Where to stay in Cincinnati?

April 24, 2021 11:04 AM

My family (me, wife, 16-year-old son) will be spending a weekend as tourists in Cincinnati in August. What part of town should we stay in?

We've never been to Cincinnati. We usually rent 2 bedroom houses or apartments, but a hotel is fine option, too. Being walking distance to things such as restaurants and sights is ideal. We will have a car, so easy parking is essential. What neighborhoods do you recommend we stay in?

posted by ShooBoo to Travel & Transportation around Cincinnati, OH (7 answers total)

Best answer: Downtown is very walkable, and parking is hard but not awful. Over the rhine is the trendiest neighborhood, so I'd try to stay there or within walking distance. Near Washington Park or vine st is the best location with lots of restaurants and shopping. You could also stay in Covington, near Randolph Park. The drive over the river is easy and it feels a bit more relaxed with easier parking.
posted by hermanubis at 12:17 PM on April 24, 2021

Best answer: What places in Cincinnati will you be visiting? (Link to neighborhood listing with a convenient expandable map: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Cincinnati_neighborhoods) If you'll be sticking close to downtown, I think either Northside or Clifton (both fairly hip/cozy parts of town near the University of Cincinnati) will give you decent access to things downtown (including Over-the-Rhine) while also being centrally located for easy access to both east and west. Both neighborhoods also have a pretty eclectic array of dining options as well. You might check the AirB&B or whatever listings to see what the price range is before making a decision, I have no idea what it would cost for a weekend stay but I can't imagine it would be too terrible compared to ritzier parts of town.
posted by Strange Interlude at 12:25 PM on April 24, 2021

Best answer: I also strongly recommend that if you spend a significant amount of time downtown that you take advantage of the Connector streetcar system. It's a simple loop going in a figure eight from OTR all the way down to The Banks (next to Great American Ballpark) and will save you a considerable amount of time and headaches over trying to find accessible parking on a weekend. The fare is now free and the streetcars arrive about every 10-15 minutes all day long.
posted by Strange Interlude at 12:32 PM on April 24, 2021 [1 favorite]

Cincinnati Bell Connector Map: https://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/streetcar/how-to-ride/route-and-station-stops/
posted by Strange Interlude at 12:34 PM on April 24, 2021

Best answer: Tons of restaurants in both Downtown and OTR. Downtown gets you to walking distance of the baseball stadium, the Underground Railroad Museum, the Contemporary Art Museum and the assorted parks that are along the river. OTR gets you to walking distance of the soccer stadium, Washington Park and lots of Italianate architecture. Both are short drives to the zoo, the regular art museum, the sign museum and the aquarium.
posted by mmascolino at 1:52 PM on April 24, 2021 [1 favorite]

On-street parking is going to be easiest in neighborhoods like Gaslight Clifton (the closer to the university, the more student-y it will be though) and Northside. On-street parking is very difficult in OTR (Over the Rhine) and downtown (and to a certain extent Mt Adams), and I wouldn't rent a place down there unless it came with a dedicated parking spot.

House-situations are going to be the most plentiful outside of downtown/OTR (downtown/OTR rentals would be mostly condos). You may also want to consider looking around in East Walnut Hills - very close to downtown and close to Mt Adams without the parking issues of Mt. Adams.

If you want to spend most of your time here walking, it might be worth trying to find a spot anyway in downtown/OTR. There's tons you can see on foot (or the connector aka the streetcar) between the riverfront and OTR. You could easily spend a whole day in the area around Findlay Market!
posted by mostly vowels at 1:52 PM on April 24, 2021

I've had a lot of luck staying at the Embassy Suites just across the river from the ballpark. Easy to get to downtown, or for exploring Newport and the rest of NKY
posted by deezil at 4:33 PM on April 24, 2021