Good afternoon everyone! I just wanted to say that my family and I just moved here from Virginia, and are having some difficulties adjusting. While there are plenty of places to eat, see art, and shop, I’m not seeing a lot in the way of actual physical activity. Amusement parks, hiking/climbing, zip lining, tree top adventure obstacle courses seem to fall short? My job brought me here, and we really do miss weekend trips to  VA beach, Kings Dominion Amusement Park, crabbing off docks on the Chesapeake, civil war history, massanuttan water park (look it up, it’s awesome), and zip lining/hiking in the Shenandoah. We need recommendations for fun stuff around here. The little keep asking when we’re going to do something fun this summer! I just want to know that we made a descent move. We moved to the Lewis Center area which is Olentangy School District. Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks

Hi South! Welcome to columbus! I hope you get into the swing of things in Columbus, because it really does have a fantastic history and some neat outdoor adventures. How long have you lived here?

 

Off the top of my head, here's some fun things to do:

-Check out the Columbus Zoo if you haven't. it is massive and includes a water park. It is often voted best in the country

-Have you heard of/tried The Wilds? I haven't been, but its a massive animal preserve that others rave about

-Always worth a trip to head up to Cedar Point, the best roller coaster park in the country, but closer to cleveland

-Have you tried biking the Olentangy trail?

-Look into the Columbus Metroparks, they have fantastic outdoor excursions

-You're not far from the Hocking Hills either. There are great places for weekend adventures like canoeing, ziplining, camping, etc. there

You're not going to fine much in the way of crabbing in Central Ohio, but everything else is just a short drive away. 

 

King's Island(Cincinnati) is closer than Cedar Point, but with the latter you have the gold standard of amusement park's just a little over two hours away in Sandusky.  The bonus here is you have Lake Erie and it's islands close, family friendly during the day as there is a lot of history in that area.

 

If you're looking for outdoors you're very close to High Bank Metro Park and Alum Creek State Park.  Also Mohican State Park is within an hour for you on the north end of town.  Hocking Hills is our hidden gem in central Ohio and it's a little over an hour south starting just below Lancaster and extending close to Athens.  

 

You're also very close to some VERY cool cities, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Lexington, Louisville, Indianapolis and Detroit are all within 4 hours drive from Columbus.  Also you have the New River Gorge area of West Virginia within that range as well.  Chicago and the Indiana Dunes area of Lake Michigan are about 5-6 hours away if that interests you at all.

 

Hope this helps and enjoy your new home, Ohio really is "the heart of it all!"

1 hour ago, southofthemasondixon said:

...We need recommendations for fun stuff around here. 

 

Jump on I-71 and head north for about two hours and you'll be in Cleveland. There, there are million things to do---boat cruises on the river or lake Erie, volleyball right on the shore of Lake Erie, hiking in a national park (https://www.nps.gov/cuva/index.htm), very cool neighborhoods to just walk around and explore, world-class museums like the Cleveland Museum of Art, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, grab a drink or dinner alongside the cuyahoga river and watch giant freighters from Europe sail by sharing the river with pleasure boats and yachts, numerous beaches, the list is endless. You may want to consider getting a weekend place in Cleveland if you make the trip so often.

Well, regarding day trips like that...

 

*VA beach - Go to Lake Erie for the beaches (Cedar Point, Erie Islands, etc)

*Kings Dominion Amusement Park - Its larger, original brother Kings Island is an hour south on I-71

*Crabbing off docks on the Chesapeake  - We don't have "crabs" but you can go fishing/boats up on Lake Erie for water sports

*Civil War History - Ohio has tons of war history (1812, Civil War, Native American Wars, etc) sites for you

*Massanuttan water park (look it up, it’s awesome) - Ohio has numerous indoor waterparks like Kalahari or Great Wolf Lodge but for outdoor waterpark (especially new Lewis Center), go to Zoombezi Bay at the Columbus Zoo.

*Zip lining/hiking in the Shenandoah - Hocking Hills an hour southeast of Columbus off Rt. 33 has all that for you.

 

Any other questions, let us know.

I recommend a subscription to Ohio Magazine.  It's a monthly magazine that, while not strong in the writing style department, does have lots of great event recommendations across Ohio.  I also subscribe to Cleveland Magazine from the same publisher because I live in LA and it helps me keep up on what's happening in Ohio.

