Portland Tourism Guide

Rainy Day Activities for Kids in Portland, Oregon: Ages, Costs and Closures

The best rainy day activities for kids in Portland, Oregon start with OMSI, the city’s big science museum, then branch out to the roller rink at Oaks Park, the steam locomotives at the Oregon Rail Heritage Center, the World Forestry Center’s Discovery Museum and one of the city’s four indoor pools. For free, there’s the Central Library’s children’s area, Powell’s and the Portland Art Museum, which admits anyone 17 or younger at no charge. Most of these sit on a MAX or streetcar line, and children 6 and under ride TriMet free.

This guide is for families who need a plan when the forecast turns, with ages, costs, sensory options, food and restrooms for each idea. Two corrections to older lists matter: the Portland Children’s Museum has closed for good, and Portland’s only year-round ice rink closed with the Lloyd Center mall on August 8, 2026. Every venue, price and hour here was checked between September 23 and October 1, 2026 against the operators’ and agencies’ own websites. For dry-day ideas too, start with our guide to Portland, Oregon with kids.

A wide, empty roller rink with a gleaming wooden floor under rows of ceiling lights, ringed by railings and windows
The historic roller rink at Oaks Amusement Park (photographed in 2019), open year-round with open skate every day but Monday.

Rainy-day ideas for kids at a glance

Activity Best ages Cost (fall 2026) Allow Closed
OMSI 3 and up $15.50 ages 3-13; $22.50 adults; under 3 free 3-4 hours Mondays (some exceptions)
Portland Art Museum 6 and up Free for 17 and under; $27.50 adults 1-2 hours Mondays
World Forestry Center Discovery Museum 4 to 12 $5 ages 3-18; $8 adults; $2 first Wednesday 1-2 hours Mondays after Labor Day
Oregon Rail Heritage Center 2 and up $4 ages 3-13; $6 adults 1 hour Monday to Wednesday
Oaks Park roller rink 5 and up Check the rink’s session prices 2 hours Mondays
City indoor pools All ages $4 ages 3-12; $5 teens; $6 adults; under 3 free 1-2 hours Check each pool’s schedule
Central Library All ages Free 1 hour Check library hours
Ground Kontrol arcade 8 and up Pay per game 1 hour Adults only after 5 p.m.
Oregon Zoo, in rain gear All ages $21 ages 2-11; $26 ages 12 and up 3 hours Check seasonal days

How does Portland rain work for families?

Portland’s rain is a frequency story, not a volume story. In NOAA’s 1991-2020 normals for the airport, measurable rain falls on about 18 or 19 days in an average November, December and January, but the total for the whole year is only about 37 inches. Most wet days are a steady drizzle with breaks, not a downpour, which is why local families own rain boots and hoods rather than staying home.

That shapes a good rainy day. Pick one big indoor anchor, add a short outdoor burst when the rain eases (a forest trail drips less than an open park, and puddles are half the fun for small kids), and keep a covered lunch spot in reserve. Pack a change of socks and a towel in the car or stroller, because wet kids get cold long before they get bored.

The big indoor anchors

OMSI: the all-day rainy-day answer

The Oregon Museum of Science and Industry is the place most Portland families head first when it pours. From September 8, 2026 to June 13, 2027, it’s open Tuesday through Friday and Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Saturday until 7 p.m., and closed on Mondays with some exceptions. General admission is $22.50 for adults 14 and older, $20.50 for seniors 63 and up, $15.50 for ages 3 to 13, and free under 3. The planetarium, the USS Blueback submarine and the theater cost extra, so decide before you go which add-on your kids will remember.

The dark hull of the USS Blueback submarine moored on the Willamette River below the Marquam Bridge
The USS Blueback, moored beside OMSI on the Willamette; submarine tours are an add-on to museum admission.

