and van show

September 12 - 15, 2013

Meet RV dealers and makers, and see new models of 5th wheels, campers, travel trailers, park models, conversion vans, and Class-A motor homes, at Portland Fall RV & Van Show, Portland Expo Center.

 

German Oktoberfest

September 12 - 15, 2013

Mount Angel Oktoberfest has beer and wine gardens, live music, singing, dancing, arts and crafts, and a car show in Mount Angel.

 

Belmont street fair

September 14, 2013

Belmont District Street Fair is a family friendly event with live music, art, entertainment, shopping, and food vendors on SE Belmont Street at 34th.

 

Renaissance fair

September 14 - 15, 2013

Watch knights joust on noble steeds, mingle with costumed minstrels and troubadours, shop 125 artisan and food-purveyor stalls, and see children delight in games and adventures at Shrewsbury Renaissance Faire in Kings Valley.

 

Sauerkraut festival

September 21, 2013

Scappoose Sauerkraut Festival has street vendors, food, entertainment, cabbage bowling, and a sauerkraut-eating contest in Scappoose.

 

Polish Festival

September 21 - 22, 2013

Enjoy Polish food, beer, dance, music, and polka at the Polish Festival at 3900 N Interstate Ave. Free.

 

Hood River Pear Celebration

September 21 - 22, 2013

Drive the 35-mile Fruit Loop to sample 18 varieties of pears and enjoy pear desserts, pear wine, live music, and a corn maze during Pear Celebration.

 

Haunted house

Sept. 27 - 28, 2013 (and Oct. & Nov.)

The 13th Door Haunted House is at 3825 SW Murray Blvd. in Beaverton. See schedule.

 

Cider Squeeze

September 28, 2013

Cider Squeeze features cider pressing, food, music, blacksmith demonstrations, and tours of the 1860s Philip Foster Farm in Eagle Creek.

 

Hops festival

September 28, 2013

Enjoy beer from microbreweries, local cuisine, arts and crafts vendors, and live music all day at Hops Fest in Hood River. Kids OK until 5 p.m. No dogs.

 

Pumpkin festival

Sept. 29 - Oct. 31, 2013

See pumpkins shot from a cannon, take a hayride, navigate a corn maze (haunted some evenings), try archery & paintball, and choose a pumpkin during Pumpkin Fest at Wooden Shoe Farm in Woodburn.

 

Get Your Party On At Punch Bowl Social!

Punch Bowl Social has taken over an entire floor of Pioneer Place and transformed it into a 32,000 sqft playground full of booze and bowling. Here are just a few reasons you need to schedule a visit to Punch Bowl Social right now!

Punch Bowl Social is centered around games, and it includes multiple bowling alleys, shuffleboard (the cruise ship kind and the tabletop/sawdust kind), foosball, ping-pong, darts, and pretty much every other game that is designed to be played while holding a beer.

For those who don't want to exert the physicality required to lift an eight-pound ball and calmly roll it down a lane, there's a classic arcade w/ games like X-Men Pinball, Joust, and Donkey Kong, and the crazy-big, four-man Pac-Man.

Shoes, darts, and other excitement are stored in this trippy stand that may or may not be manned by Saddam.

The place has three different bars, including one smack-dab in the middle of a retro diner that has views of the four-story mall, so you can relax while scoping out sales at Forever 21, complete w/ plush couches and a chandelier made of deer antlers.

Chill out and watch football.

This circular bar's located right in the center of the action, making it super-easy to order up a beer in between songs at the place's two private karaoke rooms that no doubt have "What Condition My Condition Is In" on a permanent loop.

All three bars are manned by craft cocktail masters who mix up fresh juice/ booze combos like the Wrong Island Iced Tea, and the Green Russian w/ absinthe, coffee liqueur, and a high probability of sending you to the danger zone.

The kitchen does upscale gastropub goodness like this gravy-smothered plate of chicken & waffles, huge burgers, eggplant enchiladas,  and soo much more!

Click Here for more details.

We always look forward to Portland Monthly's "Best Restaurants" feature issue, and 2012 was not disappointing!

Check-out the 20 dining spots the staff of Portland Monthly feel define the best dining in Portland, Oregon.

Click Here to read the article.

*Edited by Karen Brooks, Rachel Ritchie with Allison Jones, Benjamin Tepler, Mike Thelin.  Images by Stuart Mullenberg

Portland, Oregon ranks 13 on Travel & Leisure's list of America's Best Cities for Nightlife.

Photo Credit: The Art Of Time Lapse . Com John Eklund

In this down-to-earth Oregon city, "crazy" might just mean parking your bicycle without a lock. Indeed, voters put it in the bottom 10 for noise and in the top 3 for being tidy. But with more working microbreweries than anywhere else in the U.S.—and as the top city for microbrews, according to voters—Portland guarantees a good night out (try your luck in the Pearl District, for instance).

Click Here to review the full list.

Get your brew on at the Oregon Brewer's Festival.

Oregon Brewer's Festival
July 26-29, 2012
Portland

North America's largest gathering of independent brewers. This grassroots event has a reputation of being one of the uber craft beer festivals in the world. Seventy-two breweries offer local and national handcrafted brews to 50,000 beer lovers during the four-day event. It's not a contest but an opportunity for beer afficiandos to enjoy handcrafted products from the nation's finest breweries.

Where:

Tom McCall Waterfront Park
Portland, Oregon

Portland's Clyde Common makes top shelf in Food & Wine magazine's best rated bars in America.

 

Provided By:

David Lanthan Reamer

Food & Wine magazine rated the best bars in America. From a tequila bar in Aspen to a secret spot hidden in a New York City hot dog joint, get to know some of the top spots for cocktails in the U.S.

Jeffrey Morgenthaler oversees the rotating cocktail list at Clyde Common, a hip "tavern" adjacent to the Ace Hotel. Recommended: the Cranky Lass with Scotch, amaro, apple cider, lemon, allspice liqueur.

Click Here to read the full article.