How to Spend a Weekend in Columbus, Ohio

Columbus, Ohio is one of our favorite cities to visit in the midwest! We have been to Columbus a few times before, and every time we visit we have the best time. It’s such a cute city with tons of local shops, good restaurants, and certain areas of the city are walkable which we love. Columbus is also a great LGBTQ+ friendly city and you will see tons of queer friendly spaces when you visit. We recently went to Columbus for a weekend and had such a fun time. Keep on reading to see how you should spend a weekend getaway in Columbus!

Where to Stay in Columbus

We stayed at Le Méridien Columbus, The Joseph and it was such a luxurious experience! Our room was one of the biggest hotel rooms we have ever stayed in, and the location was perfect! It’s right in the heart of the Short North (a popular area for tourists with local shops & restaurants) and was in walking distance to everything we wanted to do. The staff was so accommodating and the lobby was gorgeous. We would definitely recommend staying here when visiting Columbus!

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How to Get Around Columbus

The best way to get around Columbus is by walking, biking/electric scooter, or Uber. We prefer to walk when we can, and certain areas of Columbus are walkable like The Short North and the German Village. But getting between the areas can be tricky. We would recommend using the city public bikes, Lime/Spin/Bird electric scooter, or Uber to get from one neighborhood to the other.

Best Things to Do in Columbus

Walk The Short North Arts District - The Short North is often referred to as the Art and Soul of Columbus. There you can find boutique shopping, public art and murals and some of the best restaurants and cafes in the city. The Short North is walkable and is our favorite area of Columbus! Some of our favorite shops that you should pop into are Happy Go Lucky, Torso, and On Paper.
Head to the Columbus Museum of Art - The Columbus Museum of Art has some amazing permanent & special exhibitions that we loved getting the opportunity to see. It’s not to big and the artwork they have is diverse. They have work from famous artists like Monet and Andy Warhol, but also more local and modern artists as well. They also have an outside garden that is beautiful to sit in on a sunny day.
Check out the Franklin Park Botanical Garden - The Botanical Garden is lovely to walk around and explore on a nice day. Our favorite part were the conservatories and the butterfly garden. This is one of Columbus’ top attractions and we definitely can see why! It’s very picturesque and a great way to spend a few hours.
Explore the German Village - the German Village is known for it’s brick houses built by 19th-century. There you’ll find the famous Book Loft — a local bookshop with 32 rooms of bargain books — as well as other local shops, German pubs, and cafes.
Try some local cuisine at The North Market - The North Market is an indoor food hall with lots of local vendors and all different kinds of cuisines. This is a great place to go if you are with family or friends because everyone can try something different!

Where to Eat & Drink in Columbus

Two Dollar Radio Headquarters - a locally owned and operated family-run vegan cafe & indie bookstore!
Woodhouse Vegan - a female-owned vegan cafe & restaurant. They have a few locations and they are all amazing!
Slammers - one of the last remaining lesbian bars in the USA!
Union Cafe - a queer owned restaurants & bar in The Short North
Jeni’s Ice Cream - a famous ice cream chain, but Jeni’s is from Columbus!
Willowbeez Soul Veg - located in the North Market, here you’ll find amazing vegan soul food!
The Guild House - part of the Le Méridien Columbus, The Joseph and a great spot for brunch!
Comune - a unique plant-forward kitchen

The LGBTQ+ Scene in Columbus

Columbus is a very welcoming city for the LGBTQ+ community. There are pride flags everywhere, equality signs in shops, and queer owned establishments you can support (like Torso, Slammers, Union Cafe, The Book Loft, & more) . It’s one of those cities where you will see other LGBTQ+ couples and will feel comfortable being who you are. Everyone is welcome in Columbus, and that’s one of the reasons why we love it so much.

If you want to see more of what we did during our weekend getaway to Columbus, make sure to check out our Columbus YouTube vlog below!

This blog post was sponsored by Experience Columbus. As always, all opinions are honest and our own. Some links on this post are affiliate links of which we receive a small commission, but the price is the same for you.