OMSI is also one of the city’s most sensory-friendly museums. It offers quiet rooms and kits with fidget toys and child-sized sound-reducing earmuffs, and it runs select low-sensory hours with adjusted lighting, less sound and fewer people. Getting there is easy without a car: the OMSI/SE Water station is served by MAX and the Portland Streetcar. If you drive, parking costs $5 for two hours or $8 all day, or $2 after 5 p.m.

Verdict: The safest single bet for ages 3 to 13 on a wet day. Think twice if it’s a Monday; check OMSI’s calendar for the exceptions.

Portland Art Museum: free for every kid

The Portland Art Museum is Oregon’s largest, with more than 42,000 works in two historic buildings on the South Park Blocks, joined by the Mark Rothko Pavilion since November 20, 2025. It’s open Tuesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Anyone 17 or younger gets in free every day, and everyone is free from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on the first Thursday of each month, so a family visit can cost nothing at all. Adult admission is otherwise $27.50.

For younger children, keep the visit short and specific: pick one gallery and a few works to find, then move on before attention runs out. The museum is downtown, near the streetcar’s NS Line and a few blocks from the MAX lines.

The Oregon Zoo, in rain gear

The zoo is mostly outdoors, but it doesn’t close for drizzle, and a wet weekday can mean thinner crowds. Admission is $26 for ages 12 and up and $21 for ages 2 to 11, and under 2 free, with advance online tickets required up to 30 days ahead. From September 8 to October 31, 2026, hours are 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (last entry 4:30); in November, 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.; from December 1 to 17, the zoo opens Friday through Monday only; and from December 18 to January 3, daily from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. It closes on November 26 and December 25.

The zoo is KultureCity-certified, with free sensory bags at the entrance holding noise-cancelling headphones, sunglasses, fidget tools, cue cards and weighted lap pads. Its holiday ZooLights runs from November 20, 2026 to January 3, 2027, with dated tickets of $13 to $30 for youth and $13 to $35 for adults, and the zoo has run sensory-friendly ZooLights nights. Take MAX to Washington Park station, 260 feet underground, where elevators bring you up beside the zoo.

Smaller museums that suit a wet afternoon

World Forestry Center Discovery Museum

Across from the zoo in Washington Park, at 4033 SW Canyon Rd., the Discovery Museum is a compact, hands-on look at Northwest forests, and it’s an easy pairing with a zoo morning. After Labor Day it’s open Tuesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is $8 for adults, $7 for seniors 62 and up, $5 for ages 3 to 18, and free for 2 and under, and on the first Wednesday of each month it’s $2 for everyone 3 and older. It closes on Thanksgiving and the day after, Christmas Eve and Christmas.

A black steam logging locomotive with a tall stack displayed under a curved metal canopy outside a museum
The logging locomotive Peggy, under cover at the World Forestry Center (photographed in 2014).

Oregon Rail Heritage Center

Train-mad kids should not miss the Oregon Rail Heritage Center, at 2250 SE Water Ave., a short walk from OMSI. It’s home to the City of Portland’s steam locomotives, SP 4449 and SP&S 700, both still operable, and OR&N 197. The volunteer-run center is open Thursday through Sunday from 1 to 5 p.m., and its hours can vary. It has charged admission since January 2026: $6 for adults 14 and up, $5 for seniors 65 and up and military, $4 for ages 3 to 13, and free under 3. Older free-things lists that still call it free are out of date.

A blue and white diesel locomotive numbered 190 parked indoors on a polished concrete floor under tall windows
Inside the Oregon Rail Heritage Center (photographed in 2013), next door to OMSI.

Old Town museums for older kids

For school-age kids and teens, Old Town’s history museums are short, focused and dry. The Japanese American Museum of Oregon, at 411 NW Flanders St., is open Wednesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m., with children 11 and under free and adults $8. The Portland Chinatown Museum, at NW Third Avenue and Davis Street, is open Thursday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., with a 2,400-square-foot exhibition, Beyond the Gate, on Portland’s Chinatowns from 1850 to 1965. Lan Su Chinese Garden, nearby, is an outdoor garden, but its Yun Shui Teahouse makes a cozy break; youth tickets for ages 6 to 18 are $15.

