What to do around Cleveland, OH?

The biggest tourist attractions in northern Ohio are Cedar Point amusement park and Ohio Amish country (don't visit on a Sunday as much will be closed), centered in Holmes County, about two hours southeast of Cleveland.

http://www.experience-ohio-amish-country.com/

In nearby Canton is the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the McKinley Presidential Library & Museum, and the First Ladies Library.

Malabar Farm State Park, east of Ohio Amish country, is a favorite of mine and very unique. It's a bit of Hollywood history (Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall were married there) from the days when cross-country trains passed through Mansfield, and a tribute to one of the great American Renaissance men of the 20th century.

http://www.bookthink.com/0078/78brom1.htm

http://www.bookthink.com/0078/78lb1.htm

Near Malabar Farm is the Ohio State Reformatory, Ohio's Alcatraz, famous as the setting for the "Shawshank Redemption" movie.

http://www.mrps.org/

A good place to stay in the area if you like nature is the Mohican State Park Lodge. There is a reportedly very good hardwood zipline in the Mohican area.

http://www.treefrogcanopytours.com/

About 30 miles east of downtown Cleveland is Kirtland, where the Church of Latter Day Saints was first organized. The church has preserved and reconstructed Historic Kirtland to provide an excellent presentation of life in the early 19th century in Ohio.

The Kirtland Temple is the first Mormon Temple and the only one open to the public as it's controlled by a different Mormon sect. It is separate from Historic Kirtland and has a good visitor center. It's an excellent example of pre-Civil War carpentry skills.

Also in Kirtland is Holden Arboretum, one of the largest and best in the U.S., and Lake Metroparks Farmpark, ranked by USA Today as one of the best in the U.S.

A good place to stay near Kirtland is the Best Western Lawnfield in Mentor. Mentor also offers the James A. Garfield National Historic Site, if you enjoy visiting presidential museums and residences. The Mentor Lagoons Marina and Nature Preserve offers hikes above 1 1/2 miles of wild Lake Erie beach. The Mentor Headlands Beach State Park is the largest natural sand beach in Ohio.

Northern Ohio features great art museums. The Cleveland Museum of Art is one of the nation's best, but still has free admission. The Toledo Museum of Art also has free admission. It features perhaps the world's best collection of glass artifacts, housed in its renown Glass Pavilion, one of the world's most innovative buildings and designed by the 2010 winners of the Pritzker Prize, generally considered the world's top architectural award.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/28/arts/design/28sa...

Other worthwhile attractions in Cleveland proper include the West Side Market (open only certain days), the U.S.S. Cod, Lakeview Cemetery with the James A. Garfield Monument and Wade Memorial Chapel (featuring some of the best work of Louis Comfort Tiffany), the Steamship Mather, the Cleveland Botanical Garden, and, of course if you're interested in Rock & Roll, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. The tripadvisor.com rankings of "Things to Do" in the city of Cleveland is fairly good IMO.

http://travel.nytimes.com/2009/09/20/travel/20hour...

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g50207-Acti...

If you like architecture, also consider visiting the observation deck of the Terminal Tower, open on weekends, and until 1962 the tallest building in North America outside New York City. The Arcade also is one of the nation's architectural gems, and the Soldiers and Sailors Monument on Public Square is a one of the best Civil War memorials in the Midwest. Cleveland's entertainment/dining districts downtown are East 4th St. and the Warehouse District. You also might enjoy Tremont.

http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2011/05/view_from_...

http://www.clevelandskyscrapers.com/cleveland/arca...

Definitely check events at Blossom Music Center. The Blossom Music Festival features the Cleveland Orchestra, one of the world's best, as well as orchestra musicians in other ensembles. Other genres of music are offered by livenation.com. Blossom Music Center is nestled inside the Cuyahoga Valley National Park, about 45 minutes from downtown. It's arguably the best summer music venue in the U.S.

If you want to extend your range to southern Ohio, certainly consider a visit to Dayton, Ohio, the aviation history mecca of the world and about five hours from downtown Cleveland. Presque Isle, two hours east of downtown, features arguably the best beaches on Lake Erie. Pittsburgh is another option.

Shopping highlights would include Legacy Village and Beachwood Place east of Cleveland, and, in Columbus, Polaris Fashion Mall and Easton Town Center. Outlet malls are located in Aurora, Lodi and a very large one in Grove City, PA.

Enjoy Ohio!

= The Akron Zoo: It's not very big, but they're making improvements all the time. They have a carousel and a kiddie train (each cost $2 per ride). And they have a play area inside the jellyfish building with a rock climbing wall and other fun things to do. My daughter spends at least an hour in this area every time we go.

There is the Akron Art Museum and the beautiful new Akron Public Library. Parking is free for both on the weekends, and if you go on the first Sunday of the month admission to the Museum is free also.

There is the Nature Realm in Bath. They have a nature center that always has a naturalist on duty, it has a bird watching area, play area with coloring sheets and stuffed animals and a number of other areas for the kids to learn and play.

There are splash pads in Medina and Cuyahoga Falls which are free. In Cuyahoga Falls there's the Natatorium (fitness center & pool) and Waterworks park (water park with slides and inner tubes) Many of Cuyahoga Falls' parks have splash pools for the little kids, and most have picnic tables with grills. They're very well maintained.

There is also a really nice public park behind Waterworks that a lot of people outside the city don't know about. It has a long circular paved walking trail, picnic areas, large playground and it's a great place to feed the ducks.

There's always Geauga Lake. Used to be a regular amusement park with a sea world next door, but now it's just a water park. Haven't been there yet, but I've heard good things about it.

There are many, many other things to do, I'm just listing some of the cheaper things we do. Hit the internet and do some research. Check out Cleveland Metroparks, Summit County Metroparks and CVNP to start. Then check out the city websites. Good ones to check for events are Cuyahoga Falls, Twinsburg, Fairlawn and Kent. You may have to do a bit more digging for Kent. They have lots of good events, but they make them hard to find.

I'm sorry but Malabar Farm and amish country is NOT in Cleveland nor is it anywhere near it. I've been to Malabar Farm and it's boring as heck.

We have three nice beaches in the area. The one closest to downtown is not that nice but I recommend Mentor Headlands. It is about a 35 min. drive from Downtown Cleveland. Take 90 East and it will turn into Rt. 2. Stay on it and you will see signs for Headlands park. Not only is the beach pristine but it has a natural wildlife preserve right on the beach and a light house you can hike to.

If you like to hike one of my favorite places in the world is The Holden Arboretum. 3,000 acres of hiking (some are closed to public unless you go on a guided tour) which is in Kirtland, Ohio and on the way to Mentor Headlands. Take Rt. 90 East from downtown and get off at the 306 exit, go south to Kirtland Chardon Road and follow the signs. It costs I think $6 to get in and it's lovely, lovely, lovely.

Greater Cleveland Aquarium

The Great Lakes Science Center (if you're into that stuff), which is right next to the Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame.

If you don't mind the drive down to Dayton, there's a big aero/astro museum there.

I recommend going to see the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. For other attractions, check out this link. I hope this is helpful.

http://www.cleveland.com/events/things-to-do/index...