Hood River, OR

I haven’t had much to write on the blog for a while since it’s been a long time since we could really travel. In the meantime I thought it might be fun to write about my favorite places in Oregon instead - and I wanted to start with Hood River.

We first went to Hood River shortly after moving to Portland. It was my birthday gift to Austin that year. His favorite beer is one made by Full Sail available around Christmas, called Wassail. I looked it up and saw that it was in Hood River and decided we should go. We knew genuinely nothing about the town but thought it would be a fun getaway. It turned out to be one of our favorite places!

After that trip we would always take visitors to Hood River. It is not too far past Multnomah Falls, so it made a nice day trip - see the falls, maybe go for a hike, and then have lunch in Hood River.

On that same first trip we also discovered what is called the Fruit Loop (yes, it’s really called that). It’s a 30 mile loop of farms just south of Hood River. They have wineries, cideries, pick your own fruit, bakeries, and more. It is also a really beautiful drive because the loop ends at Mt Hood.

On one of these trips I remember thinking “I would like to get married here someday”. So when Austin proposed, the very first thing I did was look up wedding venues near Mt Hood. We were lucky enough to find an amazing new venue right at the base of Mt Hood and I got to have the most beautiful wedding with this gorgeous backdrop.

As you can probably tell, Hood River is one of our very favorite places in Oregon and the best for a weekend or day trip from Portland. Here are our favorite spots!

Where to Stay

The first time we went to Hood River we stayed in a hotel that was really lovely, but not very central. To get to the city center you had to drive, and since we wanted to enjoy the breweries this was kind of a bummer. Hood River is not very big so they don’t have Uber (or at least, didn’t last time I was there). For this reason, we have tried to stay more central in future trips. We have stayed in Airbnbs but our favorite that we keep going back to is Columbia Gorge Vacation Rentals. The woman who runs it is super nice and helpful. We (along with our families) rented several houses from them for our wedding and they were all lovely. They are all at great locations, have everything you need and are just beautiful places.

If you’re looking for something a little quieter/further out, the first place we stayed was Columbia Cliff Villas in a room overlooking the river. It was beautiful, but you do need a car to get to city center.

How to get around

There are several paid parking lots in the city center of Hood River, so if you’re driving in from Portland you can park here. Once you’re in Hood River, I recommend planning to walk everywhere (except for the Fruit Loop). To really see everything, I think it’s best to have a car.

Where to Eat

Double Mountain

This is our usual spot that we take people for lunch. It’s a great brewery with really awesome pizza. They have a second location in Portland now but we have always loved the Hood River location the best. I even met David Cross and Amber Tamblyn there once. On nice days they open up the windows and it’s a super laid back and nice place.

Full Sail

This is the brewery that brought us to Hood River in the first place. It’s quite large and does get pretty busy on weekends. The food is really good though, and we also really like their beer. The menu is typical American, with things like burgers and fish and chips. They also catered our rehearsal dinner! They have a really cool patio that is high up above the Columbia river and you can watch wind surfers. The patio is enclosed & heated in the winter so you can enjoy the view all year.

Pfriem

Surprise, another brewery! This one is closer to the river and is also often busy. They have a nice outdoor area with a fire pit. We had some excellent poutine and burgers there.

Everybody’s Brewing

Ok, this is in White Salmon, WA right across the Columbia River, but it’s a short drive (across a kinda scary bridge) and the food is so good. They also often have sours which I really appreciate. It doesn’t seem to be as busy as many of the Hood River breweries either.

The scariest bridge

Where to Drink

…See all the breweries mentioned above? You should drink there too ;) For other options though:

Whiskey Tango

This is where we threw the after party to our wedding. It’s a pretty big bar and it was a lot of fun (we didn’t reserve it or anything, just gave them a heads up a few weeks before & showed up. There were 3 other weddings there!) Definitely more of a party bar and not as low key as the breweries, but if that’s what you’re looking for it’s a lot of fun.

Ferment Brewing

This is right next to Pfriem and is pretty interesting. They had some pretty unique beers and also kombucha! It’s worth a stop to check out.

Coffee

Stoked Roasters

This place is by Pfriem and we always stop here for a coffee to take for the drive back to Portland. It’s really cute inside and the coffee is great. It’s also nice to take the coffee to the little beach area nearby.

Doppio

Our vacation rental that we stayed in for our wedding was right across the street from this place. They have great cold brew and the people are always super nice. I bought some of their coffee beans to take back to Portland with me. I drank a lot of cold brew in the days before our wedding here!

The Fruit Loop

I felt like I should make a special section for this. You’ll need a car, but it starts right near the center of Hood River. It’s a very beautiful drive. These are our favorite spots on the loop! Be sure to check for openings because it varies based on the time of year. All the info can be found here

The Gorge White House

This is always our first stop, and it’s open year round unlike many of the other spots. They make their own cider and wine and we like to get flights of both. The cider is amazing! I usually buy a growler to bring home to my mom. They have lots of picnic tables and a food cart outside if the weather is nice. They have U-pick flowers (and I think fruit) as well.

Draper Girls

This is a fruit stand. For some of the year it operates unmanned and I think it’s an honors system basis. In the summer it is much busier and has someone working there. They also have some goats you can pet and a gorgeous view of Mt Hood with a swing and a little area you can sit and rest. They have really tasty dried apples here.

Packer Orchards

This place has 2 rooms. The first is filled with all kinds of different jams, jellies and pickled veggies. In non-covid times (I have no idea what it’s like now) they would have out little popsicle sticks and crackers so you could try the jams. They are all delicious. In the next room they have tons of baked goods - pies, cookies, cinnamon rolls, everything! They also have ice cream. We love to stop here and stock up on jams, honey, and delicious baked goods.

Grateful Vineyards

About a year after our wedding, our wedding venue opened this tap room on their property. They make their own cider and wine (we served their cider at our wedding, it’s very good!) and they have pizza as well. They also have an incredible view. The owner is such a nice woman, we loved our chance to check this place out.

Mt View Orchards

This is the farm stand that our wedding venue runs. They sell apples & cider and I think even apple cider donuts. They also have a little play area and do U-Pick as well. It’s only open in the summer.

Apple Valley Country Store

This place also makes great pie and sells other fun things in their shop like jam. It is a nice little place to explore.

Apple Valley BBQ

This place is in Parkdale slightly off the loop. It’s a super cute and delicious BBQ restaurant. They have a nice patio you can eat on.

Solera Brewing

This place is also in Parkdale, across from Apple Valley BBQ :) They have a huge outdoor area in the back to sit on nice days. They have a good variety of beer and also always have sours, which I love! The place is super chill and we always enjoy stopping here.

Things to Do

Hood River Waterfront Park

This is a park right in front of the Pfriem/Stoked coffee area. There is a playground for kids and a nice little beach where you can relax and swim.

The Fruit Loop

Described above, but this is our favorite thing to do :)

Explore downtown

Hood River has a super cute downtown area. It’s fun to walk around all the little shops and explore.