Portlandia Mermaid Parade and Festival

Photo courtesy of Portlandia Mermaid Parade and Festival

Have you ever wanted to be a mermaid? The Portlandia Mermaid Parade and Festival invites everyone to dress up as mermaids or other mythical water creatures for a walk downtown. 

Since 2016, the Portlandia Mermaid Parade has been a free grassroots artistic event celebrating our community’s connection to Portland’s rivers and all things mermaid and water mythology. It is a family-friendly, gender neutral and body positive event open to all.

The name Portlandia honors Raymond Kaskey’s river goddess sculpture that currently sits atop the Portland Building entrance.

Here’s how you can participate or watch the 2022 event.

Portlandia Mermaid Parade and Festival

The Portlandia Mermaid Parade and Festival is Saturday, July 30, from 12-5 p.m. Participation in the parade is free and you do not need to register in advance.

The theme of the 2022 event is Rainbow Waters: A Shellabration of Queer Merfolk in Portland. The festival is honoring efforts to cultivate equity, inclusion and human rights for LGBTQ+ communities in the Portland-metro area. 

The event takes place at Tom McCall Waterfront Park. The parade starts at Poet’s Beach and proceeds a walking path North along the waterfront, ending at the Bill Naito Legacy Fountain in downtown Portland.

While you’re downtown, visit Dinolandia: Mike Bennett’s Immersive Prehistoric Exhibit or the Portland Saturday Market.

Get your best mermaid or mythical water creature costume ready and join in on the fun. Small decorated push floats that can fit on the sidewalk, wagons, bicycles, and pedi-cabs are welcome.

Festival schedule

• 12 p.m. Gathering begins at Poets Beach, under the Marquam Bridge
• 12:30 p.m. Opening ceremony starts
• 1 p.m. Crowning of the Grand Marshal
• 1:15 p.m. Guest Speakers
• 1:30 p.m. Parade Launches
• 2:30 p.m. Splash Mob Dance at Bill Naito Legacy Fountain, 2 SW Naito Pkwy

The event takes place at Tom McCall Waterfront Park. For more information, visit the Portlandia Mermaid Parade website.

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Dinolandia: Mike Bennett’s Immersive Prehistoric Exhibit