Oh dear. Another disappointment, but better than Oaks Park last year…read more They need more food vendors! It was not well attended and I doubt it ever will be.

This festival used to be great but horrible management and a lack of vision has all but killed it…read more Gresham? Who in the hell is going to want to drive away out to Gresham for this? Just look at the Greek festival if you want to see what running a festival really should look like.

I was recently invited to attend a live music performance at the Mission Theater…read more McMenamins is of course known for converting historic buildings into venues and restaurants, and this location is no different. It used to be the Swedish Evangelical Mission Covenant Church. There's some cool millwork, antique light fixtures, and large curved staircases, but overall this is on the tamer side for McMenamins properties. The venue had standing room and high-tops on the same level as the stage. Upstairs is theater style seating that was decently comfortable and had a counter spot to put your drink. There weren't any bad views, and the sound system was better than I expected. I think there are two bars, one on each floor, but the upstairs one was closed for the small event I attended. They serve drinks and small bites, not full meals. Parking is challenging nearby.

Fantastic experience! Was here 20 years ago when it was still a movie theater. Now it's a concert…read morevenue and so much fun. Lined up outside about 1.25 hours before the concert. The doors opened up and hour before and we were able to get a seat in the balcony on the first row. The venue was small so every seat was great. The later people came had to stand up on the floor but they came to dance. Listened to Petty Theif...a Tom Petty cover band and had a lot of fun. Pizza, hotdogs, popcorn was the food offering and beer, cider and wine you can eat in your seats with the tables. Got the Mission Theatre stamp for our passport.

A Journey cover band is playing tonight called "Stone in Love". Doors opened at five and the…read moreamphitheater grass filled up fast. You should head there and pick a spot first, then go exploring till the band comes on. You can bring chairs, blankets and your own food. They do have food carts, well known restaurants, beer and wine. Margaritas and other types of canned drinks, too. Definitely event pricing on all of it. The zoo is open so you can see the lions, elephants and lemurs. Lots of volunteers to answer questions. It's it slim pickings on sightings, being so hot, but well worth the $26 ticket price. This is a wonderful family friendly event!

My first time…read more Definitely worth going!!! Even in the rain! Highly recommend especially great for kids.

Yeah....$5 increase in price this year. Will it ever end? $30 for a mug and 10 tickets. Boo…read more Also boo because I didn't get to go this year. Not because I didn't try but I came around 7PM on Friday and the line was astronomical and the place packed. To be expected but seriously....can they perhaps find a larger venue for the future? Plus after waiting in line FOREVER they had kind of stopped letting people in due to capacity. Needless to say I went home empty handed...*blast you Holiday Ale Fest!*

Well, I am officially a Portlander. I have been to my first beer festival and it only took a year…read moreto do it. Yes, I volunteered for Widmer's Octoberfest back in September, but that was just their beer alone and the Octo was good to me. The Holiday Ale Festival was all new to me and way too many beers to choose from. Each ticket got you a 4oz sample, some took 2 tickets. Here's what I tried and enjoyed. Deluxe Brewing- Dunkel The Halls. I just really like dunkels and this was a pretty decent one. Ex Novo Brewing- Moonstriker. Mexican Hot Chocolate Porter. I didn't get a lot of the chocolate or spice flavor like I thought I'd get. The beer smelled really good, but the taste wasn't as great. Fort George Brewing- Santa's Dinner Jacket. Bourbon Barrel-Aged Imperial Red Ale. This was my second favorite beer of the night. Really great smell and a really good beer. Oakshire- Prestidigitation. White Chocolate Milk Stout. MY FAVORITE BEER OF THE NIGHT. It also happened to be the first beer I tried. I read about it before coming and knew I'd like it. The smell, inviting and the flavor of caramel and chocolate. I'm sure it would be perfect with a scoop of ice cream. A beautiful dessert beer. Old Town Brewing- Bluth's Original Chocolate Banana Hefeweizen. I'm not a big fruit beer person and wasn't sure how bananas would work. The smell was ripe with fruit. I was not crazy for the taste. Thankfully, my brother did enjoy it. Six Point Brewing- Lump of Coal Porter. A Brooklyn beer with a great dark flavor to it. I also like the play on the name. Stickmen Brewing- Big Black Banana. Dunkelweizen. Great banana smell, lack of banana taste. Burnside Brewing- Permafrost (Limited Release beer) Winter Strong Ale. Whiskey barrels help to give this one its strong taste. Nice beer and very smooth. I also got a really great Bavarian pretzel. Try it with the spicy mustard they have. Really good with a touch of horseradish. I can't wait for my next festival. Who's coming with me???

Really nice festival with good vibes and friendly people. Music, atmosphere and organization were…read moregreat. Everything felt relaxed and fun. Definitely worth visiting if you're in Portland. Would love to come back next year.

