Many Portland, Oregon event venues and wedding locations embrace the natural landscapes and well-manicured gardens that have become synonymous with the City of Roses. Learn how to choose an event venue or wedding location to aid in hosting the perfect party in this fair city.

Those hosting special occasions that take place between April and October will find fragrant and eye-pleasing venues in Portland’s Washington Park. The International Rose Test Garden is located just off S.W. Sunset Highway and offers a backdrop of seven thousand roses in five hundred and fifty varieties. If a Japanese garden is more to your aesthetic taste, Portland's Washington Park showcases a traditional version, although take note that wedding ceremonies are not permitted within the grounds of the Japanese garden.

The city supports more than one hundred eighty parks that can serve as Portland wedding locations or reception sites, like Peninsula Park’s Rose Garden and Gazebo as well as the Portland Memory Garden, both of which allow up to one hundred people.

For indoor event venues, the Hoyt Arboretum not only features the Hoyt Meadow outside, the Hoyt Picnic Shelter and Redwood Deck, but also the deWeese Classroom which can be rented during business time or after-hours. Leach Botanical Garden’s Manor House is another unique Portland wedding location to consider.

If you would like a view of the Willamette River, know that there are Portland event venues that can fit this bill. Sports fields, picnic areas or an amphitheater can be reserved at Washington Park and various other Portland parks. The numerous golf courses all around the city also provide meeting facilities for business and recreational gatherings.

When choosing a spot for your event, consider proximity to popular travel or cultural destinations, particularly if you want to play off a local theme, or you think your guests would get a kick out of sampling some of the regional flavor. For instance, Portland has a hot music scene, particularly when it comes to rock and independent artists (bands like Modest Mouse, The Decemberists and The Shins all hail from Portland) though the city also is home to a thriving classical arts scene. Beer aficionados will appreciate Portland event venues that make use of the city’s reputation as being a microbrewery hotspot in the Pacific Northwest, while the eco-minded will enjoy venues that give easy access to any of the numerous green restaurants or activities in this progressive city.