Sightseeing Tours

Sightseeing Tours

Boat Tours

Sternwheeler Riverboat Tours' Columbia Gorge departs year-round from Tom McCall Waterfront Park on two-hour excursions of the Willamette River; there are also Friday-night dinner cruises. During the summer the sternwheeler travels up the Columbia River. Yachts-O-Fun Cruises operates dinner and Sunday-brunch cruises, Portland harbor excursions, and historical tours. For the more adventurous, Willamette Jetboat Excursions offers whirling, swirling one- and two-hour tours along the Willamette River that include an up-close visit with Willamette Falls.

Sternwheeler Riverboat Tours (S.W. Naito Pkwy. and Stark St., Riverfront Park. 503/223-3928). Willamette Jetboat Excursions (S.E. Marion St. 888/538-2628). Yachts-O-Fun Cruises (1945 S.E. Water Ave., near OMSI. 503/234-6665).

Bus Tours

Gray Line operates City of Portland and Pacific Northwest sightseeing tours, including service to Chinook Winds Casino in Lincoln City, from April through October; call for departure times and tours.

Gray Line (503/684-3322 Ext. 2. www.grayline.com).

Trolley Tours

The Willamette Shore Trolley company operates vintage double-decker electric trolleys that provide scenic round-trips between suburban Lake Oswego and downtown, along the west shore of the Willamette River. The 7-mi route, which the trolley traverses in 45 minutes, passes over trestles and through Elk Rock tunnel along one of the most scenic stretches of the river. The line, which opened in 1885, was electrified in 1914, and Southern Pacific Railway operated dozens of trips daily along this route in the 1920s. Passenger service ended in 1929, and the line was taken over by the Oregon Electric Railway Historical Society. Reservations are recommended. The trolley ($8 round-trip) departs Lake Oswego at noon and 2:30 PM and Portland at 1 and 3:15 on weekends from May through October. Charters are available year-round.

Willamette Shore Trolley (311 N. State St., Lake Oswego. South of RiverPlace Marina, at Sheridan and Moody Sts., Portland. 503/697-7436).

Walking Tours

The Portland Oregon Visitors Association, which is open weekdays 9-5 and Saturday 9-4, has brochures, maps, and guides to art galleries and select neighborhoods.