Cascadia Kids

Family travel in the Pacific Northwest and BC

Portland Metro & Mt Hood

35 Free and Cheap Things to Do in Portland with Kids

What’s kid-friendly, free and fun in Portland, Oregon? Here’s a list to get you started. What would you add?

Outdoor Portland with Kids (Free & Cheap)

These are activities that are mostly outside (you have to put on a coat or sunscreen, and plan to be outside for a while)

  1. Play in Salmon Springs Fountain’s 137 jets at Tom McCall Waterfront Park.
  2. Try on glasses made from forks or buy a spoon-fork (spork!) with melded-together handles in Spoonman’s booth at Portland Saturday Market. Or listen to live music, pick up a treat from a food vendor, or buy a new hat.
  3. Go for a bird-watching hike on Sauvie Island.
  4. Look for leprechauns in the tiniest park in America—Mill Ends Park (although to whoever recently chopped down the tree: you’re a horrible person).
  5. Seek Simpsons references in Portland’s Alphabet District (including Reverend Lovejoy, Mayor Quimby and Ned Flanders).
  6. Stop and smell Barbara Streisand at the International Rose Test Gardens. You won’t even get slapped with a restraining order; the rose is named after the singer.
  7. Listen to family tunes at Portland Farmers Market.
  8. Sit in the Jamison Square waterfall and disappearing pool.
  9. Find Ramona Quimby at Grant Park.
  10. Climb on rocks at a”nature-based playground” at Westmoreland Park.
  11. Play on an (extinct) volcano at Mt. Tabor Park.
  12. Drink from a Benson Bubbler.
  13. Speak out against early bedtimes from Pioneer Courthouse Square’s Echo Chamber (next to the Starbucks). Standing on the circle in the center amplifies even tiny voices, in front of a small amphitheater.
  14. Head to a Portland Park — for movies or a concert.
  15. Cool off with 620 feet of water at the second-largest waterfall in the U.S. — Multnomah Falls.
  16. Cycle along one of Portland’s kid-friendly bike paths.
  17. Let your mouth travel ’round the world — sample dishes from Portland’s food carts.
  18. Listen to a summer lunch concert at Noon Tunes at Pioneer Courthouse Square.
  19. Party pretty at the Portland Rose Festival.

Indoor Portland with Kids (Free & Cheap)

What to do with kids on a rainy or way-too-hot day? Ride an air-conditioned MAX, shelter under the awnings at the Saturday Market, and more.

  1. Enjoy a $3 family movie at McMenamin’s Kennedy School.
  2. Watch ice skaters twirl at the Lloyd Center Ice Rink.
  3. Enjoy one of Portland’s kid-friendly museums on a free or cheap day.
  4. Ride the MAX to the Washington Park stop, the deepest train station in North America.
  5. Browse the picture books at Powell’s City of Books.
  6. Make art from SCRAP‘s bins of items that can be “creatively reused.”
  7. Get inches away from salmon and horror-movie eels at Bonneville Dam in the Columbia Gorge, about a half-hour to 45-minute drive away.
  8. Take your Matchbox-obsessed preschooler to World of Speed to drool over the life-sized versions of race cars. Kids 5 and under get in free, and kids 5-12 are only $5.
  9. Try a Spanish, Mandarin or ASL storytime at Green Bean Books.
  10. Bop along to a family-friendly music show at Milagros Boutique, or look for one of the bookstore’s craft-and-storytime events.
  11. Play Ms. Pac-Man, Pole Position and other retro games at Ground Kontrol with a pocketful of quarters.
  12. Ride the Portland Streetcar.
  13. Enjoy a cup of drinking chocolate at Cacao. Buzzing with caffeine, repeat 1-35.
  14. Enjoy the Preschool Skate and Play at Oaks Amusement Park.
  15. Get your thrills from the Portland Aerial Tram.
  16. Count the animals (or another fun art-museum game) at Portland Art Museum, where kids are admitted free until age 18.

