Ohio
Cleveland is the Great Lakes city that keeps surprising people who expected less. On the shore of Lake Erie, I. M.
Pei's glass pyramid holds the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a few miles east the Cleveland Museum of Art opens one of America's great collections every day without charging a cent, and in between run the neighborhoods that feed the city: Ohio City around the vaulted hall of the West Side Market, hilltop Tremont with its church spires and the house where A Christmas Story was filmed, and Little Italy beside the museums of University Circle. South of town the Cuyahoga River winds through a national park of waterfalls and towpath trails. This guide books the few things worth booking, from the Rock Hall and a market food tour to a ghost walk past the theatres of Playhouse Square, tells you which days the market, the history museum and the art museum close, and matches you to the right hotel, from a lake-view Ritz-Carlton over Public Square to a 1910 mansion among the museums.
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Cleveland's signature sight: I. M. Pei's glass pyramid on the Lake Erie shore, packed with stage costumes, handwritten lyrics, guitars and the stories of every inductee. Give it two to three hours, book ahead, and start on Level 0, where most of the exhibits are.
House from A Christmas Story
The Tremont house where Ralphie Parker dreamed of his Red Ryder BB gun, restored to look as it does in the 1983 film, with the leg lamp glowing in the window and a museum of props across the street. Open daily year-round, with longer hours from late November.
Cleveland Metroparks Zoo
A big, wooded zoo on the city's south side with an African savanna, a primate, cat and aquatics building and an indoor rainforest that keeps winter visits warm. Open 10am to 4pm from October to March, with a holiday lights event after dark.
Cuyahoga Valley National Park
A free national park between Cleveland and Akron, where the Cuyahoga River winds past waterfalls, ledges and the old Ohio and Erie Canal towpath. Brandywine Falls, the Towpath Trail and the scenic railroad make an easy half-day escape from the city.
Cleveland's signature sight: I. M. Pei's glass pyramid on the Lake Erie shore, packed with stage costumes, handwritten lyrics, guitars and the stories of every inductee. Give it two to three hours, book ahead, and start on Level 0, where most of the exhibits are.
One of America's great art museums, and general admission is always free. Armor, Egyptian treasures, medieval gold, Impressionists and modern masters fill a grand classical building and a glass-roofed atrium in University Circle. Closed Mondays.
A guided tasting walk through Cleveland's historic West Side Market and the Ohio City streets around it, with local stories and drink pairings. The market hall is free to browse, but this is the best way to taste it, and the tour is rated 5.0 from over 300 reviews.
A hands-on downtown museum of optical tricks, tilted rooms and mind-bending installations, made for photos and for arguing about what you just saw. Open daily from 9am to 7pm on Euclid Avenue, it is the easy rainy-day win for families and groups of friends.
The Western Reserve Historical Society's museum in University Circle, with the Crawford Auto-Aviation Museum's classic cars and planes, galleries on the city's story and unlimited rides on the restored Euclid Beach Park Grand Carousel. Open Thursday to Sunday.
An afternoon walking tour of tastings in Tremont, the hilltop neighborhood of church spires and chef-run restaurants above the Flats. It starts at the Lincoln Park gazebo, lasts about three hours and is rated 4.8 from 40 reviews, with the guide's gratuity included.
A one-hour haunted walking tour through downtown's historic theatre district, past the Hanna Theatre and the castle-like Cleveland Grays Armory, with tales of the Battle of Lake Erie, organized crime and the spirits said to linger. Rated 4.4 from about 160 reviews.
The Tremont house where Ralphie Parker dreamed of his Red Ryder BB gun, restored to look as it does in the 1983 film, with the leg lamp glowing in the window and a museum of props across the street. Open daily year-round, with longer hours from late November.
A big, wooded zoo on the city's south side with an African savanna, a primate, cat and aquatics building and an indoor rainforest that keeps winter visits warm. Open 10am to 4pm from October to March, with a holiday lights event after dark.
FreeA free national park between Cleveland and Akron, where the Cuyahoga River winds past waterfalls, ledges and the old Ohio and Erie Canal towpath. Brandywine Falls, the Towpath Trail and the scenic railroad make an easy half-day escape from the city.
Hotels we would book ourselves, from splurges to good-value bases.
$$$$Downtown (Tower City)
Cleveland's luxury address, high above Public Square in the Tower City complex, with 206 renewed rooms looking over Lake Erie or the skyline, TURN Bar and Kitchen, Sushi by Bou omakase and the rapid transit to the airport almost at the door.
Rates on Expedia →
$$$Downtown (East Ninth and Euclid)
A boutique hotel in a restored landmark office building at East Ninth and Euclid, with its brick facade brought back to its early-1900s look, Betts restaurant downstairs and the Rock Hall, the arena and the ballpark all within an easy walk.
Rates on Expedia →
$$$Downtown (Euclid Avenue)
Sleep inside Cleveland's Victorian Arcade, a glass-roofed shopping hall from 1890 with tiers of iron balconies, now the lobby of a Hyatt Regency with a spa. A memorable downtown base a short walk from Public Square, the theatres and East 4th Street.
Rates on Expedia →
$$University Circle
A 1910 mansion built for Frank and Mary Glidden in University Circle, now a historic boutique hotel with free European-style breakfast, set among the museums, gardens and Little Italy restaurants. The calm, characterful base for art and history lovers.
Rates on Expedia →
$$Downtown (Lakefront side)
The value pick downtown: a restored former Board of Education building half a mile from the Rock Hall, with free hot breakfast, a free evening Kickback with hot food, beer and wine, and an indoor pool. Hard to beat for families and budget-minded travellers.
Rates on Expedia →The practical primer for a first visit: the few tickets worth booking ahead, the closing days that catch people out, how the rapid transit and HealthLine link downtown with Ohio City and University Circle, and a two to three day plan.
How to choose a base in Cleveland, with the right hotel for each area: a lake-view Ritz-Carlton on Public Square, a boutique landmark on East Ninth, the Victorian Arcade, a value pick near the Rock Hall and a 1910 mansion among the museums.
