Beautiful | wildlife | many photo ops…read more This is a beautiful little gem to visit if you're visiting Portland. It's like Hoyt Arboretum combined with the Japanese Tea Garden. We paid $9 for each adult and $6 for our 8yr old (our 23mo old was free). We stayed about an hour to explore with our kids. There is a little parking lot out front that was pretty full, but we were lucky to find one person leaving when we arrived. Across the street is Reed College, so I am unsure where there is extra parking for most visitors. A wedding was happening while we were visiting. This place is really a perfect venue for weddings just like Hoyt Arboretum. They closed off a portion of the park to host the wedding. There are restrooms open while the wedding was happening. What I loved about this park that sets it apart from Hoyt is the views of a lake and family waterfall. The walkway is nice so you can view the lake filled with ducks, herons, and beavers! I spotted some tadpoles and beautiful birds out and about. A special thing during our visit was seeing a bald eagle nesting in the tall tree with its baby. SO CUTE and SPECIAL! This park offers a lot of opportunities to wander and view some great scenery. It's well maintained and has plenty of shade throughout. Some areas are family friendly but I'd say to keep a close eye on your toddlers around the pond. Bring a camera. Lots of great views. Very peaceful. Would love to come back here again, especially during fall for vibrant colors.

We didn't have access to a large part of the park even though we were charged full price. This…read moreseems greedy and unprofessional. My girlfriend had to go to the restroom and I waited for her outside with our dog. This extremely rude employee named Milo came by and insisted that I move to another area because we were close to the event entrance. I told him that we were far enough behind the sign and he doubled down on being impolite and aggressive. Avoid this park as it is a waste of money and time. We came here on a Saturday after driving for about half an hour and should have gone elsewhere instead.

My favorite street festival in Portland! Yes, it is super crowded. Like side by side people filling…read morethe entire street! So go with expectations! The bars, restaurants and shops along this stretch of Mississippi extend their business into the sidewalks and the street itself is lined with tents occupied by vendors of every imaginable kind. Jewelry, clothing, food products, pottery, art, leather, macrame, handbags, belts, wood carvings, plants, massage oils, baked goods, Tarot Card readers and more! Many are handmade from local artisans, some are mass produced, and some resale. It's a mixed bag. There are three stages with music from local bands playing throughout the day and night, schedule provided online so you can plan accordingly. If you choose to sit within the gated area, you must be 21 or older since they serve alcohol in this area. Especially love the Norman Sylvester Band - they always get the crowd up and dancing and we plan our time to coincide with their performance! The bars and restaurants get super crowded, obviously. Bar hopping is the thing at this street fair! The restaurants and bars require people to be 21 or older, so families be prepared and choose appropriate. To satisfy your hunger, stop at one or more of the many amazing Food Trucks, so popular in Portland and now part of Portland's appeal. The trucks are located in dedicated sections at some of the cross streets, like N. Failing, and also throughout Mississippi. Ribs are always in high demand, as is the fried chicken! There are Thai, African, Mediterranean, Southern, Mexican, Chinese, American food trucks with some trucks offering healthy bowls (Fuego) and crepes (NE Creperie). An endless variety to satisfy everyone's cravings and budget. The Bourbon Beignets cart is a must, their New Orleons style beignets are to die for! On a sunny day, it gets even hotter because of the crowds - escape into the shops for Air Conditioning. Parking is exactly as expected at a crowded street festival in an old neighborhood with on-street parking. Take Uber or a Lyft or park a few blocks away. Fortunately because of my tiny car, I can always squeeze into a spot! This fair is dog friendly. And of course people friendly, attracting so much diversity that you will wonder, is this Portland? Just remember it's challenging to walk down the street as a single so pushing strollers or holding hands of toddlers may be difficult. Same with a leashed dogs. If your dog does not enjoy crowds, I'd leave them home. The Mississippi Street Fair is a great way to spend a few hours, day or night, for the best people watching, great music, delicious food and a feeling of community. I already have it in my calendar for next year!

Visited from WA…read more Cons: There's plenty of artists but not artisans. If you're looking for artisan work this is not the place A mix of handmade stuff with a lot of commercial booths Plenty of food options but many booths have hard to understand menus, not well organized Overall food wasn't very attractive. Not sure if it's presentation or something else. Not enough seating for food Pros: Great people watching experience Plenty of food options even though not very attractive Music stages Plenty of restaurants around in case you don't want to eat at the fair Overall it was an ok experience. I wouldn't come back here.

