Within the first month of living in Portland, Dan and I discovered Oaks Amusement Park. Opening in 1905, Oaks Park is one of the oldest, continuously operating amusement parks in the United States. Due to chilly Portland winters, Oaks Park operates seasonally, our first visit was during their final weekend in the fall.
We went back many times the following summer, including bringing my step-kids during their holiday visit with us. At the time, Zoe had just turned ten and Felix was a few months shy of turning eight. Oaks Park was perfect for them, offering both rides for younger guests and thrills that they were growing into.
This review is a mix of several trips from the fall of 2016 to the summer of 2017.
Parking and entry to Oaks Park is free. On that first visit, Dan and I just walked around, ate giant ice cream cones, and enjoyed the park. We didn’t go on any rides, but scoped it out for future visits, knowing that we would want to bring the kids.
When we brought the kids, we purchased unlimited ride bracelets for them. This was an amazing deal. For about twenty dollars, they could ride all day and it included one skate session at the indoor roller rink, plus skate rentals. Oaks Park has since changed their deal slightly and have excluded some of the bigger rides from the twenty dollar deal, however, the same deal we got, is available for an additional five dollars. Compared to a regular carnival, this is still an excellent value.
I grew up skating at Moonlight Rollerway in Glendale, California. This is the same rink that my parents enjoyed in the 50’s. The rink at Oaks Park had the same vintage flair.
I really wanted to skate, but I was experiencing sciatica and could barely walk, so I had to sit on the sidelines, watching the kids. Zoe was a very good skater, confidently gliding around the rink, showing off tricks like skating backwards. Felix was a beginner, but within a few hours, he was able to let go of the wall and skate around the rink. Roller skating is one of those rare activities, where you can see people of all ages having fun together, including many seniors citizens showing the kids how it is done.
On our visits, the kids would skate for at least two hours, which would really tire them out. This was great, because they had so much energy at that age. It also gave them a break from the dizzying rides and the summer heat.
They definitely loved the rides the most. Oaks Park has a good selection of rides and as a theme park geek, I loved how they had placards explain the history of classic rides, like the Tilt O’Whirl. Here is selection of pictures from Oak Park.
After much consideration and a big dose of bravery, Zoe and Felix went on the “upside down” roller coaster. This wasn’t their first loop, as we got them on Rock-n-Roller Coaster during our WDW the previous summer. To be fair, they didn’t realized that Rock-N-Roller Coaster had loops, until they were on the ride. This one they could see and it created nervous anticipation. They saved it for the last ride, on our final trip to Oaks Park.
But their favorite ride, that they rode on repeat, was a sliding saucer called Disk-O. They must have ridden it a million times and never stopped loving it. Here is Dan riding with Zoe, but after this, Felix tried it and realized that it was the best ride in the park.
Oaks Park has been a staple for generations of Portland families. Even though we only lived in the area for a year, it was easily one of our favorite places in Portland. Through the dreary fall/winter/spring, locals kept promising that summer would be spectacular and they were right. Summer is magical in Oregon and Oaks Park is the perfect place to bring the family for outdoor fun.