National WWI Museum and Memorial
America’s official museum of the First World War, set beneath the soaring Liberty Memorial tower on a hill facing Union Station, with an observation deck, immersive galleries and a centennial year in 2026.
Missouri
Kansas City
Kansas City is the great surprise of the American Midwest: a city of fountains and boulevards that straddles the Missouri-Kansas state line, smokes some of the best barbecue on earth, and gave the world a hard-swinging style of jazz in the clubs around 18th and Vine.
It is also home to the country’s official museum of the First World War, set beneath the 217-foot Liberty Memorial tower that was dedicated in 1926 and marks its centennial this November, and to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, an encyclopedic collection with free general admission and a lawn scattered with giant shuttlecocks. Visitors come to eat their way through burnt ends and sauce-slathered ribs, to stand in the Grand Hall of Union Station, to learn the story of Black baseball at the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, and to cheer the Royals and the Chiefs in their side-by-side stadiums. This guide books the experiences worth booking, from a bus tour of four legendary barbecue joints to a behind-the-scenes Kauffman Stadium tour, a trolley loop of the city and a tasting at a distillery named for a Prohibition-era political boss, and it matches you to the right hotel, from a restored 1920s club building downtown to a classic address on the Country Club Plaza and a budget base in a 1915 landmark.
Don't miss
Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
One of the great encyclopedic art museums of the United States, with free general admission, a grand neoclassical building, a luminous modern wing and a sculpture park famous for its giant shuttlecocks.
Union Station Kansas City
A magnificent 1914 rail terminal with a soaring Grand Hall and a famous six-foot clock, still serving trains and now home to Science City, touring exhibitions, restaurants and the city’s free streetcar.
Negro Leagues Baseball Museum
The moving story of Black professional baseball told in the historic 18th and Vine Jazz District, where the Negro National League was founded in 1920, ending on a field of life-size bronze legends.
National WWI Museum and Memorial
America’s official museum of the First World War, set beneath the soaring Liberty Memorial tower on a hill facing Union Station, with an observation deck, immersive galleries and a centennial year in 2026.
Things to do in Kansas City
FreeNelson-Atkins Museum of Art
One of the great encyclopedic art museums of the United States, with free general admission, a grand neoclassical building, a luminous modern wing and a sculpture park famous for its giant shuttlecocks.
2-4 hoursDetails →
Original KC Barbecue Tour
A four-hour bus tour of four legendary Kansas City barbecue joints, Arthur Bryant’s, LC’s, Danny Edwards BLVD and Gates, with tastings at every stop, skip-the-line entry and a local guide.
Union Station Kansas City
A magnificent 1914 rail terminal with a soaring Grand Hall and a famous six-foot clock, still serving trains and now home to Science City, touring exhibitions, restaurants and the city’s free streetcar.
Negro Leagues Baseball Museum
The moving story of Black professional baseball told in the historic 18th and Vine Jazz District, where the Negro National League was founded in 1920, ending on a field of life-size bronze legends.
SEA LIFE Kansas City
An indoor aquarium at Crown Center with an ocean tunnel, sharks, rays, jellyfish and touch pools, open daily and an easy rainy-day pick next door to LEGOLAND Discovery Center.
LEGOLAND Discovery Center Kansas City
An indoor LEGO playground at Crown Center with rides, a 4D cinema, build-and-test zones, play areas and a MINILAND display of city landmarks built from LEGO bricks.
Kansas City Trolley Tour
A ninety-minute narrated trolley loop from Union Station past the WWI Museum, 18th and Vine, the Country Club Plaza, the Nelson-Atkins, Westport and more, the quickest way to get your bearings in a spread-out city.
Kauffman Stadium Guided Tour
A ninety-minute behind-the-scenes tour of the home of the Kansas City Royals, with the dugout, the Diamond Club, the Royals Hall of Fame and the famous outfield fountains, rated close to five stars.
Tom’s Town Distillery Tour and Tasting
A one-hour small-group tour and spirits tasting at an art deco distillery in the Crossroads, named for Prohibition-era boss Tom Pendergast and billed as the first legal distillery in downtown Kansas City since Prohibition.
Where to stay
Hotels we would book ourselves, from splurges to good-value bases.
$$$Hotel Kansas City, in The Unbound Collection by Hyatt
Downtown (Power and Light)
A 144-room boutique hotel in the restored 1920s Kansas City Club building downtown, with The Town Company restaurant, a music bar, a grand lobby and coffee bar, and The Midland theatre across the street.
Rates on Expedia →
$$$InterContinental Kansas City at the Plaza
Country Club Plaza
A classic 371-room full-service hotel on Ward Parkway beside Brush Creek, a short walk from the Country Club Plaza’s fountains and shops and about a mile from the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.
Rates on Expedia →Loews Kansas City Hotel
Downtown (Convention District)
An 800-room AAA Four Diamond hotel opened in 2020 beside the convention center, with an indoor saltwater pool, The Stilwell restaurant and the Horsefeather Social rooftop bar overlooking the Kauffman Center.
Rates on Expedia →
$$Ambassador Hotel Kansas City, Autograph Collection
Downtown Loop
A restored 1920s neoclassical landmark on Grand Boulevard with marble columns, The American Reserve restaurant and Lonnie’s Reno Club, an upscale jazz supper club, in Marriott’s Autograph Collection.
Rates on Expedia →
$Holiday Inn Express Kansas City Downtown
Downtown East (T-Mobile Center)
A 73-room budget-friendly hotel in the historic 1915 Inter-State Building, half a block from the T-Mobile Center, with free hot breakfast, a fitness center and parking for guests.
Rates on Expedia →Kansas City guides
First Time in Kansas City: What to Book, How to Get Around and How Many Days
The practical primer for a first visit to Kansas City: how many days to plan, what to book ahead, getting around by free streetcar and car, museum closing days, and where the WWI Museum, the Nelson-Atkins, barbecue and baseball fit.
Where to Stay in Kansas City: Downtown, the Plaza or Near the Arena
How to choose your base in Kansas City, from a boutique hotel in a restored 1920s club to a modern hotel with a pool, a jazz-age landmark, a classic Plaza address and a budget pick in a 1915 building.
