Location: Portland
Top Things to do in Portland
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What to do and see in Portland, Oregon (OR): The Best Gardens
You’ll wonder why you don’t live in Portland after you’ve visited this laid-back and friendly city. With a reputation for manicured parks, eclectic nightlife, fine micro-breweries and distilleries, and nature that cuts right into the city, Portland’s a Pacific Northwest must-visit. Don’t miss the famous Japanese Garden, one of the largest and most beautiful of its kind outside of Japan.
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1. Washington Park
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,532 reviews
This popular park offers miles of trails, an extensive rose garden, a large Japanese garden and a zoo. For information on free shuttles, attraction admission hours and pricing within the park, and maps, visit our website.
Reviewed By PaulPapich - San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
My wife and I live immediately adjacent to Washington Park in Southwest Portland. In fact, being close to the Park was one of the major reasons we selected the property we bought. We visit it every week without fail. To start with, Washington Park is immense and gorgeous! It is home to the International Rose Test Garden, Japanese Garden, Holocaust Memorial, Vietnam War Memorial, the city's zoo, arboretum and forestry museum, archery range, tennis courts, walking trails, and much, much more. It would be a world-class destination if it only had the Rose and Japanese Gardens, which are extraordinarily beautiful. But perhaps the greatest draw for me personally are the trees - my ancient, stately friends, covering the hilly terrain, providing shade to walkers like me, and peace to anyone seeking a haven in today's chaotic world.
2. International Rose Test Garden
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 5,561 reviews
The oldest official, continuously operated public rose test garden in the United States boasts more than 8,000 roses.
Reviewed By PaulPapich - San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
If you are ever in Portland during its glorious summer months, you absolutely owe it to yourself to visit the International Rose Test Garden. It is one of Portland's true gems. Imagine tens of thousands of perfect roses in full bloom, dozens of rose varieties, colors of every hue! Now imagine lovely walks among the rows and rows of roses, the perfume in the air, the tranquil atmosphere, the stately conifers that enclose the Test Garden on three sides, the view of downtown on the fourth, and the happy people taking photographs and stooping to smell the flowers. There you have the Rose Garden!
3. Portland Japanese Garden
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 6,182 reviews
Considered the most authentic Japanese Garden outside of Japan, the Portland Japanese Garden is a haven of tranquil beauty in all four seasons. In Spring of 2017, the Garden opened its new Cultural Village, complete with new garden spaces, classrooms, exhibition and gallery space, and the Umami Cafe.
Reviewed By mrg0137
On a recent trip to Portland, my wife and I stopped in Washington Park with the intention of seeing the Japanese Garden and nearby International Rose Test Garden. Since it was clearly out of season for roses in mid-November, there wasn’t much to see when we stopped at the Rose Garden first. We almost then skipped the Japanese Garden, since it was chilly and raining, and I hadn’t realized that unlike the Rose Garden, the Japanese Garden is an attraction with its own admission fee, not just part of the park that you can meander through freely. I’m really glad we ultimately decided to pay the $18 per person and visit the Japanese Garden, since it was absolutely serene and beautiful, even while walking through in the pouring rain on a chilly day. The line for tickets didn’t look particularly long that afternoon, but it was a bit slow-moving, since there was only one person working the admission window and others had a lot of questions and were buying memberships. I would definitely buy tickets online in the future to skip the line. We entered the gardens close to 3:00 pm, and were told that the last admission of the day would be at 3:30, although it sounded like there was no real time pressure, with the gardens staying open for a while after 3:30 so the final guests of the day could still make their way through. The gardens are built into a hill, so there was a bit of a leisurely uphill climb to get from the entrance at the bottom of the hill to the start of the gardens at the top. There is a shuttle service offered for those who want to avoid the walk and start at the Cultural Village at the top of the hill. From the Cultural Village, which includes restrooms, a gift shop, and a terrace with beautiful bonsai trees, you can start to meander through the gardens themselves, which are absolutely beautiful, with stunning landscaping and water features. Everything in the gardens is currently marked out with one-way paths to help promote social distancing, and the only thing that appeared to be closed was the Japanese Tea House. The gallery building that currently has a photography exhibit with photos from internment camps was open with limited capacity and was interesting to visit. Outside of that, we really enjoyed taking a leisurely walk through the various garden paths and discovering the various sculptures and plantings. It was especially gorgeous to be able to see the variety of changing colors on the trees in the fall. We also really liked that the size of the gardens was manageable so that it didn’t take forever to see everything, but there was still enough to do that the $18 admission was just about worth it (it could maybe be a couple dollars cheaper, but it’s so lovely that I didn’t mind supporting them through our ticket purchase). We spent about an hour at the garden in total, and probably would have spent more time if it wasn’t raining the entire time. I imagine that on a nicer day, you could easily spend a couple hours meandering through the gardens and taking time to relax at various spots along the way. Despite seeming a little pricey at first, the Portland Japanese Garden is absolutely beautiful and worth a visit. It’s a serene paradise in the middle of Portland, and it’s an interesting chance to see what I’ve read is one of the most accurate Japanese gardens in the United States.
