Oregon Convention Center

One of the 25 largest museums in the country, the Portland Art Museum showcases impressive touring exhibitions and permanent collections of American, European, Asian, Native American, and contemporary art. With over 35,000 works of art, it is the region's most comprehensive visual arts resource.

The Pittock Mansion was home to Portland pioneers Henry and Georgiana Pittock from 1914 to 1919. With its eclectic architectural design and richly decorated interior, including family artifacts, the Pittock Mansion stands today as a living memorial of this family’s contributions to the blossoming city of Portland and its people. They began planning and designing their new home in 1909. The mansion was completed in 1914, replete with stunningly progressive features including a central vacuum system, intercoms, and indirect lighting. The house also creatively incorporated Turkish, English, and French designs. In keeping with their loyalty to their home state, the Pittocks hired Oregon craftsmen and artisans, and used Northwest materials to build the house. The final estate included the mansion, a three-car garage, a greenhouse, and the Italianate gate lodge servants’ residence, all situated on 46 acres of land almost 1,000 feet above downtown Portland. A house of historical significance and visual magnificence, the Pittock Mansion today offers us a uniquely personal opportunity to peek into the past, and study our world as it was - from the viewpoint of one Portland family.

Where Imagination Lives! Families can experience a world of educational hands-on exhibits, art studios and live performances. Make a splash in the better and wetter Water Works. Dig into fun in the Dig Pit. Paint your face, put on a costume and see yourself on TV. Join the construction crew in Building Bridgetown. Role play in the Kid City Market and Cafe. Turn trash into treasures in The Garage. Catch a puppet show or create your own.

Lan Su Chinese Garden is one of Portland’s greatest treasures—a powerfully inspiring experience that takes you through time, offering a window into Chinese culture, history and way of thinking. Ever changing, Lan Su always has something new to offer - by the minute, by the hour, and with the seasons. Enter the wonderland.

Powell's City of Books is a book lover's paradise, the largest used and new bookstore in the world. Located in downtown Portland, Oregon and occupying an entire city block, the City stocks more than a million new and used books. Nine color coded rooms house over 3,500 different sections, offering something for every interest, including an incredible selection of out-of-print and hard-to-find titles. Be sure to grab a map – the store takes up an entire city block and it’s easy to get lost among 1 million books.

Trek through the tropics amid the sounds of birds, monkeys and other creatures. You’re not in West Africa; you’re in Portland at the zoo’s African Rain Forest exhibit. After you’ve survived the steamy tropics, dry off in the savanna, where giraffes, rhinos and hippos graze. From the tundras of Alaska to the coastal waters of Peru, travel around the world in an afternoon.

Summer is, of course, the busiest time of year at Portland Parks & Recreation’s renowned International Rose Test Garden in Washington Park. The nearly 7,000 rose bushes are ready to burst into bloom, filling the hillside with a riot of color and fragrance. The garden is regularly featured in articles worldwide as one of the “not-to-be-missed” highlights of a trip to Portland. The garden is open daily from 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. for self-guided tours.

Located on the east bank of the Willamette River across from the south end of Waterfront Park, this modern science museum has six huge halls, and both kids and adults find the exhibits fun and fascinating. This is a hands-on museum, and everyone is urged to get involved with displays, from a science playground for young children to physics and chemistry labs for older children. Simulated earthquakes and tornadoes are perennial favorites. There's plenty of pure entertainment at an OMNIMAX theater and the Kendall Planetarium, which features laser-light shows and astronomy presentations. The USS Blueback submarine (used in the film The Hunt for Red October) is docked here, and tours are given daily. A paved pathway runs beside OMSI and heads north to the Vera Katz Eastbank Esplanade and south 3 miles to Oaks Bottom amusement park. Along the pathway beside the museum, there are several interesting informational plaques about the history of Portland and its relationship to the Willamette River. OMSI is also the departure point for several different boat cruises up and down the Willamette River.