Burn off energy indoors

The Oaks Park roller rink

Oaks Amusement Park, on 44 acres beside the Willamette at 7805 SE Oaks Park Way in Sellwood-Moreland, keeps its historic roller rink open all year, with open skate every day except Monday, and a Wurlitzer pipe organ that has become part of the experience. The outdoor rides run from mid-March through October, so on a wet October day you might get both, and from November the rink is the draw. Check the rink’s site for session times and skate rental prices.

The city’s indoor pools

Portland Parks & Recreation runs four indoor pools: East Portland, Matt Dishman in Northeast, Mt. Scott in Southeast and Southwest. Drop-in admission is $4 for ages 3 to 12, $5 for teens 13 to 17, $6 for adults and $5 for seniors 60 and up, and children 2 and under swim free. Open Swim is for all ages; at Family Swim, children under 18 must be accompanied in the water by a parent or guardian. The Southwest Community Center pool closed on September 5, 2026 for roof repairs and is expected to reopen for November swim lessons, so check before you head there. Each pool posts its own schedule of open, family and play swims.

Ground Kontrol

Ground Kontrol, at 115 NW Fifth Ave. in Old Town, is a two-story classic arcade with pinball and vintage video games. It’s all ages until 5 p.m. and 21 and over after that, because it’s also a bar, so it works as an afternoon stop rather than an evening one. It runs tournaments and two free-play parties a month, and it’s on the Transit Mall, a short walk from several MAX stops.

Three brightly lit pinball machines side by side in a dark arcade, their backglass art glowing
Pinball at Ground Kontrol (photographed in 2022): all ages until 5 p.m., adults only after.

Free and almost-free rainy-day ideas

  • The Central Library. Multnomah County’s Central Library, downtown, reopened in 2024 after a renovation that added a refreshed children’s area, a teen space, a terrace and better ADA access. All county libraries keep the same hours, and the library’s events calendar lists storytimes and family programs.
  • Powell’s City of Books. The flagship at 1005 W Burnside St. is open daily from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., and browsing is free; budget for at least one picture book.
  • The Portland Art Museum. Free for anyone 17 or younger, every day it’s open.
  • Pioneer Place. The downtown mall beside Pioneer Courthouse Square gained four local shops from the Lloyd Center in 2026, including Brickdiculous, the All American Magic Shop and Floating World Comics, all on its concourse level.
  • The deepest station in North America. Washington Park’s MAX platform is 260 feet underground, and the elevator ride up is a small event for younger kids. Children 6 and under ride free with a paying adult.
  • The Aerial Tram. The enclosed cabin climbs 500 feet over a 3,300-foot line, and children 6 and under ride free with a paying adult; the $9 round trip runs weekdays and Saturdays, not Sundays or holidays.
  • Nature centers. Hoyt Arboretum’s visitor center is open daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Tryon Creek State Natural Area’s nature center is open daily from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., both with forest trails outside for a dry spell.
A red and blue Portland Streetcar signed for South Waterfront passing the brick Central Library under autumn trees
The streetcar passing the Central Library, whose renovated children’s area reopened in 2024.

Rainy-day pairings that work

The easiest wet days combine two or three places that sit close together, so nobody spends the afternoon in damp car seats.

  • Science and steam. OMSI and the Oregon Rail Heritage Center are neighbors on the east bank, and the rail center opens at 1 p.m. from Thursday through Sunday, which makes it a natural second stop after a morning at OMSI. Hawthorne Asylum’s covered, heated food carts are a short streetcar or bus ride inland for lunch.
  • Washington Park under cover. Ride MAX to Washington Park, do the zoo in rain gear while the kids still have energy, then cross the road to the World Forestry Center’s Discovery Museum when they need a roof. Both are a single MAX ride from downtown.
  • A free downtown day. Start at the Central Library’s children’s area, walk to Powell’s, browse Pioneer Place’s comic, magic and building-brick shops, and finish at the Portland Art Museum, which is free for anyone 17 or younger. Midtown Beer Garden’s covered seating and restrooms handle lunch.
  • Old Town for older kids. Pair the Japanese American Museum of Oregon or the Portland Chinatown Museum with a pot of tea at Lan Su’s teahouse and an hour at Ground Kontrol, which is all ages until 5 p.m.

