From Port Denarau you can book an assortment of island day cruises. Treasure Island is a popular choice for its superb marine reserve and Whale’s Tale Day Cruise. Here you can swim, snorkel in turquoise waters and enjoy a barbecue lunch on the beach. Movie buffs might want to check-out Monuriki, part of the Mamanuca Islands. Used as a location for the film “Cast Away”, starring Tom and Wilson take a day trip from Denarau and experience the Robinson Crusoe lifestyle.

Experience first-hand why Portland is famously dubbed the 'City of Roses' at its very own Rose Test Garden, the oldest official garden of its kind in the U.S.A. It all began during WWI when the garden was first set up as a refuge for roses that risked falling victim to war bombings and resulting in many varieties' extinction. Not only did the flowers avoid the ill fate, but continued to be cultivated and bloom in Portland to date (April through October, peaking in June).

Portland is home to the nation's largest wooded urban park: a short hike in, and you'll barely believe civilization is only steps away. 70 miles of trails traverse the forest overlooking the Willamette River, and although you'll have nature all to yourself at times, you're sure to also run into Portlanders out on a jog or walking their pups — prepare to be greeted with a friendly "hello." If you have time, hike up to Pittock Mansion, a French Renaissance-style château that was once occupied by the family of publisher and businessman Henry Pittock, and has now been turned into a historic house museum open to visitors. Another popular hiking destination is the so-called 'Witch's Castle' (pictured) — remnants of an abandoned stone house overgrown with moss, used by local students as a Friday night hangout location. The place is steeped in a bit of mystery, and although there is no record of any ties to witchcraft, its original dweller is rumored to have been the first person in Oregon to be sentenced to execution for murder in 1859.