New hotels in Bend

We track one confirmed hotel project in Bend: CASCADA Bend, a 68-room thermal-springs hotel from the team behind Cascada Thermal Springs + Hotel in Portland's Alberta Arts District, broken ground downtown and targeting a late-2028 opening with roughly 250% more water than the Portland original. It's the brand's second property and its first outside Portland, arriving in a Central Oregon city already built around craft beer, the Deschutes River and easy access to the Cascade Range.

What to do

For a weekend

Downtown Bend and the Old Mill District cover most of a first visit on foot. Start along the Deschutes River at Drake Park, where Mirror Pond's calm water reflects downtown's tree-lined streets, then walk south to the Old Mill District: a former Brooks-Scanlon lumber mill redeveloped into more than 50 shops, restaurants and galleries along the riverbank, anchored by the Hayden Homes Amphitheater for summer concerts. The Bend Whitewater Park, a stretch of engineered river channels just upstream of the Old Mill, draws kayakers, surfers and tubers in warmer months and spectators year-round. Work through a few stops on the Bend Ale Trail passport program in the evening, including Deschutes Brewery's original downtown pub, founded in 1988 and still one of Oregon's best-known craft breweries, or Bend Brewing Company's riverside taproom a few blocks away. Cap the weekend with a short drive or hike up Pilot Butte, a cinder-cone volcano within the city limits whose summit road offers a 360-degree view over Bend to the Cascades on a clear evening.

For a longer stay

With more time, Mt. Bachelor, about 22 miles southwest of downtown, is Central Oregon's major ski resort in winter and a mountain-biking and hiking destination once the snow clears, and the Cascade Lakes Highway beyond it strings together a chain of alpine lakes (Sparks Lake, Elk Lake, Todd Lake among them) that make for one of the region's best scenic drives each summer before seasonal road closures set in for winter. Smith Rock State Park, about 25 miles north near Terrebonne, is one of the country's best-known rock-climbing destinations, with trails that don't require any climbing gear to enjoy its rust-colored canyon walls and views over the Crooked River. The High Desert Museum, just south of Bend, covers the region's natural and cultural history with live-animal exhibits and walking trails through high-desert terrain. Bend's setting at the eastern edge of the Cascades (high desert on one side, alpine forest and lakes on the other) is exactly what feeds CASCADA's positioning around thermal springs and physical recovery rather than a conventional downtown hotel stay: a place built for travelers who've spent the day outside and want somewhere serious to unwind.

A high-desert boomtown built around the outdoors

Bend's growth over the past two decades has been driven almost entirely by its access to outdoor recreation rather than by a single industry: the city sits at the point where the Cascade Range's pine forests give way to Central Oregon's high desert, which is part of why it can offer alpine skiing at Mt. Bachelor, desert rock climbing at Smith Rock and a warm-water river park within a single afternoon's drive. That combination has made Bend one of the fastest-growing mid-size cities in the Pacific Northwest, with downtown's historic core (much of it dating to the city's early-20th-century lumber-mill era) increasingly surrounded by newer neighborhoods built to house both remote workers and a steady stream of seasonal outdoor-recreation visitors. The Old Mill District is the clearest physical symbol of that shift: a working sawmill site until the 1990s, now the anchor of Bend's dining and entertainment scene. CASCADA Bend's arrival fits the same pattern that reshaped the Old Mill: repurposing downtown Bend's built environment around an outdoor-recreation-driven visitor economy rather than the resource industry the city was originally built on.

CASCADA's second property, and why it's bigger than the original

From Alberta Arts District to downtown Bend

Cascada Thermal Springs + Hotel opened in Portland's Alberta Arts District in December 2024 as the city's first hotel built around underground thermal springs: 100 rooms, a three-story LEED Platinum spa complex, and an adults-only (21+) policy that positioned it as a dedicated wellness destination rather than an all-purpose city hotel. CASCADA Bend follows the same premise at a different scale: SolTerra is developing, and Hacker Architects designing, a 130,000-square-foot boutique hotel with 68 rooms built around a considerably larger thermal-springs experience, roughly 250% more water than the Portland original, with rooftop pools and saunas overlooking the Cascades, movement and recovery spaces, and rooms that each include a private balcony and fireplace. The project is expected to create more than 150 permanent jobs and includes on-site parking, and sits on NW Arizona Avenue between Wall and Bond Streets, downtown Bend's two main north-south shopping streets, putting it a short walk from the Deschutes River and the Old Mill District rather than on the city's outskirts.

Why Bend, and why a bigger springs experience

Doubling down on thermal springs in a state with genuine outdoor-wellness credibility is a safer bet than most single-city hotel concepts trying to expand into a second market, and putting nearly two-and-a-half times the water into the second property suggests the brand sees Bend as a chance to build a more ambitious version of its own concept rather than simply replicate the Portland original at a smaller scale. Bend's existing identity (outdoor recreation, craft beer, a downtown built for walking) gives a thermal-springs hotel a built-in audience of skiers, climbers and mountain bikers looking for genuine recovery space, in a way that a purely urban market might not.

