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Portland local, Jessica Spiegel, shares her top tips on how to stay safe in her hometown. From petty crime to dodgy areas to avoid, here's everything visitors need to know.
Photo © iStock/AndreyKrav
For most visitors, chances are you will feel totally safe and not feel uncomfortable while visiting Portland – except for possibly getting burned if you're too close to The Unipiper's fire-spewing bagpipes. Or maybe hipster overload will leave you feeling slightly out of place.
But before you ask about the sketch comedy series Portlandia, the answer is yes – most locals have seen at least some episodes, but we don't speak in excerpts from the show. Some Portlanders get annoyed at insinuations they're anything like the show’s characters. So, if you think someone reminds you of a character from Portlandia, keep it to yourself.
- Crime and places to avoid in Portland
- How to speak like a Portland local
- What to wear in Portland
- Two fun facts about Portland
Crime and places to avoid in Portland
Portland is a safe city for the most part, but that doesn't mean you should let your guard down. Common sense dictates you shouldn't leave your iThing in view in a locked car and expect it to remain there. Even busy areas of the city have smash-and-grab thefts, so lock your car doors and don't leave visible temptation.
Bike theft is a big deal. If you rent a bike make sure the rental company outfits you with adequate locks (and that you follow their locking instructions).
Bike culture is also a big deal here, which means there are sometimes bike-motorist confrontations if a cyclist thinks a driver is overstepping his or her lanes. Drivers, pay attention to the big (and sometimes painted green) bike lanes and areas.
Homelessness is an issue in Portland, as it is in many cities on the west coast. The vast majority of the time, that just means walking by homeless encampments in Old Town or hearing a nonsensical monologue while you're riding the train. Every so often, though, those situations can escalate. Trust your gut.
Some areas you may want to avoid include:
- Hazelwood around the Gateway Transit Center (highest rate of violent crime in the city).
- West Burnside downtown (closer to the bridge there are a number of homeless shelters and camps; it's more iffy at night).
Most of the less-safe areas of Portland aren't places visitors spend much time. Certain other neighborhoods such as Chinatown and the Lloyd District are popular with visitors but have a reputation for petty theft and property crimes.
Portland's parking police are not slackers, so don’t think you'll get away with overstaying your parking meter by a few minutes or pulling in for just a second to that no-parking zone while you grab an artisanal latte.
How to speak like a Portland local
Here are some local pronunciations that you'll need to get right if you don't want to immediately be taken for an outsider. That big river running through the middle of the city? Never mind how it's spelled, it's pronounced will-AM-ette (as the saying goes around here, 'It's Willamette, dammit.')
The state you're in is OR-eh-gun, not or-eh-GONE. And the street on the west side of the river that looks like it's named for a piece of living room furniture? It's pronounced kooch. Not couch.
Yes, we know.
Portland is dissected into quadrants by the Willamette River and Burnside Street. The names of these quadrants are how locals generally refer to parts of town – NW (northwest), NE (northeast), SE (southeast), and SW (southwest). There’s also North Portland, which breaks rules, but there you have it.
How to dress in Portland
Wondering what you should wear in Portland? This is a casual city. Jeans that don't have holes are considered 'dressy' nearly everywhere – even nice restaurants. And if you bought those $300 jeans with the holes already in them, then they're dressy, too.
You may have heard that it rains nine months of the year here, but... Okay, it does. Sort of. It's not a downpour, more like you're walking around inside a very misty cloud, so most Portlanders eschew umbrellas for waterproof hoods.
Two strange facts about Portland
- There's no sales tax in Oregon. The price on the tag is what you'll pay. Have fun.
- There really is a Uniper with fire-spewing bagpipes.
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