Big cities on the coasts get a lot of love, but there are hidden-gem destinations throughout the American heartland that can offer more bang for your buck and smaller crowds. Here are three cities in the midwestern US to put on your travel list for 2025.
Kansas City, Kansas
Visit Kansas City Kansas invites travelers and locals alike to explore an exciting lineup of new attractions, major events, and unforgettable experiences that will inspire your 2025 travel plans. From immersive cultural trails to cutting-edge entertainment districts, Kansas City, Kansas, is a destination brimming with adventure, culture, and community. Kansas City, Kansas, is where sports, culture, and community come together to create lasting memories. Plan your visit now and discover why this dynamic destination continues to captivate visitors year after year.
Opening this summer, Rock Island Bridge will be the first entertainment district built over a river in the United States. Suspended 40 feet above the Kansas River, this reimagined rail bridge will serve as a community gathering space, trailhead, and entertainment destination. Blending historic charm with modern amenities, it’s set to become a must-visit spot for both locals and tourists.
Escape to paradise at the highly anticipated Margaritaville Hotel Kansas City also opening this year. Featuring 200+ coastal-inspired rooms, a resort-style pool, family entertainment, meeting spaces, and classic Margaritaville dining, this tropical oasis offers a getaway unlike any other in the region.
Step into the world of imagination at Atlas 9, an immersive art museum showcasing interactive, larger-than-life exhibits in a $26.7 million, 30,000-square-foot space. Designed to rival renowned destinations like Meow Wolf, Atlas 9 will captivate visitors with creativity and innovation.
Perfect your swing at BigShots Golf, a multi-level sports entertainment venue offering interactive games for all skill levels, mini-golf, a full-service restaurant, and a bar. Whether you’re a seasoned golfer or a casual player, this is the ultimate destination for food, fun, and competition.
The new American Royal campus, spanning nearly 100 acres, reimagines Kansas City’s agricultural heritage. With world-famous barbecue competitions, livestock shows, and immersive food and farming experiences, this state-of-the-art venue cements Kansas City’s place as a global hub for agricultural innovation.
Major events in Kansas City this year include:
The 100th Anniversary of Memorial Hall in September – a historic venue that has hosted generations of iconic events and performances in the heart of Kansas City, Kansas.Country Stampede at Azura Amphitheater – June 26–28, 2025. The beloved Country Stampede music and camping festival is heading to Bonner Springs. With headliners Luke Bryan, Miranda Lambert, and Cole Swindell, this three-day event promises unforgettable performances at Azura Amphitheater. Tickets are on sale now!NASCAR Cup Series at Kansas Speedway – May 10–11 and Sept. 27–28, 2025. Get your engines revving for two action-packed weekends at Kansas Speedway. The spring AdventHealth 400 and fall Hollywood Casino 400 weekends will feature NASCAR Cup Series races and fan-favorite events like the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series.Tacos & Tequila Festival at Legends Field – June 21, 2025. This vibrant festival returns with headliners Nelly, Timbaland, and Bone Thugs-N-Harmony. Enjoy tacos, tequila, and entertainment, including a Chihuahua beauty pageant, exotic car showcase, and thrilling Lucha Libre wrestling.Phase Fest at Legends Field – June 2025. This 21+ music festival at Legends Field promises an unforgettable experience with live performances, craft food vendors, beer and wine bars, and art installations. Stay tuned for artist announcements!Día de los Muertos on Central Avenue – Nov. 1, 2025. Celebrate life and remembrance during this vibrant event that spans nearly 10 blocks. Featuring live music, Catrinas, traditional altars, authentic Mexican cuisine, and a parade, it’s a heartfelt tribute to heritage and culture.
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio by DJ Johnson – Unsplash
After a vibrant year in which Cleveland was deemed the “new center of the world,” 2025 highlights thoughtful and energetic investment into Cleveland’s cultural and architectural assets. Historic restaurant spaces are getting new life, museums are unveiling unprecedented renovations, and a new boutique hotel will return a historic building to its Gilded age grandeur. The Land is bursting with appreciation for its history and excitement for the future.
Catch the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament – Rounds 1 and 2 this March. After hosting a record-breaking 2024 NCAA Women’s Final Four, Cleveland will again welcome thousands of March Madness fans and the best regional teams to Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse for the first and second rounds of the 2025 Men’s Division I tournament.
As Downtown’s newest hotel, the 97-room Fidelity Hotel will offer an intimate boutique experience in the historic Baker Building. With custom-designed rooms, artful event spaces and a unique social impact initiative, the hotel breathes new life into the 105-year-old building. Drawing inspiration from its Gilded Age origins, the property blends old-world glamour with modern style, showcasing bespoke artwork from talented local artists to create a one-of-a-kind destination.
