Considering a Move to Portland?  Here's some tips to help    smooth your visit! 

• Local phone calls in Portland requires always using the Portland area code!  When you come to Portland,  you'll have a problem calling a restaurant for reservations, unless you remember to dial the area code as well!  When placing any telephone calls in Portland,Or you must dial the area code even for local calls--it's not a long distance charge.  Portland area codes are 503 and 971. 

• Another Oregon quirk is our gas stations.  You cannot pump your own gas in Oregon --it's against the law, so enjoy the service!  And by the way--no tipping is necessary for this service!
  

• Portland was one of the first U.S. cities to do away with parking meters.  Instead,  downtown Portland has parking kiosks within 40 feet of where you park.  These accept coins or credit cards.  Take
  your receipt, peel off the back and use that to attach the receipt to your interior window that is closest to the sidewalk.  You can move the car to another location as long as the time on your receipt has not expired.  If you find unexpired parking receipts that others have stuck on the kiosk,  feel free to use one!
  

Does It Really Rain in Oregon ?

• Oh yes,  but that's what makes Portland and Lake Oswego so green and lush!  Seldom does it rain for hours or even downpour.  Instead,we have rain, showers, sprinkles, intermittent rain, drizzle, light rain, mist, most of which is interrupted by clearing & a bit of sunshine.   Lots of U.S. cities have more precipitation than Portland.  You'll notice that most Portlanders don't even carry umbrellas!

What is there to do In metro Portland Oregon?

Portland  Oregon is surrounded by natural beauty in the hills, rivers and nearby mountains, with the Cascade Mountain Range to the east, the Coastal Mountain Range to the west, and accented by volcanic mountains including Mt. Hood to the east and active volcano Mt. St. Helen's visible from Portland to the north in Washington. 

The Oregon coast is about 75 miles away, with Seaside and Canon Beach the closest.  Seaside is a family fun town, with arcades, bumper cars, and a board walk along the flat beach.  This is the end of the Lewis and Clark Trail.  Nearby Canon Beach, seen in the picture to the left, is more artsy,  with lots of galleries and gift shops, and the largest monolith rock in N America.  A short drive south of Canon Beach takes you to lovely Manzanita with one of the most accessible Oregon beaches.

Hiking is popular even within the city in our many parks, including Forest Park , the largest wilderness park in an urban area in the U.S., and Tryon Creek Park, a state park within the city limits of Portland.   There are miles of hiking trails in the Columbia River Gorge  as shown in the picture to the right, which is only 30 minutes to the east of Portland.In the Gorge,  waterfalls cascade down the foothills of Mt.Hood, with Multnomah Falls being the most spectacular. 








Since Portland is split down the middle by the Willamette River , and   bordered by the Columbia River on the north and west,  along with other rivers such as the Clackamas and Tulatin Rivers, boating, fishing, and kayaking are naturally popular.   Golf courses abound, and there is an active tennis community as well with the largest tennis complex in the Pacific NW at the Tualatin Hills Recreation Center located in Beaverton.   Running and biking are very popular in Portland, which is home to Nike and Columbia Sportswear, both located in the Beaverton area.  

Known for its roses, and dubbed the City of Roses, Portland hosts the annual Portland Rose Festival each June, with month-long events and a grand floral parade, waterfront carnival, special concerts, Dragon Boat Races and more festivities.




Portland sports teams are lead by the Portland Trail Blazers, with other entertainment provided by the Portland Winterhawks Ice Hockey, baseball, and an anticipated national soccer team.

Not all recreation happens outdoors, though, and Portland offers many cultural opportunities, including ballet, opera, symphony, lively theater groups such as Portland Center Stage and the Public Playhouse, music festivals including jazz and blues, Chamber Music NW, time-based performance art and more!  Check out summer concerts in the the parks, the Portland Zoo, and the ampitheatre at Washington Park.   Portlanders are also readers-the library system has more use per capita than any other library in the nation.   And of course infamous Powell's Books is fondly patronized.   

How will I get around Portland?

You can hop on and off any form of public transportation in the downtown core area for free in our "Fareless Square".  Portland has one of the best public transportation systems in the U.S. Between our light rail system which was the first west coast system to provide transpo rtation between the city center and the airport, our extensive bus service, our modern streetcars in our city core,  and our commuter rail connecting west side suburbs of Beaverton, Tigard, Tualatin and Wilsonville,  Portland offers a seamless public transportation system.  Additionally, thousands of Portlanders bike to work using our two hundred plus miles of biking lanes. For more on Portland public transportation please see our Green Portland page. 

What is the layout of Portland Oregon?

• The City of Portland is divided east and west by the Willamette River , and because of its 11 bridges, sometimes goes by the nickname " Bridgetown ."

• To the north and west, the Columbia River forms the boundary between Oregon and Washington .     

• Dividing Portland Or north and south is Burnside, an old stage coach road that goes from the countryside of the West Hills all the way to the east where it joins with the highway to Mt. Hood .   Along Burnside you'll experience the many faces of Portland, including a tunnel in the West Hills, Powell's Books in the center of the downtown area, the huge and beautiful gate imported from China to announce our "China" town, the distinctive Burnside Bridge over the Willamette River, the newly renovated and   50's style hip Jupiter Hotel with its Doug Fir lounge, Music and Classical Millennium--about 30 years old and still surviving, the monuments announcing the  Laurelhurst neighborhood with elegant homes, commercial strip malls near 82nd Avenue, and suburbia giving way to highway to beautiful Mt. Hood's skiing, lakes and forests.

• Downtown Portland is encircled by the West Hills and the Willamette River, and farther west past the West Hills is Beaverton & Hillsboro Oregon located in Washington County.  Many of Oregon's wineries are located in Washington and Yamhill Counties, including Sokol Blosser Winery  and Duck Pond Winery near Dundee. 
  

• To the south is Lake Oswego, Tigard, Tualatin, and West Linn.

How large is Portland and how is it organized?