The Grotto

Category:	Place of Worship
Address:	8840 NE Skidmore St, Portland, OR 97220, USA
Phone:	+1 503-254-7371
Site:	thegrotto.org
Rating:	4.6

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 17

Kyan Hartley

There are endless places in Portland that envoke words like "beautiful," "awe-inspiring," "must-visit." The Grotto is certainly one of these places, but seems to be a well-kept secret, perhaps due to its proximity from city center. Although its just a quick 15-minute drive from the heart of downtown, it doesnt pull in the same amount of visitors as places like the Japanese Gardens. That is largely why I adore the Grotto. Its one of the most tranquil places in the city limits. 62 acres of manicured landscape, its officially a Catholic shrine. Being a non-religious person myself, I have always adored the beauty of Catholic spaces. This is an ideal place to go for some respite from the city. *note* If you dont pay the fee to go the upper portion of this, you will truly miss out! Thats where the worthwhile places are. Aside from the statues and paths, check out these areas: - Meditation Center (quiet room on the side of a cliff with huge floor-to-ceiling windows looking out where you can see for miles on a clear day) - The Monastery - Meditative labyrinth walk (twisting/turning circular walk that takes several minutes to walk through)

Sarah Winters

The Grottos Festival of Lights is awesome! To the person that complained there wasnt enough lights, its a lot more than just a few strands of lights. Theres a whole walkway with huge trees, with every branch wrapped in hundreds of lights. I was very impressed. The Grotto is a spiritual and meditative retreat. Gaudy, flashy light displays would not have been appropriate through out the entire gardens. Another major part of the event is the choral festival, which was lovely! The $10 entrance fee was less than they charge at the ZooLights and I feel was well worth the experience. And $2 for a cup of hot chocolate was a decent price, especially considering it was all a fundraiser. Some people are just never happy and will always have something to complain about. Very sad.

Mary Jane S

I loved this place, perfect combination of natural and spirituality. The lower level is free to access however the upper level youll have to pay to take the elevator up. There in the building built in memory of Marilyn Moyer, is the most beautiful replica of Mother Mary and Jesus. Along with the sculpture is a beautiful view of The Grotto. After visiting the rare sculpture I would walk through the houses of the saints. There are many different saints from different countries. The calming walk through nature is breath taking, strongly suggest bringing mosquito repellant! There also is a labyrinth where you would walk and follow the path and center your thoughts. Overall this spiritual area of renewal is a must for both religious and nature loving people.

Jordan Weiers

The Grotto was stunning. The air is fresh and smells like forest, and the place really lives up to its goal of being a place of serenity and quiet. You can pay $5 and take an elevator to the top of the cliff and look around the forest/gardens on top of the ridge. Absolutely do that. Bring a friend or listen to some music and browse around the upper gardens. There is also a labyrinth. The view from the meditation room on the cliff is breathtaking. You can see for many, many miles. There are even couches for you to sit in the warm, cozy little room and appreciate the extraordinary view. Plan to spend about two hours soaking this place in.

Elly Lee

The venue itself is absolutely beautiful, however the festival of lights is somewhat of an overpriced rip off. None of the grounds were open that I thought they were going to have decorated in lights, they just had some trees strung with lights with people singing carols and overpriced popcorn and hot chocolate. They did have a petting zoo, with a line that stretched all the way to the church itself. All in all it was not such a rememberable experience, I would not suggest it. 30$ wasted

Dreamy G

It was a beautiful, serene place to visit. I am glad I saw it. The grotto is just a nice place to sit and introspect. For $5 one can go to the gardens above. It is a nice 1-1.5 mile walk, but so nice. There are so many peaceful areas to just sit and enjoy the greenery. Of course, the religious aspect is there - but despite being a non Christian, I thoroughly enjoyed my visit. I would recommend it to all....just know that there are no flowers - just nicely kept green areas.

Van Chen

Come to Portland last month and heard about the Grotto. My hotel locates just 10 minutes walk to it. This place is truly amazing, the minute you walk into the gate, you smell fresh air, flowers, birds singing...everything is just so so green and beautiful. You must take the elevator to the top, it is a breathtaking view. The place was well kept, it is so peaceful, relaxing..I definitely will come back here again.

Carbo Kuo

波特蘭郊外的天主教聖地，位於一片松林之中，有山上山下兩個部分，上電梯需要6美元。風景非常漂亮，山上有越南、菲律賓、墨西哥、波蘭和立陶宛的聖母顯靈神壇。

Dorothy Keeler

I can not say enough about this wonderful place... ...I was born in Portland but did not really live there till the 1965/66 and live in Portland and went to the Grotto often.. before i left in the 1945 time frame my mom would take me there and she would just enjoy... ....and guest from out of town who were not Catholic was please with the quiet and peace. Visit if you can....

Kristin Bonn

The Grotto is a wonderful place, and is an amazing area for meditation and worship. After stepping out of the elevator, its like youve entered another world. Birds in the trees, lush forests. The whole atmosphere feels holy. Our only complaint was that we had trouble finding the exit, so we had to climb over the entrance. Truly is a hidden gem.

Praveen Pious

A wonderful catholic sanctuary. We attended the Sunday mass. The ambience and the views were simply breathtaking. Make it a point to purchase the ticket so that you can take the elevator up the rock terrain. I found the prices posted for the items in the local store to be a bit towards the expensive side.

phil moist

lovely hidden gem on the northeast side. a complete getaway from the traffic, airport, and general hustle and bustle of modern life. im not even especially religious and found the grotto to be serene and beautiful. regardless of your feelings regarding the papacy, check this place out!

Jennifer Campisi

This place is amazing. Was in Portland for work and decided to check this out. WONDERFUL place. Highly recommend for any spiritual or meditative person or someone who just wants to see some great nature and views. Was not busy at all on a sunny spring Saturday afternoon.

Vi Huynh

Lived just blocks from the grotto for years. Ive taken it for granted. I really have. Only after coming back to it nearly a decade later did it really dawn on me what a beautiful area this place truly is. Dont miss out on paying to enter the tower. Magnificent view.

Asher Adams

The view is interesting and the building where you take the elevator up (you have to pay to do it) is strangely futuristic. Not your average experience of place. Fairly large grounds to walk around and explore on with a chapel down below. Nice place to take pictures.

Sarah Perez

What a beautiful peaceful place to visit! A great energy and beautiful roses and butterflies everywhere when you get to the peace garden,small waterfalls, cute gift shop and a view youll have to see for yourself! I loved it and would definitely visit again.

Ben Menesini

The word "serene" comes to mind. The Grotto has a number of trails to stroll through, a stone labyrinth, a monastery, gardens, and large and quiet meditation room. Theres a $5 fee to take the elevator to the gardens. We had a wonderful afternoon here.