{"id":477,"date":"2015-11-19T23:44:48","date_gmt":"2015-11-19T23:44:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.expedia.co.nz\/stories\/portland-travel-guide\/"},"modified":"2022-04-21T01:15:21","modified_gmt":"2022-04-21T01:15:21","slug":"portland-travel-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.expedia.co.nz\/stories\/portland-travel-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"Keeping Portland Weird"},"content":{"rendered":"

One day a friend told me that he wanted to get his first tattoo to remind him of Portland, Oregon<\/a> \u2013\u00a0the city he\u2019d visited many times and fell in love with. As weird as it may sound, the famous kitsch pattern on the carpet at the PDX airport is what he wanted forever inked on his arm. True story.<\/p>\n

I kid you not, the carpet is so famous its has its own hashtag #PDXcarpet<\/em> on Instagram. It shouldn\u2019t come as a surprise though because \u201cKeeping Portland Weird\u201d is a popular slogan, originally intended to promote local businesses, and has since evolved to bring independence, nonconformity, creativity and all things bizarre to the Rose City. Not knowing what to expect, I visited Portland with an open mind and discovered all the hot spots and hidden gems that keep Portland weird. Expedia’s Kiwi\u00a0travellers spend 2-3 nights in Portland \u2013 so that’s plenty of time to tick a few things off my list:<\/p>\n

What to see<\/h2>\n

You don\u2019t need to be a bookworm to appreciate a good book. I guarantee you\u2019ll find a tome you\u2019ll love at Powell\u2019s City of Books<\/strong>. The largest independent new and used bookstore in the world, this place covers an entire city block, and is so massive maps are provided for visitors to find their way around. There are nine colour-coded rooms that house more than one million books. The cookbook section alone is every food lover\u2019s dream.<\/p>\n

Portland is often awarded \u201cGreenest City in America\u201d, and you\u2019ll understand why when you take a walk or hike at Forest Park<\/strong> on the west side of the city. Just a short 10 minutes drive from downtown, this urban forest stretches over 13km along hillsides overlooking Willamette River. There are many trails you can explore, expect to forget you\u2019re still in the middle of the city.<\/p>\n

If hiking is not your thing, then you might like to slow down the pace and smell the roses at the International Rose Test Garden<\/strong>. Local government established the garden during World War I in an attempt to preserve species of European roses that may have been decimated by the bombings. The best time to visit is during June blooming season, where you can wander amongst the colourful roses and feel like Alice in Wonderland. Next to the Rose Test Garden is the tranquil Portland Japanese Garden<\/strong> which is well worth a visit too (admission fee applies).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One day a friend told me that he wanted to get his first tattoo to remind him of Portland, Oregon \u2013\u00a0the city he\u2019d visited many times and fell in love with. As weird as it may sound, the famous kitsch pattern on the carpet at the PDX airport is what he wanted forever inked on… Continue reading Keeping Portland Weird<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":1669,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,2,4,30,15],"tags":[32,317,10],"authors":[],"class_list":["post-477","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-destination","category-experiences","category-explore","category-food","category-usa-canada","tag-foodie","tag-portland","tag-tips","entry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nKeeping Portland Weird | Expedia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.expedia.co.nz\/stories\/portland-travel-guide\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Keeping Portland Weird | Expedia\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"One day a friend told me that he wanted to get his first tattoo to remind him of Portland, Oregon \u2013\u00a0the city he\u2019d visited many times and fell in love with. 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