Things to Do in Columbus
Columbus spreads its attractions along a few clear corridors, so the efficient approach is to give each half day to one district rather than crossing the outerbelt twice. Use the downtown riverfront and German Village for walking days, and save the zoo, the conservatory and the east side for days with a car.
The top 15, ranked
Ranked by how consistently each pick appears across official Columbus sources, the local destination marketing organization, and recent independent roundups.
- Top pick
1Best for Full family day · #1 of 15
Columbus Zoo and Aquarium
Family AttractionShort North, Ohio State and the north sideOpen every day of the year, with shorter hours through winter and long evening hours during the holiday light display.TicketedSet above the Scioto River in Powell, roughly twenty minutes north of downtown, this is among the largest and most consistently top rated zoos in the country, with thousands of animals in regions including Heart of Africa, Asia Quest, Polar Frontier and Congo Expedition. Adventure Cove adds sea lion pools and a stingray touch bay, and an aquarium wing with a shark tunnel sits under the same admission.
Local tipBuy timed tickets online and start at the far end of the loop, since the regions nearest the entrance stay busiest through the middle of the day.
- Top pick
2Best for Rainy day with kids · #2 of 15
COSI
MuseumDowntown and the Scioto riverfrontOpen most days of the week year round, busiest on weekend afternoons and through school holidays.TicketedCOSI fills a long riverfront building on the west bank of the Scioto with hands on galleries covering space, the ocean, energy and the human body, and it is repeatedly named among the strongest science centers in the country. Its dinosaur gallery is run with the American Museum of Natural History, and a planetarium, a live science stage and a dedicated area for small children round out a full day indoors.
Local tipCheck which traveling exhibition and planetarium shows are running before booking, because those carry a separate charge from general admission.
- Top pick
3Best for Cold or rainy day · #3 of 15
Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens
GardenEast Broad Street and the east sideOpen daily year round, with extended evening hours during the seasonal glass and light displays.TicketedThe Victorian glass Palm House dates to 1895 and anchors a run of biomes that carry visitors from desert to rainforest inside a few hundred feet, two miles east of downtown. One of the largest permanent collections of Dale Chihuly glass in any botanical setting is installed through the houses, and the grounds outside hold formal gardens, a bonsai collection and a large children's garden.
Local tipSave this for a cold or wet day when the glasshouses are at their best, and check whether the butterfly show or an evening light event is running.
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4Best for Evening walk · #4 of 15
Short North Arts District
Neighborhood LandmarkShort North, Ohio State and the north sideThe street is open at all hours, though galleries and shops keep daytime hours and the district is liveliest after dark.Free with paid optionsThe stretch of High Street between downtown and the Ohio State campus carries seventeen lighted metal arches, rebuilt versions of ones that stood here a century ago, and it holds the densest run of galleries, independent shops and painted murals in the city. On the first Saturday of each month the Gallery Hop opens new exhibitions late and fills the sidewalks with street performers.
Local tipPark once in a garage near the convention center and walk north, because metered spaces along High Street are scarce and time limited.
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5Best for Walking the city · #5 of 15
German Village
Neighborhood LandmarkGerman Village and the near south sideThe streets are open at all times, with shops and the visitor center keeping daytime hours.Free with paid optionsSettled by German immigrants from the 1830s and placed on the National Register in 1974, this district of brick paved streets, wrought iron fences and small nineteenth century houses is the largest privately funded preservation area on that list. Schiller Park sits at its center with a statue of the poet it is named for and an amphitheater that stages free summer Shakespeare.
Local tipWear shoes that handle uneven brick and start at the Meeting Haus on South Third Street, where the free neighborhood map marks the best blocks.
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6Best for Midday break downtown · #6 of 15
North Market Downtown
MarketDowntown and the Scioto riverfrontOpen every day with shorter hours at the start of the week, and heaviest crowds around the middle of the day.Free with paid optionsCentral Ohio's public market has traded since 1876 and now gathers roughly thirty independent merchants under one roof just north of the convention center, mixing produce stalls, butchers, bakers and spice sellers with counters serving food from a dozen cuisines. It is where Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams started, and the upstairs seating looks down over the whole hall.
Local tipCome on a weekday morning if you actually want to shop the stalls, because the lunch rush fills the aisles and the upstairs tables.
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7Best for Free history stop · #7 of 15
Ohio Statehouse
Historic SiteDowntown and the Scioto riverfrontOpen to visitors daily except state holidays, with guided tours running on the hour through the middle of the day.FreeBuilt in stages between 1839 and 1861 in a plain Greek Revival style, this is one of the oldest working capitols in the country and unusual for wearing a low cupola instead of a dome. Free guided tours run daily and are the only way into the House and Senate chambers, while the underground Museum Education Center and the monuments on ten acre Capitol Square stay open to walk in visitors.
