We’ve all been there: Someone’s trying to give you directions by describing 10 lefts, 20 rights, and a jumble of cardinal directions. Isn’t it easier to just point out a landmark?
That’s exactly what we’re doing. We have 16 of the most recognizable Portland landmarks — from a leaping neon sign to a skyscraper with a rosy personality. Not only are these local icons easy to remember, but they’ll also get you where you need to go in a jiffy.
Extra credit: Pick your “Seven Wonders of Portland” as you read.
White Stag Sign
Address: 70 NW Couch St.
Nearby: Portland Saturday Market, Voodoo Doughnut Old Town, Lan Su Chinese Garden
One of the most recognizable elements of Portland’s skyline, the “Portland Oregon Sign” has displayed several different messages and advertisements over its lifetime, warmly welcoming westbound travelers on the Burnside Bridge. Each year, the prancing deer’s nose glows red, a la Rudolph, from the day after Thanksgiving through the holiday season. Fun fact: In 1959, White Stag Sportswear’s CEO Harold S. Hirsch added the festive touch as a display of affection for his wife Elizabeth.
Pioneer Courthouse Square hosts Flicks on the Bricks, a free outdoor movie series.
Photo by LWYang
Pioneer Courthouse Square
Address: 715 SW Morrison St., Ste. 702
Nearby: The Nines Hotel, Pioneer Place, Director Park
Throughout its history, this city block fondly referred to as “Portland’s Living Room” has hosted a schoolhouse, hotel, and parking lot, which eventually gave way to today’s public plaza. Fun fact: You can have a brick engraved and installed in the square for $125.
Find Big Pink is a fun game to play wherever you are in Portland.
Photo by Pdx.rollingthunder
“Big Pink”
Address: 111 SW Fifth Ave.
Nearby: Roseland Theater, 5th Avenue Food Cart Pod, Dante’s
Officially called the U.S. Bancorp Tower, the second-tallest building (536 ft) in the City of Roses gets its nickname from the handpicked materials architect Pietro Belluschi used in its construction — pink Spanish granite and pink glazed plate glass. Fun fact: Portland City Grill on the 30th floor serves steak and seafood with unrivaled panoramic views.
Aprrox. 6,500 solar panels provide 25-30% of the convention center’s electricity.
Photo by Jeremy Jeziorski
Oregon Convention Center (OCC)
Address: 777 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Nearby: The Rose Quarter, Spirit of 77, Metro Regional Center
With 255,000 sqft of contiguous exhibit space, OCC is one of the largest event venues in the Pacific Northwest and is also LEED Platinum certified. During the day, its glass spires let light inside, and at night, they are illuminated by programmable LED fixtures. Fun fact: The building houses “Principia,” one of the world’s largest Foucalt pendulums.
Of the 400 bridges he designed, David B. Steinman said he loved the St. Johns Bridge best. “I put more of myself into that bridge than any other bridge.”
Photo by OregonDOT
St. Johns Bridge
Address: 8600 NW Bridge Ave.
Nearby: Forest Park, Wonderwood Springs, Urban German Wursthaus
Spanning 1,207 ft, the lofty suspension bridge was the largest of its kind west of the Mississippi River when it opened in 1931. Gothic-style arches and the now-iconic “ODOT Green” paint make it one of the most photographed structures in the state of Oregon. Fun fact: Cathedral Park — sprawled beneath the northeastern end of the bridge — is available to rent for weddings.
The OMSI District master plan hopes to transform Portland’s waterfront.
Photo by @mayerreed
Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI)
Address: 1945 SE Water Ave.
Nearby: Hampton Opera Center, Audrey McCall Beach, Mt. Hood Brewing Co. Tilikum Station
Located on the banks of the Willamette River, this hub for learning contains exhibit halls, interactive labs, a planetarium, the Empirical Theater, and a submarine that you can tour. Fun fact: OMSI’s history can be traced to a collection of artifacts in Portland’s City Hall.
Workers carved out a cave to house a shrine featuring “The Pietà.”
Photo by InSapphoWeTrust
The Grotto
Address: 8840 NE Skidmore St.
Nearby: Rocky Butte Farmers Market, My-O-My
The National Sanctuary of our Sorrowful Mother is an outdoor Catholic shrine encompassing a 110-ft basalt cliff in Northeast Portland. The 62-acre property was once a quarry owned by the Union Pacific Railroad, and today, visitors of all beliefs are welcome to stroll its gardens. Fun fact: Around Christmastime, the Festival of Lights offers caroling, puppet shows, and more holiday cheer.
Each season brings a unique beauty to the Portland Japanese Garden.
Photo by King of Hearts
Portland Japanese Garden
Address: 611 SW Kingston Ave.
