Dog Friendly City Guide: Portland, USA

Portland was practically built for dogs. The city wraps itself around the largest urban forest in the country, keeps a brewpub on every corner, and treats the dog-friendly patio as a civic institution. It rains, of course, which only makes the dog more grateful for the dry brewpub at the end of the walk. Bring a towel and settle in.

Everything below comes from our own verified data, not the booking-site badges that pass for research elsewhere. Each place has been checked as genuinely dog friendly, and the hotels at the end are ranked against the Roch Dog Friendly Standard.

Where to Walk

The walk to beat is Forest Park, five thousand acres of fir and fern laced with trail right at the city's edge. The Wildwood Trail runs for thirty miles through it and the gravel Leif Erikson Drive is the wide, easy spine, with the climb from Lower Macleay to Pittock Mansion the one to do for the view.

Closer in, Washington Park and the Hoyt Arboretum keep it cultivated, Laurelhurst Park does the pretty neighbourhood loop, and Oaks Bottom and the Willamette Greenway follow the river.

The Brewpubs and Bars

Portland drinks with the dog, and one place says so out loud: the Lucky Labrador Brew Pub and its Beer Hall sibling are the dog-named institution, all picnic tables and wet labradors. Around them, Sasquatch Brewery, the Old Market Pub & Brewery, Threshold Brewing and Backwoods Brewing keep the taps flowing.

For a proper bar, River Pig Saloon, the Leaky Roof and the Pocket Pub take the dog without comment, and Frank Wine Bar pours by the glass.

Pizza, Oysters and the Table

Portland eats well and casually. The pizza runs deep: Pizza Jerk, Old Town Pizza, Mississippi Pizza and Dogs and Fries all keep patio room, the venerable Dan and Louis Oyster Bar does the old-Portland seafood, and Petunia's Pies & Pastries handles the sweet end. P's & Q's and the Bear Paw Inn round out the neighbourhoods.

Where to Stay

Which leaves the bed. The Kimpton Riverplace on the waterfront leads Portland's certified list on a B, with the boutique Hotel Grand Stark, the art-deco Hotel DeLuxe and the Hyatt Regency behind it, each rated and reviewed so you know what the welcome is worth before you book.

The full list of certified dog friendly hotels in Portland shows how every one was ranked, and what that ranking buys you and your dog.

This guide was first published on 1 June 2023 and updated on 8 June 2026.