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Kick off summer by heading over to the Tigard Hot Air Balloon Festival! Channel your inner child and check out some rides and carnival games. We recommend grabbing some ice cream, stop by the beer garden, and dancing to some live music of classic hits. Embrace that summer nostalgia feeling by participating in face painting! Don’t forget to see the Balloon Glow where several hot air balloons are inflated and opens to the public for this unique opportunity! 

Hot Air Balloon Festival 

At Cook Family Park Playground, purchase wrist bands online or at the gates for the Tigard Hot Air Balloon Festival.

Ticket Purchase

✅ Before you go
• Purchase a wrist band at the gates or online at their website. 

http://www.tigardballoon.org

Purchase Tickets

Let's check out the Tigard Hot Air Balloon Festival

Hot Air Balloon Festival. We were so excited for the rides.

We had to kick things off with this super fun super spinny ride called the Twister.

Aidan loved it. He could not stop smiling.

I loved the Super Orbiter and I screamed so much on this ride.

Followed by that. We checked out all these fun houses

and let's be honest, it wouldn't be a summer carnival without some good food.

We started things off with some classic dippin dots.

They even had a beer garden that you could check out

and then surrounding all the food was these adorable locally

owned businesses selling all these lovely arts and crafts.

Then you have to channel your inner childhood by getting some face painting.

They had so many options. I think we made the right choice here.

The live music brings such a fun atmosphere. So the whole carnival

everyone can't help but dance and laugh and smile.

It really just makes you go up and join them

to beat the heat. We highly recommend grabbing your own lemonade thriller.

They even had so many fun flavors such as Sour Patch kids

and they even squeeze the lemonade right in front of you,

I personally got the strawberry lemonade. It's a classic

And then when the sun sets, the real party begins with all the rides being lit up

and nothing can beat that summer nostalgic feeling 

of hearing laughter, the smelling of kettle corn, all the bubbles.

But let's not forget the main event here,

which is definitely the hot air balloon festival

at the next field over. They line up all the hot air balloons

and you can get up close and personal with them.

You can interact with the pilots, you can ask them questions,

It is such a cozy way to wrap up such a fun night

and their grand finale included lining up all the balloons and lighting them up.

check out a cafe that just opened (march 2025), then enjoy some beautiful parks across the street

Here's your plan for visiting Drip Drop cafe, then exploring nearby beautiful parks leisurely

Artsy cafe & park hang 🍵🌳

Visit Drip Drop, a new artsy cafe in Downtown Portland, to enjoy great coffee, waffle sandwiches, and art from local artists.

Artsy Cafe

💪 Pro tips
• come hungry - the waffle sammys sounded delish & they also have other food options! 
• make sure you take time to look at some art! 

Check out Drip Drop

Explore Lownsdale Square in downtown Portland for a serene day out. Bring a book or solo activity to enjoy amidst the greenery.

Park Hangout

💪 Pro tips
• Bring a book or other chill activity to enjoy if you’re going solo!

Explore nearby parks 

Let's check out one of the newest coffee shops downtown.

and it feels like a cafe and an art gallery had a baby.

The place is covered in curated pieces from local artists

which I loved perusing while waiting for my drink.

It's also conveniently located right next to some beautiful parks if you want to

There's essentially 3 blocks of green space made up of the Plaza Blocks,

which are Chapman Square and Lownsdale Square,

and at the end there's the Terry Schrunk Plaza.

This made for a great solo date downtown that could be

perfected by bringing a book or some art supplies to enjoy.

Save this for your next solo date or share with your

friends who love to stay on top of the cafe scene.

Stroll down Alder St. collecting picnic provisions for a sunny hang @ the waterfront 🧺

Here's your plan for a sunny picnic: make a bouquet, grab treats, and enjoy burgers

Easy picnic w/ 💐, 🍔, 🧁

At Sammy's Flowers in Goose Hollow, Portland, you can DIY your own bouquet, selecting stems and having them wrapped beautifully, adding a personal touch to your picnic.

