Open

Generally 9:00 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. daily. See the full schedule for details.

Tagged

• attraction
• gardens

The Grotto is a Catholic Shrine and botanical garden. The gardens are open to people of all faiths.

Pros

• Lovely, well maintained (but not overly fussy) gardens, with long curving paths that make the area feel even bigger than it is.
• One of a kind elevator ride to the upper gardens (buy your tokens at the gift shop).
• The meditation chapel provides a panoramic view to the north and is really quite something.
• Feelings of peace and tranquility.

Cons

• Not actually a con, just stating the obvious: The Grotto welcomes people of all faiths, but of course this is a religious shrine and – er – rambunctious behavior would not feel appropriate and might be a distraction to other people’s reflection and worship. As my son is towards the boisterous end of the scale, I didn’t bring him here until he was old enough to be (more or less) sensible when appropriate.
• Tokens to visit the upper levels cost $6 for adults.

in the area

If you fancy stretching your legs a little more (or simply driving up to admire the view from the top), The Grotto is adjacent to Rocky Butte.

if you like this…

Other beautiful gardens include Crystal Springs, Leach Botanical Garden and the Japanese Garden. Another outdoor space for contemplative reflection is Lone Fir Pioneer Cemetery, most easily accessed from SE 26th St, south of Stark St.

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Posted: September 19, 2014.

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If you find any factual innaccuracies in this post, please email me via richard at thingstodoinportland dot org so I can fix it for everyone. Thanks in advance!

NE 85th Ave and NE Sandy Blvd Portland, OR 97220 [Google map].

Vox Populi

The good people of Yelp have posted 300 reviews of The Grotto with an average rating of 4.5 out of 5.