It can be hard for visitors to find interesting things to see and do in Columbus. Follow this tour to see downtown and some near-downtown neighborhoods and suburbs.

Difficulty Level: easy      Time Required: from two hours to all day

1. Start with a tour of the Statehouse at Broad and High in the heart of downtown. You can park underneath. Historic Ohio Theater is along the south side of the Statehouse grounds on State St.; the Ohio is connected to City Center Mall.
2. From the Statehouse drive east on E. Broad St. You will pass the Columbus Museum of Art on the left; then after about a mile you will pass Franklin Park on the right. This is where Ameriflora was held years ago. Continue past Franklin Park and you enter Bexley.
3. Turn left when you reach Cassady Av. Follow Cassady to Maryland Av. and turn left; you will pass older, elegant mansions in this area. Continue on Maryland to Parkview Av.; turn left and follow Parkview back across Broad St. to E. Main St. Turn left on E. Main; in two blocks turn left at Drexel Av. and go back to E. Broad.
4. Turn left on E. Broad and drive west back toward downtown. As you pass the old mansions along E. Broad, envision that there was once a boulevard down the middle of this present-day six-lane street. Many of the mansions are now office buildings.
5. Continue past the Statehouse and across the Scioto River to the Center of Science and Industry (COSI), on the left side of W. Broad. (The "Santa Maria" replica will be on the right as you cross the river.)
6. COSI is an interactive museum in a restored high school. From COSI head back across the river and turn right on Civic Center Drive. Go three blocks to W. Main St. and turn left; then turn right on S. High St. The historic Southern Hotel and Theater is on the corner of S. High and E. Main.
7. Head south on S. High St. After you cross I-70/71 you will be in German Village. This is a great place to park and walk down (narrow) city streets lined with restored, historic homes from the 1800's. If you turn left on Kossuth St. and go several blocks you will reach Schmidt's, an authentic German restaurant in a restored building.
8. After visiting German Village, go north on S. High St. back through downtown. After you pass the Statehouse and the Columbus Convention Center you will be in a neighborhood called the Short North.
9. The Short North is an area of art galleries and trendy shops. Look for a parking lot along N. High St. if you want to stop and look.
10. Continue north on N. High St. and you will reach the Ohio State University campus. The N. High campus strip is kind of run down right now, but renovation plans are in the works. The avant garde looking building on the left is the Wexner Center for the Arts.
11. At the northern edge of the OSU campus, turn left onto Lane Av. Follow Lane Av. until you cross the Olentangy River, then turn left on Olentangy River Rd. The new Schottenstein Arena is on the corner.
12. Right after you turn onto Olentangy River Rd., turn left on Woody Hayes Drive. This street is aptly named; after you cross back over the river turn right on Cannon Drive. The famous Ohio Stadium where Woody Hayes coached will be on the left.
13. Follow Cannon Drive until it ends into King Av. Turn left; Battelle Memorial Institute--where photocopying, space shuttle tiles, and other innovations were developed--will be along the right side of King Av.
14. After five blocks on King Av., turn right on Neil Av. This will take you through Victorian Village, another historic area of restored homes. After you pass under I-670 you will enter a torn-up area where Nationwide Arena (future home of the NHL Blue Jackets) is being constructed.
15. When Neil Av. ends into Dublin Rd. (US 33), turn right. After about a mile, turn right on Grandview Av. After you climb a steep hill, you will be in downtown Grandview Heights, a trendy older suburb. Turn left on First Av. When you reach Marble Cliff, the tour ends.
    
    

1. You can continue your tour of Columbus on the suburban Columbus tour.
2. Be sure to take a map so you don't get lost if you leave the tour route; email your guide for a Franklin County map.
   
   

Related Features:

• Columbus Visitors Guide
• Wexner Center Commentary