Review of Portland, Oregon Walking Tours

Portland's an easy-going, friendly and walkable city but there's no need to explore it alone. Portland Walking Tours offers a collection of tours ideal for vacationers and residents. During my Oregon vacation earlier this summer, I participated on the Best of Portland walking tour, promising an insider's view of the city by a resident expert. But did I really get an insider's view? Read on for my review of Portland Walking Tours...

The 10 a.m. tour met at the Visitor Information Center at Pioneer Courthouse Square. Four of us watched a brief film telling us why Portland is a great city. After watching business leaders tout why they love Portland, my adrenaline was pumped and ready to learn more about the city.

The Portland Walking Tours "Resident Expert" (aka: tour guide) led the group through one-and-a-half miles of the city's downtown. Her demeanor encapsulated Portland's nonchalant, easy-going pace. Highlights included Portland's history, architecture and artwork. The guide's been living in Portland just over a year and although I don't see how she could already be a resident expert with an insider's view, she did know her history and answered questions without canned responses.

Highlights of the Portland Walking Tour I found fascinating...

Something about Portland's water...the city's drinking water source is rain water, which is probably why Portland's beer is so good. Speaking of beer, there are more breweries in Portland than any other city in the world, 32 to be exact. The guide shared her favorite brewery and I ended up spending my evening there.

Fifty-two Benson Bubblers are sprinkled throughout Portland's downtown. These are free-flowing, four-bowl drinking water fountains discharging (free) water between 5 a.m. and 10 p.m. daily.

When it comes to sustainability, Portland's forward thinking....Portland's solar-powered parking meters are pretty cool. Okay, parking meters don't sound very exciting but in the City of Roses, drivers pay for time and not a parking spot. Money is put into the parking meter and a ticket (which is a sticker) printed with the purchased time pops out.

Drivers stick the ticket in their window. If they need to park elsewhere in Portland's downtown and there's still time left on the ticket, the driver doesn't need to feed another parking meter. If drivers have enough time left on their ticket but won't be using it, it's common for them to place it on the parking meter in a kind of "pay it forward" gesture.

Another cool thing the Portland Walking Tours guide pointed out was an electrical car charging station, which is free. Unfortunately, it only accommodates two cars and the guide said it's the only one in the city. And while I'm on the transportation topic, may Portland streets have lanes designated for skateboarders. Without a doubt, skateboarding cuts down on air pollution.

And this reviewer's summary of the trip? Portland Walking Tours taught me all sorts of fun, quirky stuff about the city which I probably wouldn't have learned on my own. But the tour seemed a bit flat. I've participated in city walking tours across the globe and this one seemed to miss a little umph in the presentation. It wasn't a bad tour and I'd sign up for another one of Portland Walking Tours excursions. It just wasn't the best tour I've been on.

Portland Walking Tours offers three other city tours:
Epicurean Excursions - Visitors taste and sip their way through Portland's Pearl District.
Underground Portland - The sinister side of the City of Roses is exposed.

And the newest tour which just launched earlier this month is called "Beyond Bizarre." Ghost stalking equipment is given out to tour participants who then explore Portland's spookiest locales and hear tales about paranormal Portland. This tour is up my alley and gives me reason to return to Portland.

Portland Walking Tours
Tel: (503) 774-4522
www.portlandwalkingtours.com

The Best of Portland Tour can accommodate up to 25 people. The tour meets at 10 a.m. daily and lasts between two and two-and-a-half hours and costs $15 for adults.

Tours into area neighborhoods are offered, too.