Discover Kansas City

If you’re looking for a hotel in Kansas City, you can plan your stay around culture, sports history or nature. These themes also differ in the kinds of experiences they offer: a historic building, exhibitions and a jazz club, trails through parkland, or animal and recreational activities. First, consider which visits are a priority for your trip. This will help you choose accommodation based on the interests that shape your stay.

Cultural history: architecture, jazz and baseball

The Harris-Kearney House is the oldest two-story brick house in Kansas City. It serves as a museum and as the home of the Westport Historical Society. It is also recognized as a Certified Site and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. For a visit focused on architectural history, the building itself offers a tangible point of reference: its distinction specifically applies to two-story brick houses in Kansas City. The museum and historic designation add a present-day institutional dimension to this architectural perspective.

You can explore jazz and baseball history in the historic 18th & Vine Jazz District. The American Jazz Museum is located there; its Blue Room combines an exhibition space with an active jazz club. Jazz is therefore presented not only as an exhibition topic, but also in the context of a club. The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum is located in the heart of the same historic district. Its exhibition includes text panels, hundreds of photographs, artifacts and several film exhibits. The different media offer varied ways to engage with baseball history: alongside text and images, the exhibition also features objects and films.

Field of Legends adds another exhibition area: it features 13 life-size statues of the first Negro Leagues players to be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. The scale of the figures creates a different emphasis from the text panels, photographs and film exhibits. So, when comparing cultural attractions in Kansas City, the two museums differ both in subject matter and in how they present it: jazz and club culture are set alongside baseball history and an exhibition featuring several media.

Nature, trails and animal experiences

Swope Park covers 1,805 acres and includes hiking trails through wooded areas and grassy meadows. This offers a different focus from a museum visit: here, trails and scenery take center stage. The Kansas City Zoo & Aquarium is a 202-acre conservation area that connects families from urban and suburban communities with the diverse habitats, cultures and animals of the natural world. The park and zoo therefore offer different focuses for your plans: one on woods, meadows and hiking trails, the other on animals and habitats.

In the zoo’s African Plains area, visitors can take a safari boat ride across the lake and see hoofed animals such as zebras and giraffes. The African Tram runs daily from the train/tram station near the main entrance to Elephant Expedition and African Market and back. Another ride runs between Sobela Ocean Aquarium and Elephant Expedition. This gives you a choice of ways to plan a zoo visit, from a boat ride with views of hoofed animals to rides between named areas. The African Tram’s daily service and listed destinations also provide a practical guide for this part of your visit.

A seasonal activity to add to your itinerary

Art Course at the Donald J. Hall Sculpture Park is an artist-designed miniature golf experience. It adds an activity shaped by artists to the museum, history and nature themes. Art Course operates seasonally, so check the available visiting options for your travel dates.

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