Post Updated January 19, 2020 with fresh links and content.

Portland Airport with Kids: Play Areas, Shopping and More

Whether you’re arriving Portland to enjoy a wonderful family vacation, or you’re headed out of town, the Portland International Airport (PDX) offers plenty of kid-friendly diversions. Who’d think that going to the airport could be so enjoyable? Who knows, you might even want to arrive a few minutes early.

Play areas for kids at Portland International Airport

Portland Airport Play Area things for kids to do
Portland Airport Play Area

Two play areas keep little ones busy at PDX. One play area is located near the D/E security checkpoint, pre-security, and the other is located on Concourse C near gate C17 beyond the security checkpoints. Tired parents and grandparents can rest weary legs on the nearby seats (just don’t fall asleep!).

The airport’s play area located near the D/E security checkpoint (pre-security) offers a full play structure equipped with two slides, climbing stairs and a creative space for imaginative play. The space also offers three Lego tables and a wooden activity set for toddlers.

Portland Airport Play Area a fun thing for kids to do
Portland Airport Play Area

PDX’s play area on Concourse C (post-security) offers an airplane-themed play space for toddlers and a flat screen TV.

Family restrooms at the Portland airport

Family rest rooms are located near Gates A2, C3 and D1.

Changing stations are available in every restroom at PDX. Here’s a Portland airport terminal map for further reference on where each is located.

Areas for nursing moms at the Portland airport

During normal business hours (8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday – Friday, excluding holidays), the PDX Conference Center, located pre-security, provides mothers a private area with seating to nurse their infants and an electrical outlet for pumps. This room is offered free of charge on a space available basis.

Of course, in Oregon, moms are free (and encouraged) to nurse wherever they like, whenever they like. I’m not making it up — it’s the law (read more at the Oregon Health Authority). While it’s fine if you don’t breastfeed, breastfeeding in public is very normal throughout the Pacific Northwest.

After security, pumping moms can head into one of many rest rooms throughout the airport that offer a convenient bench with nearby electrical outlets. The rest room near Gate D-3 offers a bench near a bank of sinks away from the toilet stalls.

You will also find benches and nearby electrical outlets in rest rooms near the ABC security checkpoint, on the baggage claim level.

Travel Tips for the Portland International Airport with kids

At the Portland airport, there was once a children’s toy store, but the store didn’t renew its lease. Thankfully, there are three Powell’s Books at the airport; one located pre-security in the Oregon Market, and the other two are located on Concourses C and D, beyond the security checkpoints. Each of these locations has an assortment of children’s toys and books to select from to keep little ones busy and entertained while traveling (more than 30 percent of their inventory is children’s toys). These locations even buy books — so you might be able to sell an already-read book, then buy a new board book for your toddler.

Need more help navigating PDX? Visit the Port of Portland’s website.

Thanks to Annie Linstrom and Steve Johnson at the Port of Portland for background information and photos.

Best Hikes with Kids near Portland, Oregon

Today, we interview Bonnie Henderson, the author of Best Hikes with Kids: Oregon. Let’s find out more about hiking in Northwestern Oregon.

Do you have any favorite rainy-day hikes in Oregon? Is there an area of Oregon that’s particularly wonderful for family hiking, even during spring or fall? Why do you like that kid-friendly hike?

Bonnie: I love hiking at the Oregon Coast in the winter when the weather is crummy. Not if it’s pouring, and not on the beach itself, but when you’re tired of the same old trails around your house and the Cascades are still snowed under, the forest right along the coast is a great place to go. I’m thinking of the Fort to Sea Trail near Astoria-Warrenton, for instance, and trails in Oswald West State Park. The big trees provide some protection from rain and wind, and the forest is so lush and alive. In the fall you’re likely to find lots of different kinds of mushrooms popping up, and in the early spring there’s bright yellow skunk cabbage.

