You know Bend. Here’s how to do it better.

For those of us in the peak career, empty-nest era, the goal of the summer getaway has certainly shifted. One last trip before you move her into the dorm or maybe it’s time to meet the son’s new partner. You can take your loved one on a new-found freedom tour or do something fun but easy with the whole clan, grandparents, too. After all, you’re paying. 

The thing is, you’ve probably been to Bend before. If you have, you know we have lots to do with high rewards for little effort. The secret to a repeat trip to Bend now isn’t doing more but doing it better. And so much has happened here in the past year that you’re bound to find something new. 

That’s where I come in. For the past year-and-change here at Visit Bend, it’s been my legit job to go out and find the restaurants, the trails, the experiences, and shows that somehow even I have missed over 22 years of living here. The list is long but I’ve got some gems for you. So, as Biff from Back to the Future might say, time for you to make like a tree and get going.

You probably arrived yesterday afternoon and made your way to Deschutes Brewery or Crux Fermentation Project for your welcome-back moment. Great choices. But did you hit Hola for margs and lomo saltado or Noi for the garlic chicken that’s so good that the wait staff call it “crack”? But as Annie Dillard says, how we spend our days is how we spend our lives, so time to branch out. (You’re welcome, Biff.) 

A quieter place to ride

Bend has some great new mountain bike trails to check out, starting with a downhill area at Wanoga Sno-Park that opened last summer. No body armor required. These are wide, buffed out ribbons with excellent sightlines, no kooky off-camber climbs, and definitely no do-or-die drops. In fact, the four trails and a dedicated uphill route were all built specifically for adaptive riders, too, which, in case you didn’t know, makes for fantastic riding for all. Everyone knows the system out at Phil’s Trail but if you head out to Wanoga you can catch the new connector trail to Swampy. Even better, hire a shuttle from Cog Wild to Swampy, ride to the new downhill trails at Wanoga, then hit Tiddlywinks on the way back to town.

e-Mountain bikes now allowed, too

Also, new Forest Services rules now allow unmodified class 1 e-mountain bikes on about 160 miles of trails in the Deschutes National Forest. That includes some at Phil’s and Wanoga. Stop by the Bend Visitor Center for details or bone up on the rules for where you can ride an e-mountain bike. Pine Mountain Sports rents them. Cog Wild also offers guided mountain bike trips with experts who can take you straight to the goods.

The Deschutes River float from Riverbend Park to Drake Park is a classic, as you know, but what’s new is the personal shuttle service in an electric golf cart that makes getting back to your car so much easier. The Cruizzy folks can haul you and your tubes (or rent them from Tumalo Creek and Kayak or Sun Country Tours), as well as paddleboards and surfboards, and they will even let you bring beer and wine for the ride. Let them know ahead of time and they’ll even provide the cooler and ice. Check out their other tours, too. 

Tube from Tumalo State Park

But! Floating the river through town has a joyful, communal vibe, but you have quieter options. My favorite: head to Tumalo State Park, walk upstream along the trail on river-right (that’s the side where you’ll park), and float back down. For an even longer float, you can bob all the way to the hamlet of Tumalo, about 1.5 miles downstream from the state park, and take out at the Tumalo Road bridge. The river’s faster with more riffles compared to in town but you shouldn’t encounter any rapids. You’ll definitely see fewer people. To get back to your car, it’s a 1.8-mile walk back to the park. Let the college kid hoof it. Alternatively, you all can head to The Tumalo Bite for perfect pizza, beer, and food carts to dry off and catch a ride-share back. Do not try to get one while you’re wet. Drivers really, really don’t like that.

You have your tried-and-true favorites—Boneyard, Worthy Brewing, Bend Brewing Co.—which is all well and good, but we have some other spots you really need to try. UPP Liquids in the Box Factory between the Old Mill District and downtown has been racking up awards with delicious brews like Japanese rice lagers that hit the spot on a summer day. Pair it with the Korean wings. Funky Fauna in the up-and-coming Central District near downtown does fantastic Belgian-style saisons with yeast captured from the Central Oregon air. A visit to Terranaut Brewing will have you wondering if you’re lost but, nope, it really is in an industrial parking lot on the north end of town. Sit outside or wander in for cool, unusual beers, like Czech amber lagers and French pilsners (the tap list changes, a lot) and listen to some vinyl. Van Henion is close by, too, and nails the helles-style suds served up in what was once surely a vampire lair with velvety greens wallpaper. All of these are on the Bend Ale Trail. The n/a folks will find lots of options, too.

Stay: You know and love the Oxford Hotel and the Riverhouse Lodge. Now there’s the Westman, too. That’s Bend’s newest, schwankiest boutique hotel and it sits downtown in what was once the old post office. Hit Minnie’s, the cocktail bar, before wandering downtown to a show at the Tower Theatre or the Greenhouse Cabaret.

Eat: We have four farmers markets now. Burrito time? Dani’s, a pretty nondescript joint on Bend’s eastside, crushes it with fat little donkeys priced like it’s still 2025. The “Daniel” is my favorite, with bacon, of course, and they open early, at 6 a.m., for early bird adventures. Not that any of us stay up late anymore, but Rodolberto’s serves great Mexican food until midnight. Japanese Pan Kitchen does tasty bentos, donburi, and noodle soups, all of it take-out only. Bend has a new teahouse, the Tea + Art Lounge, too. Find Salud for healthy date-spirulina-something smoothies and salads in a tiny, tucked-away spot.  

Music: The Hayden Homes Amphitheater as a newly redone VIP deck, called The Deck, with more space and even better views. Silver Moon gets great, who’s this music, too, and often does summer shows outside in the food cart area out back. The Volcanic Theatre has a new sound system.  

Rest: Flux Thermal Lounge has a large hot tub pool and cold plunges with private rooms. Great for coaxing your back back to life.

Where you’re going, you don’t need roads. If you flew into town and need an airport transfer or just want to relive your best ‘80s Fresh Scent Aquanet days, book a ride in a rad DeLorean tricked out to look just like the one Doc and Marty McFly used, complete with a Flux Capacitor. Plutonium not included.