New Things to Do in the Cincinnati Region

First time visitor or returning friend, experience memorable moments with these fun new activities.

New Family-Friendly Fun

Cincinnati Museum Center

Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal

Under renovation since late 2016, November 17, 2018 is the anticipated public reopening of Union Terminal’s grand Rotunda, Holiday Junction featuring the Duke Energy Holiday Trains, and the first phase of new permanent galleries: the Museum of Natural History & Science’s Dinosaur Hall and Cincinnati History Museum’s Public Landing.

Dinosaur Hall is a completely new feature that will display six towering prehistoric beasts. State-of-the-art interactive elements will help you experience the Late Jurassic like never before. Dinosaur Hall will utilize Cincinnati Museum Center’s globally-significant fossil collections to explore dinosaur evolution, ecology and biology.

All season long you can enjoy The Duke Energy Children’s Museum, Chocolate: The Exhibition, and GUITAR: The Instrument That Rocked the World. Be aware the entire building will close October 22 through November 1, 2018 as renovations are finalized.

Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden

Cincinnati Zoo (photo: Lisa Hubbard)

Visitors to Gorilla World have the opportunity to get up close with all 11 gorillas at the new indoor habitat. The floor-to-ceiling viewing glass allows for great photo opportunities and the chance to watch the gorillas play and explore. The outdoor portion of Gorilla World also has some new improvements, including a more energy-efficient stream and waterfall, random rolling hills, and new landscaping.

While you’re there, be sure to see all the newest faces at the Zoo including Winsol the aardvark, Kendi the black rhino, and fan favorite Fiona the hippo.

Newport Aquarium

Stingray Hideaway at Newport Aquarium

Visit the Newport Aquarium to meet the mysterious Giant Pacific Octopus, Moon Jellyfish and Japanese Spider Crabs who dwell along The Ring of Fire where volcanoes and deep ocean trenches line the Pacific Ocean.

Be sure to also check out Stingray Hideaway, a 17,000-gallon stingray touch pool where visitors can experience what it’s like to pet the majestic creatures as they glide through the water. The pool is set inside the inlet of a rocky Caribbean coast, so guests can also venture underneath the water’s surface to see the stingrays in an underwater viewing area.

SkyStar Observation Wheel

Skystar Observation Wheel

Open daily through December 2, 2018, take a ride on SkyStar at The Banks. This 150-foot observation wheel features climate-controlled, enclosed gondolas that give visitors a birds-eye view of the Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky riverfront areas and the surrounding landscape.

WinterFest at Kings Island

Winterfest at Kings Island

Kings Island brought back this wintertime family favorite in 2017 after a 12-year hiatus. Enjoy a festive winter wonderland including an ice skating rink, millions of sparkling lights, a 315-foot-tall Christmas tree, carolers, train rides, Santa's workshop and more at the amusement park.

New on the Arts Scene

Performing Arts

Music Hall (photo: @retiro.photography)

Check out some of these new performances being held at Music Hall, a National Historic Landmark that underwent an extensive renovation and reopened in Fall 2017.

During Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra’s One City: Beethoven 9 this November, CSO composer-in-residence Jonathan Bailey Holland presents a world premiere connecting Beethoven’s work to the present.
Cincinnati Pops will perform movie scores live while the audience listens and watches two hit films: Star Wars: A New Hope (September) and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets™ (December).

"Kaplan New Works Series" Cincinnati Ballet (photo: Peter Mueller)

This September at Aronoff Center for the Arts, Cincinnati Ballet’s annual Kaplan New Works Series includes four World Premieres: one by San Francisco Ballet’s own Myles Thatcher, another by Resident Choreographer Jennifer Archibald, and, for the first time, premieres by two Cincinnati Ballet Company members.

Cincinnati Shakespeare Company

Make plans to also enjoy these theatrical premieres:

Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park premiers Cincinnati King this November which celebrates the groundbreaking rise of Cincinnati’s King Records. Playhouse also presents another world premiere, The Last Wide Open, a romance by Audrey Cefaly played out in three separate realities.
Cincinnati Shakespeare Company celebrates their 25th anniversary this season and just their second season in the newly constructed theater. Kicking off this season, they premiere their first-ever musical, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. This followed by the regional premiere of George Orwell’s 1984, a West End & Broadway hit.
Ensemble Theatre is known for regional premieres and this year they offer several in their newly-renovated space including Fly By Night, Ripcord, and Skeleton Crew.

Visual Arts

Fotofocus (photo: Ryan Elliott)

FotoFocus is the largest photography and lens-based biennial in America, and takes places every other fall in the Cincinnati region. While not new itself, FotoFocus Biennial welcomes new photography exhibits to more than 90 local museums and galleries for this year’s event. Some highlights include:

Life: Gillian Wearing at Cincinnati Art Museum is a world premiere of several new self-portraits, along with a concise selection of existing works by the artist.
Contemporary Arts Center will house several FotoFocus exhibitions including Kahlil Joseph’s Until the Quiet Comes, Raquel André’s Collection of Lovers, and Mamma Andersson’s Memory Banks.
Taft Museum of Art will showcase Paris to New York: Photographs by Eugene Atget and Berenice Abbott.

TWISTED at Taft Museum of Art

While visiting Taft Museum of Art, be sure to leave time to explore TWISTED, an interactive maze-like installation on the front lawn by Patrick Dougherty comprised of six tons of willow tree saplings twisted into whimsical, whirling shapes.

Cincinnati Art Museum Fabric of India

Also this fall, Cincinnati Art Museum presents the U.S. premiere of The Fabric of India. Organized by the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, this exhibition is the first to explore the dynamic and multifaceted world of handmade textiles from India showcasing textiles from the fifteenth century to today.

New Culinary Experiences

The B-Line

Bourbon Haus 1841, part of The B-Line (photo: Samuel Greenhill)

Experience Northern Kentucky’s new bourbon tour is centered around three Kentucky Bourbon Trail Craft Tour® Distilleries – New Riff Distilling, Boone County Distilling Co., and The Old Pogue Distillery – and also includes five bourbon-centric bars and four amazing restaurants. Visit two of each, get your Line Guide stamped, and then return the guide to claim your free swag.

Brewing Heritage Trail

Prohibition Resistance: Lager Tour

Cincinnati was once a booming brewing center, with a per capita consumption of beer outpacing that of any other U.S. city. The Brewing Heritage Trail is a celebration of that heritage, an urban walking trail weaving through Cincinnati neighborhoods and past (and into and under) dozens of historic breweries, illustrated along the way with a mix of public art and digital experiences. Download the informative free smartphone app for augmented reality, interactive learning experiences and self-guided tours to further enhance the experience. Guided Cincinnati brewery tours (many beginning and ending in a local bar or brewery tap room) are available year-round. New this fall, Haunted Brewery Tour is an experience taking patrons on a trip back in time to meet actual colorful (and doomed!) characters in Cincinnati brewing history.