The Lan Su Chinese Garden offers tranquil garden paths and a cozy tea house.

Old Town Chinatown Activities

Portland's oldest neighborhood offers beloved attractions, galleries and entertainment.

Updated July 20, 2021 2 min read Old Town Chinatown

The area where Portland started is just as vital today, housing some of the city’s most beloved attractions, nightlife options and art galleries.

The female impersonation revue at Darcelle XV Showplace has been a local entertainment legend since 1967.

Must-Sees

Constructed of materials shipped directly from Suzhou, China, Lan Su Chinese Garden is considered one of the most authentic Chinese gardens in the country. A two-story teahouse pavilion overlooks a tranquil pond and meticulously tended foliage and the garden’s annual Chinese New Year celebrations are a community tradition.

Lan Su Chinese Garden

This year-round wonder taking up an entire city block houses an authentic Ming Dynasty style garden built by Suzhou artisans. Lan Su Chinese Garden offers a peaceful escape in Portland's historic Chinatown district.

The Portland Saturday Market brings hundreds of artists, craftspeople and food vendors together on Saturdays and Sundays from March to December along the Waterfront Park.

And no Portland to-do list is complete without a visit to Voodoo Doughnut. Oddball delights like the maple bacon bar draw crowds to this kitschy-cool institution, open 24 hours a day.

Voodoo Doughnut

Since 2003, Portland's Voodoo Doughnut has sold millions of wacky, sugary snacks — and the 24-hour downtown landmark still attracts lines at all hours of the day.

Galleries

The monthly First Thursday art event includes free shows and refreshments at dozens of galleries and stores throughout Old Town Chinatown, downtown and the Pearl District.

Circle the block at the Everett Station Lofts to check out more than a dozen different mini-galleries. Flashback street fashions, Japanese gadgets and prints by local artists line the walls at Compound Gallery, while Upper Playground’s Fifty24PDX gallery features collectible toys and comic-style prints. More art in a similar vein is on offer at Floating World Comics.

Nightlife

Retro fun abounds at Ground Kontrol Classic Arcade, with two floors of old-school, quarter-operated video games such as Pac-Man, Donkey Kong and Tetris. There’s a full bar and DJs spin tunes in the evenings.

The female impersonation revue at Darcelle XV Showplace has been a local entertainment legend since 1967. Held nightly Wednesdays through Saturdays, the glitzy extravaganzas are still emceed by the grande dame herself, Darcelle XV, who turned 80 in 2010.

More restrained evening entertainment comes at Wilfs, a retro supper club in historic Union Station that features live jazz nightly, Wednesday through Saturday, and a modern, sustainable twist on the classic American menu.

Attractions, Makers, Music, Nightlife, Parks & Gardens