Short outdoor bursts between showers

When the rain eases, a short walk resets everyone’s mood, and Portland has good options that don’t involve a muddy slog. The Lower Macleay Trail in Forest Park follows Balch Creek for 0.8 mile to the Witch’s Castle, a mossy stone ruin, and the trailhead has ADA parking; under the trees, a drizzle barely registers. Hoyt Arboretum has paved paths among its 12 miles of trails, Tryon Creek State Natural Area has a quarter-mile paved, all-accessible trail by its nature center, and Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge’s North Woodland Trail is paved too. Pack boots, a spare pair of socks and a towel, and count puddles as part of the outing.

The best rainy-day picks by age

Age Best picks Why
Babies and toddlers The Central Library, a city pool’s family swim, the Rail Heritage Center Free or cheap, short visits, and under-3s are free at OMSI, the pools and the rail center
Ages 3 to 6 OMSI, the World Forestry Center, the Aerial Tram Hands-on exhibits and a cable-car ride that kids 6 and under take for free
Ages 7 to 12 OMSI with the submarine add-on, the Oaks Park rink, Ground Kontrol before 5 Active, loud and memorable
Teens The art museum (free), Ground Kontrol, Pioneer Place’s comic and magic shops, Old Town’s museums Independence, low cost and things to talk about at dinner

Sensory-friendly rainy-day options

Rainy days crowd indoor venues, which can be hard on children with sensory sensitivities. Two of the city’s biggest family attractions plan for it. OMSI has quiet rooms, sensory kits with fidget toys and child-sized earmuffs, and select low-sensory hours with adjusted lighting, less sound and fewer people; check its calendar for upcoming dates. The Oregon Zoo is KultureCity-certified, lends free sensory bags at the entrance, offers a social story through the free KultureCity app and has run sensory-friendly ZooLights nights.

Beyond those, the quietest choices are the smaller ones: a weekday morning at the Rail Heritage Center or the World Forestry Center, or a corner of the Central Library. Arriving at opening time, before school groups and weekend crowds build, helps everywhere.

Covered food and restrooms

Lunch on a wet day needs a roof. Food cart pods are the cheapest, most kid-friendly option, because everyone can order from a different cart: Hawthorne Asylum, at SE 10th Avenue and Madison Street, has more than 20 carts around a covered, heated seating area; Midtown Beer Garden downtown has covered seating for about 300 and restrooms; CORE in Lents has an indoor food hall; and The Heist in Woodstock has extensive covered seating and opens at 7 a.m. Our best food cart pods guide compares them.

For restrooms downtown, five Portland Loos, the city’s free-standing public toilets, are generally open around the clock, in the North Park Blocks at NW Couch Street, the South Park Blocks at SW Columbia Street, Waterfront Park at SW Taylor and Ash streets, and at NW Glisan Street and Fifth Avenue. Museums and the library have their own.

Getting around with kids in the rain

Transit beats parking on a wet day. Children 6 and under ride TriMet free with a paying rider, youth aged 7 to 17 pay $1.40, and adult fares are $2.80 for 2.5 hours, capped at $5.60 a day. MAX and the streetcar reach OMSI, Washington Park and downtown’s library and museums. TriMet recommends folding umbrella strollers, since large and double-wide models aren’t practical on trains, and asks riders to keep strollers out of the aisles and doorways. MAX trains and streetcars have ramps that extend for boarding.

What does a rainy family day cost?

