Anonymous wrote:Awesome list! We're headed there in June and will definitely be getting some Salt and Straw ice cream!

Curious If there are any train activities in or around the city? I have a train obsessed kid on my hand and the promise of a locomotive may do wonders on the plane ride.

If your are going in the summer, take a day and visit Astoria, it is just two hours west.

"try Nongs Khao Man Gai."

Yes, get the chicken and rice. It is so amazing. We went one day and back the next. It is possibly the most flavorful thing I have ever tasted.

http://khaomangai.com/

Aerial tram info here-I hate heights so I would never do it, but it seems like something a train lover would enjoy.

http://gobytram.com/

Awesome list! We're headed there in June and will definitely be getting some Salt and Straw ice cream!

Curious If there are any train activities in or around the city? I have a train obsessed kid on my hand and the promise of a locomotive may do wonders on the plane ride.

Put a bird on it.

Thanks again! I'm glad to see that people love Portland, and you all are making me excited about going there.

Absolutely love Portland, especially with kids. We liked:

* zoo (accessible by light rail) - go to the bat feedings!
* Rose Garden (you can do a train ride from the zoo to the Rose Garden and on a clear day you will have a gorgeous view of Mt Hood)
* children's museum, although I agree with a pp that it skews young
* Powell's
* Mt Hood. Go only on a very clear day and make sure you don't need chains for your tires. Chains are often necessary even in the summer.
* Agree with the rec to drive the Columbia Gorge. Get out and do the tour of the Bonneville Dam. Your kids will be able to see salmon swimming upstream!
* On the way to Mt Hood if you're approaching from Columba Gorge, drive the Fruit Loop and stop at farms to buy delicious fruit.
http://www.hoodriverfruitloop.com/index.html
* We enjoyed the beach and tide pools at Cannon Beach / Haystack Rock
http://www.cannon-beach.net/cbhaystack.html

And for Portland food, you must try the food trucks. They are out of this world, and there are so many to choose from.
* at 10th and Alder there are a huge number of food trucks. If you like simple authentic Thai try Nongs Khao Man Gai. The belgian waffle truck has great stuff.
* also consider PBJs Grilled in the Alphabet District
www.pbjsgrilled.com
* kid friendly very casual sit down that serves pretty healthy food: laughingplanetcafe.com

Love the zoo and the Chinese garden in the middle of the city (there's a tea house there with interesting food/snack options). There's also a Japanese garden that's really beautiful.

DEFINITELY check out the best ice cream of my life at Salt & Straw. This is a MUST!!!! My suggestion would be to do a fun "ice cream for breakfast" thing and go to the Nob Hill location in the morning, well before lunch. Otherwise you will wait on line for 45 minutes. Or, if you're like us, go for ice cream breakfast, them go to the zoo, then decide it's worth the wait and go BACK to Salt & Straw for mid-afternoon ice cream.

Portland is awesome. Have fun! Maybe report back on what was good to do with the kids?

I surprisingly liked the rose garden. Maybe kids would like to run around? I also liked multnomah falls.

So jealous! Portland is our favorite place...so many cool things to see, do, and taste!

In addition to the excellent recommendations that have already been shared, here are a few others:

Beverly Cleary! Your kids are the perfect age to read any/all of Cleary's books (Ramona, Henry Huggins, Ralph,etc) before and during your time in Portland and then head over to Cleary's neighborhood where she actually lived (you can easily find Klickitat street). There is a wonderful little playground (Grant Park) with statues of her characters. It also looks like there used to be a walking tour through the local library (but I'd contact the library to see if that is still happening). But you don't really need a formal tour, just wander around on your own. It's a fun little hunt and nice neighborhood. If you are also a Cleary fan, be sure to read both of her memoirs (My Own Two Feet and The Girl from Yamhill). This blog post gives you a glimpse into the walking tour highlights:

http://www.dailygnome.com/pdx/walking-with-ramona-tour-beverly-cleary/

http://www.yelp.com/biz/beverly-cleary-sculpture-garden-at-grant-park-portland


Portland Children's Museum. I remember this as being a fun spot on a rainy day. Your 8 year old may think it is for younger kids, but I bet he/she will still find plenty to be amused by (the waterworks area was super fun). And it looks like there are some visiting exhibits.
http://www.portlandcm.org/


Mt. St. Helen's This would be a day trip, but an interesting one, especially if either of your kids has any fascination with volcanoes
http://www.fs.usda.gov/mountsthelens

This is a great list of ideas that I actually bookmarked for future trips to Portland:
http://alphamom.com/family-fun/activities/portland-oregon-50-things-to-do-with-kids-before-they-grow-up/


One other thing we loved was that we ate great during our entire trip. Many restaurants are super family friendly (some even having books/toys etc) and have food options for kids that are not only tasty, but healthy, too. Enjoy your trip!

Thanks!!! Judging by these responses, it sounds like a great city! Probably a stupid question, but I saw something about an aerial tram online - is that worth doing? It looked pretty cool.

If you have a day, drive out to the Columbia River Gorge. There is a nice winding scenic drive that visits a number of waterfalls (Historic Columbia River Highway). Some of the waterfalls have areas of hiking trails and steps that kids will love. We were there pre-kids, but when we did the drive, there were a lot of kids enjoying the hiking areas around the various falls. There are various farms where you can go and pick your own fruit (you can check out a list at http://www.gorgegrown.com/resource/columbia-gorge-farms.cfm) One of our favorite places to visit in Portland is Powell's bookstore, definitely worth visiting if you're big into books of any form (fantastic audio book collection as well as multiple floors with excellent selection both new and used on virtually any topic). Also +1 on the Mt. Hood Ski Bowl. We had a lovely time hiking around the surrounding premises to Timberline Lodge and then having a fantastic dinner there.

http://www.portlandsaturdaymarket.com/

It's awesome.

There is a beautiful asian garden in the middle of the city.

In the summer, there are a few days of the week where there is a massive art fair/farmer's market (this was a few years ago). See if that's still going on. It puts anything around here to shame.

Fantastic zoo. OMSI is great for kids. Go to Mt. Hood Ski Bowl in summer. Head out to coast and hit Tillamook, Cannon Beach, and Seaside. Go to Saturday Market on the weekend. So much to do. My favorite city.

So I thought we were going to Seattle (hence my post yesterday about Seattle), but now it looks like I'll be in Portland for a week with 5 and 8 year olds. I've never been, so any ideas on activities/places to go, both inside and in the surrounding areas would be greatly appreciated!