Portland Oregon, USA with kids

Portland Oregon USA is located on the West Coast of USA.  A few hours south of Seattle and North of San Francisco.  We flew directly into Portland from Honolulu Hawaii. Its easy to access via plane, bus or car.  It is a riverside family friendly city with beautiful green parks, amazing food, attractions and fun activities for young and old.  Its very easy to get around with great public transport including the very cool Streetcars.  Portland has many bike paths and walking tracks to get you from one sight to another.  Bikes and scooters are available for hire across the city.

Let the kids stretch there legs and breathe in the fresh air at beautiful Washington Park.  The park is located in the city and is easy to reach on the MAX light rail.  Catch a ride to Washington Park station and disembark in the Robertson Tunnel, at 260 feet below ground its the deepest transit station in North America. Take the elevator to the top to find the Portland Children’s Museum, Oregon Zoo, the Discovery Museum and the World Forestry Center.

Take a wander to the Portland Japanese Garden, the Hoyt Arboretum, the International Rose Test Garden and miles of walking and forest trails.  If you’ve got some energy left head through the forest along the path to Pittock Mansion.  Allow at least one full day at Washington Park, more if you can, its paradise for kids and adults too!

Visit the Oregon Historical Society to learn the history of Portland and Oregon.  There are great interactive displays that kids where kids can learn about the first settlers in the region and the Oregon Trail.

Head downtown and stroll the shops and alleys, walk along the waterfront and make your way to Chinatown to visit the Lan Su Chinese Garden.  Book lovers should head back towards West End to check out Powell’s City Of Books.

Visit a Farmers’ Markets .. there’s more than one!  A range of markets offer over 200 vendors selling farm fresh products and handcrafts. Markets operate in different locations and days so google to find the one that works best with your visit.

Portland is foodie heaven, many of the city blocks have permanent food trucks.  We joined a food tour, met lots of local characters and ate our way around the city with flavours and tastes from all parts of the globe.  You’ll find amazing cafes, craft brewers, coffee roasters, wine makers and restaurants scattered through the streets.  Some family favourites are Mississippi Pizza, 24th & Meatballs, Laughing Planet, Cloud Forest Café or the infamous Voodoo Doughnut… try one or try them all!

When it comes to sleeping there are many options for families all across the city.  We stayed at Inn @ Northrup Station its super clean the rooms are very big and brightly coloured.  Our room also had a kitchenette with full size fridge which is perfect if you wish to prepare some meals or snacks.  Kids under 12 stay free and adjoining rooms are available for larger families. Its a really fun comfortable place to base yourself.  There is a fantastic outdoor relaxing area too. It’s located right on the Streetcar route making it easy to get connections onto all public transport.  They also gave us complimentary tickets to board the streetcar.  Breakfast was included and it offered lots of choices like waffles, fruit, cereals, yogurts and more.  The Inn @ Northrup Station also offer some free events like wine tasting or craft beer sampling.

We loved our time in Portland Oregon and can’t wait to revisit.  We had allowed three days here but it wasn’t nearly enough, you could easily fill a week in the region as we didn’t have time to explore the surrounding countryside which offers great wine regions, waterfalls, hikes and much more.

If you’d like to get away to Portland Oregon USA we can assist with flights, accommodation and sightseeing.  For more information on activities for kids see the Travel Portland website 









 

 

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