Which hotel for your trip

Wellness and spa travelers

CASCADA Bend's rooftop pools, saunas and movement and recovery spaces are built specifically around unwinding after time outdoors, following the same "hedonistic wellness" premise as Cascada Thermal Springs + Hotel in Portland at a considerably larger scale once it opens in late 2028.

Outdoor and adventure travelers

Anyone building a ski trip to Mt. Bachelor, a climbing trip to Smith Rock, or a Cascade Lakes Highway road trip will find CASCADA Bend's downtown location (a short walk from the Deschutes River and the Old Mill District) a genuinely practical base once it opens, positioned for recovery after a day in the mountains rather than as a business hotel with a spa attached.

Couples and design-focused travelers

Private balconies and fireplaces in every room, plus a purpose-built spa program from an architecture firm with a track record on wellness-focused buildings, put CASCADA Bend in a similar lane to Portland's original for couples looking for a design-forward stay built around the springs rather than a conventional hotel room.

Craft-beer and downtown travelers

CASCADA Bend's address between Wall and Bond Streets puts it within easy walking distance of the Bend Ale Trail's downtown breweries, Drake Park and the Old Mill District, making it a workable base even for visitors more interested in Bend's beer scene and river walks than the spa itself. Both streets are lined with the city's older brick storefronts, now home to a mix of independent shops, restaurants and bars rather than chain retail, which keeps the immediate neighborhood feeling more like a small-city downtown than a resort strip.

Longer-stay and remote-work travelers

Bend's downtown blends cafes, co-working-friendly breweries and a walkable core with quick access to the outdoors, and CASCADA Bend's location between Wall and Bond Streets (a short walk from both the Deschutes River and the Old Mill District's restaurants) would put a longer stay within reach of most of downtown's daily errands without needing a car, once the hotel opens.

Best time to visit

Summer (June through September) is Bend's busiest season, with long dry days suited to the Cascade Lakes Highway, the Bend Whitewater Park and hiking around Smith Rock, though wildfire smoke from the wider region can occasionally affect air quality. Winter (December through March) shifts the focus to Mt. Bachelor's ski season, with downtown Bend considerably quieter and colder, typically well below freezing overnight. Spring and fall are shoulder seasons: fewer crowds, milder weather than winter, but with the Cascade Lakes Highway and some higher-elevation trails still closed or muddy well into late spring.

Getting there

Redmond Municipal Airport (RDM), about 20 minutes north of Bend, is the region's commercial gateway, with direct connections to several major West Coast hubs including Seattle, Portland, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Bend itself has no passenger rail service; a rental car is the practical way to reach Mt. Bachelor, Smith Rock and the Cascade Lakes Highway, though downtown Bend and the Old Mill District are walkable once you're there.

Frequently asked questions

Are there any new hotels tracked in Bend?

Yes: CASCADA Bend, a 68-room thermal-springs hotel from the team behind Portland's Cascada Thermal Springs + Hotel, broke ground downtown and is targeting a late-2028 opening.

What is the Old Mill District?

A former lumber-mill site just south of downtown Bend, redeveloped into an open-air shopping, dining and entertainment district with more than 50 businesses and an amphitheater along the Deschutes River.

Is Bend known for craft beer?

Yes. The Bend Ale Trail passport program covers the city's breweries, including Deschutes Brewery's original 1988 downtown pub, one of Oregon's best-known craft breweries.

How is CASCADA Bend related to the Portland hotel?

It's the same brand's second property and its first outside Portland: a larger take on the original Alberta Arts District concept, with roughly 250% more thermal-springs water and 68 rooms against the original's 100, each with a private balcony and fireplace.

What is the closest airport to Bend?

Redmond Municipal Airport (RDM), about 20 minutes north of the city, with direct flights to several major West Coast hubs.

Is Bend a good base for skiing?

Yes: Mt. Bachelor, Central Oregon's major ski resort, is about 22 miles southwest of downtown Bend, roughly a 30- to 45-minute drive depending on conditions.

Is Smith Rock State Park near Bend?

Yes, about 25 miles north near Terrebonne: a well-known rock-climbing destination with hiking trails that don't require climbing gear.

What is the Bend Whitewater Park?

A stretch of engineered river channels on the Deschutes River just upstream of the Old Mill District, built for river surfing, kayaking and tubing, and a popular spot to watch from the riverbank even without getting in the water.

Is downtown Bend walkable?

Yes: downtown Bend and the Old Mill District are both walkable, connected by riverside paths along the Deschutes River, though a car is the practical way to reach Mt. Bachelor, Smith Rock or the Cascade Lakes Highway outside the city.