Corvallis, a bustling city of 60,000, is most famously the home of the Oregon State University Beavers—but it’s far more than a college town. Corvallis is an outdoor playground, a culinary hotspot, an under-the-radar destination to sip quality craft beer, and a community where artists ply their trade on the sides of buildings all over downtown.
So as you get ready to visit Corvallis, here are 10 great ways to make the most of your next adventure.
Photo by Autumn Schrock
The biggest attraction around Corvallis (literally) is Marys Peak—the tallest mountain in the Oregon Coast Range. The peak measures 4,097 feet and is a popular outdoor destination between spring and fall.
Ascend a number of trails through forests of fir and hemlock to the wide-open peak, or drive to a day-use area just below the summit for views that extend from the Pacific Ocean in the west to Corvallis, Philomath, and the Cascade Range in the east. Meadows around the summit come alive with dazzling wildflower displays as early as May—and the last of the season's colors last into July.
Learn more about Marys Peak, and get inspired for your next visit.
What's old is new again at the Common Fields food-cart pod, which resides in a converted auto repair shop near the southern edge of downtown Corvallis.
The creative dining space and taproom hosts four food carts serving cuisine from around the world—and pairs that lineup with a taproom that pours beer, wine, and cider from local, independent producers.
Enjoy it all indoors or on a partially covered patio (where some seats are heated in winter), let your littles ones loose in a small play area, and listen to live music from local and regional musicians.
Vendors at the Corvallis Farmers Market
The fun doesn't end after your meal at Common Fields. Nearly 1,000 farms and ranches surround Corvallis—so you're never far from fresh, seasonal fare.
Get started with a trip to the Corvallis Farmers Market, which runs on Saturday and Wednesday mornings between April and November along the waterfront in downtown; there, you can purchase local produce direct from the farm, fresh baked goods, honey, meat, and other items from dozens of local vendors.
And if you're visiting in the cooler months, the Corvallis Winter Market—one of several winter markets in the Willamette Valley—showcases seasonal items between January and mid-April.
Further afield, take an overnight trip to the Corvallis countryside—where you'll sample award-winning wines, dine on dishes whose ingredients were grown on-site, and stay the night in historic digs.
You can also pick and choose your stops along the self-guided Mid-Willamette Valley Food Trip, which brings together more than 50 wineries, ranches, eateries, and craft breweries that showcase the bounty of the region through tours, tastings, and more.
And Corvallis farm country takes you onto working vineyards and farms for overnight stays, creative meals, tasting flights, and other agricultural experiences.
Gathering Together Farm near Philomath
Deep in the Oregon Coast Range, Alsea Falls tumbles 30 feet over smooth rocks in the South Fork Alsea River—and is beloved for its staircase-like flow, especially in late spring and fall.
From the day-use area, a short trail descends to a viewpoint at the base of the waterfall—but the fun doesn't end there. Check out our guide to Alsea Falls for the skinny on hikes, mountain biking, and camping around the popular outdoor site.
A whopping 40 murals cover the sides of buildings across downtown Corvallis—adding pops of color and showcasing the city's vibrant art scene. Take it all in while joining the Corvallis Murals Scavenger Hunt, which offers the chance to win a prize for visiting certain murals.
As an added bonus, most of the large-scale paintings were crafted by regional artists, and many pay tribute to various aspects of local culture (such as wine, local produce, and native wildlife).
Block 15 Brewing / Photo by Isabella Medina
Oregon State University has long offered a Fermentation Science program to budding brewers, which has laid the groundwork for a bustling craft beer scene across Corvallis.
Block 15 Brewing crafts award-winning ales and lagers, sources local ingredients whenever possible, and dishes creative pub grub at two local pubs. Sky High Brewing, meanwhile, pours roughly a dozen house-made beers and hosts a rooftop patio that affords some of the city's best sunset views. And the historic Oregon Trail Brewery has been churning out a reliable selection of classic styles and eclectic offerings since 1987 in downtown's Old World Center. If you're looking for hard cider, 2 Towns Ciderhouse produces a fruit-forward mix of nearly two-dozen flagship ciders and small-batch pours.
William L. Finley National Wildlife Refuge sits just south of downtown Corvallis and is home to more than 12 miles of mostly flat trails that head through oak savannas, wetlands, forests, prairies, and other habitats.
Along the way, keep an eye out for western pond turtles, a resident herd of nearly 200 Roosevelt elk, more than 200 species of bird, and even the occasional black bear.
Learn more about the national wildlife refuges of the Willamette Valley, all of which are within 40 minutes of Corvallis. While they all offer a little something different, each bring together sublime views, native wildlife, and a look at the Willamette Valley's wide variety of ecosystems.
A pair of rooftop bars in downtown Corvallis invite you to escape the hustle and bustle—and to enjoy views of the nearby Oregon Coast Range.
Sky High Brewing serves a wide-ranging lineup of burgers and pizzas, handcrafted cocktails, and several house-made beers on its rooftop patio. It's always a relaxed vibe with umbrellas for shade, picnic tables, heaters, a cornhole set, and Adirondack chairs that face the surrounding sites.
A few blocks away, American Dream Pizza dishes a mix of creative cocktails and hearty pies—crafted with scratch-made sauce and a dough recipe passed down through four generations—on its Crow's Nest rooftop bar (open seasonally).
Cycling in the Willamette Valley / photo by Gritchelle Fallesgon
Whether you're looking for a scenic road ride, rugged gravel route, or thrilling mountain bike trail, you'll find plenty of incredible options for cycling around Corvallis.
Learn about mountain biking adventures in the forests around Corvallis, why the city makes an ideal onramp for the Willamette Valley Scenic Bikeway, how to visit local wineries by bike, and seeing local covered bridges on two wheels.
Perhaps the community's most famous ride, however, is the Corvallis-to-the-Sea Trail. The 62-mile path departs from downtown Corvallis, crests the Oregon Coast Range, and ends at Ona Beach, a few miles south of Newport, on the Oregon Coast.
In 2025, our partners at Visit Corvallis launched the Corvallis Dive Bar Crawl—a celebrations of the watering holes, taverns, and dives that provide a sense of community across town.
In all, nine stops can be found along the Dive Bar Crawl, ranging from acclaimed beer bars to laid-back lounges to downtown haunts. Check into stops along the way, and you'll earn enough points to win a fun prize.
If you're making a full day or night of it, consider taking ride-share services (such as Lyft or Uber) or hopping aboard the Corvallis Transit System—where nearly a dozen buses cover the community free of charge.
Since you can't fit the best of Corvallis into one day, why not extend your trip with a night or two in town—or in the neighboring community of Albany?
Our round-up of five great overnight stays in Corvallis and Albany brings together lodgings for every budget and for travelers from all walks of life.
The fun includes a retro stay for the whole family in downtown Corvallis, modern hotels in both communities, a remote B&B, and a spacious lodging at the doorstep to the Cascade Range.
