Where to Stay in Portland, Oregon

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a city street filled with lots of tall buildings

Where to Stay in Portland, OR

Portland is considered one of America`s hip cities, known for its dynamic cuisine, some of the world`s best craft breweries and coffee shops, thriving arts scene, independent cinemas that serve alcohol, and alternative, outdoor lifestyle. While there are no major attractions, its colorful residents (satirized in the hit TV show Portlandia), cafes, farmers markets, festivals, and eclectic neighborhoods make it an enticing trip destination.

The city is divided into 6 areas, with the Willamette River further splitting the center north to south. The heart of the city lies between the river’s west bank and the I-405 freeway, featuring key museums, shops, and most of the hotels. Just north along the river, the most historic district contains a scattering of sights and some of the best restaurants, shopping, and nightlife. To the west, the residential areas known for their strong arts, culinary, and shopping scenes. On the other side of the river, the eastern neighborhoods overflow with innovative restaurants and independent stores.

Exploring the city center on foot is relatively easy, and public transport well serves the rest of the city – there is no need to drive.

Accommodation WebsiteVerify costs for Delta Ocean Pointe Resort • Portland features an extensive network of bicycle paths and lanes. The city bike share program is run by Lyft’s Biketown.
• Portland International Airport is 13 miles northeast of downtown, accessible using the MAX Red Line light rail (40 minutes)

Best Places to Stay in Portland

    • Best Luxury Hotels in Portland
      The Nines • Sentinel • Kimpton RiverPlace
    • Best Boutique Hotels in Portland
      Hotel Lucia • DeLuxe • McMenamins Kennedy School • The Hoxton • KEX
    • Best Cheap & Midrange Hotels in Portland
      North of Downtown is the Nagoya Castle, a huge attraction for the city. It encompasses an area surrounded by gardens and towering stone walls, the second largest castle structure in Japan following Osaka. Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu commenced the development in 1610, however the whole complex was flattened by bombs in 1945. The castle tower was rebuilt in the 1950s (filled with mythical gold-colored creatures known as “kinshachi” atop), but the lavish residence of the shogun, Hommaru Palace, just completed reconstruction in 2018. Now the palace attracts many thanks to the meticulously recreated panel paintings in its Jorakuden Hall. Viewers will also see the “Nagoya Omotenashi Bushotai” here, costumed personas dressed as genuine samurai and historic characters like Tokugawa.
    • Best Hostels in Portland
      Hostel in northwest Portland • Portland international guesthouse
    • Highly rated hotels near Moda Center and Convention Center.

Hyatt Regency • Eastlund

Best Neighborhoods in Portland for…

    • Premier area of town for initial visitors/sightseeing: Downtown
      While located in the urban core and lacking some attributes of farther neighborhoods, downtown Portland remains a practical starting point for touring the city due to strong transportation access. It hosts the major art and history museums and serves as the civic center at Pioneer Courthouse Square alongside landscaped waterfront parks and abundant dining and shopping selections. Nearby attractions like those in Pearl District and Old Town Chinatown require minimal travel.• Downtown boasts the most comprehensive selection of lodging across all budget types – over 35 hotels in total.
    • Most Romantic Neighborhood: Nob Hill
      Situated just northwest of Downtown, Nob Hill is among our favorite neighborhoods in Portland. Its tree-lined roads feature beautiful Victorian houses and some of the city’s best bars and restaurants primarily clustered along NW 21st and NW 23rd avenues. The Fireside is one of the coziest spots for a date, concentrating on contemporary Pacific Northwest cuisine, while the Italian eatery Caffe Mingo and French restaurant St. Jack provide romantic Old World vibes. Delectable sweets are offered at Papa Haydn, a local cult favorite. Best of all, the neighborhood is a short walk from tranquil Washington Park with its miles of trails and especially romantic Rose and Japanese gardens.
    • The most vibrant area for nightlife in Portland is Old Town Chinatown and Central Eastside with numerous bars and live music venues.

Portland’s conventional entertainment sector lies within Old Town Chinatown, featuring everything from live DJs and beverages to microbreweries and bars. The blocks between West Burnside Street, Everett Street, Second Avenue, and Fourth Avenue are closed to traffic Friday and Saturday nights after 10pm. Notable spots include Fuse Bar, the vintage games at Ground Kontrol Classic Arcade, the rock ‘n roll vibes at Dixie Tavern, and LGBTQ hotspot CC Slaughters Nightclub and Lounge. Something of a Portland tradition, the drag performance at Darcelle XV Showplace has been ongoing since 1967. There’s also live jazz at Wilf’s in historic Union Station and lots of laughs at Kickstand Comedy).

Central Eastside offers a more contemporary ambiance, with spots like hipster motorcycle bar White Owl Social Club, craft beers at Cascade Brewing Barrel House, live bands at Revolution Hall, and top performers at Helium Comedy Club. We also like Pips & Bounce, where drinks and cocktails are paired with 10 ping-pong tables. Ultimately, spirit aficionados should explore “Distillery Row”, home to the city’s burgeoning craft distillery movement, led by New Deal Distillery.

