The state’s capital and largest city, Columbus, Ohio has affordable, entertaining attractions that make family travelers very happy. My family should know, after so many visits that we stopped counting.
Bring your Tiny Travelers to a great zoo, science center, waterpark or amusement park. Then stroll the quaint, uneven brick streets of Columbus’ German Village or bask in the splendor of downtown’s mix of riverfront skyscrapers, storefronts and walking and bike trails.
Home to Ohio State University’s Buckeyes, Columbus, Ohio boasts quality education, museums, art, and pedestrian friendly pockets. Park your car at the Short North and peruse unique shops, eateries, and galleries or join the Gallery Hop the first Friday of the month. When hungry, make your way to the historic German Village for authentic brawtwursts and sausage at Schmidt’s.
Fun for Toddlers
(Toddler to Age 8)
Columbus Zoo and Aquarium
4850 West Powell Road
Powell, OH 43065
800/MONKEYS or 614/645-3550
The well-known Columbus Zoo is nestled in the northwest corner of the city. Delight at over 660 species as they frolic, nap and wander in their naturalistic habitats. Areas of exploration include Shores, African Forest, Voyage to Australia, Asia Quest and North America. Famous residents include three female Florida manatees at home onManatee Coast. Kids can ride ponies, take a train, and a spin on a 1914 carousel. There is also a great kid’s playground.
COSI
333 West Broad Street
Columbus, OH 43215
888/819-COSI or 614/228-COSI
COSI, the stunning Center of Science and Industry, is perfect for your budding scientist. Fully immerse your senses in the cutting-edge exhibits. The interactive exhibit worlds include Ocean, Space (this is a NASA affiliate site), Progress, Life, little kidspace, and Gadgets. The Gadget cafe lets kids “order” up their own inventions, take everyday things apart, and see how it all works. The Extreme Screen Theater features a seven-story screen and a tilted hemispherical dome. Look for a visiting dinosaur from the American Museum of Natural History. Next, challenge yourself by riding on the only high wire unicyle in the world! An 84-foot cable, 17 feet above the ground, a counter balance weight makes it possible to accomplish this feat. There is also a schedule of Family workshops on a variety of topics to thrill all interests.
Fun for Older Children
(Up to Age 18)
Magic Mountain Fun Centers
5890 Scarborough Road (Brice RD & I-70)
Columbus, OH 43232
614/840-9600
This center is like a mini amusement park, with arcades, KidsGym playgrounds, mini-golf, go-karts (including Rookie Karts for younger drivers), and other amusements. Your schoolage kids will love the laser tag, bumper cars, and bumper boats. Snack bar offers pizza, burgers and soft drinks.
The Short North
1126 1/2-A North High Street
Columbus, OH 43201
614/299-8050
Adjacent to the Arena District, The Short North district boasts a variety of shopping, galleries, kid-friendly restaurants and more. It’s easily walkable. Park the car and let the kids go exploring or play at Goodale Park. For a special treat, Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams has a dazzling array of original creations. My kids love Buckeye State (peanut butter and chocolate chip.) My husband does for sweet potato with torched marshmallow. I prefer goat cheese with red cherries as a more adventurous eater.
Columbus Clippers – Minor League Baseball
Huntington Park
300 Huntington Park Lane
Columbus, OH 43215
614/462-2757
Play ball early April until September. The Columbus Clippers are a Triple A affiliate team of the Cleveland Indians, now in Huntington Stadium. Tickets range from $6 – $35. Go and enjoy hot dogs, cracker jacks and the ballgame. Heaven! And, one of Columbus Ohio’s top family attractions.
Zoombezi Bay
4850 West Powell Road
Powell, OH 43065
800/MONKEYS
Ohio’s largest waterpark began as the calm Wyandot Lake and is now known as Zoombezi Bay waterpark, part of the Columbus Zoo. Seasonal attractions include waterslides, a wave pool, small kids area and an action river. It’s a big hit and must-do in summer.
Fun for the Whole Family
Columbus Museum of Art
480 East Broad Street
Columbus, OH 43215
614/221-6801
The Columbus Museum of Art is an inviting and cozy museum with special kids and families programs. Visit The Wonder Room, full of hands-on fun for families, and The Family Gallery with themed exhibitions for family enjoyment. Kids will love the free gallery hunt designed for visitors of all ages.
