Plan your Purely Perfect day in Cleveland !

When you visit the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, you and your companions aren’t going to agree on everything. It happens all the time — you enter as friends, you leave as … friends who can’t decide if Pearl Jam is more or less worthy of inclusion than, say, Journey.

No Rock Hall visitor leaves without weighing in on who should and shouldn’t be included in the hall of fame. Elvis? The Beatles? Those are no-brainers. Madonna and Run DMC? Talk amongst yourselves.

Visitors can expect to see one of the most impressive collections of memorabilia ever assembled — from John Lennon’s guitar to hip-hop pioneer Jam Master Jay’s gold chains. The Rock Hall also showcases a number of temporary, traveling installations throughout the year. Recent exhibits include a tribute to The Beatles' 1970 swan song album "Let It Be" and "Hotter Than July," a photo retrospective of America's most iconic R&B artists by legendary industry photographer Bruce W. Talamon.

It’s not all history. The Rock Hall offers special concert events all the time, as well as a very popular summertime outdoor concert series. And don’t forget the star-studded induction ceremony and concert. Every other year, the biggest legends of rock history get enshrined into the Hall of Fame on its home turf in Cleveland.

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame & Museum

1100 Rock and Roll Blvd, Cleveland, OH, 44114

Phone: 216.781.7625

Admission up to $35

For more than a generation — since 1930, in fact — the Cleveland Botanical Garden has existed as a lush, beautiful and peaceful urban sanctuary in University Circle. It's filled to the brim — the outside, too — with plants and flowers from around the globe. It's the perfect spot for a little zen.

Carved into 10 acres of what was once the original Cleveland Zoo, CBG was originally called the Cleveland Garden Center and was the first organization of its kind in the U.S. Today, it’s a stalwart of the University Circle neighbourhood.

The sprawling, 18,000 Eleanor Armstrong Smith glasshouse gives visitors a glimpse of two worlds under one roof: one half is dedicated to the desert of Madagascar — look for the alien-esque Baobab trees and spiny succulents – the other replicates a Costa Rican Rainforest with lush greenery, including a colossal strangler fig and avocado, coffee, papaya and chocolate trees. Stand still for a bit, and one of the many butterflies floating around might rest on your head or sleeve.

Outside, walk the grounds and take in the CBG’s Japanese, herb, rose, and topiary gardens. Kids helped design the outdoor Hershey Children’s Garden, perhaps explaining its popularity. There’s a treehouse, hidden paths winding through tall grasses, and a misting splash pad fountain. Many of the plants in this area attract native caterpillars, butterflies and birds, so there’s a good chance for close encounters.

 

Back in the early 1980s, producers of the classic holiday film "A Christmas Story" — based on a story written by author Jean Shepherd — were seeking filming locations for what was supposed to look like an Indiana steel town in the '40s. They found their answer in a home located in the Cleveland neighborhood of Tremont.

Originally built in 1895, the house underwent a series of facelifts both before and after filming. In 2004, San Diego-based entrepreneur Brian Jones — a longtime fan of the film — bought the home on eBay and renovated it to once again match the scenes from the movie. He used profits from his own business (selling replicas of the movie’s iconic leg lamp) for the down payment.

This means the 1983 holiday classic has become as much a part of our city as pierogies and craft beer. While you can see the Parkers' two-story Victorian on a continuous loop on TBS every Christmas, people from all over can come to Cleveland and visit it year-round.

The indoor, European-style market has been around for more than a century and still looks like it did when it catered to the immigrant community all those years ago: vendors hawking Old-World baked goods; family-owned stands displaying their colourful produce; fishmongers offering smoked fish and eels; classic butcher cases filled with sausages and animal guts — it’s not just steaks and salmon filets here, kids.

Today it’s surrounded by the city’s hottest restaurants and breweries, turning the area on and near the corner of West 25th Street and Lorain Ave. into arguably the most happening blocks in Cleveland. At the centre of it all? The city’s most famous grocery store.

West Side Market

1979 W 25th St, Cleveland, OH, 44113

Phone: 216.664.3387

Admission Free

The Cleveland Museum of Art consistently ranks as one of the best comprehensive art museums in the United States and one of the most-visited in the world.

But what does that actually mean? This isn’t the kind of museum where you show up, look at a couple of Picassos, then find the nearest bar. It's home to more than 61,000 works of art spanning 6,000 years — including soothing lily pad oils by Monet, ancient hot bod Grecian statues and 100 very vivid images of Marilyn Monroe courtesy of Andy Warhol.

Oh, and after more than 100 years, the museum’s founders would be pleased to know that their bedrock belief that admission should be free to the general public is still adhered to today. You might also be pleased to know that, because, you know…free.

