Best Things to Do in Cleveland

Every great American city has a hot dog-slash-sausage situation they call their own, and Cleveland is no different. Enter the complex and dazzling Polish Boy, Ohio’s enthusiastic answer to “What would happen if you topped a sausage with some of America’s favorite backyard sides?” The results are what make the Polish Boy shine — a snappy Polish kielbasa piled high with french fries, coleslaw and barbecue sauce sandwiched between a hot dog bun. It looks like a mess, tastes like magic and is most definitely a sandwich, depending on who you speak to. Eating a Polish Boy is a rite of passage when visiting Cleveland, and luckily you can find them across the city. If you have a late-night hankering, stop by Steve’s Hot Dogs Diner where you can grab a no-nonsense version called a “Poor Boy” 24 hours a day for less than $7, or stop by Banter located on the outskirts in Shaker Heights for a dressier Polish Boy — and maybe some chicken pot pie poutine.

This self-proclaimed micro-diner is situated in the artsy Tremont neighborhood and churns out a handful of signature breakfast sandwiches, all seemingly named after women born in the ’40s and topped with  steamy egg patties, ingredients like mushroom sausage (for the veggies), thick-cut house-made bacon and American cheese. Round out your visit with a seasonal iced latte, a potato crispie and a slice of pie to kick-start a day of exploration in Clevelandia.

There’s no denying the influence that the West Side Market has had on the Cleveland food scene. The indoor, European-style market dates back to 1840, though it’s been operating from its current yellow-brick Ohio City building since 1912 with its unmissable 137-foot-tall clock tower outside and a grandiose train-station-esque layout inside. Today, West Side Market has rows of more than 100 vendors selling everything from flowers to esoteric cheeses, smoked fish, fresh produce and scratch-baked goods. As you eat your way through snacking on rullers from Jack Frost Donuts, make sure to stop by Czuchraj Meats for beef jerky, Maple Valley Sugarbush for small-batch maple syrup and Campbell’s Popcorn Shop for Dichotomy Corn made with caramel and cheddar cheese popcorn.

Helmed by beloved chef Doug Katz, Zhug has delighted culinarios in Cleveland and beyond with its punchy take on Mediterranean mezze just outside of the city in Cleveland Heights. Though the restaurant is buzzy, they don’t take reservations, which means you have as good of a chance as any to dine here — so long as you’re willing to wait. Bring your appetite for house-made labneh, curried lamb and apricot hummus (trust them on this one), honey-roasted beets, falafel and Yemenite curry fried chicken — you know, to start. 

In the words of Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock, sometimes in life “it takes two to make a thing go right.” In Cleveland, this translated to the owners of Bier Markt and Bar Cento closing each of their businesses and coming together to open Bright Side, a restaurant and bar that exudes all the luminance of its name. There’s an emphasis on hyper-local and seasonal food with dishes like New Ohio cornbread, citrus salad and rabbit ragu, but you’re here to sip on creative cocktails at their 44-seat glistening golden bar. We’re partial to Herbology, a drink made with Botanist gin, Norden aquavit, celery, cilantro, lime and black peppercorn. If liquor isn’t your thing, you can still look cool enjoying a glass from their extensive wine and champagne selection.

Call us shallow, scenic waterfront lovers, but we like Collision Bend Brewing Co. (also pictured at the very top of this guide) best for its location on the banks of the Cuyahoga River. That’s not to knock the brewskis here, which are superb and pair exceptionally well with views of the Greater Cleveland Aquarium and the Detroit-Superior Bridge. The move here is to order a Collision Blend Flight and try four beers like Benny’s Cream Ale, Grate & Grind Farmhouse Ale — Saison, Hope Flows Kölsch and Devil’s Claw Belgian Tripel. Pair it with a fried green tomato sando or hot honey chicken sandwich — just make sure to reserve your spot online ahead of time.

Cleveland’s Porco Lounge & Tiki Room will do in a pinch if you can’t afford a trip to Maui. The dimly neon-lit bar is fully decked out in campy décor, complete with a Princess Kaiulani outrigger canoe and retro tropical fixtures. It’s a Hawaiian honeymoon circa 1962, and the drinks are based on old-school recipes with classic cocktails like the Mai Tai, Singapore Sling and the Painkiller. If you’re more of a one-and-done drinker, spring for the Zombie, which the menu states is “not fit for the living.”

Black people make up more than 47% of Cleveland’s population, according to the most recent U.S. Census, and, not surprising, Black history is an integral part of the city’s story. To immerse yourself in the history, start out by following the new African American Civil Rights Trail, which will take you to Glendale High School where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave a speech to students in 1967. Other historic locations on the trail include the former civil rights hub Olivet Institutional Baptist Church and the location of the 1966’s Hough Uprising. Elsewhere, the African American Cultural Garden displays symbolic and natural works that showcase the complex journey of African American individuals in the past, present and future, while the Karamu House is celebrated as the oldest African American performing arts center in the nation and puts on Black theater performances.

