Portland Local Information
Getting Around
To/From The Airport
To get acquainted with the city, take the MAX light rail system from the airport. MAX light rail is quick and inexpensive with trains departing every fifteen minutes during peak hours. Full fare is $2.30 and travel time to the Convention Center is approximately thirty minutes; forty minutes to downtown. For additional public transportation options, consult the Trip Planner (www.trimet.org). Taxis into downtown are $30 to $35. Special Note: Portland International Airport offers free Wi-Fi!
Amtrak and Greyhound Stations
Portland's Amtrak and Greyhound stations are within two blocks of each other. They are approximately ten blocks from downtown and about two miles via surface streets from the Convention Center. Taxis and public transportation are available from the train and bus stations.
The City and Convention Center
Given the ease and convenience of MAX, PLA will NOT be providing shuttle service. Portland's award-winning light rail system is one of the best in the country. An eco-conscious transportation option, the MAX Light Rail extends 52 miles in and around Portland. All the conference hotels and the Oregon Convention Center (OCC) are convenient to MAX stations and are part of the "Free Rail Zone," so attendees can just board the train and ride for free. The average ride time between the downtown hotels and the OCC is 10 minutes. Riding the light rail to the Convention Center also offers the opportunity to enjoy the view of the Willamette River as you cross the historic Steel Bridge, the only one of its kind in the world, a double-lift span that raise its lower deck independently of the upper deck.
Portland also is a very walkable city, the spring weather notwithstanding. City blocks are half the size of most city blocks elsewhere and the terrain is fairly flat. Portland is bike-friendly with bike lanes and paths crisscrossing the city. For cycling information, check out the City of Portland's website for maps and other resources (www.portlandonline.com). If you don't bring your own bike, there are several local companies that rent or provide local tours. Try Waterfront Bicycles (http://waterfrontbikes.net; 503-227-1719) or Pedal Bike Tours (www.pedalbiketours.com; 503-916-9704).
Things to Do
Arts and Culture
Portland has a bustling arts scene and culture lovers will have a host of options to choose from during their stay. Portland Opera Company (www.portlandopera.org; 502-241-1802) will be presenting their production of Leonard Bernstein's rarely seen "Trouble in Tahiti," a one-act depiction of a married couple's tumultuous relationship. Julia Alvarez's "How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents" gets adapted for the stage over at The Miracle Theatre Group (www.milagro.org; 503-236-7253). Portland's innovative dance troupe, BodyVox (www.bodyvox.com; 503-229-0627) premieres its multidisciplinary work, "Smoke Soup," which will incorporate dancers from the company along with live music. Comedy aficionados can check out the Portland sketch and improv scene at Curious Comedy Theater (www.curiouscomedy.org; 503-477-9477). If you'd like stick with an old favorite, perennial warhorse, "Cats" will be making a stop at the Keller Auditorium (www.portlandopera.org; 866-739-6737). For classical music fans, the acclaimed Chamber Music Northwest (www.cmnw.org/index.php) offers one of their rare Encore Series performances on March 25, when Wu Han, David Finckel, and Philip Setzer perform two of Schubert's piano trios. Finally, sports fans can watch the Trailblazers face off against the Mavericks on March 25 at the Rose Garden Arena (www.rosequarter.com; 503-797-9600).
Museums
As befitting any major city, Portland's museums are top-notch and provide an insight into the city's unique cultural sensibility as well as its place in frontier history. The Portland Art Museum (www.portlandartmuseum.org) has an excellent collection of modern and contemporary art, as well as a peerless collection of Native American art and artifacts. For more than seventy years, The Museum of Contemporary Craft (http://museumofcontemporarycraft.org) has showcased the latest in craft-making, and is a must-visit for anyone interested in ceramics and jewelry-making. The Pittock Mansion (www.pittockmansion.org) is the restored mansion of the founder of Portland's daily newspaper, "The Oregonian," and is a showcase of eighteenth and nineteenth century antiques. The End of the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center (www.endoftheoregontrail.org) give visitors a glimpse of what life was like for early settlers featuring three covered wagons to explore as well as a Heritage Garden.
Shopping
Savvy conference attendees will want to take advantage of Portland's lack of sales tax and hit up Portland's estimable shopping offerings. The popular Portland shoppong blog, Discover. Portland.Shopping. (www.discoverportlandshopping.com), gives a thorough overview on the latest trends, sales, and happenings at Portland's wide variety of specialty stores. Art lovers will want to visit Portland's famed Pearl District, a neighborhood of renovated warehouses and industrial spaces that now houses trendy boutiques and world class art galleries. Two notable galleries include the Butters Gallery (www.buttersgallery.com) and the Laura Russo gallery (www.laurarusso.com). The Pearl District is also home to Powell's Books (www.powells.com), a bookstore mecca that takes up the block between NW 10th and 11th Avenues and Burnside and Couch Streets. Also in Portland's Northwest section is Nob Hill (www.nobhillbiz.com), a series of locally owned shops in a quaint Victorian neighborhood.
More traditional shipping options can be found at the Lloyd Center (www.lloydcentermall.com), one of the first indoor malls in the U.S., that has many popular stores and an indoor skating rink. And finally, no visit to Portland would be complete without a trip to Voodoo Doughnut on 22 SW Third Ave. (http://voodoodoughnut.com), which offers such an eclectic range of doughnuts that you'll probably find yourself becoming a repeat customer during conference just to sample them all.