This was my first time at this particular Renaissance Faire and the last Ren Fair I'd been to was…read morein the Bay Area back in the 90's!! So I was SUPER excited to bring my family here. We drove up from Grants Pass just for this faire! We arrived around 10:30am and luckily enough found a decent parking spot fairly quickly. We were very confused when we saw the line, it was several blocks long and seemed to be doubling around....we initially could not figure out where the end of the line was. When we finally figured it out we discovered the wait was over 2 hours long! We did not get inside the Faire till around 12:45ish I believe. Of course we missed the opening ceremony. Being newbies we were not dressed up so we ended up buying outfits to wear from the vendors.... beautiful options but very expensive! Still, once we got dressed up and in the spirit we enjoyed ourselves tremendously!! Almost everyone was decked out in costumes, which was so much fun to witness!! Many people were decked out so elaborately and authentically, it looked as professional as a movie set!! Just incredible!! We were also VERY impressed with the quality of merchandise....the majority of vendors were selling beautiful high end or hand crafted items. I loved what I got! Although the prices were much higher than I've seen in recent times, still I guess you have to pay to play. The food lines were ridiculous! Very chintzy portions for waaaayyyy overpriced food. The only thing we got to eat was a very anemic almost empty looking gyro for the outrageous price of $14 each, the taste was decent....but after waiting an hour in line to get it? Not worth it. I would bring my own food next time. Luckily I did get a beer and the commemorative mug which was soooooo pretty! The beer line went super fast which was nice. Overall I loved going to this Ren faire on their opening day, Saturday which was Fantasy/Fairy day! If I lived closer I'd go every weekend and see it all! I sadly did not get to see the jousting or any little shows as we were not well prepared or organized enough this time around. We did stay the entirety of the faire and only left at closing time around 7:00pm.

We've gone every year for the last four. Faire has been a constant and something we've looked…read moreforward to every year since we started going. Usually parking is a pain but the line has never been more than maybe 10 min wait. No ADA accessibility was a final straw for my disabled mother last year.. AND THEN this first Saturday was a joke and we all left highly disappointed. There weren't enough portas in the parking lot, so tp was out and tanks were full by 330ish. We missed most of the shows waiting for 2.5 hours to get in with one of the longest lines I've ever seen (don't forget having families stand in the road). Then we found out most of our favorite faire food was sold out. Waited in line for other food to be told they had very limited options. Proceeded to wait almost an hour for mead. Highly disappointed in the fact that Faire sold as many tickets as they did but continued to keep ONE entrance, ONE check in booth, and the same amount of space. Also seems like the food vendors were highly unprepared for the amount of people. Unless things change, I don't see us spending money for this Faire next year. Which is a huge shame. AND ON TOP OF IT ALL, people couldn't even be bothered to say HAZZAH.

What a great festival - delicious food and pastries, traditional dancing, children's activities,…read moreand warm and welcoming people! I'm so glad I saw an ad on Facebook and decided to take the ride out to St. George Orthodox Church where this festival is held. I met the most wonderful people, had tons of fun, and will come back every year for this annual event. Just a short drive from Portland, there is ample parking in their lot and on the street. The driveway is lined with different tents containing food from local restaurants, like Nicholas, henna painting, some jewelry, cookies and pastries, and an entire area dedicated to games for the children. Inside the church was a stage where the traditional dancing took place at a few scheduled times. There were cookies and pastries available in packages or you could buy individual pieces. I bought baklava, which was delicious - sweet, but not too sweet - and worth the trip out there! Also bought date cookies that were so good with tea. I had planned on buying a spinach pie and meat pie to bring home to eat, but when the gentleman plated the meat pie, fresh from the oven, I decided to eat it there. When I came upon an outdoor area with tables, a group welcomed me, then insisted I join them. Within minutes I was part of the conversation and laughter. Next thing I knew, 3 hours passed! It was like being with family. Amazing. We exchanged numbers and have already gotten together for a movie, HH, and this weekend we are meeting at the Arab Festival at Oak Park and a Labor Day BBQ. Seriously. Crazy. Never would have guessed that my detour to the 42nd Annual Middle Eastern Festival would have resulted in two new beautiful friendships. I swear, I feel like they adopted me!

I had never been but my fiance had several years back pre covid. We knew parking was going to be…read morehard plus we drive a truck so we always expect that. We found parking with in 10 minutes and only had to walk 1/2 a mile to the festival. I know my fiance was a little sad they didn't have the coins for currency but the bracelets made it quick. As she explained the event to me I was worried we would be there 4-5 hours stuck in long lines. We were there at 12 pm Saturday and the most we waited for 10 minutes. Things were quick, effient and well ran. Let's talk about the food!!! OMG amazing!!! We tried everything pretty much but shared it amongst our self. We left so full and we took a few items home we couldn't finish. Admission was $5 then it was what ever you wanted to purchase food wise. So much fun!!