Ferris wheel and Fireworks and Parades, oh my! As a new Portlander, I wanted to learn about the…read morehistory of the festival to feel more connected to my experience. Here's what I learned: Portland used to be the biggest in the PNW. When Seattle started gaining on us, we hosted a world's trade fair to show them up (1905 Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition). Queue the roses: after a fancy lady in our town (Georgiana Pittock), got back from vacation in England where she saw pretty flowers, she hosted a rose competition that turned into a party followed by a city parade where blooms covered horses, floats, wagons, surreys, floats, and a whopping four automobiles. Portland Rose Society starts popping (now the oldest and largest rose society in the country). To prep for the Expo, a bunch of rose nerds sprinkled their seeds all over the city and then some dude proposed an annual festival of roses + carnival to keep up the momentum from hosting the '05 Expo and "brand us the summer capital of the world". Bam! Portland Rose Festival, established in 1907. The non-profit foundation was formed to fund future extravaganzas. I heard The Grand Floral Parade is currently the second largest all-floral parade in the country, and with 500K spectators - it's the largest single-day spectator event in Oregon. I'm told the children's parade is the biggest in the world. If you see people all decked out in white suits with straw hats (the big wigs wear capes), that's our Royal Rosarians: official greeters + ambassadors of the city. They created a scholarship for a royal court made up of high school princess from each school in the metro. The queen is titled Queen of Rosaria during the festival. I was curious why there were so many people dressed in costumes and learned that the Starlight 5K kicks off the Starlight Parade and costumes are the thing. I loved the night parade (super fun) which started as an illuminated parade when electricity was pretty fresh in 1907. I hope learning about its roots helps you appreciate all of the festivities like it helped me. It's not just a carnival (which was OK I guess), it's a way for our community to participate in celebrating ourselves together. ~The more you know~

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.

As a native Portlander, it's incredibly insulting to have the prime 4th of July location for the…read moreCity of Portland taken over by this festival, which was free with donations for DECADES but now charges $55 and won't allow families to bring outside food. THIS WAS WHERE PORTLAND FAMILIES HAD THEIR PICNICS AND WATCHED FIREWORKS! This festival should be made free with donations again or move to a different weekend. The festival is nice, BUT Portlanders have a right to use their own huge, central park location for a 4th of July celebration EVERYONE can attend, like any other city. I have no idea why people have not stood up to this outrage the past several years.

Back after a 2 year absence (pandemic) the Blues Festival did not disappoint. They always have a…read morefantastic lineup consisting of some of the best blues artists around and also some jam bands and folk music that crosses all genres. This high energy event attracts people from Portland and all over the country. Dancing, chilling, people watching - it's perfect for all of that. The festival takes place on the waterfront lawn in front of RiverPlace Marina with views of the Williamette River and bridges. There is not any shade so definitely come prepared with a hat and sunblock. This year the weather was perfect, low 70s and some days overcast, but other years it's been high 90s with blazing sun and lots of sunburned people. There are four stages, two showcase the more well known bands. You can purchase seats or bring your own chair and blanket and sit in the lawn, which is what we do. But get there early or be prepared to squeeze into a spot. Those lucky enough to own or have a friend with a boat, dock in the Marina adding to the ambiance. Even kayaks and paddle boarders flock to this area to enjoy the music. The smell of weed permeates; smoking pot is common, even before it was legal, so just be aware if the smell turns you off. It's everywhere, not limited to specific seating areas. There is an area dedicated to local venders selling music memorabilia, jewelry, clothing (including tie-dye and embroidery), artwork, crafts and local services. Also food carts with varied cuisines, definitely something for everyone. Prices range from $8-15. You can also buy beer, wine and cider. Water stations are throughout and there are lots of portable bathrooms underneath the Hawthorne Bridge. The Festival culminates on July 4th with a phenomenal fireworks display on the river. They shoot them from a barge situated right in front of the Hawthorne Bridge and the fireworks reflect on the water. It's spectacular! Trucks and cars often stop on the various freeways overlooking the river and families gather on the lawns of the surrounding park, esplanade and residential area to picnic and watch the display. The Blues Festival used to be free with a donation of canned goods but now they charge a fee. You can purchase single day tickets or passes for the entire festival. Early bird prices are the way to go. Check their website for details.

We drove down from Seattle to see the Portland Cello project play this newer socially distanced…read moreoutdoor venue. The sound wasn't the best but as we were one pod from the back row of pods I wasn't expecting any miracles related to sound. Entering from Moody as a pedestrian could probably benefit from a crosswalk from the sidewalk side of the street to the gravel pathways leading up to the entry-tent. Also, the road to seating, (as well as everything inside) is hella gravelly with big rocks - so shoe appropriately for walking on medium rocks! You'll thank me later! People are still mostly not clumping seriously in these covid times. The social distancing wasn't oppressively enforced though so, you still get the vibe of being at a concert without being too distant from your fellow peoples. There was a bag check and parking (although we didn't use the parking). There's a couple varieties of chairs in the lot and it seems mostly random which chair style you'll get as well as the pod style of your personal pod (lumber vs. the picket fencing). We all get the glorious astroturf! There was one food truck. One amenities for purchase stand (sunscreen, etc). And a beer/wine truck. We were super grateful for the sunscreen as spousie forget theirs. Everything was e-payment only. On the whole, it was just nice to be around people/at a concert again! It's nice to have an outdoor socially distanced option!

I have seen four movies with pre-show concerts at The Lot. It is an excellent outdoor summer venue…read morein these trying times. You purchase a pod of even numbered seats 2-6. The pods are evenly spaced. The bathrooms are about a dozen porta potties. They do an exceptional job of keeping them clean, even when they have had shows for several days in a row. They have a beer/wine booth, a booth for candy and general items and have two food vendors set up (although only one of them has been operating the last two shows we went to). We have really enjoyed every show we've seen there. My only complaints are that they sell pre-packaged popcorn rather than popping their own. Given how much they have pulled off in making a gravel lot into a comfortable venue, I feel like a popcorn machine should be within their abilities. Also, their screen has a couple discolored segments which was a little distracting while watching a black and white movie. Things to know: 1) There is no cover in the pods, but the sun usually passes behind the hills soon after the show starts. It can also get chilly after dark. 2) It is a gravel lot so be sure to wear thick soled shoes. The stones can be uncomfortable to walk on otherwise. 3) They do allow sealed water bottles but require reusable or open bottles be dumped out before entry. 4) They will check you bag or purse.