Flower Arranging

✅ Before you go
• no appt or anything necessary! just walk in & start picking your fave stems 🌷
• obvi this isn’t necessary for a picnic, but it’s such a fun activity & it seriously adds to the ✨aesthetics✨

💪 Pro tips
• you can either arrange the bouquet yourself, or they can do it for you at no extra charge! they have different colors of paper to wrap your bouquet in - as you can see we went w/ brown & pink wraps :) 

DIY a bouquet @ Sammy’s Flowers

At Petunia's Pies & Pastries in downtown Portland, enjoy a selection of gluten-free and vegan desserts, including must-try pies and a highly recommended donut.

Gather Dessert

💪 Pro tips
• They’re partially known for their pies but we didn’t try one (regretfully) - so if you go, definitely try a slice! We also all loved the donut we tried 
• They also have coffee if you’re looking to caffeinate! 

Gather dessert @ Petunia’s 

Grab a smash burger and Parmesan & chive waffle fries at Pleasure Burger in downtown Portland, and surprise a friend with the unique burger-themed bathroom mural.

Burger Dining

💪 Pro tips
• get the Parmesan & chive waffle fries 🤤
• If you have a friend who hasn’t seen the bathroom - send them in there w/ no context. This is what my friend did to me and imagine my surprise when I walked in to see such a decked out burger mural hahahah 

Get meals @ Pleasure Burger 

Enjoy a relaxing picnic at Tom McCall Waterfront Park in Portland, surrounded by cherry blossom trees, with opportunities to shop at the nearby Saturday Market.

Waterfront Picnic

💪 Pro tips
• There’s tooons of park to explore, so just pick a spot that feels nice to you! We were over by the cherry blossom trees at the north end of the park 
• If you go on a Saturday, you can also do some shopping at the Portland Saturday Market which is also at Tom McCall under the Burnside Bridge! 

Picnic @ Tom McCall Waterfront Park

This is your plan to collect bouquets, food,

and dessert along Alder Street for the perfect picnic at Tom McCall Park!

This is one of the few flower shops I could find in the city that has a DIY bar,

you'll head just a few blocks away to Petunia's Bakery.

and then we started heading down Alder again to our next stop,

This place is known for their smash burgers, and apparently their bathroom.

The burgers and fries definitely lived up to the hype,

One of my favorite parts was getting to try all the different treats from Petunias.

I think my favorite had to be the doughnut!

all you gotta do is share this with your friend group for the next sunny day!

This sushi restaurant in Sellwood is serving generous size rolls and nigiri! 

Here's your plan for enjoying oversized sushi rolls and nigiri at Saburo in Sellwood

Super Size Sushi in Sellwood 🍣

At Saburos in Sellwood, dive into over-sized sushi rolls and nigiri, where flavor and freshness meet quantity in a lively, bustling atmosphere.

Sushi Dining

✅ Before you go
• On the weekends, customers start lining up before the restaurant opens for dinner.
• People come for the sushi, not the service. 

💪 Pro tip
• Order all the sushi you want in the beginning because the owner would not let you order a second round. 
• We ordered: Unagi, salmon, seared salmon, tuna, sweet shrimp, octopus, albacore, dragon roll, spider roll, and Alaskan crunchy roll

Dinner at Saburo 

where they're serving generous sized sushi rolls and nigiri.

You may think that this restaurant is a gimmick,

but their fish is pretty good and pretty fresh.

I will say though that the rice and fish ratio is a little imbalanced,

but if you're looking to indulge yourself,

Come connect over lovely, tasty dishes at Janken. This Japanese Korean fusion restaurant aims to bring people together by curating each meal to be shared. This, along with the beautiful space and delicious food, makes for a wonderful eating experience.

Here's your plan for dining at Janken, enjoying drinks, and sharing delicious fusion dishes

Dine Together at Janken

At Janken in Portland's Pearl District, savor seasonal drinks in a lively atmosphere, perfect for trying new flavors.

Grab a Drink

✅ Before you go
• they have some seasonal drinks so don’t be afraid to try something new! 

Grab a drink 🍸

At Janken in Portland's Pearl District, share sushi and other dishes, enjoying fresh fish delivered multiple times weekly.

Shared Dining

✅ Before you go
• You don’t have to share if you don’t want to.


💪 Pro tips
• They have fish shipped in a couple times a week so it is very fresh! I highly recommend having some sushi! 

Enjoy Your Meal Together

Come try the Japanese Korean fusion restaurant called Jenkin.

I loved the amount of detail that they put into every single presentation.

which made the eating experience more interactive,

making it a perfect spot for a get-together.