 

As others have mentioned, you have many great park options a short drive away.  Hocking Hills is fantastic.  

I recommend new hobbies.  I would think one would try to adapt to things that go on in the place you are in.  Mountain biking is big in Ohio. There is kayaking, SUP, lazy river and many other things to do. We don’t have alligators to worry about or fire ants. 

People do enjoy skiing and snowboarding  in ohio as well in the winter. 

That hour plus drive to real wilderness has really fueled the interest in hobbies such as R/C, golf, boating, equestrian pursuits, cars, and nerd stuff like card and tabletop gaming. Those sorts of hobbies are gigantic around Columbus.

Thanks for all of the suggestions...seems like I’ll have to drive a little, and get out of the city. It seems Cleveland and Cincinnati have all the amusement and water parks like great wolf and kalahari. Hiking and zipline in the southern part of the state and east near the wilds. 

 

What about the winters here? Haven’t been here in the winter yet as we came here in April. Living in Virginia, the winters were relatively mild with little to no snow. Occasionally, we would get one of those nor’easters off the ocean, and get dumped on by 15-20 inches of snow! Only happened twice in my lifetime. Someone I worked with warned me about something called a polar vortex where it can get 25-30 degrees below 0!!!! One of those would not be good! Hopefully we don’t experience anything like that here!!! Thanks

The coldest it's ever been here in the past 100 years is -22 in 1994.

http://tecumsehdrama.com/

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hocking_Hills

 

https://www.ohioanderiecanalway.com/explore/the-towpath-trail/

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serpent_Mound

 

https://www.mohicanadventures.com/river-kayak/

 

https://www.shoresandislands.com/local/put-in-bay

 

 

 

 

 

 

11 hours ago, southofthemasondixon said:

Thanks for all of the suggestions...seems like I’ll have to drive a little, and get out of the city. It seems Cleveland and Cincinnati have all the amusement and water parks like great wolf and kalahari. Hiking and zipline in the southern part of the state and east near the wilds. 

 

What about the winters here? Haven’t been here in the winter yet as we came here in April. Living in Virginia, the winters were relatively mild with little to no snow. Occasionally, we would get one of those nor’easters off the ocean, and get dumped on by 15-20 inches of snow! Only happened twice in my lifetime. Someone I worked with warned me about something called a polar vortex where it can get 25-30 degrees below 0!!!! One of those would not be good! Hopefully we don’t experience anything like that here!!! Thanks

 

The Polar Vortex we experienced last winter (as well as many other states) was not normal. Columbus winters are mild and easy-peasy, if you ask me. I'm from Northeast Ohio originally but now I live here and they're SO much easier to deal with. You won't be seeing 15-20 inches of snow here. In fact, we don't get enough and it's rather boring because of it. I actually prefer the winters up by Cleveland because I'd rather have snow than drab rain.

 

As far as what you're looking for.... Kings Island in Mason is fun and you may even like it more than Kings Dominion. But Cedar Point in Sandusky is the gold standard of amusement parks and you won't find a better or more plentiful array of roller coasters anywhere else in the country. Kings Island is tamer and smaller, though, if that's more your style. Kalahari is also in Sandusky.

 

Also, don't tell people in Sandusky they're a part of Cleveland ? . 

Edited July 25, 20195 yr by Zyrokai

On ‎7‎/‎21‎/‎2019 at 3:04 PM, southofthemasondixon said:

Good afternoon everyone! I just wanted to say that my family and I just moved here from Virginia, and are having some difficulties adjusting. While there are plenty of places to eat, see art, and shop, I’m not seeing a lot in the way of actual physical activity. Amusement parks, hiking/climbing, zip lining, tree top adventure obstacle courses seem to fall short? My job brought me here, and we really do miss weekend trips to  VA beach, Kings Dominion Amusement Park, crabbing off docks on the Chesapeake, civil war history, massanuttan water park (look it up, it’s awesome), and zip lining/hiking in the Shenandoah. We need recommendations for fun stuff around here. The little keep asking when we’re going to do something fun this summer! I just want to know that we made a descent move. We moved to the Lewis Center area which is Olentangy School District. Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks

THe great news about Columbus is that you are only 90 minutes from Cincinnati and many of the great amenities that you were used to in Virginia. If the family liked Kings Dominion, Check out Kings Island, they were developed by the same company and are similar to each other in many ways.