Wexner Center for the Arts
Ohio State University
1871 North High Street
Columbus, Ohio 43210
614/292-3535
The Wexner Center regularly hosts interactive projects, films, and workshops to keep kids busy year round. There are also special teen programs just for kids ages 14-18 including opportunities to work with artists. Tap into kids’ creative side before taking in a college football game.
German Village
Visitor’s Center: 588 South Third Street
Columbus, OH
614/221-8888
The internationally recognized German Village is a thriving historic area of Columbus. Here are my don’t miss shops. The world-famous Katzinger’s Delicatessen boasts an endless array of deli sandwiches. Schmidt’s Fudge Haus & Gifts and Pistacia Verde offer tantalizing treats. The very first Max and Erma’s is located in the heart of the village. Look for the oldest craft store in the country — Helen Winnemore’s Contemporary Craft Gallery which offers among the usual selection, kid’s clothing, animals and toys.
Ohio Village
800East 17th Street
Columbus, OH 43211
614/297-2300
The Ohio Village is closed for a major restoration. We loved when it recreated the daily life of a typical countryside town in Ohio during the mid 19th century. Costumed interpreters pursued activities typical of 1860s townspeople, including farming, cooking and playing games. Call ahead or check the web site for a schedule of events and historic venues administered by The Ohio Historical Society.
Trip Planning Details for a Columbus, Ohio Family Visit
Visit the Experience Columbus C & VB for more information and a schedule of current attractions and live entertainment.
They also provide more information on accommodations — everything from luxury suites to affordable rustic lodges. For a taste of the city at your fingertips, stay downtown. The Lofts, Crowne Plaza Hotel, Cross Country Inn Continent, and Westin Great Southern are just a few of the hotels convenient to area attractions.
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2 Replies to “Columbus Ohio Attractions”
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Cute. Made me hungry. Have you gone back since?
WOW ITS REAL BEAUTIFUL..
Much better place in Palawan… like El Nido and Club Noah in taytay
Congratulations on your son's upcoming graduation!
For all the information you'll need to plan a houseswap, please search the familytravelforum.com site for "house swapping" or "home exchanges" and you'll find some recommended services that specialize in this.
Let us know how it goes! thanks
Angela, you can read more about the requirements of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative at this link:
http://www.familytravelforum.com/how/vacation_deals/227-News-Families-Have-Cheaper-WHTI-Options-for-Kids-Land-and-Sea-Borders.html
According to the WHTI website, you are required to obtain parents' permission, and we quote from them:
Groups of Children:
Beginning June 1, 2009, U.S. and Canadian citizen children under age 19 arriving by land or sea from contiguous territory and traveling with a school group, religious group, social or cultural organization, or sports team, may also present an original or copy of his or her birth certificate, a Consular Report of Birth Abroad, a Naturalization Certificate, or a Canadian Citizenship Card.
The group should be prepared to present a letter on organizational letterhead with the following information:
* The name of the group and supervising adult,
* A list of the children on the trip, and the primary address, phone number, date of birth, place of birth, and name of at least one parent or legal guardian for each child,
* A written and signed statement of the supervising adult certifying that he or she has obtained parental or legal guardian consent for each participating child.
Thank you for your post. We are looking for a family vacation in France for my son's senior graduation and this sounds just perfect! I've never thought about house swapping or how that is done. Could you please give me more information on how one would go about doing that. I am very interested. I'm glad your family had so much fun.
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This sounds great! I’ve always wanted to go to New Orleans.
Wow, I didn’t know that the disabled were shunned in Jamaica. This was informative and heartwarming!
“I was served a sublime slice of humble pie.” I liked that a lot. You have a bunch of great one-liners in here. Really well written!
Backpacking’ll do it. Great title!
I highly recommend another excelent option to do bike tours in buenos Aires, Buenos Aires City Tours on Bike | Urban Biking.
Thank you very much,
Regards,
Guille
Nepal is good destination for adventure lover. We can announce proudly we have more then 13 highest mountain among the world. Nepal is not famous just for mountain it is famous other adventure activities too. Like river, natural beauty and different culture, society, and many religion too. Nepal have very good destination for trekking, hiking, peak climbing, paragliding, bungee jumping, and other more we offer all above activities at suitable price for you .we would like to be your family member, and Thing positive be positive Nepal will be your's Home and I will be your family member if you choose me .hope see you at my place with your sweat smile.