4. Hoyt Arboretum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 355 reviews
A popular destination for nature lovers, this arboretum contains many different species of trees.
Reviewed By aprkniess - Beaverton, United States
The Hoyt Arboretum park is absolutely gorgeous in the fall. We hiked about 4 miles today following the Wildwood Trail and several smaller trails from the rose garden to the Hoyt Arboretum visitor center and back. The trail was not difficult but following the exact loop was sometimes not clear with the map we had. You could easily spend all day roaming and exploring. There are memorials and old douglas fir trees, etc all through the park. It's so close to downtown Portland, yet you feel as if you're in the country.
5. Elk Rock Garden
6. Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 439 reviews
In the summer months, this peaceful park comes alive with brightly colored rhododendrons.
Reviewed By U57KMmaryl - Portland, United States
In any season, you'll find a reason to linger here. You can see bald eagles, great blue herons, wood ducks, and a huge variety of overly friendly geese, ducks and squirrels. There are also nutria, beavers and river otters. Each season brings new delights.
7. The Grotto - National Sanctuary of Our Sorrowful Mother
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,302 reviews
An internationally renowned Catholic sanctuary set among 62 acres of botanical gardens, offering a place of peace and quiet reflection for all people. More than 100 beautiful statues,reflection ponds, and views offer inspiration to all who visit.
Reviewed By bennyDDDD - Honolulu, United States
Beautiful trilliums are absolutely everywhere, along with every other beautiful flower you can think of. There is a abundance of peaceful places to sit and think, including many catholic sculptures and little cutesy ponds. When I went it was almost empty, I ran into very few people in the upper garden. The admission price is low and I think the price is well worth seeing these upper gardens, as the whole grounds are well maintained and manicured to perfection. The lower trail and grotto are also beautiful and serene, and the little chapel always has it's doors open if you wish to venture in.
8. Beverly Cleary Sculptures at Grant Park
9. Peninsula Park and Rose Gardens
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 198 reviews
Reviewed By DanW440 - Portland, United States
This is a great place to spend time outdoors! Huge magnificent trees, a nice playground and activities in the recreation center are just part of the offerings. Add in a very pretty rose garden and it’s a jewel of a family friendly park.
10. Lan Su Chinese Garden
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 2,514 reviews
Lan Su Chinese Garden is much more than just a beautiful garden. It’s a creative wonder — an authentically built, powerfully inspiring experience based on a 2,000-year-old Chinese tradition that melds art, architecture, design and nature in perfect harmony. (Updated July 2020) In the light of COVID-19, Lan Su Chinese Garden now offers timed entry admission system and one-way visiting paths to discovery. Facial covering is required during visit. The Tao of Tea House now provides To-go service with outdoor seating. For details, please visit: www.lansugarden.org/visit/a-worry-free-visit
Reviewed By oziyanki - Portland, United States
It was an autumn morning when I took my (adult) ESOL students to the garden. Prior to coming, we’d talked about its origin and the symbolism of what they would see in its design, architecture and plants, Once there, we each wandered at will, following the winding paths, constantly surprised and delighted by something unique around each bend - a rock or tree or fish or bridge or color.... so many surprises in the one city block with the modern high rises beyond its walks looming like guardians of this place of peaceful beauty. The students’ homework was, as you’d expect, to write about their time in the garden. Almost all wrote about the tranquility, the sense of being in another world and the pleasure of being lost in thought.... a rare treat.