FINALLY attended. I loved it. The iconography in the church alone is worth the two hour trip, and…read moredrinking Greek wine, eating Greek food, and listening to Greek music in war-torn Portland is a treat. My favorite part was absolutely and by far the 'tour' we took. It was actually a beautiful lecture on Greek Orthodoxy by a devout priest with a thick accent and the charisma of ten men. I learned more about the differences between most americanized xtianity and what they practice in that beautiful place than I ever had before, and was blessed to do so in a beautiful setting on a beautiful day surrounded by joy and the smells and sounds of revelry. I am far and beyond not xtian, I practice something somewhat wider, but by my own rules I get to partake in all ideas of spirituality and many of the practices in many flavors with great exuberance. In this. Some days are more beautiful than others. This man, this priest, was truly moved by his beliefs, and I believe Greek priests to be some of the most educated practitioners of any dogma. He had such a beautiful grasp of the nature of his church, and a wonderful knack for communicating those ideas to any newcomer who might cross his path with interest. So unlike the many small clickish churches in the community I'm surrounded by. Instead of exclusionary, it is open-armed, ready to share without force what they believe with examples and proof as to the impact such beliefs can have in a life that needs it. It truly feels welcoming. If you have the chance to walk into one of their public events, do it. Even if it's just to learn some history of a colorful people and stare at the beautiful walls that will surround you. The upstairs presentation of beloved loaned items that represent a variety of subjects in the history of the culture was impressive, and the enthusiasm of those showing it off can't be matched. I was heartbroken we couldn't stay for the dancing. The venue is well organized and easy to navigate, and it's one of the few festivals I've been in Oregon where people were polite all around. Eat the food and you're completely winning! They are a community who love to feed you! Opa!

Went as a chaperone on a field trip to the Rice Rock Museum. It is in an older family home turned…read moremuseum. The kids enjoyed learning and exploring all the rock exhibits. They all got to pick one rock to take home which was fun to see what rock each kid picked out. They have a robust selection of rocks and it is well organized. We were split into 2 groups and one group loved their tour guide and we did not. Our tour guide was dismissive at times and didn't seem to be very comfortable around kids. We loved chatting with the older gentleman that found the dinosaur bones with his daughter and the story behind it.

A concise review by a parent:…read more - Admission is free for kids under 5. - they have a changing table in the bathroom - 1 free rock for all guests with admission - they have an education room with a fun capsule dispensing machine, so being some quarters for the kiddos! - they had a cool display based off of Minecraft, and although I've never played it I thought it was super cool and fun! - great colors, collections of fossils, and crystals! - spent about 1.5 hours here with my 2 year old! Great calm and easy activity! Recommended!

Early autumn is one of my favorite times of the year. I love reaching for a sweater when the leaves…read morestart to fall and West Coast foliage explodes with the colors of aspen, maple, oak and more. Once the August heat lightens up, it's the perfect time to hop in the car from Seattle and drive down to one of our favorite American fall food festivals- FEAST. This rustic food festival is just as laid back as it is utterly scrumptious. You'll find a smorgasbord of yummy eats from a range of more than 80 Oregon chefs, 38 wineries, 18 breweries, and 20 artisanal food producers. It's rather hard not to roll out of this event, but I must say, this one is worth your pants feeling a little tighter! If you don't want to take my word for it go find it for yourself. This year day of feasting cost $95 per ticket.

Hello everyone Visiting here with the wife and my first…read morething I thought about when entering the area was. "Man there's a lot of booze here!" and there is. There are lots of vendors that will let you taste their wines or beers. There was some good food there that you could sample too but wished for some heartier food. Before you go lake sure you research who is going so you can get some samples from them because some of the vendors can run out of food or dessert in our case. They also provide you with free water if you need it because it was a hot day the day we went. Have fun everyone!

There was a parade! There was a dog wash! There were vendors from around the neighborhood and from…read moreelsewhere handing out samples and selling beautiful wares! All the shops were having sales! There was even an appearance from the mobile Voodoo Doughnut truck! I had a heck of a time at Multnomah Days, and I think it really showed the best of my neighborhood to my boyfriend and his visiting Uncle. If you missed it this year, you really missed out. Just because Multnomah Village is south of the 405, doesn't make it any less of a great Portland neighborhood. There is ample parking at the Multnomah Center and Loaves and Fishes, as well as bus access. It's only from 31st to Garden Home along Capitol Hwy, a very short and sweet stroll. I had tons of fun and enjoyed milling around with my neighbors, I look forward to next year!

I had the BEST time today!!!!!!!!!!!!…read more This is a little bitty fair and parade put on in Multnomah Village. I'm not sure how long it's been going on annually, but It's been many many year for sure. About 120 vendors line tents up Captiol Highway in Multnomah Village. Lots and lots of fun. Some really amazing stuff to buy. There was the cutest little parade that lasted about an hour. Capitol highway through Multnomah Village is not very long, which makes this snippet of a fair quite cute. Did I say cute yet?? CUTE. So, if you happen to have kids, or you are one yourself, you should really come and check out next year's Multnomah Days. It's a beautiful time of year to get out and enjoy this little secret of Portland.