Portland, Oregon

Portland Is Still Good and Is Not What It Was in 2015 and These Things Are Both True

Portland in 2026 is not the same city it was a decade ago. The downtown core around SW 4th and Burnside saw significant disruption during 2020 to 2022 and some blocks remain noticeably rough. The city has been working on recovery, and the outer neighbourhoods – Alberta Arts District, Mississippi Avenue, Hawthorne, the Pearl District – are largely as strong as they were. The honest framing: Portland is worth visiting and in places it is excellent, but arrive without the assumption that every neighbourhood will match the travel writing that captured the 2010s version.

What Is Genuinely Good

Powell’s Books on West Burnside occupies a full city block across multiple floors, divided by subject into colour-coded rooms with used and new books mixed together. The technical and science fiction sections are particularly strong. Budget two hours minimum and expect to find something you did not know you were looking for. It remains one of the great independent bookstores in the world.

Forest Park is 5,157 acres of forested hills accessible from the western edge of the city. The Wildwood Trail runs 30 miles through it. On a weekday morning the trail offers genuine quiet and forest canopy 20 minutes from downtown. This is Portland’s best card and the thing the city has that no amount of urban disruption can affect.

The International Rose Test Garden in Washington Park tests new rose varieties before commercial release and has been doing so since 1917. Peak bloom is mid-May through June. Entry is free; views look down to the Willamette River and east toward Mount Hood. The Portland Japanese Garden, adjacent, is one of the finest outside Japan. Admission is USD 20 and the design – four and a half acres by Kengo Ogata – rewards careful attention.

Eating and Drinking

The food cart pods are the best-value eating in the city. Cartopia at SE 12th and Hawthorne runs late on weekends and has consistently good options. The Saturday Market under the Burnside Bridge (March through December) has around 250 craft vendors and street food from around USD 10 to 15.

For restaurant meals: Ox on NE 28th does Argentine wood-fired cooking with genuine interest in the offal section of the menu – order adventurously, it is worth it. Han Oak in the Pearl District does Korean food at a standard well above casual. On coffee: Stumptown began here, and the original Annex on SW 3rd is worth one visit for context. Water Avenue Coffee in the Central Eastside is where the more serious current coffee culture runs.

Getting Around and Day Trips

The MAX light rail covers most visitor areas. The BIKETOWN bike share network fills the gaps. Avoid driving downtown; parking is expensive and the one-way street grid is designed to frustrate.

Columbia River Gorge is 45 minutes east by car: Multnomah Falls (best on weekday mornings before tour buses arrive) and the Historic Columbia River Highway make for a strong day trip. Mount Hood is 90 minutes east for year-round skiing, hiking, and the historic Timberline Lodge.