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Dance Clubs
Whether it's with soul nights, '80s parties or dubstep bashes, Portland's dance clubs will get you moving.
John Patrick Pullen
Portland may be best known for its indie music, but with a wide variety of dance clubs, the city has a rhythm that’ll get just about anyone moving.
Dance Clubs by Neighborhood
Old Town Chinatown
Portland’s densest concentration of dance clubs is in the Old Town Chinatown nightlife district. Bars like Dirty Nightclub and the Southern-themed Dixie Tavern are at the epicenter. Gay nightclub CC Slaughters boasts a live DJ seven nights a week; Wednesdays are all-request dance nights.
Dance enthusiasts could spend months grooving their way through Portland.
Downtown Portland
With a big neon sign that says “Dance,” Lola’s Room is hard to miss, located below the Crystal Ballroom. Regular ’80s and ’90s nights ensure that you’ll be glad you popped into this intimate space.
Central Eastside
Running everything from DJ sets to local performers, Holocene has mixed music with visuals for a decade-plus, turning an old auto-parts warehouse into a 5,000-square-foot temple to art and audio. Its inner southeast Portland neighbor 45 East also rocks a converted industrial space, with an upstairs lounge and downstairs dance floor hosting frequent EDM shows.
Across town, The Goodfoot Lounge is where locals go for laid-back nights of festival-style stomping on the hardwood dance floor. Great for small music and big laughs, the two-level dance hall plays everything from funk to dub step, so long as it gets the crowd moving.
The big basement dance floor at the log-cabin themed Doug Fir Lounge gets plenty of traffic on its electro-pop and hip-hop nights, though most of the time the club stays true to the city’s indie rock ways with live performances.
Other popular options in Southeast include Dig a Pony, Crush, Trio Club, and The Coffin Club (formerly known as Lovecraft Bar).
Northeast Portland
Aztec Willies in Northeast Portland’s Lloyd neighborhood is a go-to for salsa and Latin grooves, with different offerings nearly every night. Church, an ironic Roman Catholic-themed bar, brings live music and DJ sets in a cozy space on Sandy Boulevard.
Dance Clubs by Style
Bossanova Ballroom
On Tuesday nights the Bossanova takes things down a notch by offering soulful, sultry blues music. Stop by before the dance for a free introductory lesson hosted by the Portland Blues and Jazz Dance Society. There’s no partner required, which is perfect if you’re flying solo. If not, enjoy cuddling up to your sweetie in a close embrace and swaying the night away.
Bushwackers
It doesn’t get more honky-tonk than Bushwackers, the premier spot for bass-thumping, foot-stomping country dance. Show off your two-step, boogie with the line dancers or waltz around the perimeter of the Texas-sized dance floor at this venue in Tualatin, 20 minutes south of downtown Portland. Belt buckles and cowboy boots aren’t required, but you might want to make room in your luggage, just in case.
The Coffin Club
A horror-themed bar complete with a child-sized coffin as decoration? Yep, Portland has that. Get your goth on at The Coffin Club (previously known as Lovecraft Bar) where Thursday is the darkest night of the week, thanks to DJ Carrion’s steady stream of industrial and darkwave.
Lola’s Room
Located on the second floor of the iconic McMenamins Crystal Ballroom, Lola’s Room plays host to Portland’s favorite dance party, ‘80s Video Dance Attack. Every Friday night, break out your scrunchies and lace up your high-top Chucks to relive MTV’s heyday and bop your head to your favorite throwbacks. Classic music videos are projected across giant screens, so it’s a lot like when you used to dance along with Paula Abdul’s “Cold Hearted Slave” in your living room (but with less carpet burn). Prefer songs and styles from the following decade? Dance to hits by Nirvana and Snoop Dog at “Comes As You Are: 90s Dance Flashback” on Saturday nights.
Tango Berretin
Portland has one of the largest Argentine tango communities in North America, with studios offering lessons, practicas and milongas (social dances) almost every night of the week. At the heart of the scene is the Tango Berretin. Owned by world-renowned tango instructor Alex Krebs, this intimate dance hall injects the old-world charm of dimly lit Spanish salons and a tango’s overt sensuality. The popular Saturday night milonga is prefaced with a beginner lesson, and frequently hosts live music.
Trio Club
Trio Club is a neon beacon that beckons night owls hungry for a slice of Miami’s nightclub vibe. It looks a bit out of place in Portland, but for fans of salsa, it feels like home. With three different dance floors and DJs spinning everything from traditional mambo to Latin EDM, the Trio Club’s Salsa Sunday is sure to keep you shimmying into the wee hours of Monday morning. (The party goes ‘til 4 a.m.!)
More Nightlife
Portland comes to life after-house with special events and activities.
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LGBTQ+ Nightlife
Portland has no shortage of LGBTQ-owned and queer-friendly bars and clubs. Whether you're looking for a relaxing night with friends, a high-energy dance party or a drag show, Portland delivers.
Young, Gifted and Brown Fosters Community Through Dance in Portland
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Nightlife Events
Enjoy a night out in Portland with these upcoming events.
Portland Paseo
Portland Paseo is an afternoon/evening community gathering over two days, August 28 and 29. Inspired by the Spanish custom of the evening walk that reawakens the city, it is a linear celebration of artists, music, performances, visual art, street food, and artisan markets honoring and amplifying the amazing work of our BIPOC communities and the…
Champagne Ball
Since 1990, Champagne Ball has helped nearly 40,000 people ring in the New Year in a fun and safe environment. Every New Year’s Eve, Champagne Ball brings in top entertainers. The event features 18 bars because the Champagne Ball wants people out dancing, not standing in long lines. The party also includes a massive countdown…
RX Fest
Music is medicine. RX Fest is a multi-venue, multi-day festival is a large-scale benefit for organizations vital to our community, all centrally located in downtown Portland at Star Theater, Dante’s, Kelly’s Olympian and Valentine’s.
Hourglass Escape Rooms
Craving an adventure with faraway loved ones? Join friends and family from anywhere in the world to play an award-winning escape room from your own home. These are actual escape rooms that you and your team play via Zoom, with a live actor with a camera guiding you through real-world escapes. Hourglass Escapes is known…
JAI HO! Outdoors Bollywood Party Relaunch | DJ Prashant
Dance the night away outdoors at a brand new venue in Portland. Come dressed in Orange, White &/or Green to celebrate inclusivity, exuberance, carefree joy, and non-stop dancing to hits from across South Asia as we celebrate India & Pakistan’s freedom from The British Raj. A portion of the proceeds from this party will be…
Ashley McBryde
Award-winning songstress Ashley McBryde is bringing her brand new ‘This Town Talks Tour’ to Portland! Dubbed one of Rolling Stone’s “Artists You Need To Know,” citing she’s “an Arkansas red-clay badass, with the swagger of Hank Jr. and the songwriting of Miranda Lambert,” Ashley McBryde fearlessly lays it all on the line. It’s that honest…
H is 4 Hector: At The Garages Satellite Pub
H is 4 Hector and supporting act The After Party will perform at Garages Satellite Pub for a night of rock & roll normalcy celebrating life and rocking out to upbeat music designed to elevate spirits. H is 4 Hector is an American rock band, formed in 2010 in San Francisco, California. The group consists…
The Dance for Romance
The Dance for Romance is a Valentine’s Day social dance for singles, friends, couples and partners. Enjoy award-winning live blues music and a professional DJ spinning pop songs you can dance to solo, grouped or partnered. Arrive early for one or more dance lessons or love life workshops, and throughout the night you can enjoy…
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