Included in its wide-ranging permanent collection is one of the world’s leading assemblages of Indian and Southeast Asian art, and their Japanese, Chinese and Korean collections are among the most comprehensive in the world.

The ArtLens Gallery is a brand-new way of looking at the museum-going experience via cutting-edge interactive tech. ArtLens Studio features motion-detecting technology that allows you to create your own original works. Engage with masterpieces, and go deeper, through ArtLens Exhibition. The gallery also includes the 40-foot ArtLens Wall, which cycles through the museum's entire gallery by displaying a new selection (curated and grouped by type, theme, colour, etc.) every 40 seconds.

Like the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, the Cleveland Museum of Art sits in historic Wade Park within University Circle. CMA incorporates the park itself with an outdoor sculpture gallery known as the Wade Park Fine Arts Garden.

Cleveland Museum of Art

11150 East Blvd, Cleveland, OH, 44106-1797

Phone: 216.421.7350

Admission Free

You’ll see rotating temporary exhibits all year long and a permanent collection that includes a cast of “Lucy,” our 3.2 million-year-old human ancestor, a full-sized replica of a T-Rex and the 70-foot-long, 14-foot-tall skeleton of “Happy,” the oldest sauropod on display in the world.

Steggie, the iconic, full-sized Stegosaurus sculpture that has guarded the gates for more than 50 years, is pretty hard to miss. The original Steggie was created by the same sculptors who were commissioned to make life-sized dinosaur sculptures for the 1964 World’s Fair in New York.

Bone lovers are in luck — this museum has lots of them. The Hamann-Todd Collection is a well-known set of more than nearly 4,000 human and primate skeletons that were assembled as far back as 1893. And, of course, there are the dinosaur bones that comprise the Kirtland Hall of Prehistoric Life. Look for the Coelophysis bauri, which, at 225 million years old, is the museum’s oldest dinosaur.

If you’re interested in learning about our own indigenous flora and fauna, check out the Perkins Wildlife Centre. The sprawling, two-acre landscape located within the outdoor footprint of the museum includes enclosures for both local birds and bobcats, as well as a forest-canopy-covered trail.

Cleveland Museum of Natural History

1 Wade Oval Dr, Cleveland, OH, 44106

Phone: 800.317.9155

Admission up to $25

The heart and soul of the Pro Football Hall of Fame is, of course, the legends inducted over the years. So any trip here should start with a visit to the Hall of Fame Gallery, home to the bronze busts of all 300+ (and counting!) players, coaches and contributors who have been enshrined since the charter members were inducted in 1963. But the gallery is no longer just about the busts. In 2003, the Hall added interactive touch-screen kiosks for each player, which provide more information than any plaque ever could. In 2019, the Talking Bronzed Busts of John Madden and Michael Strahan debuted, powered by artificial intelligence and augmented reality, allowing guests to have a conversation with the legends' busts in real time.

Whether it’s football, baseball, basketball or rock 'n' roll, what are hall of fame museums most known for? You guessed it: stuff. It’s the memorabilia that keeps us coming back again and again. The artifacts. The history. So, naturally, the Pro Football Hall of Fame is home to the most comprehensive collection of football memorabilia anywhere in the U.S. The game balls. The jerseys. The hand-written documents. The hunk of turf saved by the star player (Franco Harris) of your team’s (Cleveland Browns) most bitter rivals (Pittsburgh Steelers) from one of their most famous wins (Immaculate Reception). Sigh. Go anyway. This place is awesome.

What was once the home of the general superintendent of Western Union Telegraph, the Stager-Beckwith mansion was one of the first opulent estates to be built along Euclid Avenue, known as Millionaire’s Row during the 19th century.

But like many things in Cleveland, what’s old is new again. And, that couldn’t be a more perfect narrative behind the famous mansion’s newest generation of dwellers — children.

After more than $10 million in renovations, the Victorian-style mansion in 2017 became home to the Children’s Museum of Cleveland. So instead of housing antiques and art collections, the mansion is home to a massive interactive playground and a kid-friendly water lab (among many other things).

Adventure City, a two-story city-themed playground, features a market, construction site, garage and the kind of climbing opportunities that kids live for. It’s like a massive game of House, but on steroids. Parents will be glad, too. Not only does it foster imagination, but it helps to burn off their kids’ voracious energy.

The Wonder Lab gives kiddos a chance to play and learn with water without flooding your house, unlike your usual bathtime experience. The industrial science lab features huge water tables with whirlpools, rivers, water jets and bubbles.

Also within the Wonder Lab area, kids can shoot scarves through twisty pneumatic tubes that float down from the ceiling to the ground like a feather. Get ready to ‘gram their reactions on this one.

