Portland and Area Activities Planner - Sept 12-19, 2025

THE BIG BOUNCE AMERICA
Sept. 12-14
A crazy inflatable landscape filled with some of the most amazing, completely customized attractions you’ll ever see. At over 900ft in length this is one of the most fun and energetic experiences you’ll ever have. We’ve built a customized sports arena filled with goals, nets, hoops and balls of every size and type you could imagine! Jump into an out-of-this-world adventure! An intergalactic metropolis where skyscrapers reach for the clouds and friendly aliens zip around every corner.

PORTLAND FASHION WEEK
Sept. 15–21
Portland Fashion Week, the Sundance of Fashion Weeks, is the 3rd oldest fashion week series in the United States, TIME Magazine’s “BEST Indie Fashion Week in the USA since 2012, and the only carbon-negative fashion week in the world as outlined by The Huffington Post. From top-of-the-line eco-chic fashion experiences to our support for the local fashion community and the community, it’s no wonder Portland Fashion Week is on the “Top 100 Things to Do Before You Die” Portland Bucket List.

The driving force of Portland Fashion Week is the philosophy of Slow Fashion. This revolutionary perspective is founded on non-impulsive buying, using awareness as the basis for understanding the quality and value of clothing and its origination. Therefore, Portland Fashion Week believes sustainable practices, including reducing, reusing and recycling, will fully encompass all of the aforementioned values associated with slow fashion. This standard Portland Fashion Week has been adopted in all aspects of production, community support, educational programs, and designer selection. Thanks to these philosophies, they’ve had more Project Runway alum show at Portland Fashion Week than LA and NY combined.

EL GRITO
Sept. 14-15
Join in the most important holiday celebrated by the Hispanic community in Oregon. El Grito features the rich traditions of the Latinx community with delicious Mexican cuisine and family-friendly entertainment, folkloric and Aztec dancers, live mariachi, salsa, cumbia and pop music, and interactive and educational community booths. The event also features contests, prizes, raffles, and the traditional “El Grito de Independencia” ceremony. As the Mexican President presents the nation’s traditional El Grito in Mexico City, so will Portland commemorate Mexico’s independence at the Moda Center/Rose Quarter Commons.

DISNEY'S THE LION KING
Sept. 17–28
Giraffes strut. Birds swoop. Gazelles leap. The entire Serengeti comes to life as never before. And as the music soars, Pride Rock slowly emerges from the mist. More than 100 million people around the world have experienced the awe-inspiring visual artistry, the unforgettable music, and the uniquely theatrical storytelling of this Broadway spectacular – one of the most breathtaking and beloved productions ever to grace the stage. Winner of six Tony Awards®, including Best Musical, The Lion King brings together one of the most imaginative creative teams on Broadway. Tony Award-winning director Julie Taymor brings to life a story filled with hope and adventure set against an amazing backdrop of stunning visuals. The Lion King also features the extraordinary work of Tony Award-winning choreographer Garth Fagan and some of Broadway’s most recognizable music, crafted by Tony Award-winning artists Elton John and Tim Rice. There is simply nothing else like The Lion King.

OREGON SCIENCE FESTIVAL
Sept. 13–14
Join in on a weekend of celebrating science. The Oregon Science Festival, presented by OMSI, begins with Science Week, five days of events in the Portland Metro Area and beyond, and culminates in a two-day celebration at the museum. Enjoy workshops, tours, lectures, and events—all celebrating STEAM education. Learn more about the vast array of scientists, engineers, and innovators who are inspiring future generations around Portland.

GEEK WEEK PDX
Sept. 5–14
The spell has been cast, and the transformation has begun. Geek Week PDX is returning to Portland, offering a citywide celebration of geek culture. Dubbed “the world’s first citywide comic con,” this festival transforms over 100 local businesses into hubs of pop culture, featuring events that span fantasy, sci-fi, superheroes, and the supernatural. Join events held at over 120 small businesses across the city, Geek Week highlights the deep and vibrant Geek culture in Portland.  

The 10-day festival includes a diverse array of events:​

• Ales and Scales: A 10-day Dungeons and Dragons campaign hosted by TPK Brewing.
• Wine and Wizards: Fantasy-themed wine tastings.
• Warhammer Discovery Days: Introductory sessions for Warhammer enthusiasts.
• 7 Wordy Wonders: 7 days of Literary events held at the Rose City Book Pub

PORTLAND SERBIAN FESTIVAL
Sept. 13-14
Join the 18th Annual Serbian Festival. This is a celebration of food, wine, dance and culture of the Serbian Orthodox people. Delicious Serbian Food: BBQ, Roast Pig and Lamb, Desserts, Live Music, National Dance, Beer and Wine, Kids’ Activities…and much more.

