It’s water on water at Lake Oswego's Lakeshore Inn, where the pool butts up to Lakewood Bay.

You're a Portlander. Chances are, you don't have a pool. You probably don't have a friend with a pool. You don't live close to one of Portland Parks & Rec's public pools, or if you do, you don't have the time to wait in line before open swim starts so you can get in before the pool's at capacity. And while you love the Willamette and the Columbia, sometimes you just don't feel like jumping in a river.

You're a Portlander, but maybe it's time to pretend you're not from here—and treat yourself to a hotel with an outdoor pool. It's not necessarily a splurge: a discounted weekday hotel rate is often cheaper than family guest passes to one of the local private pools. Bonus: AC, cable TV that might befuddle modern youth used to streaming services, and a chance to explore a part of town that isn't your regular stomping ground. While we're suckers for a backyard hot tub and love the open-all-year, warm, mellow, drink-in-hand soaking pools at McMenamins Edgefield and the Kennedy School, that's not what we're in the mood for when it's hot out. Here are a few places—mostly transit accessible, and near other attractions—where we wouldn't mind taking a summer splash staycation. 

At nine feet, University Place’s pool ties for the deepest deep end on this list.

University Place

Downtown

Most downtown hotels that have pools hide them indoors—a wise move in our climate, perhaps, and much appreciated in the off-season. But in summer we want at least the option of letting ourselves get hot in the sun before leaping in to refresh. At nine feet in the deep end, this is the pool for that. Expect your neighboring lounge chairs to be filled by international travelers, students' families, people with business at nearby OHSU or Doernbecher Children's Hospital, or someone attending a Rubik's Cube function in the hotel's event space. Flesh out a staycation with streetcar rides and dinner at Duck House.

The entrance to the Monarch pool is right next to its speakeasy-style Underground Pub.

Monarch

Clackamas

This Clackamas hotel just off I-205 gives airport hotel vibes, like it's a place to have an affair or set the play you wrote your junior year of college. (Freshman year, you set your play at the Unicorn on 82nd, and sophomore year it's at the Benson.) Lo and behold, Monarch is actually home to a glorious irregular-hexagon pool, steps from a Prohibition-themed bar, as well as a hotel restaurant that doubles as a venue for many of the city's most revered longtime jazz performers. While other places on this list require an overnight stay, Monarch has a day-use option: $85 (plus tax) gets you use of a room from 10am–7pm and access to the pool. Call ahead to check availability, and then pack your swimsuit and prepare to eavesdrop on business travelers and, if you're lucky, visiting judges for the Canby dog show. When you're all swimmed out, the many entertainments of the Clackamas Town Center are a short walk away.

No concrete jungle here—the view from the pool at the Holiday Inn on Hayden Island is all trees and river.

Holiday Inn Portland Columbia Riverfront

Hayden Island

Not to be confused with the Holiday Inn Express at Jantzen Beach—which also sits on Hayden Island overlooking the Columbia River, but on the west side of I-5 next to the empty lot where the old Thunderbird Hotel (which was once a Red Lion) burned down in 2012—this Holiday Inn sits just east of I-5 and, confusingly, also used to be a Red Lion. It's a launch point for American Cruise Lines' Columbia River tours, so you might be swimming with older couples fresh from the airport who are excited to cruise to Astoria or through the Gorge the next morning. A ring of towering evergreens and view of the river make the pool here one of the most picturesque in town. Of course, it's not quite as impressive as the old 100-by-165-foot bathing pool seen near the lobby in one of the hotel's huge black-and-white photos of the old Jantzen Beach Amusement Park. Need a cover-up? You can mosey over to the shopping center where the amusement park used to be, or buy a souvenir T-shirt ("Hayden Island, Oregon, est. 1851") at the hotel's front desk.

At the Lakeshore Inn, you can sit simultaneously poolside and bayside.

Lakeshore Inn

Lake Oswego

Just steps from downtown Lake O, the ’40s-era Lake Theater cinema, and Stickmen Brewing, this roadside inn is a simple, cozy spot for business travelers and folks visiting local family. If you don't land a room with a deck and a view of Lakewood Bay, you can spend most of your stay enjoying that view anyway, from a poolside chaise in between dips in the 84-degree little kidney-bean-shaped pool. (You might fancy a dip in the lake, but signs on the pool deck sternly ban swimming there.)

In Oregon City, the Best Western Plus Rivershore boasts a rooftop pool.

Best Western Plus Rivershore Hotel

Oregon City

Next to Clackamette Park just off I-205, this Oregon City Best Western has a mom-and-pop feel despite its several stories in height. Popular with families, older couples, and wedding guests headed to toast their pals at the nearby Abernethy Center, it boasts river views from most of its rooms, but from the rooftop pool the view is just of the shopping center across 99E. No matter, since we're just here for the splashing, and for the proximity to Oregon City's many charms, including the Highland Stillhouse, the municipal elevator, the smartly renovated Carnegie library, and the lovely walks and hikes.

Two views of the DoubleTree's pool: at ground level, and as seen from the Willy Wonka–style glass elevator.

DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Portland

Lloyd District

This massive convention hotel, with 15 floors and multiple glass elevators, has a good-size pool with a nine-foot deep end. Surrounded by the building on all but the east side, though, it's not the sunniest pool in town—which might be a relief if reapplying suntan lotion is not your jam. Spend the rest of your staycation touring the new indie attractions of the not-dead-yet Lloyd Mall, chowing down at Frank's Noodle House, and catching a game at the Sports Bra.

Other Pool Options


You'll find other hotels with outdoor pools near the airport (Aloft and the Best Western Pony Soldier, for example) and in the western suburbs (Homewood Suites in Beaverton or Quality Inn in Tigard). Hours and seasonality can vary, but we're pretty sure the "no horseplay" rule is always in effect. At least one of these pools even has a "no jam boxes" sign, in case any guests are toting one of those and a stack of tapes. You've been warned.