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Downtown Cincinnati is full of action, from the bustling workday crowd to theatergoers in the city to catch a play at the Aronoff Center to art patrons off to catch an exhibit at the Contemporary Arts Center. The stadiums attract huge crowds, especially during the weekends. But it's Main Street, between Liberty Street and Central Parkway, where downtown really comes to life. Art galleries and specialty stores selling antiques, flowers, and music operate by day, and nightclubs attract a spirited crowd at night.
The University of Cincinnati and "Pill Hill," the city's hospital district, are found in the uptown area, north of downtown. Its international restaurants and the indie Esquire Theater draw a diverse crowd, while its restaurants and bars are frequented by fun-seeking college students.
This trendy, hillside neighborhood overlooking downtown is the place to be on the weekend. Nightclubs and restaurants line the streets and are open into the wee hours of the morning. Mount Adams is sandwiched in bounded by the Ohio River, Eden Park, and I–71. Parking is difficult, however; consider taking a cab.
One of the tougher marathon courses around, the Flying Pig actually is a beginner-friendly affair—more participants are first-timers than at other marathons, and the festivities also include a half-marathon, 10K, and 5K, four-person relay teams, and kids races. Bands and spectators are legion around the course, and the Pig has become one of the town's signature events, held the first weekend in May.
This show at the Cincinnati Convention Center exhibits fine furnishings and products and services related to building and remodeling, gardening, and outdoor living.
The oldest choral and orchestral festival in the country is presented in a series of concerts with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. Guest soloists are featured.
The six-block area around Fountain Square is turned into a German biergarten for this three-day celebration of the city's German heritage, the largest Oktoberfest outside Munich. Don your lederhosen and compete in the beer barrel roll or dance the chicken dance, often led by a once-popular musical artist from the "where are they now?" file. You can quench your thirst with a stein of beer, and there's plenty of goetta (a German dish made from meat and grain, similar to breakfast sausage), bratwurst, sauerkraut, and strudel to go around.
Every three years, Cincinnati pays tribute to its steamboat history by inviting a fleet of riverboats—there were 16 at the 2006 celebration—for riverboat races and cruises and scores of top musicians. The 2006 festival featured Wilco, Buddy Guy, Ricky Skaggs, Al Green, Buckwheat Zydeco, and 70 other artists. For the better part of a week, festival goers can tour steamboats, view historical exhibits and characters in period dress, and listen to music. The event began in 1988, during the bicentennial celebration of the city's founding.
The Cincinnati Ballet performs classical and contemporary works here from October to mid-May.
The Cincinnati Opera, the nation's second oldest, was started in 1920. The yearly summer festival occurs in June and July.
The Cincinnati Pops Orchestra performs from September through May at Music Hall. In June and July, the Pops heads outdoors to perform at the Riverbend Music Center adjacent to Coney Island.
Under the direction of maestro Paavo Järvi, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra performs from September through May.
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