Skip to main content
As a species, Portlanders tend to hibernate in the winter.
Not all of us—plenty of locals strap on their tire chains and roll out to leave the first tracks on Mount Hood. But in the cold, gray, damp months, it's common to get the brushoff from friends content to take the Oregon Department of Transportation's recent Twitter advice and just Netflix and chill.
If you play it right, winter can be magical in this part of the world.
Recent snow scares aside, the weather tends to be mild. Spots overrun with summer tourists are blissfully peaceful now, and so many of the best things to do in this city are best experienced with a chill in the air. Like shellfish—which is just now entering its peak season. And flaming cocktails, which give extra cheer under gray skies.
Winter's also pretty here. Our native firs keep their healthy green hues, and if you drive a few minutes out to the mountain, there's usually a fresh dusting of white powder.
So we decided to put together a bucket list of winter activities in and around Portland.
In a fast-growing city where 6 in 10 people weren't born in Oregon, there is a stark divide in how local traditions are understood by our readers. So we took a two-track approach, pairing items from both New and Old Portland, in the hope we're always offering something new—or new to you.
If you've never taken a trip out to the hippie haven of Bagby Hot Springs to soak in the mineral-rich waters that bubble up there, now's your moment. If you've wondered what goes on in that sleek new skyscraper at the east end of the Burnside Bridge, now's the time to treat yourself to a dip in the heated mineral pools inside.
If you've never been to Dan & Louis, the downtown oyster bar that's been shucking since before most of the oysters we eat now were introduced to our shores, it's time to go. Or maybe it's time to branch out and get varietals you've never seen before at a bougie grocery that also sells cocktails made with obscure vermouth.
It can be tempting to crawl into a warm little hole and barricade yourself in, we know, especially with everything going on in the world.
Come spring, you'll be happier if you embark on some of the adventures that follow.
Welcome to the Portland Winter Bucket List
Soaking in Bagby Hot Springs Is a Portland Rite of Passage
The Yard Apartment Building Now Has a Fancy Indoor Hot Spring
Huber's Historic Spanish Coffee Is an Institution, But Not As Old As You Might Think
Catch a Fire at Hale Pele, One of the Nation's Great New-Wave Tiki Bars
Out In East Portland, a Zen Master of Tea Brings You Into the Moment
One of Portland's Top Chefs is Reviving the Russian Tea Tradition
The Grotto is a Shrine To Old Portland Tradition
Cheer The Fuck Up, With This Local DIY Choir
Timberline Lodge is Oregon's Most Famous Building, And a Decent Hotel
Suttle Lake Lodge Brings New Portland Sensibilities To The Wilds of Central Oregon
You Can See The Next Kevin Garnett at the Les Schwab Invitational
Former Blazer Terry Porter is Making University of Portland Hoops Relevant
Dan & Louis has Been Shucking Oysters Downtown for a Century
Get Tipsy and Eat Oysters You've Never Seen Before in a Grocery-Store Fish Market
Macy's Santaland Brought Back its Wonderful Kiddie Train (Sorta)
Sit On Hipster Santa's Lap Because…Portlandia
Your Last-Chance List of Now-or-Never Winter Deadlines in Portland