ALL AGES / FREE EVENT

Taste. Experience. Discover. The culture of Serbia.

20TH ANNIVERSARY MILL-LUCK SALMON CELEBRATION
Sept. 13-14
Join Ko-Kwel Casino Resort Coos Bay (formerly The Mill Casino) for the 20th Annual Mill-Luck Salmon Celebration Saturday and Sunday, September 13 and 14. This free outdoor festival is a vibrant tribute to Native American and Coquille Tribal culture. Enjoy a weekend filled with tribal canoe races, traditional salmon bake meals, live Native American dancing, drumming, and flute music. Explore cultural demonstrations, hands-on activities, and shop from local tribal vendors. It’s a fun-filled celebration the whole family will enjoy. Pre-sale meal tickets, which include a commemorative tee, while supplies last, will be available in August at Ko-Kwel Gifts inside Ko-Kwel Casino

DAHLIA FESTIVAL
Aug. 1–Sept. 30
You are invited to celebrate the season of Dahlias. Stroll through almost 50 acres of breathtaking fields and a beautiful display garden of stunning dahlias featuring over 375 varieties. Treat yourself to a rainbow of colors by taking photos, shopping in our gift shop, and purchasing fresh-cut dahlias to take home. Select and order your favorite dahlias for spring delivery to enjoy the beauty in your garden the following year. Fill your belly with yummy treats from the food carts, relax and enjoy the live music on the weekend, or take one of the classes throughout the festival dates.

CHAPMAN SWIFT WATCH
Sept. 1–30
Great blue herons, bald eagles and peregrine falcons are just a few of the Rose City avian residents routinely spotted by visitors. But to really “put a bird” on a Portland memory, mark the calendar for September’s Chapman Swift Watch — the time of year when thousands of Vaux’s swifts drift through the city on their annual migration from Canada to Central and South America. The tiny birds spend their days hunting for insects and their evenings roosting, bat-like, in trees and chimneys..

The most popular perch is the towering smokestack of Chapman Elementary School in Northwest Portland, which attracts as many as 16,000 swifts looking for a place to hunker down for the evening. It’s plenty popular with spectators, too: Each night at sunset, hundreds of onlookers flock to a nearby grassy bank and watch in awe as a shadowy cloud of birds swirls acrobatically for up to an hour before darting inside the craggy chimney for the night. (Onlookers also watch for hawks, raptors and other birds of prey, which sometimes add a dose of drama to the nightly ritual.)

Chapman Elementary School students have embraced the annual event, even electing to make the swift their official mascot. Volunteers from the Bird Alliance of Oregon (formerly Portland Audubon) are also on hand most nights to help educate the curious public.

THE CORN MAIZE ON SAUVIE ISLAND
Aug. 30–Oct. 31
When summer winds down, Portland’s fall arrives with warm, sunny days and cool, clear nights. The ideal way to get lost in autumn’s splendor is at The Maize at the Pumpkin Patch. Located on Sauvie Island, a rural escape just 13 miles (21 km) north of downtown Portland, the Corn Maize offers visitors eight acres (3 hectares) of exciting twists and turns. But it’s not all about getting lost in nature; Two 16-foot (5 m) observation bridges provide picturesque panoramas with great views of the island and Mount Hood, as well as the maze itself.

Every year, the cornfield is carved with a different pattern, and the design is always sure to stump maze-goers while delighting fans of public art. Starting at the end of August, the maze is open daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and stays open until 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays in October (and on select days leading up to Halloween).

TIME-BASED ART FESTIVAL
Sept. 4–14
Called “the best contemporary summer festival in the country” by The New York Times, Portland’s Time-Based Art Festival (TBA) returns every September with boundary-pushing performances, visual art and projects that defy categorization. Expect an eclectic array of artists, both local and from across the globe, including from far-flung locales like New Zealand, Ontario and the UK.

Modeled after international contemporary arts festivals in cities like Edinburgh and Adelaide, TBA is orchestrated by the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA)  Installations and performances take over Portland’s theaters, galleries, warehouses and public spaces, while workshops and talks keep the arts going almost nonstop. Together, these works effectively obliterate the barriers between artists and their audiences.

QUEST OF THE MAGIC REALMS
Sept. 13
Calling all young adventurers. Step into a magical realm, where you find fun, role-play, and create things. Young adventurers who complete their Quest will get a chance to win a prize. The Magic Realms also encourage kid-friendly cosplay from any adventurers joining us for this fantastical event.