Sandesh Sharma
http://www.nepalvillagetrek.com
nepalviewtrek@hotmail.com
+9779841397842
Really a fabulous article……………
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I like the bit about the B- movie vampire. Interesting!
Wow. I can’t imagine doing anything like this! Have you climbed more since?
Funny. Cool story!
good afternoon
wowww beautiful… nice place
thanks for sharing this camp, i think i should visit it with my family.
good read, thanks for this article
We have eaten at the restaurant and had drinks at the bar at this Ritz. Both times we left saying they need better customer service. Not up to Ritz standards in our opinion
Would visiting this resort cost me a lot?
Hi, we have been in Athens last summer with our 2 children. It was great!if you are traveling to Athens, there are many attractions for families e.g> Copa copana Park, Allou fun park,Hellenic Cosmos, the cultural center which is a child-oriented museum with exhibition halls, its really great! and many other things for family, try this> http://www.facebook.com/cityofathens?ref=ts,
our senior group from penn estates would like info on a day trip to your facility as we have in the past. please forward info price etc for us to plan and open dates
We love KBH. We have returned many times and are always treated great and have a wonderful time. Price is great too.
This is definitely the wave of the future and will be a demand for traveling business people. I think it has a great design and works well for its intended purpose.
This is devastating. Well-written and insightful, though. Nicely done.
Wow, amazing. It’s interesting that this stuck out in your mind so well even after travelling to so many different locations. Well done!
This IS really good. You have a very captivating writing style; it brought be in at the very beginning. The rose thing was amazing. Well done!
what a joyful clever piece
i can see myself there
i think i dream when i see this beach
but i live in egypt
i love it so much. it's my dream. but now i dont have any money:-(
Please confirm my reservation for Aug 23 in the name of Hansford and Bortels. My question is: is the dining casual as in shorts and sandals? Thank you, and again please confirm my reservation.
Thanks yahoo.
Sounds like fantastic, chaotic fun! Take us along next time!
Hilarious review. I'm not sure I would go but your honest review makes it almost tempting.
This place sounds just great. We had a similarly cultural and fun weekend at Kutscher's in the Catskills and perhaps some of their guests go to the Doral Arrowwood on alternate weekends!
Thanks for sharing what sounds like a great cheap family vacation.
i hope travel to uroup but i am poor i dont have more money ,
Nice article…I appreciate the effort for posting this…
In my experience, babies usually like the sound and smell of someone they miss, and may stop crying.
maybe your partner can make a tape/phone message of their voice, and leave behind some clothes, like pajamas, that they might feed the baby in. Having that to offer the baby might comfort her.
Another option is giving baby something warm and moving, like the feeling of being rocked in someone's arms. our son loved being wrapped in a blanket and held on top of the clothes dryer (turned on low), which moved a bit, made some sounds, and seemed to help him stop crying.
Otherwise, just wait. It is sure to pass.
wah it is v amazing and wonderful resort
Nepal is a very popular destination for trekking and expedition. The range of treks in Nepal varies from a short gentle hike through terraced foothills to lengthy expeditions to Mount Everest’s summit. Depending on your level of fitness, stamina or experience, you’ll find an adventure of your lifetime. The Himalayan regions of Nepal contain some of the best places in the world to go trekking. You can choose from treks like Everest base camp, Annapurna or Langtang to less popular trekking options including Mustang or Kanchenjunga Base Camp.Trekking is the gift of Nepal to the world in adventure tourism. To be one with Nature, to regenerate one's own confidence, to relive oneself, to appreciate Nepal's exquisiteness, to interact with its generous and responsive peoples are some of the places of interest of trekking in Nepal. Trekking is one long-lasting activities that draws reiterate visitors to the country. Consequently, Nepal is the definitive objective for the trekking supporter. for more information log on to nepal travel information website: http://www.nepalvisitors.com
no!!! the best beach in world is boracay!!!! ^_______________-
thanks n v informative
i'like porto saint georgo in italy why not in your list?
Funny. I enjoyed the bit about Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower, etc.
This gave a wonderful picture of Dublin in my mind. I went to Ireland eight years ago; his brought me back.
I am also curious: what writing program were you on?