Experience Portland, Oregon - The City of Roses

Proclaimed the country’s "Best Big City” by Money Magazine, Portland, Oregon is a vibrant city of unique charms - the stately elms in the South Park Blocks, the tranquility of the Japanese Gardens, the breathtaking view from Pittock Mansion, miles of hiking trails in Forest Park, and the largest classical Chinese Gardens and forested urban park in the country. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, the City of Roses is a dynamic destination with intense natural beauty, bustling downtown entertainment scene, world-class performing arts and theater, exciting pro sports, and sumptuous dining - easily accessed via the MAX light-rail system. From Portland’s captivating art museums to colorful rose test gardens, Portland is an alluring mix of scenery and greenery. Grab a meal and a microbrew from a myriad of restaurants and brewpubs, shop The Pearl or Pioneer Place, browse original art, enjoy the Portland Saturday Market, or catch a live show in the famed Arts District.

Take a tour of our neighborhood!

Every Friday and Saturday at 10:00AM and 2:00PM Portland Walking Tours features an intimate look at our neighborhood through the senses! The tour begins in the Heathman Library and is highly recommended by our past guests.

It is a great way to explore Portland through your taste buds! You’ll taste the foods, sip the drinks, meet some artisans & vendors in their shops - while exploring the lively Park Blocks and the Pearl District. If you watch the Food Network or consider yourself a "foodie," this is the adventure for you. On recent tours, we have sampled over 25 food and drink items in just over 3.5 hours. And it's not just about hitting those numbers.; it's all about slowing down and understanding what makes up the food that we cherish.

Even though you sample over 20 items on each tour, it's not about volume. Along the way, you'll achieve a diploma of culinary knowledge as you learn about local goods, sustainable practices, and the truth behind organic products. Most important, Portland Walking Tours will slow you down and guide you experience the smells, textures, tastes, after-tastes that every item brings. You'll have so much fun, you'll forget you're leaning something.

For prices and more information about this very unique tour of Portland, click here!

About the City of Portland - Awards and Distinctions

You don't have to live in Portland long to become as unabashed a lover of Portland as the natives. Read some recent accolades and distinctions for the City of Roses

No. 1, "Best Gay Cities in America" - 2008 - Gay and Lesbian International News Nework
No 25, "World's Most Livable Cities" - 2008 (one of only two us cities listed) - Monacle (UK-based magazine)
No 2, "Top 25 Green Cities in America" - 2008 - Country Home
No 5, "America's 10 Cleanest Cities" - 2008 - Forbes.com
No 1, "Greenest Cities in America" - 2008 - Popular Science
Top 10 Cities to Beat / "Portland Leader of the New Urbanism - 2008 Business Week
No 5, "Top Cities for Architecture and Design" - Independent survey conducted by New York based RMJM Hillier and co.
In November 2006, Frommer’s picked Portland as one of the Top Ten Destinations to travel to in the world.
Environmental awareness is part of life in Portland. That awareness and an active citizen population earned us the title #1 Green City in a recent study by SustainLane, an online resource for sustainability. Portland is also #3 in a recent report by Earth Day Network.
Portland was recently highlighted as a top food travel destination in the New York Times.
Portland was named one of the Top 15 Cities for Creative Types by Fast Company.
Intel and the Personal Telco Project are making Portland one of the most wireless cities in the world. Portland is one of four 'Digital Communities' in the United States.
Enjoy the great outdoors in a city that keeps its green spaces green. Portland appeared in the top ten list of Outside Magazine's 18 New American Dream Towns.
Portland scored the number one spot as America's Most Vegetarian-Friendly Large City.
Portland placed #9 on the list of most literate cities in America in a study at the University of Wisconsin Whitewater.
Bicycling Magazine called bike-friendly Portland the #1 "Best City for Bicycling" in North America.
Lewis & Clark College placed second in the annual Bike Commute Challenge.
Travel + Leisure magazine readers say Portland is one of America's favorite cities, ranking high in areas like transportation, cleanliness and quality of life.
The Utne Reader has called Portland the #2 "Most Enlightened Town" in America.
Number 1 "Urban Destination for Summer Travel in the United States, and number 1 for "Ease of Getting Around", according to Travel + Leisure readers (2003)
"This gateway to Oregon's wine country is a wine destination in its own right." - Food & Wine magazine (2003)
Number 4 "Top 10 Walking Cities", according to the American Podiatric Medical Association (2005)
"Best running town" and home of the "Best urban running trail: the Leif Erickson Trail." - Runner's World (2003)
North America's "Best Big City." - Money magazine (2002)
America's Cleanest City, Readers Digest (2005)
North America's Number 1 cycling city. - Bicycling magazine (2001)
Number 2 best places to live in the United States. - Money magazine (2001)