As museums unveil groundbreaking, first-to-the-United States exhibits and grand openings in 2025, The Land continues its role as a leader in timely national cultural dialogues and thought:
With more than 375,000 square feet of reimagined spaces thanks to a wide-reaching transformation and expansion project, the Cleveland Museum of Natural History unveiled in December a bold new model for natural history museums. Exhibits journey through space and time to explore the wonders of the world and put visitors at the center of the experience, highlighting the relevance of science and nature to everyday lives and encouraging action toward a healthier planet.Several exhibits are coming to the Cleveland Museum of Art this year, including: Picasso and Paper (through March 23): Pablo Picasso’s prolonged engagement with paper is the subject of the groundbreaking exhibition Picasso and Paper, organized by the Cleveland Museum of Art and the Royal Academy of Arts, London, in partnership with the Musée National Picasso-Paris. Showcasing nearly 300 works spanning the artist’s career, the exhibition explores lesser-known and key works, including some for the first time in the United States; and Karamu Artists Inc.: Printmaking, Race and Community (March 23 – Aug. 17): As America’s oldest producing Black theater, Cleveland’s Karamu House once housed a printmaking workshop where artists and community members—including a young Langston Hughes—could experiment with printmaking. This exhibition is the first to place Karamu Artists Inc. and its innovative use of the graphic arts within the broader context of American art during the 1930s and ’40s.At the Cleveland History Center, visitors can see History in Their Hands: Black Photographers in Cleveland (through August): This inaugural exhibit highlights the significant work of Black photographers from Cleveland as part of a new permanent gallery dedicated to honoring African American contributions to American history. The exhibit features the works of Van Dillard, Gina Gayle, Jimmy Gayle, Amanda D. King, Mychal Lilly and Charles J. Pinkney. There’s also Wild Horses: 60 Years of Ford’s Mustang (through May 4): The Crawford Auto-Aviation Museum celebrates a true American automotive icon with displays of Mustang body styles from 1964 to present, filling the museum’s Upper Gallery with cars that evoke nostalgia, envy, curiosity and enthusiasm.Showing at the Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland (moCa) is Gala Porras-Kim: A Hand in Nature (Jan. 24 – June 1). The artist’s work in this exhibition imagines what might be possible if natural forces and phenomena had the agency to self-determine. Artworks on view distill natural processes into sculptures, paintings and drawings that will grow, evolve or degrade throughout the span of the exhibition. There’s also Harminder Judge (Jan. 24 – June 1): The artist’s first exhibition in the U.S. displays vibrant plaster and pigment works that explore themes of alchemy, spiritual processions and the body’s transformation through death.March 27-April 5, the 49th Cleveland International Film Festival returns to the iconic theaters at Playhouse Square. CIFF49 will showcase hundreds of films with accompanying post-film Q&As as well as audience and juried awards with more than $130,000 in cash prizes for feature and short films. CIFF is one of the few festivals in the world that is Academy Award®-qualifying for all three film categories: short film-live action, animated and documentary.
This slate of restaurant and bar openings showcases the signature can-do attitude, grit and creativity of The Land’s culinary entrepreneurs and star chefs. Highlights include:
The Friar’s Table (Dec. 2024): James Beard finalist Brandon Chrostowski of EDWINS partnered with Cleveland Capuchin Ministries to open a new restaurant in Downtown’s Playhouse Square theater district, offering seasonal menus that blend monastic tradition with modern innovation.Abundance Culinary Expansion (Spring): A “Plate Magazine” 2024 “Chef to Watch,” Liu Fang will expand her popular Abundance Culinary authentic Chinese restaurant concept to fill the entire historic diner car it currently occupies. Fang will also launch a new Dumpling Subscription Club.Decades Cleveland (March): A retro 80’s and 90’s-themed bar and club will transform a former dueling piano bar in the Flats East Bank entertainment district with throwback vibes and nostalgic entertainment.
The Land’s industrial past has nothing on the region’s rich natural assets, from the 25,000 acres of Cleveland Metroparks that surround the city to a celebrated National Park and diverse array of urban outdoor sports.
Cuyahoga Valley National Park 50th anniversary (through end of 2025): Celebrations of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park’s 50th anniversary continue in 2025 through the park’s “CVNP 50” initiative, including a national speaker series, additional resources for visitors and a star-studded summer concert series.Cedar Point reveals “Siren’s Curse,” the tallest, longest and fastest tilt coaster in America (May): Lake Erie’s legend of sirens luring sailors is the inspiration behind the newest coaster at Cedar Point, “Siren’s Curse.” The structure utilizes an old 160-foot Lake Erie shipping crane where riders will come to a dead stop and “tilt” off the track. The new coaster will tell its story across from the Iron Dragon and near the Cedar Point Marina to lure in riders.
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis by Kenny Nguyen – Unsplash
The 2025 St. Louis Visitors Guide is now available, offering tourists an in-depth look at everything our dynamic city has to offer. Published annually by Explore St. Louis, the guide serves as the definitive resource for those looking to experience the best of the region, from iconic landmarks to cultural treasures to hidden gems.
Spotlighting can’t-miss attractions such as the Gateway Arch, Forest Park and Missouri Botanical Garden alongside hidden gems, including Bellefontaine Cemetery and Arboretum, the Endangered Wolf Center and Soldiers Memorial Military Museum, the guide shows the rich history and unique character of St. Louis, encouraging travelers to plan their next visit.
Explore St. Louis is committed to marketing different facets of the region, including arts and culture, kid-friendly fun, epic sporting events and, of course, local beer, which inform the features in the guide.
This year, the guide spotlights two of St. Louis’ world-class arts organizations: Saint Louis Dance Theatre and the Pulitzer Arts Foundation. Featured on the cover, the cultural powerhouses are also celebrated in a feature where four local leaders share their favorite ways to experience the arts in St. Louis.
The 2025 St. Louis Visitors Guide is available at all five Explore St. Louis Visitor Information Centers, and it’s distributed to regional partners, including hotels across the area.
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