CLEVELAND (April 11, 2022) – The warming breeze from Lake Erie, patios filled with craft brew lovers and the crack of the bat at Progressive Field signal the arrival of spring in Cleveland. Visitors to The Land can enjoy the season with fresh offerings throughout the area, including a batch of new waterfront dining options, exciting exhibit debuts and unique cultural events.
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Music,
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Hotels & Developments
Sports & Recreation Activities Bring the Thrills
Visitors can catch the excitement of a game and enjoy some friendly competition with sporting events and new attractions, including:
- Cleveland Guardians Debut Season (April 15-Oct. 5)
On April 15, the newly christened
Cleveland Guardians MLB team begin a historic season at Progressive Field. The name gives a nod to the iconic Guardians of Traffic statues on the Hope Memorial Bridge, which watch over the ballpark and city.
- Tall Ships Festival (July 7-10)
The 2022 Cleveland
Tall Ships Festival offers visitors the opportunity to experience maritime history first-hand as historic ships from around the world return to the Lake Erie shore. Attendees of the four-day festival can set sail on a vessel with a “Sail Away” ride or experience history from land with “Ask the Captain” forums, live music and a fireworks show.
- Tennis in the Land – WTA 250 (Aug. 21-27)
The top tennis athletes will compete in the second
Tennis in the Land, a Women’s Tennis Association 250 event and part of the U.S. Open Series. A temporary stadium court will be constructed in view of the downtown skyline at the riverfront Jacobs Pavilion at Nautica.
- Cleveland National Air Show (Sept. 3-5)
The U.S. Navy Blue Angels will headline the
2022 Cleveland National Air Show over Labor Day weekend. The show will be the Cleveland debut of the Blue Angels flying a larger jet platform with the F/A-18 Super Hornet and a new logistics support aircraft, the C-130J Super Hercules.
- The Fieldhouse at Studio West 117
Nearly 100,000 square feet of real estate on Cleveland’s west border is being renovated to create
Studio West 117, a new LGBTQ community hub. The first phase will be completed this summer with
The Fieldhouse, an indoor/outdoor recreation center home to a trailblazing LGBTQ youth sports league, along with an inclusive
Gymnasium, new restaurants and a rooftop lounge.
- Boss Pro-Karting VR Arena
Boss Pro-Karting’s new “Zero Latency” Virtual Reality arena is one of only 10 of its kind in the country and marks the transition of virtual reality gaming from the living room to a night out with friends. Participants can don a headset and step into the 1,500-square-foot arena to experience the next phase of gaming.
Music Exhibits, Concert Events & New Venues Reverberate with Excitement
Cleveland hits all the right notes for music lovers with the return of live concert events and the opening of new venues and exhibits.
- The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
- The Beatles: Get Back to Let It Be (Now through March 2023)
Visitors can follow the band’s creative journey through original instruments, clothing and handwritten lyrics, including items loaned by Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and the estates of George Harrison and John Lennon.
The exhibit features high-definition film clips, audio and custom projections to transport fans into The Beatles’ vibrant world of January 1969, including rehearsals, studio sessions and the band’s final live performance.
Photos available here.
- The Cleveland Orchestra
- Otello Opera Festival (May 21-29)
The Cleveland Orchestra’s 104
th season culminates with an opera festival surrounding performances of Verdi’s
Otello. The festival will feature a dramatic retelling of Shakespeare’s classic tale and will involve partners from theater, film, literature and the visual arts through a range of presentations and community discussions.
- 2022 Blossom Music Festival (July 2-Sep. 4)
The Cleveland Orchestra returns to its scenic summer home inside Cuyahoga Valley National Park with a
wide-ranging concert series that highlights Broadway, folk, film scores and Beethoven’s triumphant Ninth Symphony.
- Great Lakes Science Center
- The Science of Rock ‘N’ Roll (Now through Sept. 5)
The
Great Lakes Science Center’s newest exhibit provides guests with an all-access backstage pass to the scientific innovations that shaped rock ‘n’ roll and helped transform it into a powerful cultural force. The interactive displays mix science, technology, engineering and math to illustrate the power of music, including the physiological effects of rock music.
- Tri-C Jazz Festival (June 23-25)
For more than four decades,
Tri-C JazzFest Cleveland has celebrated the roots of jazz music along with contemporary, forward-thinking musicians. From concerts in the restored theaters of Playhouse Square to dancing the night away with performances under the lights of the country’s largest outdoor chandelier, visitors can feel Cleveland’s musical soul at this event.
The Lumineers and Vampire Weekend headline the sixth annual
WonderStruck music festival. The outdoor event fills a 400-acre site at Lakeland Community College with multiple stages hosting more than 25 performers.
Platform Beer Co. is holding a summer jamboree for the launch of Odd Future, a new imperial India pale ale. The day-long celebration will center on live music performances and encourage attendees to “try something new,” including a sweepstakes for skydiving adventures, cooking lessons, tickets to the Cleveland Ballet, a virtual-reality experience and more.
