Eastern Ohio or Thereabouts
 

Sis lives in NYC and I'm in STL. Columbus, OH is approximately half-way between. Looking for a spot to meet for the 4th of July weekend -- 4 adults, 1 teen, 2 tweens, and a 9-yr old. We don't need much to make us happy, just hoping to get together after not seeing each other for the last 2 years.

Is Columbus the best choice, or if we travel further east would there be other options nearby (perhaps as far east as Wheeling, WV)? Do the state parks have lodges? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Salt Fork State Park, just north of Cambridge off I-77 has a lodge:

http://www.saltforkstateparklodge.com/

For July 4 weekend, the lodge might already be booked full. If this is your destination, you must reserve ASAP.

Columbus has much to offer. A renowned zoo, a beautiful new AAA baseball park, several Metro Parks with hiking and biking trails, plenty of restaurants and shopping. One hour south of Columbus is the Hocking Hills parks area a beautiful group of caves and gorges in the scenic Wayne Forest.

You could pack the car with groceries and head to Hocking Hills, do some hiking to Old Man's Cave, I think another is Ash Cave (?) Beautiful cabins and beautiful country, be sure to pack that bathing suit cause every cabin has a hot tub on the porch! And as the poster above said, it's about an hour south of Columbus. http://www.hockinghills.com/cabins.html

For what it appears you are looking for Hocking Hills is the best bet. You're still close enough to Columbus for a daytrip & the pool @ the Lodge will be open as well. I would suggest a cabin via the Hocking Hills website or vrbo.com. http://www.1800hocking.com/ & here is another option - http://www.ravenwoodcastle.com/

You could also check the Inn at Cedar Falls in Hocking Hills. They have rooms and cabins, and the on-site restaurant is very good.

Cedar Point and the Lake Erie islands would be another choice-a bit farther north than you are looking.

Inn @ Cedar Falls is nice, but not cheap. I would, however, plan to have Dinner there if staying in the area.

Muskingum County offers alot to see and do and is about 1 hour east of Columbus, Ohio and about 1 hour from Wheeling, West Virginia and offer a variety of things to do including The Wilds which is the largest wild animal preserve in North America, John and Annie Glenn Museum, Zane Grey Museum, plenty of Antique and Pottery Shops as Zanesville, Ohio was the pottery capital of the USA, Flea Markets on weekends and more. you can see what their is to do on this website: http://www.bakersmotel.com

There is a lot to see and do in Cambridge and Zanesville, Ohio which also include state parks in both areas, fishing, some great restaurants and more.

In addition to the good Columbus, OH list stumpworks posted, this city also has a fine small art museum and a very good state capitol building to tour, plus two neighborhoods that are fun to walk and explore: Short North and German Village.

Yes, do explore the German Village area during your visit. We have loved to stop in for dining like at Schmidts. Nice little bookstore in the area.

bach, we have visited German Village a lot but have never been to Short North, nor have ever heard of it. Where is it and what does it offer?

Short North is the stretch of High Street that runs from I-670 to Ohio State. It apparently used to be a not-good area, but now is a hip-feeling strip lined with boutique shops, art galleries, restaurants, bars, nightclubs, and such. The street has metal archways over the street along its length in this neighborhood. They even have a website:

http://www.shortnorth.org/

The North Market is located at the southernmost end of this area. It's essentially an old-fashioned style market of indoor stalls with vendors of all kinds and food stalls, a little like the Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia. Here's its website:

http://www.northmarket.com/

I found exploring this whole stretch very enjoyable.

bach has it right. The Short north is the 'Art district' between downtown & the OSU campus - on & around N. High St.
For those of us who used to reside there, it used to be better when it was a little more 'seedy'. Places like 'The Press Grill', just don't exist anymore.

Thanks bach and SAn.