Photo: Ian Poellet (User:Werewombat), CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Crystal Ballroom often referred to as "The Crystal" is one of the nicest venues in town. The Ballroom is large in size and has great art and period light fixtures. This is a clean, well maintained venue. The Crystal has a bar inside with upstairs balcony seating for 21+. The main floor is standing room only which makes the show much more intense. The floor gives under the weight of the crowd and can "bounce" if the crowd decides to jump in unison (to bring on an encore, for example). According to the Crystal's website, at the time of its construction, the Crystal's mechanical dance floor (now fully restored to proper working order) was said to be unique on the Pacific Coast. Today, it may be the only one left in the United States.
Crystal Ballroom, originally built as Cotillion Hall, is a historic building on Burnside Street in Portland, Oregon, United States. Cotillion Hall was built in 1914 as a ballroom, and dance revivals were held there through the Great Depression. Starting in the 1960s, the hall has also been host to many popular pop, rock, folk, blues and jazz artists, as well as beat poetry and other entertainment.
© OpenStreetMap contributors
Portland's Major League Soccer team, the Timbers, play at Providence Park (formerly PGE Park and JELD-WEN Field) and are known for their strong local support. Games against the Seattle Sounders are especially heated, though fan conflict is almost always verbal. Getting tickets can be tricky, as the stadium is rather small—even after an expansion project completed during the 2019 MLS season, it still holds only a bit more than 25,000.
Portland's newest top-level professional team, the Thorns (which are owned and operated by the Timbers) are charter members of the National Women's Soccer League, which began play in April 2013. The NWSL season runs from April to late September, with playoffs in October. While not quite as popular as the Timbers, they routinely draw well over 10,000 and occasionally sell out; before the 2022 arrival of the Southern California teams Angel City FC (Los Angeles) and San Diego Wave FC in the NWSL, the Thorns were the biggest crowd draw in American women's sports.
This is the central courtyard of downtown Portland, a big gathering spot that's popular with tourists and locals alike. Notable features of the park are a cascading waterfall fountain, chess boards, and the Weather Machine, a machine that predicts the weather every day at noon. Many other sculptures and art elements surround the square, including Kvinneakt, the bronze statue of a nude woman that's otherwise known as the "Expose Yourself to Art" statue after a popular poster featuring a flasher (former Mayor Bud Clark) facing this work. An annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony takes place here the Friday evening after Thanksgiving to ring in the holiday day season and get everyone attending into the holiday cheer.
Home to the Oregon Symphony, Portland Youth Philharmonic and the Metropolitan Youth Symphony. Contains intricate Italian architecture in the hall. The concert hall seats 2,776 people and hosts lectures, symphonies, comedians and big name musical acts.
Has several outstanding collections and is regularly updated by moving exhibits. It is an expansive museum where one could easily spend an entire afternoon. The Whitsell Auditorium in the basement of the museum is where the Northwest Film Center hosts film screenings.
Neon-colored pirate-themed minigolf course under blacklights. There's also a few escape rooms and axe throwing. Reservations required and can be made on their website.