Local tipTours leave on the hour from the Map Room, so arrive several minutes early and use the ground level entrances rather than the ceremonial doors.
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8Best for Downtown with kids · #8 of 15
Scioto Mile
ParkDowntown and the Scioto riverfrontThe parkland is open daily from early morning until late, with the interactive fountain running only through the warm season.Free with paid optionsRoughly 175 acres of riverfront parkland tie the downtown grid to the Scioto, with a promenade above the water, gardens, trails on both banks and a granite plaza fountain that doubles as a free water playground in summer. Rebuilt riverbanks widened the channel and added the paths that now carry most of the city's downtown walking and running.
Local tipCross the Rich Street or Main Street bridge to the west bank, which gives the cleanest view back at the skyline and the statehouse.
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9Best for Art and architecture · #9 of 15
Columbus Museum of Art
MuseumEast Broad Street and the east sideClosed at the start of the week and open the rest of it, with one late evening most weeks.TicketedFounded in 1878 and housed since 1931 in an Italian Renaissance building on East Broad Street, the museum is strongest in late nineteenth and early twentieth century American and European painting, including a deep group of works by Columbus born artist George Bellows. The glass walled Walter Wing added galleries for modern and contemporary art, and a sculpture garden sits behind the original block.
Local tipGeneral admission is free every Sunday and free any day for visitors twenty five and under, so time a visit around that if the budget matters.
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10Best for American history · #10 of 15
National Veterans Memorial and Museum
MuseumDowntown and the Scioto riverfrontClosed at the start of the week and open the rest of it on a standard museum schedule.TicketedCongress designated this the national museum for veterans in 2018, and Allied Works wrapped it in sweeping concrete bands on the Scioto Peninsula facing downtown. Instead of displaying hardware, the galleries follow the personal arc of service through letters, film and objects drawn from every branch and era, and outside a memorial grove and a walkable grass roof give quiet skyline views.
Local tipLeave time for the grass roof and the memorial grove, which sit outside the ticketed galleries and are easy to walk past on the way in.
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11Best for Evening browsing · #11 of 15
The Book Loft of German Village
Neighborhood LandmarkGerman Village and the near south sideOpen every day of the week and unusually late into the evening for this neighborhood.Free with paid optionsThirty two rooms of books fill a row of South Third Street buildings that predate the Civil War and once held a general store, a saloon and a nickelodeon cinema, with each room given its own subject and its own music. A brick garden path leads in from the sidewalk, and the shop stays open late seven days a week, which makes it the easiest evening stop in German Village.
Local tipTake the printed floor map at the entrance, because the rooms fold back on themselves and most visitors miss half the store without it.
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12Best for Teens and older kids · #12 of 15
Otherworld
Family AttractionEast Broad Street and the east sideOpen most days on timed entry, with evening and weekend slots selling out first.TicketedA former big box store on the east side now holds thirty two thousand square feet of immersive art, divided into roughly forty seven rooms built by dozens of artists and lit by projectors and hundreds of thousands of small lights. Visitors are meant to touch, climb into and trigger the installations, and a loose science fiction storyline runs through hidden passages for anyone who wants to follow it.
Local tipBook a timed slot in advance and allow at least two hours, since the concealed rooms are the best part and they take patience to find.
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13Best for Sports fans · #13 of 15
Ohio Stadium
Historic SiteShort North, Ohio State and the north sideTours run on a published calendar on days without events, and the surrounding campus paths stay open year round.TicketedOpened in 1922 and listed on the National Register, the horseshoe shaped bowl on the Olentangy River is one of the largest on campus stadiums in the country and the piece of Ohio State most visitors want to see. Guided tours take groups onto the field and through the locker rooms on non event days, which is the only reliable way inside without a ticket to a game.
Local tipReserve a tour slot ahead rather than turning up, and expect the schedule to thin out sharply on home game weekends.
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14Best for State history · #14 of 15
Ohio History Center
MuseumShort North, Ohio State and the north sideClosed at the start of the week and open from midweek onward on a standard museum schedule.TicketedThe state historical society's flagship museum sits north of downtown in a raw concrete building from 1970 that is itself a landmark of brutalist design. Galleries run from the Ice Age forward and include a 1950s Lustron steel house you can walk through and a permanent display of objects from the Hopewell ceremonial earthworks, the ancient mound complex now inscribed as a World Heritage site.
Local tipOhio Village, the recreated nineteenth century town on the same campus, runs on its own calendar, so confirm what is open before making the trip.