Here’s the arithmetic for two adults with children aged 5 and 9, at fall 2026 prices, before food. An OMSI day costs $76 in admission ($22.50 for each adult and $15.50 for each child), plus up to $11.20 in transit for the adults, $2.80 at most for the 9-year-old, and nothing for the 5-year-old, who rides free. A zoo-and-Forestry-Center day costs $94 at the zoo and $26 at the Discovery Museum. A downtown day built around the library, Powell’s and the art museum costs only transit, since the museum is free for both children.

Which days are family venues closed?

Day Closed Open and good
Monday OMSI (some exceptions), the art museum, the World Forestry Center, the Rail Heritage Center, the Oaks Park rink The zoo (in season), the library, a city pool, Ground Kontrol, Powell’s
Tuesday The Rail Heritage Center and the Japanese American Museum OMSI, the World Forestry Center, the art museum, the rink
Wednesday The Rail Heritage Center Everything else; the World Forestry Center is $2 on the first Wednesday
Thursday to Saturday Nothing major The full list, including the rail center from 1 p.m.; the art museum is free for all on the first Thursday
Sunday The Aerial Tram OMSI, the art museum, the rail center, the rink and the pools

What’s closed or changed for families in 2026?

  • The Portland Children’s Museum has closed permanently. Lists that still send families there are out of date.
  • The Lloyd Center ice rink, the city’s only year-round rink, closed with the mall on August 8, 2026, and the owners have no plans to replace it, despite a campaign by local skaters.
  • The Oregon Rail Heritage Center started charging admission in January 2026.
  • The Southwest Community Center pool is closed for roof repairs from September 5, 2026 and expected back for November swim lessons.
  • Oaks Park’s rides stop at the end of October; the roller rink stays open.

For more family ideas in any weather, see the main Portland with kids hub, and for adults’ rainy-day options, our Portland museums and art guide.

Rainy Day Activities for Kids FAQ

Is the Portland Children’s Museum open?

No. The Portland Children’s Museum has closed permanently, so ignore older lists that recommend it. For the same age group, OMSI (free for under-3s, $15.50 for ages 3 to 13) and the World Forestry Center’s Discovery Museum ($5 for ages 3 to 18) are the closest substitutes, and the Central Library’s children’s area is free.

Is there ice skating in Portland after the Lloyd Center closed?

Not at the Lloyd Center. Its rink, the city’s only year-round ice rink, closed with the mall on August 8, 2026, and the owners plan no replacement. For skating on a rainy day, the historic roller rink at Oaks Amusement Park is open year-round, with open skate every day except Monday.

What can kids do for free in Portland when it rains?

The Portland Art Museum is free every day it’s open for anyone 17 or younger. The Central Library’s renovated children’s area costs nothing, Powell’s is free to browse until 9 p.m., and a ride down to Washington Park’s MAX platform, 260 feet underground, is free for children 6 and under traveling with a paying adult.

What’s open on a rainy Monday with kids?

Monday is the hardest day: OMSI (with some exceptions), the art museum, the World Forestry Center, the Rail Heritage Center and the Oaks Park rink are all closed. Try the zoo in rain gear, a city pool’s open swim, the Central Library, Ground Kontrol before 5 p.m. or Powell’s.

Which rainy-day activities suit toddlers best?

Keep it short and cheap. A family swim at a city pool (free for 2 and under), the Central Library’s children’s area, the trains at the Rail Heritage Center (free under 3) and a stop at OMSI, where under-3s are free, all work for an hour or two before nap time.

Where can kids swim indoors in Portland?

At the city’s indoor pools: East Portland, Matt Dishman in Northeast, Mt. Scott in Southeast and Southwest, which is closed for roof repairs until about November 2026. Drop-in swims cost $4 for ages 3 to 12 and $5 for teens, children 2 and under swim free, and at Family Swim an adult must be in the water with children under 18.

Related Portland Guides

Sources and verification

The venues, prices, hours and closures on this page were checked between September 23 and October 1, 2026 against the operators’ and agencies’ own websites and recent news coverage; the guide is compiled from them and claims no first-hand visits.

Portland Tourism Guide is an independent publication, not affiliated with Travel Portland, the City of Portland or any business named here.

Photo credits