I live in Eugene, so I love to hike at Cape Perpetua, just south of Yachats, in the winter. It’s usually not too cold on rainy days; wear decent rain gear, bring a change of clothes, have a thermos of something hot to drink back in the car, and don’t worry about getting a little wet.

The Columbia Gorge National Scenic Area is great for hiking with kids in fall and winter (as long as there’s no ice storm) and even better in spring, when the wildflowers are blooming and waterfalls are gushing. I haven’t been out to the Sandy River Delta Trail since the Confluence Project bird blind was completed, but I look forward to going; I expect that will be a great hike with kids, and just a short drive east of Portland at the west end of the gorge.


Q. What’s your favorite hike that’s either in or near Portland?

Bonnie: There are SO many, but with kids I really like Tryon Creek State Park (lots of choices of short-ish loop trails) and trails on Sauvie Island (especially Oak Island). Sauvie Island is great because it’s SO close but feels like you’re really getting out of the city (which you are). The trails at the Audubon Sanctuary on NW Cornell Road are close in and great to walk with young children.

Q. Can you suggest a good one-night backpacking hike with kids, anywhere near Portland or Eugene?

Bonnie: My very favorite is Bobby Lake Trail, in the Willamette National Forest. It’s probably farther than Portlanders want to drive, so I’ll describe it and you’ll see what qualities I think make a great backpack with kids; you could look for something like this close to wherever you live. (It’s hard to find something this good that’s close to Portland AND uncrowded.) Bobby Lake is a smallish lake near Waldo Lake Area in the central Cascades. It’s a pretty boring hike in, but it’s flat and only about 2.5 miles, so very doable for almost any kid. There are a number of good campsites scattered along the edge. There’s a huge rock that slopes into the lake, which is great for sunning and launching a swim. (Many beautiful mountain lakes have marshy or rocky shoreline and aren’t inviting for swimming). And from the lakeside campsite you can stage day hikes, such as a circumnavigation of the lake or a hike up a nearby peak for a great view. It is very mosquito-y there, which is true for many lakes in the high Cascades, so I wouldn’t recommend going (especially with kids) before the second half of August.

Q. Are there any accessible, close-in to Portland hikes that are great for snowshoeing after snow falls or before it melts?

Bonnie: The Crosstown Trail on Mount Hood comes to mind. It goes through the woods just above Government Camp, so you can rent snowshoes in the village and be snowshoeing in a few minutes. It’s in the trees, so you aren’t exposed to wind and driving snow if it’s a snowy day. It’s about an hour’s drive from Portland, but it’s rare that there is snow any closer than that (enough for snowshoeing). It’s great to be out in the deep quiet of winter, and if you stop to eat, guaranteed you’ll immediately be found by a party of “camp robbers” (gray jays or Clark’s nutcrackers) trying to snatch food out of your hand!

Readers, do you have a favorite family hike in Oregon, Washington or British Columbia? Do you mind sharing your secret ramble?

Peak Escape: Timberline Lodge, Oregon with kids

Sleeping in your overstuffed bed at Timberline Lodge on Oregon’s 11,239-foot Mount Hood, you may feel like you’re the only mama on the mountain. Yes, despite your children snoring in their beds. Knotty doug fir paneling wraps you up in a cabin-like interior  — and whether rain or snow falls, it’s cozy and silent inside.

The interior public area at Timberline Lodge; a great place to grab a book and curl up.

We recently visited Timberline Lodge for an overnight stay, and I can’t recommend it enough. The lodge offers ski lifts right outside the door  and 1930s-era history inside the somber stone walls. Built as part of a WPA project to put the unemployed back to work, the lodge’s timber frame still stands solid at 5,960 feet (right above treeline) on Hood, and is now a National Historic Landmark. Little details, handcrafted generations before — animals in stained glass, curlicued ironwork, hide-woven chairs and wooden deer, beavers and eagles carved into staircase newells — delight modern-day children. Appliquéd wagon trains roam across your bedroom curtains. You’re sleeping amidst living history.