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15Best for Free outdoor hour · #15 of 15
Scioto Audubon Metro Park
ParkGerman Village and the near south sideOpen daily from early morning until evening, with the climbing wall closing earlier through the colder months.FreeA scrapyard and impound lot south of downtown were rebuilt into one hundred and nineteen acres of wetland, meadow and riverbank close enough that the skyline stands over the treeline. The signature feature is a free outdoor climbing wall, among the largest of its type anywhere, with bouldering and roped routes rising about thirty five feet, plus birding boardwalks, a fishing dock and a large dog park.
Local tipThe climbing wall costs nothing but you must bring your own harness and shoes, and the auto belays mean you do not need a partner.
Where things cluster
Columbus falls into four visitor clusters, and keeping each half day inside one of them saves a great deal of driving on the outerbelt.
- Downtown and the Scioto riverfrontCOSI, the National Veterans Memorial and Museum, the Ohio Statehouse, North Market and the Scioto Mile parkland all sit within a short walk of Capitol Square and the two river bridges.
- Short North, Ohio State and the north sideHigh Street runs north from downtown through the Short North galleries to the Ohio State campus and Ohio Stadium, with the Ohio History Center and the Columbus Zoo further out along the same axis.
- German Village and the near south sideGerman Village, the Book Loft and Schiller Park cover a compact grid just south of downtown, with Scioto Audubon Metro Park and its climbing wall a few minutes west on the river.
- East Broad Street and the east sideEast Broad Street links the Columbus Museum of Art to Franklin Park Conservatory in about two miles, and Otherworld sits further out on the same side of town.
Make it a day
Riverfront morning, Short North evening
Start with a free Ohio Statehouse tour, then walk the Scioto Mile to COSI or the National Veterans Memorial and Museum before stopping at North Market for lunch. Spend the late afternoon and evening walking the Short North under the arches.
City day, corridor day
Use the first day for downtown, the statehouse, North Market and the Scioto Mile, then walk German Village and the Book Loft before an evening in the Short North. Give the second day to the Columbus Zoo or, in cold or wet weather, to Franklin Park Conservatory and the Columbus Museum of Art along East Broad Street.
Zoo day, science day
Give a full day to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in Powell, arriving early and working the loop backwards from the far regions. Keep COSI as the second day or the wet weather fallback, since it is entirely indoors and holds small children for hours.
Map
Best time to visit
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Late spring and early autumn give mild days, running fountains and full outdoor programming without the humidity that settles over central Ohio in midsummer. Winter is grey and cold, but COSI, the conservatory, the art museum and Otherworld make a strong indoor itinerary in any month.
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Columbus things to do FAQ
Parking, timing, cost, and weather answers for a smoother visit.
What are the best things to do in Columbus for a first visit?
Give a full day to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in Powell, which is regularly rated among the best in the country. Downtown, pair COSI with a free Ohio Statehouse tour, lunch at North Market and a walk along the Scioto Mile. Add German Village and the Short North for the two districts that show the city best on foot, and Franklin Park Conservatory if the weather turns.
How many days do you need in Columbus?
Two full days cover the core comfortably. Use the first for downtown, German Village and the Short North, which connect on foot or with one short drive between them. Use the second for the zoo, or for Franklin Park Conservatory and the Columbus Museum of Art if you want an indoor day. A third day opens Otherworld, the Ohio History Center and an Ohio Stadium tour.
What can you do in Columbus for free?
The Ohio Statehouse runs free guided tours daily and its Museum Education Center costs nothing. Walking the Scioto Mile, German Village, the Short North and Goodale Park is free, and so is the outdoor climbing wall at Scioto Audubon Metro Park. The Columbus Museum of Art is free every Sunday, the Wexner Center galleries on campus are always free, and the Topiary Park downtown recreates a Seurat painting in clipped yew at no charge.
Do you need a car in Columbus?
Downtown, German Village and the Short North connect well on foot, and COTA buses run frequently along the High Street spine. A car makes everything else far easier, because the zoo, Franklin Park Conservatory, Otherworld and the Ohio History Center all sit several miles apart. Parking is plentiful and cheap by big city standards, with garages near Capitol Square and the convention center.
Is the Columbus Zoo worth the drive from downtown?
Yes for most visitors. It sits in Powell, roughly twenty minutes north on Route 315, and it is large enough to fill most of a day rather than an hour. Arrive at opening, walk the loop in reverse and you will stay ahead of the crowds. Zoombezi Bay, the water park next door, runs only in the warm months and is sold separately.
Are Ohio State campus attractions open to visitors?
Several are. Ohio Stadium runs guided tours on days without events that go onto the field and into the locker rooms, and the Wexner Center for the Arts admits everyone to its galleries at no charge when an exhibition is installed. Campus paths, the Oval and the Chadwick Arboretum are open to walk through. Check the athletics calendar first, because home game days shut most of that down.
Keep planning
Use these nearby guides to extend your Columbus trip with a different pace and a clear next stop.
Hero image: Ohio Statehouse, photograph by Riis2602, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped to 16:9.