Day Trip Adventures: 9 Hours in Cleveland

The last time I was in Cleveland, I was in the 8th grade. We went to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and the West Side Market.  On Monday, I went back to Cleveland for the first time since 2003. I took the day off to celebrate my friend Ally's birthday. Cleveland is only an hour and a half away and there is so much to do! Weekends were filling up with events, so we figured let's take a weekday off and enjoy what's left of summer. Here is how our fun-filled day went. 

8:00am - We hit the road with Starbucks in hand. Once we crossed into Ohio, we filled up the gas tank since it's a few cents cheaper. 

9:45am - The drive was so quick. We chatted away the whole ride. When we arrived in Cleveland our first stop was a very unique coffee shop in the Flats. Ally had done some research and really wanted to check out 27 Club Coffee. This coffee shop is owned by Machine Gun Kelly. The name of the coffee shop is a bit morbid, but the overall vibe of the space is very chill, welcoming, and modern. “A bunch of famous musicians passed away early at the age of 27,” says Troy Nethken, the general manager at 27 Club. “Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Amy Winehouse, Kurt Cobain, they were all 27 years old. There are tons more but they became the 27 Club.” Check out this article for more info.

11:00am - After fueling up on pink lattes and delicious breakfast sandwiches, we headed into the city in the hopes of doing some shopping. We checked out The Arcade and Tower City but had no luck. Tower City had a few shops like Bath & Body Works and Foot Lockers, but we were hoping to find some local businesses.

12:30pm - For lunch we decided to go to a brewery. I found one located on the water and we made our way back to the Flats, just a few minutes from downtown Cleveland. Collision Bend Brewery is right on the Cuyahoga River. The scenery was very cool and the food was great! I ordered a flight of beer to try out a few of their brews made on site. My favorite was actually not a beer, but a cider. Their Rose Cider was sweet with a bit of tartness and very refreshing.

2:00pm - Once we devoured most of our wood fired pizzas, we had some time to kill before our time slot at the Greater Cleveland Aquarium at 3:30pm. We headed about 10 minutes outside the city to explore the Roosevelt Greenhouse and Gardens. It was small but mighty. Each section of the greenhouse was bursting with flora. There were gardens all around Greenhouses that we walked through as well. It was a very peaceful, quiet way to take a breather during a busy day.

3:15pm - We got to the aquarium a little early. It was raining so we sat in the car for a bit before heading in. The Greater Cleveland Aquarium was such a cool experience. At the start of your journey through the aquarium is a section all about local fish found in Lake Erie. There were sturgeon, crappie, and rainbow trout. The coolest part was a giant stingray pool. You could put your hand in and the stingrays would sometimes come up close enough to touch. I was memorized watching them swim around the tank, getting faster and more confident with each lap. I think I stood there for 15 minutes before finally moving on. The texture of a stingray is very unique. It's soft but slimy and squishy at the same time. The absolute best feature of this aquarium was the tunnel that went through a giant tank that was filled with sharks! I was in underwater heaven. We walked through the tunnel twice. I just couldn't get enough.

4:45pm - While at Collision Bend, I asked the hostess where we could find some cute, local shops. She was so friendly and said to head to Treemont, which was only about 10 minutes from the Flats. She recommended a boutique called Banyan Tree so we put it in Google Maps and headed about 8 minutes southeast. Treemont is the cutest area. If I ever moved to the Cleveland area, I would definitely want a cute little house in Tremont. Banyan Tree was the cutest shop ever.  I loved that they source goods locally as well as globally. They even carry a line on conscious clothing. I bought the cutest tye-dye crewneck and a super unique black triangle bag. We also stopped in Evie Lou just down the road from Banyan Tree. They had a very unique selection of clothing and beautiful jewelry. I bought two beautiful rings, one made by a local jeweler by the name of Katie K, and some earrings.

5:40pm - Does shopping always work up an appetite or is it just me? Just down the road from the boutiques was Barrio Tacos. My friend had been raving about this place for months and Barrio was the main reason we picked Cleveland for our day trip. Great tacos?! You don't have to tell me twice! We were seated at Barrio just in time to catch the end of their happy hour.  Four-dollar margaritas, okay! We started off with a chip and trio dip sampler with classic guac, house queso, and pineapple salsa. The fresh pineapple salsa was to die for. I could not stop eating it.  For an entree, I ordered 3 tacos from the chef's specials. They were packed with flavor and absolutely fantastic!

7:00pm - Even though we were stuffed, we had to make one last stop on our way out of town. While downtown earlier in the day, I spotted Insomnia Cookies and made a mental note to try to grab some before leaving. The last time I had these cookies was probably about 6 years ago in NYC. I grabbed a dozen for me and the birthday girl to split. I think we each ate half of one cookie before closing up our boxes and calling it quits. The ride home was quick, easy, and filled with Taylor Swift karaoke.

9:00pm - By 9 o'clock I was at home on the couch scrolling through dozens and dozens of pictures I took,  reliving all the fun moments of the day. 

We were able to do so much in 9 hours! It was such a great day and I am already thinking about another trip to see the Space Center and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.