What to do at Timberline with kids?

Right above the lodge, families can hike along the Pacific Crest Trail (north to Canada, south to Mexico) for an easy mile or two along wildflower-lined paths. Then take a dip in the hot tub on a chilly day, or go out at night under a starry sky.

Other family-friendly features at Timberline include a movie list and DVD players in some rooms and lots of opportunities for critter-spotting: watch chipmunks gather right outside the lodge’s plate-glass windows and birds flit through the few, lonely trees. At night, bats chase moths under the moonlight.

Some families may also enjoy the year-round Magic Mile Sky Ride, a chairlift that whisks you to the 7000-foot level. In winter, of course, cross-country and downhill skiing is right outside the door.

In summer, visit the Mt. Hood Adventures Park at Skibowl for go-karts and other rides. In winter, Skibowl is also  an affordable downhill ski destination, and just a few miles from Timberline.

Where to eat at Timberline with kids?

Dining options are unfortunately limited and expensive. But at times, kids eat for free in the upscale dining room in the early evening hours (when we were there, between 4:30-6:30). Ask about this at check-in; not all staff offer the info. I suggest the Paul Bunyan-themed Blue Ox Bar, where The Big Man and His Big Ox are enshrined in stained glass. For my 4-year-old son, the images spurred an immediate fascination with an old-timey superhero (When Paul Bunyan was a baby, his crawling caused earthquakes! Trees were his toothpicks!).

Make your own OJ at the Timberline Lodge’s breakfast buffet

For a winter treat, head upstairs to the amazing views at the families-welcome Ram’s Head Bar, where you can order a hot chocolate featuring Dutch-processed cocoa and English toffee bits; the whole delicious mess is topped with whipped cream. A cup easily delights (and rewires) two tired-out children.

Timberline Lodge rooms and rates for families

Only 70 rooms are available at Timberline Lodge, and they’re not cheap. Look for offseason deals (spring, fall), midweek peak-season stays or combo midweek winter packages, if you want to stay in a four-person suite. Prices range from $180 for a simple Queen with rollaway to $310 for a room tricked out with a fireplace.

Or if you want to visit for far less, reserve one of the hotel’s “Chalet Medium” rooms, for around $125/night. Yes, you’ll share a bathroom with other guests. But I visited the four-person, bunkbed-equipped Chalet Medium room (small and tidy, with a in-room dining table) and the shared bathrooms. The bathrooms are very clean and not heavily used. In fact, the shared bathroom was bigger than our Queen-room bathroom. And besides, kids love bunking out; sleeping top bunk above the grownups is a wacky way to sleep.

You’ll find more about visiting Mt. Hood in my book Northwest Kid Trips: Portland, Seattle, Victoria, Vancouver (as a daytrip from Portland). Have any other questions about Mt. Hood or Timberline? Just ask.

Portland in a Day: 12 hours of fun

Where do you go in Portland with kids – if you’ve only got a day? My friend Sarah recently came down from Victoria, BC, with her daughter Rowan (age 4) and I wanted to introduce her to the city I grew up in. We only had one day to cover Portland’s Greatest Hits, so I was determined to pack as much as possible into 12 waking hours.

I snagged a four-star hotel room off of Priceline (RiverPlace Hotel, $100/night) using the Priceline bidding method. Once we arrived, we upgraded to a junior suite for $25, which offered a King and a Queen pull-out sofa bed. My kids and I shared the King, Sarah and her daughter shared the Queen.

8:00 a.m. Slappy Cakes. This Southeast Portland restaurant puts a griddle right in the middle of the table – so you can flip your own flapjacks. Choose from buttermilk, zucchini or multigrain, then select your fixins (we chose apples, blueberries and walnuts). The kids had a blast with the griddle. I wouldn’t bring a grabby baby here, but I saw plenty of parents doing so — with no ill effects.

