Forest Park vs Tom McCall Waterfront Park
Both are highly recommended by professionals. Overall, Forest Park is preferred by most writers compared to Tom McCall Waterfront Park. Forest Park comes in at #2 in Portland with recommendations from 8 reviewers including Michelin Guide, Fodor's and Not For Tourists.
Forest Park
Show All Reviews
NW 29 & Upshur to Newberry Road, Portland, OR 97210
From $0 /night
Fodor's
"One of the nation's largest urban wildernesses (5,000 acres), this city-owned, car-free park, has more than 50 species of birds and mammals and more than 70 miles of trails."
Full review
Concierge
"At 5,000 acres, it's the country's largest urban wilderness."
Lonely Planet
Top Choice
"Not many cities have 5100 acres of temperature rainforest within their limits, but then not many cities are like Portland."
Full review
Not For Tourists
"Aptly named park. Great for picnics, sasquatch hunting."
Condé Nast Traveler
"New Yorkers have Central Park, and Portlanders have Forest Park, a sprawling 5,100-acre wilderness that’s a short walk from the shops and restaurants of Northwest 23rd Street."
Full review
Tom McCall Waterfront Park
Show All Reviews
Front Avenue, Portland, OR 97205
From $0 /night
Fodor's
"Affords a fine ground-level view of downtown Portland's bridges and skyline. Once an expressway, it's now the site for many annual celebrations, among them the Rose Festival."
Full review
Lonely Planet
Top Choice
"This popular riverside park, which lines the west bank of the Willamette River... replaced an old freeway with 1.5 miles of paved sidewalks and grassy spaces."
Full review
Not For Tourists
"This park used to be a highway. Portland traded up."
Where
"The park starts at the Broadway Bridge, stretches south for about 2 miles and then converts into a portion of the Greenway, a path continuing south to Willamette Park."
Full review
Michelin Guide
1 Star
"The grassy 23-acre park that now stretches for about 1.5mi along the Willamette River was once Portland's raucous river port. "
Full review