    • Best Neighborhood for Food and Restaurants: Central Eastside
      James Beard, an influential food critic, was born in Portland, which has become one of America`s top destinations for food lovers, with a blend of locally inspired Pacific Northwest cuisine and high-quality international restaurants. You`ll find excellent places to eat all over the city, especially in downtown, Pearl District, and Nob Hill, but Eastside is our pick for the city`s best new eateries. Highlights from an extensive list include small dishes and cocktails at Scotch Lodge, tropical inspired Hey Love, Vietnamese Berlu Bakery, French restaurants Canard and Le Pigeon,Nong’s Khao Man Gai Thai cuisine, and Delicious Donuts. We also enjoy the modern American fare at Clarklewis Restaurant near the river and Russian food (and vodka) specialist Kachka).Equally impressive, the gourmet food trucks in the Central Eastside are some of the finest offerings in the city: the mobile eatery fleet is open late (similar to food courts known in Portland as “pods”) and is renowned for its fries and pizza.
    • The best neighborhoods for shopping are downtown, the Pearl District, and Lloyd Center.

With no sales tax (very unusual in the US), Portland is a justly popular place to shop. Downtown, especially around Pioneer Courthouse Square, is a good place to start, with a major Nordstrom department store and nearby Pioneer Place indoor mall packed with all the usual suspects from Apple to H&M, a food court, and a movie theater. Over in the West End district are more independent stores such as Wildfang (women’s fashion), Woonwinkel home and accessories store, and local hit Danner Boots. The flagship Nike Portland store is also here (Nike is headquartered in Portland).

We also appreciate the Pearl District, across Burnside Street to the northwest. It’s a walkable neighborhood of repurposed warehouses and red-brick structures filled with major brands and independent stores. Powell’s City of Books is an attraction of Portland in its own right, an immense, iconic emporium of books open since 1971. Garnish is specifically good for women’s fashion and local designers. Procure bargains at Recycled Chic Boutique or explore quality merino wool clothing at the New Zealand-based Icebreaker.U.S. Outdoor has been providing adventurers since 1957, while Portland is also the US headquarters of Dr. Martens and its perpetually fashionable boots.

It is also worth taking into account a trip to Lloyd Center Mall, one of Portland’s largest shopping centers (located 2 miles northeast of Downtown). Inside are over 150 stores, a 10-screen movie theater, and an indoor ice rink. Nearby is the excellent Broadway Books and an outpost of Kitchen Kaboodle homeware store. Elmer’s Flag and Banner is crammed with flags, kites, and all sorts of distinctive Portland souvenirs.

‧ Lloyd Center is an accessible streetcar ride from Downtown, but there are some quality lodging options here, if you want to avoid the busy city core: Hyatt Regency,Courtyard Downtown/Convention Center,Crowne Plaza, and Hotel Eastlund. There are also several inexpensive motels on Grand Avenue, though quality varies.

  • Best Neighborhoods for Authentic Experiences: Hawthorne and Belmont
    On the eastern edge of the city, explore Hawthorne (centered on SE Hawthorne Boulevard) to experience Portland`s free-spirited counter-culture scene. There aren`t many designated attractions, but it`s an enjoyable area to wander around, dotted with appealing Victorian and Arts and Crafts homes and trendy places to eat and drink. Notable sights include the Moorish-style Bagdad Theater & Pub from 1927, now part of the McMenamin brewing empire. Further west, the CineMagic movie theater dating to 1914 screens new releases and classics, while stores such as Excalibur Comics,Tender Loving Empire (records), North St. Bags, and Communion (clothing) contribute characterSix blocks north of Hawthorne Avenue, another historically significant path worth exploring is Belmont Avenue lined with independent boutiques and eateries.

    There are not many accommodation options on Hawthorne beyond apartment rentals, though you will find a cluster of attractive bed and breakfast inns in the nearby city of Richmond to the south, such as the Bluebird Guesthouse and Evermore Guesthouse. These are great choices if you wish to live like a local resident.

  • Unsafe Areas of Portland
    The downtown area of Portland is generally quite safe, though usual precautions should be taken at night. The demonstrations of 2020 and 2021 following George Floyd’s death made international news headlines, but things have mostly calmed down since then. While Portland did see its highest ever rise in homicides in 2021, that was from a comparatively low starting point. Neighborhoods to the east and north of downtown Portland tend to report higher crime rates, but most of the locations noted here should be fine, at least during daylight hours (extra care is recommended in Old Town Chinatown at night). It`s important to note that Portland has also struggled with a major homelessness issue for many years, with thousands of unhoused youth on the streets at any given moment.

The 6 Best Neighborhoods in Portland for Tourists

1. Downtown Portland

The heart of commerce and business in the city lies on the western bank of the Willamette River in downtown. Anchored by the always lively Pioneer Courthouse Square and the Pioneer Place shopping mall, most of the city’s mainstream retail outlets are situated here, alongside its two biggest museums: the Portland Art Museum and the Oregon Historical Society, which chronicles the whole state`s history. The riverfront itself has landscaped parks and gardens lining it, along with restaurants, and river cruise companies. This is also where the Rose Festival (May-June) and Oregon Brewers Festival take place.