Making breakfast at the kid-friendly Portland restaurant Slappy Cakes
Making breakfast at the kid-friendly Portland restaurant Slappy Cakes

9:30 a.m. Oregon Museum of Science and Industry. We hit OMSI at opening time, and got in as one of the first admissions. We played in the vacuum-powered ball room, let the kids run amok in the Science Playground (it’s best for kids ages 6 and under), took a ride on an earthquake-simulator house and made our hair stand on end in one of OMSI labs.

OMSI with kids
Looking down on OMSI (this is just one section of the two-story science museum)

12:00 noon Pok Pok. This Portland restaurant serves North Thai food – you won’t find Pad Thai here. We asked the server to accommodate and work with our kids’ sensitivity to hot-spice and found some fantastic dishes. The kids gobbled down the roasted peanuts, shrimp chips (like a fluffy cracker) and Phat Si Ew Muu (smoky, fried noodles). They even went for the vinegar drink — which didn’t taste too much like cleaning solution, thank goodness, more like a soury-sweet pop.

Nom nom noodles at Pok Pok, a kid-friendly Portland restaurant
Nom nom noodles at Pok Pok.

1:30 p.m. train ride. We dropped off our car at the waterfront hotel, then walked to downtown Portland. We hopped on the sleek MAX lightrail system at Pioneer Courthouse Square and rode into a tunnel to arrive at the Washington Park station (at 260 feet underground, the deepest station in North America), where we went to…

2:00 p.m. The Portland Children’s Museum. The kids buried my son in the construction zone’s rubber chips, splashed in the water area and built a fort in the child-designed treehouse area. On our way out the door, we spied the book Fifty Dangerous Things (You Should Let Your Children Do) which my daughter begged me to buy. Dangerously, I agreed.

Better than sand in your pants! Burying a brother at the Children's Museum.

4:30 p.m. Finnegan’s Toys and Gifts. We rode the MAX back downtown and made a quick stop in Finnegan’s Toy Store, a toy shop packed with fabulous finds. My daughter picked out a lovely selection of exotic Japanese erasers (two bunnies, a sundae and a toothbrush that come apart in a variety of ways) and Rowan found the perfect doll.

5:00 p.m. Laughing Planet Cafe. We walked 15 blocks over to Laughing Planet, where the food is always fresh and fast. The children’s menu always has offerings under $5 and every menu item can be adjusted in a variety of ways – for example, the “protein” includes Draper Valley chicken, tempeh or tofu.

Kid-friendly restaurant Laughing Planet.
Entertaining ourselves with Japanese erasers at Laughing Planet.

5:45 p.m. Cool Moon Ice Cream. I had to introduce my foodie friend to this Pearl District classic,  which offers handmade ice cream in incredible flavors. The kids and I ordered some marionberry-tinged scoops, while my friend tried a lemon hefeweizen flavor.

6:00 p.m. Powell’s City of Books. We didn’t have much time left before we started reaching meltdown time, so we visited the children’s area for just an hour. At one point, my son had so many superhero books in each hand (and lodged under his chin) that he had trouble navigating the room.

Children's area at Powell's City of Books.
In the Rose Room at Powell's City of Books.

7:00 Waterfront walk. A full stomach, a full mind and tired feet meant that it was time to return to the hotel. We walked through downtown, then along the Tom McCall Waterfront Park – pausing, of course, for a good look at the Salmon Street Springs fountain, where water shoots from 185 jets. On a quiet summer evening, there are few things better than enjoying a good view from the Willamette River.

What did we miss out on? Plenty! For example, we didn’t have time to work in The Oregon Zoo, Sellwood Park, Portland Art Museum, Portland Saturday Market (or the Portland Farmers Market), the Portland Japanese Garden and the Lan Su Chinese Garden. Or the Portland Rose Gardens, for that matter — but my friend does have the lovely Butchart Gardens to console her. Jamison Square’s fountains were shut off (when we walked by), so we didn’t get to splash in the cascading waterfalls.