Nearby: International Rose Test Garden, Oregon Zoo, Washington Park Amphitheater
Blossoming out of the deeply rooted cultural ties between Japan and Oregon, former Mayor Terry Schrunk and the Portland community sought to create a space that healed the wounds of World War II and inspired visitors through natural beauty. Fun fact: Professor Takuma Tono of Tokyo Agricultural University designed five distinctly styled areas to represent the evolution of Japanese garden architecture.
Henry and Geogiana Pittock only lived in the mansion for four years before they died.
Photo by Steven Pavlov
Pittock Mansion
Address: 3229 NW Pittock Dr.
Nearby: Hoyt Arboretum, Portland Audubon, Hillside Community Center
Before moving into their house on the hill in 1914, Henry and Georgiana Pittock led adventurous lives: the former being a titan of industry and a mountain climber, and the latter founding the Portland Rose Festival. Fun fact: After the Columbus Day Storm of 1962 damaged the opulent residence with hurricane-force winds, the public helped save the site from being torn down and turned into a subdivision by raising $67,500.
An early ad called Hollywood Theatre a “palace of luxury, comfort and entertainment unsurpassed by any theatre on the Coast.”
Photo by Another Believer
Hollywood Theatre
Address: 4122 NE Sandy Blvd.
Nearby: Gado Gado, Doe Donuts, The Moon and Sixpence
Unlike the original Hollywood sign, you don’t have to hike uphill on a dusty trail to visit this silver-screen destination. The Spanish Colonial Revival building opened in 1926 as a 1,500-seat cinematic palace, drawing architectural inspiration from the Baths of Caracalla in Rome and Vatican City’s St. Peter’s Basilica. Though its past is filled with vaudeville shows and second-run movies, today it hosts lectures, film festivals, record releases, and more.
In 1985, Bill Naito changed “Ward” to “Park” on the building’s sign.
Photo by Steve Morgan
Montgomery Park building
Address: 2701 NW Vaughn St.
Nearby: Adidas Employee Store, Lower Macleay Park, Freeland Spirits
Constructed in 1921 on the site of the Lewis and Clark Exposition as a mail-order warehouse for Montgomery Ward & Company, the building demonstrated cutting-edge industrial design for its time, featuring fireproof, steel-reinforced concrete. Fun fact: The original layout was L-shaped; now, guests can marvel at the nine-story U-shaped glass atrium renovated in 1982 by SERA Architects.
In 1998, Mayor Vera Katz tried and failed to move Portlandia to the waterfront.
Photo via @caniciete
Portlandia statue
Address: 1120 SW Fifth Ave.
Nearby: Portland City Hall, Chapman Square, University Club of Portland
Our city’s Copper Goddess, the country’s second-largest repoussé statue, traveled across the country by rail and eventually up the Willamette River on a barge. Upon its arrival in 1985, it was paraded through the streets and finally installed three stories up on the Portland Building. Washington D.C.-based artist Raymond Kaskey used 50 hammer blows per square inch to shape the figure, which he still owns the copyright for.
Mount Tabor
Address: Southeast 60th Avenue + Salmon Street
Nearby: The Zymoglyphic Museum, Warner Pacific University
One of Portland’s several volcanic cinder cones, this park draws nature lovers to its hiking trails and picnickers to the grassy slopes above the open-air reservoirs. It’s named after a hill in Israel with Biblical significance. Every August, thousands gather to watch the PDX Adult Soapbox Derby, where costumed daredevils race down the hill.
Lan Su Chinese Garden
Address: 239 NW Everett St.
Nearby: Japanese American Museum of Oregon, Ground Kontrol Classic Arcade and Bar, waterfront cherry blossoms
The “Garden of Awaking Orchids” is a walled urban oasis, where peaceful moments can be found around every corner. It opened in 2000, thanks to the construction and design expertise of 70+ artisans from Portland’s sister city Suzhou. Five hundred tons of rock from China’s Lake Tai were imported for its construction and 90% of the plants are native to China.
This corner is usually bustling with booklovers and buskers.
Photo via Michael Barera
Powell’s City of Books
Address: 1005 W. Burnside St.
Nearby: Portland Center Stage at the Armory, McMenamins Crystal Ballroom
Taking up an entire city block, Powell’s is the largest used and new bookstore in the world, with over a million tomes on its shelves. You can spend an entire day getting lost in those stories (and its nine color-coded rooms), or stop by for one of the daily author events. On the fourth floor, you’ll find autographed first editions and other collectible volumes in the Rare Book Room.
International Rose Test Garden
Address: 400 SW Kingston Ave.
Nearby: Washington Park Amphitheater, Oregon Zoo, Vietnam Veterans of Oregon Memorial
What started as a way to rescue European rose hybrids from the ravages of World War I, blossomed into one of Portland’s most-visited attractions. Today, the 4.5-acre site is home to 10,000 rose bushes and more than 600 varieties for guests to stop and smell. There’s also a pretty phenomenal view of Mount Hood.
What did we miss? If you know a landmark that’s not on the list, let us know.
