Cleveland: Theater, Science and Nature

These highlights give your stay planning a clear focus.

Theater and Market History

Playhouse Square is in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, and is the world’s largest theater restoration project. Its five original venues—Mimi Ohio, Connor Palace, KeyBank State, Allen, and Hanna—were built in the 1920s. This connects a large-scale restoration project with a clearly dated collection of venues. Travelers interested in theater history will find a well-defined highlight here.

On select Saturdays, Playhouse Square offers free historical tours led by volunteer guides. Since tours take place only on select dates, check in advance which Saturday is scheduled for your visit. This lets you plan a tour into your itinerary.

The West Side Market opened to customers on November 2, 1912, and is Cleveland’s oldest continuously operating public market. It offers a different historical focus from Playhouse Square: the ongoing story of a public market takes center stage here. Theater history and market traditions offer different perspectives on Cleveland’s past.

Science and Earth History

The Great Lakes Science Center is located in downtown Cleveland. It features hundreds of hands-on interactive exhibits and is home to the NASA Glenn Visitor Center. The combination of interactive exhibits and a visitor center makes it a specific destination for science-related topics.

In the Dynamic Earth Wing, visitors can explore the 4.6-billion-year history of our planet. This timespan offers a different scale from the building history of Playhouse Square’s venues, which date to the 1920s. The selection thus ranges from the clearly dated architectural history of the venues to the development of our planet over billions of years.

At the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, the Visitor Hall is free and open to the public. The also-free CircleLink shuttle passes the museum’s Wade Oval entrance. Since routes may change, check the current route before traveling. This gives you both specific information about public access and a practical tip for getting there.

Waterfront, Cycling, and Botanical Highlights

Edgewater Park is the westernmost park in the Cleveland Metroparks Lakefront Reservation. It features 9,000 feet of shoreline, as well as dog beaches and swimming beaches. Cycling and other biking activities are also possible there. The shoreline, beach options, and cycling activities give the park a different focus from the cultural-history and science destinations.

Rockefeller Park Greenhouse is a municipal botanical garden and greenhouse in Cleveland. This adds a botanical focus to the nature-related highlights.

The nature-related highlights differ significantly for your trip planning: Edgewater Park offers shoreline, beaches, and cycling activities, while Rockefeller Park Greenhouse is a botanical garden and greenhouse. Together with theater history, market traditions, and science, these places provide different points of interest for your stay in Cleveland.

Discover more destinations: Independence, Richmond Heights, Lakewood, Bay Village, Warrensville Heights, Brook Park, Strongsville, Mayfield Heights

For the broader travel overview: Cuyahoga County.