This isn’t just any old art museum. Situated in the historic Wade Park District, the Cleveland Museum of Art is one of America’s most visited art museums with over 61,000 pieces of art spread across 16 chronically organized departments. Check out one of their rotating exhibitions or take in classic pieces by contemporary artists like Salvador Dalí and Max Ernst before marveling at the renowned collection of Asian and Egyptian artifacts. The best thing about the museum? It’s free to visit, which takes the pressure off of getting through the 592,000-square-foot-complex in just one day.

Over nine million people visit the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame each year, making it the most popular and culturally significant tourist attraction in Cleveland by far. The 150,000-square-foot building is an architectural masterpiece designed by I.M. Pei that opened in September of 1995 on the shores of Lake Erie. Visit the impressive Rock Hall Museum to check out rotating and permanent historical exhibits, and make sure to check out the calendar before you go, as films, lectures and concerts occur regularly.

Located in the University Circle near the Cleveland Natural History Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art, the Cleveland Botanical Garden is spread about 10 acres dotted with sugar maple trees and various herb, Japanese, rose and topiary gardens. The pièce de résistance here is the 18,000-square-foot Eleanor Armstrong Smith Glasshouse with plants and animals from Madagascar and Costa Rica. Each biome is separated from the other, with the Costa Rica cloud forest housing a butterfly colony, orchids and avocado, chocolate, coffee and papaya trees. After you emerge from the humidity, take a stroll down one of the gardens’ winding paths. 

Just 20 miles south of Cleveland’s city center, a day trip to Cuyahoga Valley National Park is a no-brainer whether you’re trying to knock a national park off your bucket list or just want to get some steps in. Plump with deciduous forests and over 1,500 wetlands, the Cuyahoga River runs through the elongated park and is the star of the show here, feeding wetlands like marshes and swamps along with plunging waterfalls. We recommend checking out Blue Hen Falls, Bridal Veil Falls and Brandywine Falls — the latter being a stunning 65-foot waterfall that’s the most heavily trafficked spot in the park. 

Nicknamed the “Emerald Necklace,” Cleveland’s far-reaching Metroparks systems comprises 18 parks and reservations, covering over 24,000 acres of land and 300 miles of mixed-use trails. Many of the reservations fall along the banks of Lake Erie and the suburban region of Cuyahoga County. If you don’t have access to a car, we recommend visiting the Brookside Reservation in Cleveland proper, which has an All Purpose Trail for runners, walkers and bicyclists and conveniently connects to the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. In the summer, the Lakefront Reservation comes alive and is a great place to paddleboard, swim, fish or sail in Lake Erie — though there’s always ice fishing in the winter. Pro move: head to Upper Edgewater Park for an unforgettable view of the Cleveland skyline. 

We want every city to have an Aloft Cleveland Downtown. Rooms at this 150-room hotel typically cost $149 to $268 per night, making it a fantastic, budget-friendly option for families and couples. The décor and amenities here lean minimal, but with all the time spent exploring C-Town, you won’t need much more than the essentials, which Aloft has covered (plus a sauna and fitness center). You’re staying in the heart of it all here, just a block from both the Cuyahoga River and Lake Erie, so you can easily explore some of the cooler parts of Cleveland without having to call an Uber.

In a restored building dating back to the early 20th century, the Kimpton Schofield Hotel serves the kind of boutique accommodations you’ll be raving about long after your Midwestern sojourn is over. Think polished suites with rainfall showers and on-site spa services at under $300 a room. It’s bougie on a budget in the best way possible and happens to be less than a mile from some of Cleveland’s best theaters, museums and parks. Make sure to check out one of their bikes and ride over to Phoenix Coffee Co. for a Sweet Maple Breve in the morning. 

Amid a bevy of accommodations aimed at hosting as many visitors as possible, Stone Gables Inn takes a different approach. Tucked away in the Ohio City neighborhood, the five-room historic inn was built in 1883 and has all the comforts of a hotel with the convenience and price point of a vacation rental. Rooms here run roughly $140 a night and there’s no concierge, so you’ll have to check yourself in. But what Stone Gables lacks in staff it makes up for with colossal ceilings, antique furnishings and cozy quarters. Plus, you’re just a hop, skip and jump away from some of Cleveland’s best restaurants and breweries.

The Baseball Heritage Museum is on a mission to celebrate the diversity of baseball and tell the stories of Black, Caribbean, Latino and women’s leagues through exhibits and educational programs at League Park. With an eye for artifacts that preserve the history of these underrepresented groups, the Baseball Heritage Museum has an extensive collection of uniforms, game-used equipment, photographs and letters on display.  

Depending on when you visit Cleveland, you should catch a game. We’re partial to watching the Cleveland Guardians play baseball at Progressive Field, where we can feast on hot dogs, mouths agape, and ogle at the skyline, but we wouldn’t say no to watching the Cavaliers play basketball and could probably be talked into watching a Browns football game. Probably.