While numerous spots to eat and drink exist downtown, Portland’s outer neighborhoods provide a more innovative setting. Conversely, downtown is home to the Oregon Symphony Orchestra’s Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall and its iconic 65-foot-high “Portland” signage, and the historic Keller Auditorium, head stage of the Oregon Ballet Theatre. The comprehensive Portland Farmers Market showcases 3 seasonal downtown locations.

Staying downtown makes everything very convenient, with a huge variety of accommodation options and easy access to the local transportation system. However, culinary choices are somewhat limited, so you`ll need to explore neighborhoods further out to truly appreciate what the city has to offer.

2. Old Town Chinatown

Old Town, located in the slightly faded northwest corner of downtown, is where the city was founded in 1843 and remains known today for nightlife and staple dining options: Voodoo Doughnut and Stumptown Coffee Roasters enjoy national acclaim. By the river, the Portland Saturday Market offers gifts and mementos. The area around and just south of the Burnside Bridge is where locals were once frequently kidnapped, or “shanghaied”, into maritime work – you can still tour a tiny portion of the “Shanghai Tunnels”.

Above Burnside Street and marked by an elaborate gateway at Fourth Avenue, the neighborhood becomes Chinatown, once the second largest Chinese community in the US. Today it’s also renowned for nightlife as well as a couple of worthwhile attractions: the traditional Lan Su Chinese Garden and Portland Chinatown Museum, offering a small but illuminating insight into what daily life was once like for the Chinese immigrant community. Nearby is the Japanese American Museum of Oregon charts the history of Portland’s once vibrant Japantown. There are some decent Chinese eating establishments here as well as destination stores such as Floating World Comics,Index (a sneaker consigning store), Cal Skate Skateboards, and Red Robe Tea House.

There is little selection here regarding hotels, but Hoxton and Society are both excellent. The neighborhood can be loud at night, especially on weekends.

3. Pearl District

Just northwest of downtown Portland lies the swiftly gentrifying neighborhood of the Pearl District, comprised of converted warehouses, hip boutiques, and some of the city`s finest dining establishments. It`s best known for the iconic Powell`s City of Books on its southern edge, with little else formally worth seeing – the cobblestone streets are perfect for aimless wandering, sprinkled with art galleries and cafés. Between April and October, First Thursday features unique events and open art galleries late into the night, while performing arts are well-represented year-round by Portland Center Stage at the Armory and Artists Repertory Theatre. Kids enjoy splashing in the fountains and seeing the totem poles at Jamison Square, while adults flock to Deschutes Brewery, considered one of the state`s finest.

4. Central Eastside

Some of Portland’s most lively neighborhoods lie across the Willamette River from downtown, a blend of former industrial areas and residential districts known collectively as Eastside. Take a taste of Central Eastside; you’ll find the finest restaurants in the city here, the attractive riverside Eastbank Esplanade, and a host of independent shops and boutiques. The biggest family-friendly attraction is the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI), with its associated planetarium and USS Blueback, the US Navy’s final non-nuclear submarine. Kids also love the restored trains at the neighboring Oregon Rail Heritage Center, while grown-up entertainment is offered by Distillery Row (5 local micro-distilleries) and the Helium Comedy Club.

5. Nob Hill/Northwest

Backpackers Jamaica • Bak A Yaad • Five Gables • Germaican Hostel • Judy House • Ragamuffin

Nob Hill lacks much in the way of conventional hotel accommodation: there are a couple of hostels and some decent motels at the northern end of the neighborhood, otherwise apartments are the way to go. It’s well connected to downtown by public transport.

6. Alberta Arts District

Among Portland`s distinct neighborhoods with character, the Alberta Arts District (along NE Alberta Street) stands out as fascinating and worth exploring. The area was predominantly African American in the 1950s before difficulties in the 1980s and 1990s. Spurred by local artist and activist Roslyn Hill, it has gradually transformed into a laid-back community of homes, art studios, and coffee houses. Large-scale mosaic sculptures and colorful murals depict the history of the African American community, and Black Heritage Markers between 11th and 24th avenues commemorate this. Other highlights include the local outlet of ice cream specialists Salt & Straw, Mike Bennett`s imaginative “ A to Zoo Family Lawn Museum” (a series of changing installations and large wooden cartoon cutouts), and live performances at the Alberta Rose Theater.

There are a couple of unconventional but satisfactory lodging options here which are far from the tourist areas. Bus #8 connects the neighborhood (at Alberta and 15th) with downtown, but it’s relatively simple to park here if driving.

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Welcome to my travel website! I’m Mary Howard, an American who has been exploring the world full-time for 8 years.

Together with my husband, Intan, we often find ourselves in our second home, Bali, but our adventures take us to exciting destinations all over the globe.

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