As for arts, definitely check out the vibrant arts community down there as well as the brewing community and scenic views that will remind you a lot of the Shennendoah Valley. Def recommend a day trip

Columbus and Nearby Attractions

 

Columbus City + Metro

Columbus Zoo - A top flight zoo with a huge waterpark and some kid focused rides as well. 

COSI - One of the top Science Centers in the country, it is more kid focused but they also have awesome Adult theme nights called After Dark, also affiliated with AMNH so....Dinosaurs.

Wexner Center - Under-appreciated modern art museum on OSU campus that brings in some top notch shows and speakers.

Pizzuti Collection - Another under-appreciated art museum that focuses on fringe and interactive art but is quite small .

Columbus Art Museum - A solid art museum downtown but is seems to still be finding itself.

Franklin Park Conservatory - One of the original US conservatories, large collection of global plants and outdoor gardens, and butterflies.

Ohio History Center - Ohio focused history museum, Ohio Village recreation on property (think Jamestown in VA). Also hosts a great halloween event every year (a blast for all ages)!

Battelle Darby Watershed - Great outdoor walking paths and wetlands, bison (baby bison too!), and wildlife observation.

Metro-Parks - Specifically High Banks and Innis Woods Gardens - Great hiking in the city and some great sculptural and water gardens with kid exploration and play zones.

National Veterans Museum - Veteran history museum, pretty interactive and informative, downtown and can take in some skyline views. 

Olentangy Trail - Great Multi-use trail that goes through some key parts of the city (Grange Audobon, Downtown, Harrison West, Campus, Park of Roses, Clintonville, Whetstone).

ZipZone - Zipline and canopy tours by High Banks (personal favorite).

Vertical Adventures - Indoor rock climbing (because its cold half the year) huge facility, great people.

Festivals - I cannot stress this enough, Columbus is a city of festivals, every weekend, it's been my favorite thing since I moved here! Such a great diverse sense of community. Asian Festival, Greek Festival, Italian Festival, PRIDE, Community Pride, ComFest, DooDah, Jazz and Rib, Oktoberfest, State Fair, HighBall, Science Festival, Arts Festival, Moonlight Market, Gallery Hop, Art in the Alley, German Village Festival of Lights, Picnic With the Pops, Irish Festival Renaissance Festival, Urban Scrawl, Wildlights. Look into them, you wont be disappointed. 

 

Around Ohio

Kings Island - Great park for adults and kids, massive kid section and some solid coasters and atmosphere.

Cedar Point - Top amusement park thats heavily focused on extreme coasters and thrills, good for kids but better for teens and adults.

Hocking Hills - Stay in a cabin, hike, swim, camp, kind of the go to outdoor location for Columbus nature buffs because its beautiful and a nice escape.

Lake Erie - Kelleys Island, Put-In-Bay, Perrys Monument, all great places to take in the Lake (which is basically a mini ocean) and explore some Ohio and national history.

National Air Force Museum - Near Wright-Patt AFB, huge dive into aviation history and lost of planes.

Mad River Mountain - Columbus locals go to Skiing and Snowboarding all winter.

 

In all, I think Columbus is what you make it and from what I have discovered is that the city isn't as overt "tourist" as some of the places you mentioned but the activities and adventures still exist, you just have to explore and talk to people. I think the first year I was a bit pessimistic but now I've found some amazing things and love the city and people. I say give it a shot and really just dive into things and you all will find your niche. Something else is the location of Columbus is perfect for short get aways like Pittsburgh, Chicago, Cleveland, Indianapolis, and Cincinnati if you do want to escape the city for a bit.

 

Finally, welcome! 

 

 

Edited July 25, 20195 yr by DevolsDance

The local tourism company, Experience Columbus has really expanded their reach and in my opinion continues to grow and make all of what the area has to offer accessible and known.  At the bare minimum, I'd recommend requesting the free visitors guide magazine.  They have a great format within this publication that you might find very useful.

 

https://www.experiencecolumbus.com/travel-tools/visitor-guide/

walleye/perch > crabs

 

prep those lake erie fishing rods  -- you'll be alright!

 

ha.

 

and you can swim this summer up at alum creek in the meantime. its certainly no ocean, in fact its no lake erie, but it works.

 

hang on, adjust and explore, you are going to like columbus if you have a young family, its a great place for that situation.

