If you’re planning a wedding in Portland, Oregon, and you want to give you out-of-town wedding guests ideas on what to do while they’re in town, you’ve come to the right spot. Here’s some boilerplate that I’ve collected as a professional wedding planner. Use this to get the juices flowing and, of course, customize at will.
One gentle reminder: Your guests can google, too, so if sharing these ideas just isn’t in the cards, skip it. You’ve got plenty of other things to do when planning a wedding (and this gallery of free wedding planning resources may be of use).
Things to do while visiting Portland, Oregon, for a wedding
Forest Park: You can hike up through the park to get to Pittock Mansion (the view is free!), visit the International Rose Test Garden (free to visit), or explore any number of free hiking trails. Also, consider stopping by the Japanese Garden or the Oregon Zoo.
Portland Art Museum (PAM): Central to downtown, PAM has plenty to offer including rotating exhibitions and several permanent collections.
Pick a street and explore! Portland has multiple iconic streets. Some of our favorites:
Alberta Arts District (northeast)
Division Street (southeast)
Hawthorne Street (southeast)
St. Johns (north)
Mississippi Street (north)
NW 23rd Avenue (northwest)
Sellwood-Moreland (southeast)
Find even more ideas at Travel Portland.
Want a gut check from a professional planner? Here’s what people have to say about renting my Virgo wedding planner brain for an hour.
Portland is known for its delicious food. We’ve listed some of our favorites below: [include two to five of your favorite restaurants as well as any of the better-known Portland restaurants that you want to promote]
Multnomah Falls day trip: This iconic waterfall is a 30- to 45-minute drive outside of Portland. Be sure to read about the required timed use permit, if you go (additional details here, too). We also recommend the lesser-known but equally stunning Latourell Falls.
Hood River day trip: We love to drive out to Hood River, go on a hike in the Gorge, grab lunch in town, and check out the local shops. Expect a drive of between 60 and 90 minutes.
Don’t forget to include places that have meaning to you and your partner(s) even if/particularly if they’re perhaps not what folks think of when they think of Portland.