• Guided Play
• Live Action Role Play for Children 6 – 11
• Magical Crafting
• Artisanal Market

THE GLASS MENAGERIE
Sept. 12-14
For the first time in 15 years, Bag&Baggage revisits Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie, a haunting memory play that stands as a cornerstone of American theatre. This semi-autobiographical classic follows Tom Wingfield as he struggles between duty and desire, caught between his overbearing yet fiercely loving mother, Amanda, and his painfully innocent sister, Laura. A poignant exploration of the fragility of dreams and the weight of family ties, The Glass Menagerie lingers in the heart long after the curtain falls. This production features Company Artists Kymberli Colbourne, Taya Dixon, and Samuel Campbell in a fresh and intimate staging of Williams’ timeless masterpiece. Don’t miss this stunning revival of a play that reminds us how memory shapes our lives in ways both beautiful and heartbreaking.

• September 12: 7:30 p.m.
• September 13 (ASL Night): 7:30 p.m.
• September 14 (Audio Described): 2 p.m.

THUNDER FEST
Sept. 13–14
Thunder Fest: Legendary Punk, Ska and Metal Bands on the Portland Waterfront. Reunite with your favorite punk, ska and metal bands, feel the thunder, and make new memories on the Portland Waterfront. 

Everyone who’s ever worn an MxPx shirt, this is for you. Thunder Fest is a two-day music festival in Portland, Oregon, featuring some of your favorites from the ’90s and early 2000s. Blaster the Rocketman, Living Sacrifice, Squad Five-O, the Huntingtons, and more. It’s time to sweat in the sun and stomp in the dirt again. 

JURASSIC WORLD BY BRICKMAN
Mar. 15–Sep. 31
Get ready for an immersive adventure like no other as Ryan ‘Brickman’ McNaught re-imagines Jurassic World, the blockbuster franchise from Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment, through 6 million LEGO bricks.

It features large-scale LEGO brick dinosaurs, props, scenes, and activities, as well as the newest Jurassic World by Brickman® dinosaur, made from over 100 thousand LEGO bricks, the Baryonyx. Walk through the iconic Jurassic World gates and relive the magic of beloved stories and characters from the Jurassic World franchise, as you embark on a thrilling journey across the Isla Nublar.

Get hands-on with LEGO brick paleontology, mystery mosaics, island-building, hybrid dinosaur creations, and much more. There will be 2.5 million LEGO bricks for you to show off your own building skills.

LINCOLN CITY'S FINDERS KEEPERS GLASS FLOATS 2025
Year-Round
Finders Keepers is Celebrating its 25th Anniversary in 2025. Be on the lookout for the colorful twinkle of a hand-blown glass float when you’re exploring the beaches of Lincoln City. As the name says, Finders Keepers.

Discover “random acts of findness” in Lincoln City, with —Finders Keepers. Over 3,000 glass treasures are hidden along the town’s seven miles of sandy beach, made by local artisans. If you find a float, it’s all yours. Let your treasure hunt begin. Discover glass treasures every day of the year from Roads End on the north to Siletz Bay on the south.

PORTLAND SATURDAY MARKET
Mar. 1–Dec. 20
Combining the vibes of an art show, a live street concert and an open-air bazaar, the Portland Saturday Market has been a beloved Rose City tradition since 1974, earning it the “Oregon Heritage Tradition” title in 2024. In fact, the market is considered the largest continually operating arts-and-crafts fair in the United States, drawing up to one million visitors during its annual season.

On any given weekend from the beginning of March to the day before Christmas, shoppers can wend their way through the rows of tents of this large outdoor market featuring local makers, artisans, and chefs. A full sensory experience, the sights, and sounds will have shoppers and on-lookers tapping their heels to bluegrass pickers and jazz trios with weekly sets of local musicians performing for market-goers and passersby in Tom McCall Waterfront Park

FARMERS MARKET AT PORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITY
Year-Round
The Portland Farmers Market at Portland State University will be open every Saturday, year-round. April through October hours are 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. November through March hours are 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The Market at PSU is located in Downtown Portland in the South Park Blocks between SW College & Montgomery Streets.

HOLLYWOOD FARMER'S MARKET
Year-Round
Year-round on Saturdays, the Hollywood Farmers Markets hosts 50+ vendors, bringing you the best of the region’s agricultural bounty.

In addition to amazingly fresh, local food,  you’ll find live music, children’s activities, and fun events throughout the season.

• April through September, every Saturday 8 AM to 1 PM,
• October and November, every Saturday 9 AM to 1 PM,, and
• December through March: 9 AM to 1PM on the 1st and 3rd Saturdays of each month

ST. JOHN'S BAZAAR AND PARADE
May 10
The St. Johns Bizarre is a uniquely crafted celebration that kicks off Portland's summer street fair season. Held annually on the second Saturday in May, the Bizarre brings music, crafts, and food to the crowds who traditionally attended the St. Johns Parade. After the parade, a portion of the business district in St. Johns is closed to traffic and filled with over 135 juried craft vendors, several stages for music, great food, and tons of games and activities.
It’s a fantastic community event with something for everyone.
The event is free.