Children's Museum of Cleveland

3813 Euclid Ave, Cleveland, OH, 44115

Phone: 216.791.7114

Admission up to $25

Live the outdoor life in Cleveland Metroparks. Explore more than 25,000 acres in 18 reservations located throughout Cuyahoga County and Hinckley Township. From golden sunrises over Lake Erie, to trail hikes through wooded countryside, animal adventures at Cleveland Metroparks Zoo and golf with friends at any of our nine courses, Cleveland Metroparks offers recreational and educational opportunities year-round.

Discover your Cleveland Metroparks with the Cleveland Metroparks Mobile App. Explore trails, attractions and hidden gems!

Admission Free

By the way, you can see all of this amazing and inspirational art for the low, low price of FREE.

MOCA is a work of art in and of itself. In 2012, the museum moved into its new home — the mirror-like, 34,000-square-foot, glass-and-steel urban jewel that seems to rise out of nowhere at the corner of Euclid Ave. and Mayfield Road in University Circle. Once inside, climb the angular, zig-zagging main staircase to get a completely different perspective on the structure.

Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland, "MOCA"

11400 Euclid Ave, Cleveland, OH, 44106-3926

Phone: 216.421.8671

Admission Free

It makes sense, given our long history of manufacturing might and vibrant culture of artisanal creativity, that we would become one of the nation’s leaders in craft beer production.

That’s why we’ve brought together many of our finest breweries to create the Cleveland Brewery Passport: a unified way for you to explore everything this city has to offer without going thirsty.

How the Brewery Passport Works...

• Download the Destination Cleveland App available for iOS and Android devices.
• Open the app and create a profile.
• Hit up your first brewery and make a qualifying purchase (some brews, bites or merch)
• Ask your server/bartender for the four-digit code to check in via the Brewery Passport in the App.

Please note: All check-ins are, location sensitive and must be completed while present at the brewery. You must enable Location Services for the Destination Cleveland app on your device in order to check-in.

• Visit and check in to as many breweries as you’d like to earn an array of prizes.

Yes we know visiting a Cemetery is maybe not the first thing on your mind when you are holiday but this is a Cleveland landmark - 285 acres of history, architecture, magnificent plantings. President Garfield’s Monument, Wade Chapel’s Tiffany interior, John D. Rockefeller, Elliot Ness. 

12316 Euclid Ave, Cleveland, OH, 44106

216.421.2665

Or try a Little Italy Food Tour will explore the Cleveland Italian culture that has existed for generations; its people, its philosophies, and most importantly its food. We will enjoy specialized dishes from a variety of restaurants; some long standing, some new to the area, while we take time to appreciate the contributions of Cleveland's rich Italian culture. 

The tour lasts 3.5 hours long.

Guided by a local expert, this walking tour explores the city’s haunted and historic locations, revealing chilling tales from the infamous Battle of Lake Erie to organized crime’s dark past. Stroll through the historic district and discover how Cleveland’s rich history intertwines with the supernatural. Walk a mile through haunted ground, exploring sites like the Crown Plaza, where echoes of the past linger, the Hanna Theatre, renowned for its dramatic highs and lows, and the Cleveland Grays Armory Museum, where soldiers' spirits may still roam. Even as we admire privately owned buildings from the outside, the rich stories and eerie atmosphere will fully immerse you in Cleveland’s ghostly lore. Prepare for an evening of intrigue and excitement as you uncover the secrets of Cleveland’s haunted heritage. Gather your courage and curiosity for a tour that promises both entertainment and enlightenment.

The 2,400-foot Edgewater Beach and surrounding Lakefront Reservation were recently acquired by CLE's acclaimed park system, The Cleveland Metroparks. Much to the glee of locals, the park received a transformative facelift thanks to its new operators. As a result, this beach and the surrounding park are downright spectacular.

 

Make no mistake, we Clevelanders love lakeside living and take advantage of it any chance we get. Having a beach like Edgewater, along with all the amazing things that go with it, sure helps.

Located just west of Downtown, the park boasts 6,000 feet of shoreline and two beaches, plus a playground, pavilions and one of the best views of Cleveland's skyline. It's an ideal place to sunbathe, create a towering sandcastle, start a game of beach volleyball or catch a wave (yes, you can actually surf Lake Erie).

The 12,000-square foot, two-story Edgewater Beach House provides updated amenities for visitors, including new bathrooms, changing areas and The Centennial Plaza, a multi-functional space for special events and live music all on the first level, along with a made-to-order concession stand offering a variety of tasty options. With a full-service bar, dual-sided outdoor fireplace and lounge seating, the second level of the Edgewater Park Beach House will quickly become your go-to summer hangout spot.

7600 Cleveland Memorial Shoreway Cleveland, OH 44102

Admission Free