There are some activities that you just don’t do if you’re not good at them or don’t have experience. For instance, bouldering without a harness is probably not a great idea if you’re not an experienced climber. Then there are activities that almost anyone can do, at any age, and it doesn’t matter if you’re experienced or a novice, coordinated or clumsy. Bowling is a prime example, and it appeals to almost everyone, whether you do it on a regular basis, or bowl so little that when you do, you wonder why you don’t go bowling all the time. Well now you can.
There is a program that exists to remind us what great fun bowling can be, and help keep us active and entertained all summer long. It’s called Kids Bowl Free, and it was created to promote the sport and make it accessible to children and families in an affordable way. By signing up for the program, up to 6 children per supervising adult can each bowl two FREE games EVERY DAY from late spring all through the summer. Shoe rental is not included, but is usually a nominal fee. To sweeten the deal, and get the grownups involved, you can pay a one-time fee of $28.95 to get the The Family Pass which allows up to 4 adults to bowl 2 games free each day during the summer too! Just choose and commit to one local bowling alley for the summer, and each week your bowling coupons will be emailed to you. All you need to do is print out the coupons and bring them with you. For an extra one-time fee of about $5, you can have your Kids Bowl Free coupons texted to your phone each Sunday if you prefer the convenience of paperless coupons.
The greater Portland metro area has many bowling locations that are participating in the Kids Bowl Free program, and they are all accessible by bus. I have provided links the nearest TriMet stops for each location. You can also visit the trip planning page over at TriMet to enter your starting location, and the address of your desired bowling alley for a detailed trip itinerary.
Grand Central Restaurant & Bowling Lounge 808 SE Morrison St, Portland, OR 97214
Photo by Tom Hilton
- SE Morrison & 7th Westbound Stop ID 4025 – 0.04 miles away • Served by: 15
- SE 11th & Belmont Southbound Stop ID 6542 – 0.14 miles away • Served by: 70
- Click here for all nearby TriMet stops
Kellogg Bowl 10306 SE Main St, Portland, OR 97222
- 10200 Block SE Main Southbound Stop ID 12463 – 0.03 miles away • Served by: 31, 32, 33
- SE Jackson & 21st Eastbound Stop ID 8225 – 0.25 miles away • Served by: 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 70, 99, 152
- Click here for all nearby TriMet stops
Milwaukie Bowl 3056 SE Harrison St, Milwaukie, OR 97222
- SE Harrison & 31st Westbound Stop ID 2574 – 0.05 miles away • Served by: 28, 31, 75
- SE Harrison & Hwy 224 Eastbound Stop ID 2568 – 0.06 miles away • Served by: 28, 31, 75, 152
- Click here for all nearby TriMet stops
Pinbusterz Family Fun Center 3800 SE 164th Ave, Portland, OR 97236
- SE Powell & 164th Westbound Stop ID 4609 – 0.04 miles away • Served by: 9
- SE Powell & 164th Eastbound Stop ID 4608 – 0.05 miles away • Served by: 9
- Click here for all nearby TriMet stops
Sunset Lanes 12770 SW Walker Rd, Beaverton, OR 97005
- SW Cedar Hills & Walker Southbound Stop ID 1022 – 0.16 miles away • Served by: 20
- SW Jenkins & Hocken Eastbound Stop ID 3067 – 0.27 miles away • Served by: 62
- Click here for all nearby TriMet stops
Tigard Bowl 11660 SW Pacific Hwy, Portland, OR 97223
- 11600 Block SW Pacific Hwy Eastbound Stop ID 4251 – 0.03 miles away • Served by: 12
- 11600 Block SW Pacific Hwy Westbound Stop ID 10639 – 0.13 miles away • Served by: 12, 64, 94
- Click here for all nearby TriMet stops
The bowling alleys below are not currently participating in the Kids Bowl Free summer bowling program, but are still great locations for bus accessible fun. If you’d like to see them join the program in the future, click here to submit a request at kidsbowlfree.com.
AMF Pro 300 Lanes 3031 S.E. Powell Blvd., Portland, OR 97202
- SE Powell & 31st Eastbound Stop ID 4641 – 0.03 miles away • Served by: 9
- SE Powell & 33rd Westbound Stop ID 4643 – 0.11 miles away • Served by: 9
- Click here for all nearby TriMet stops
Interstate Lanes 6049 N Interstate Ave, Portland, OR 97217
- Rosa Parks MAX Station Southbound Stop ID 11502 – 0.16 miles away • Served by: MAX Yellow
- N Rosa Parks Way & Interstate Eastbound Stop ID 4474 – 0.21 miles away • Served by: 44
- Click here for all nearby TriMet stops
Article by Stephanie Paris
Cover photo by Raluy Schneider