 

and one more thing re your handle ---  fyi I-70 is the mason-dixon line of ohio, although in the very north of the state we would say the turnpike is. ha.

 

5 hours ago, Zyrokai said:

 

 

 

As far as what you're looking for.... Kings Island in Mason is fun and you may even like it more than Kings Dominion. But Cedar Point in Sandusky is the gold standard of amusement parks and you won't find a better or more plentiful array of roller coasters anywhere else in the country. Kings Island is tamer and smaller, though, if that's more your style. Kalahari is also in Sandusky.

 

 

I totally agree that for coasters, you can't beat Cedar Point.  But when you said Kings Island was smaller, I had to look that up.  Did you know that, according to Wiki, Kings Island and Cedar Point are both listed as 364 acres?  If that's accurate, how odd is that? 

On ‎7‎/‎21‎/‎2019 at 3:04 PM, southofthemasondixon said:

While there are plenty of places to eat, see art, and shop, I’m not seeing a lot in the way of actual physical activity. Amusement parks, hiking/climbing, zip lining, tree top adventure obstacle courses seem to fall short? My job brought me here, and we really do miss weekend trips to  VA beach, Kings Dominion Amusement Park, crabbing off docks on the Chesapeake, civil war history, massanuttan water park (look it up, it’s awesome), and zip lining/hiking in the Shenandoah. We need recommendations for fun stuff around here. The little keep asking when we’re going to do something fun this summer! I just want to know that we made a descent move. We moved to the Lewis Center area which is Olentangy School District. Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks

 

Columbus is flat as a pancake, so you want find any climbing, naturally at least.  At the Scioto Audobon Center they have an outdoor climbing wall and Vertical Adventures is an indoor option.  I would check out any of the metro parks for some outdoor hiking and make a trip to Hocking Hills (hour or so southeast of the city) and/or Cuyahoga National Forest (two hours north/northeast of the city) for some bigger trails.

 

Amusement Parks - check out Zoombezi Bay water park and zoo, not far from Lewis Center.  Take a day trip/weekend to Cedar Point and King's Island.

 

Crabbing - does not exist in Ohio, but there is fishing

 

Civil War history - there's actually a lot here.  I believe on Veteran's Day they fire off some old replica cannons.  I would check out the Ohio Historical Society.

 

Zip lining - Hocking Hills.  Also, close to you is Camp Mary Orton (and someone mentioned ZipZone) - they offer zip lining and ropes courses. https://campmaryorton.org/

 

There are stand up paddle board spots along the Scioto River, plenty of disc golf courses (if that's appealing to you) around, there's a training course at Scioto Audobon Park with things like tire flip, scaling a wall, etc. etc., plenty of bike trails, there are zoomba, yoga, etc. classes for free at the Columbus Commons, it sounds like you'd like the Olentangy Indian Caverns.  There's plenty to do in Columbus if you know where to look.

Ohio's Civil War history runs deep, as the abolitionist movement began here, and Ohio was a major stop on the Underground Railroad due to its position between the South and Detroit, which was the main going-off point for slaves fleeing to Canada. There is a Railroad stop in Springfield, a half hour from Columbus, and Cincinnati is home to Harriet Beecher Stowe's house. And Abraham Lincoln's birthplace is ~ 4 hours south of Columbus, somewhat near Mammoth Cave National Park (which is another great place to go on a weekend trip!).

 

Also of note is Johnson's Island in Lake Erie, which was used as a Confederate prison and cemetery during the Civil War. 

32 minutes ago, BigDipper 80 said:

Also of note is Johnson's Island in Lake Erie, which was used as a Confederate prison and cemetery during the Civil War. 

 

It was a Union (US) prison---not a Confederate prison---to hold Confederate POWs and others.  Ohio was a free state.  On the topic of the Underground Railroad, Cleveland play an important role as well.  While the tour cited in this link is past, it lists key locations and places: 

 

https://frontart.org/event/cleveland-underground-railroad-bus-tour/

^^there is also war of 1812 Perry’s monument on the islands in Ohio’s key west. 

  For Civil war history , you can follow the Morgan’s raid in Southeast Ohio. 

best beach in Ohio? Mentor Headlands, of course

 

https://www.planetware.com/ohio/top-rated-beaches-in-ohio-us-oh-221.htm

 

i did not know the columbus doo dah parade was back in business. it went away for awhile at one point. anyway good to hear that as parade was always great fun.