Country music star Chase Rice brings a bit of his Tennessee farm to the Flats East Bank with new entertainment venue
Welcome to the Farm. Opened in March 2022, the expansive live music complex features a center stage and garage doors opening to a waterfront patio.
New Exhibits & Cultural Events Celebrate the City’s Diversity
The Cleveland area will be transformed into a playground of arts and culture experiences this spring and summer as museums, neighborhood spaces, downtown streets and more host events and exhibits.
- Cleveland Museum of Art
- Black Art in Focus (Feb. 20–June 25)
Drawn from the Museum’s extensive collection,
Black Art in Focus is a series of provocative vignettes by well-known and up-and-coming artists that explore the social, political and intellectual connections of Black art, artists and thinkers.
Photos available here.
- The New Black Vanguard (May 8–Sept. 11)
The New Black Vanguard presents images of Black lives, bodies and heritage through photographs, videos, publications and fashion installations. It features 15 emerging artists, including Tyler Mitchell, the first African American to shoot a cover for Vogue, and Awol Erizku, whose work has appeared in GQ, The New York Times and The Museum of Modern Art.
Photos available here.
- Museum of Contemporary Art (moCa)
- Artist-in-Residence (AIR) Program
The AIR Program supports the work of emerging and early-career artists in Cleveland. Photographer
Amber N. Ford (Jan. 28–June 5) is best known for her work in portraiture and explores the topics of race and identity.
Erykah Townsend (July 5–Nov. 30) is a multimedia artist with work influenced by pop culture that comments on consumerism and art history.
- Aram Han Sifuentes: Who Was This Built to Protect? (Now through June 5)
Korean American artist Aram Han Sifuentes uses sewing as a medium to investigate citizenship, protest and belonging in the United States. This exhibit centers on six large-scale red silk curtains with white text of excerpts from the U.S. Constitution.
- Cleveland Asian Festival (May 21-22)
Organized by the
AsiaTown community to celebrate the city’s diversity and Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, the annual
Cleveland Asian Festival offers live entertainment on outdoor stages, a World Marketplace of more than 100 vendors and exhibitors, local restaurants and caterers, a fashion show and an Asian Pop Dance Competition.
Photos available here.
- Juneteenth Events
- Cleveland Juneteenth Freedom Fest (June 18)
The second annual
Cleveland Juneteenth Freedom Fest will spotlight the history and spirit of Cleveland’s African American community. Festivities include a performance by
Karamu House, programming from
Ingenuity Cleveland and
Tri-C JazzFest, a vendor village of Black-owned businesses, art demonstrations, food trucks, spoken-word performances and more.
Photos available here.
- The Runway 2022 (June 19)
The Runway 2022 brings a high fashion event to the Cleveland Museum of Art on June 19. The event, focused on amplifying and celebrating diversity and inclusion in the industry, will showcase emerging designers along with established and international talent. Guests will enjoy an evening of elevated fashion with opportunities to shop the runway and meet the designers.
- FRONT International: Cleveland Triennial for Contemporary Art (July 16–Oct. 2)
The second edition of
FRONT International: Cleveland Triennial for Contemporary Art will be comprised of more than 75 artist commissions displayed at more than twenty sites in Cleveland and nearby cities of Akron and Oberlin. Visitors can embark on a free region-wide art scavenger hunt with projects including a
virtual reality arcade, a public mural from Julie Mehretu and a bluetooth-enabled dancefloor from Swedish architecture trio Dansbana!
- Cleveland Museum of Natural History: 100 Years of Discovery (Now through Sept. 18)
100 Years of Discovery celebrates a century of scientific advances, conservation and community. Visitors can embark on an interactive journey through some of the institution’s most awe-inspiring moments and discoveries, including a ride on a schooner during a 1923 expedition to the South Atlantic, dashing on a dogsled with Balto across an Alaskan snowscape and observing bald eagles through the eyes of a naturalist.
- Cleveland Botanical Garden: Perennial Playspace
The new
Perennial Playspace at Cleveland Botanical Garden engages kids of all ages with interactive learning experiences that illustrate the wonder, beauty and value of trees and plants. The space is open year-round and features a sensory play area that overlooks the lush plants and towering trees of the Garden’s glasshouse biomes.
New Restaurants Showcase City’s Diversity & Waterfront Views
Cleveland’s culinary scene highlights the more than 100 diverse ethnicities found throughout the city. New offerings include:
- International Restaurant Passport
The new
International Restaurant Passport highlights the rich cultures and heritages that make up Cleveland’s diverse population. The digital passport offers exclusive deals at 17 of the city’s international eateries.
Downtown gains a new weekday eatery with the opening of
Lulo Café. The café brings tropical vibes and a Pan-Latin culinary influence to menu options like quinoa ceviche, mango salmon bowls, hand crafted limonadas and superfood smoothies.
- YumVillage (February 2022)
The fast-casual Afro-Caribbean eatery
YumVillage celebrates the chef/owner’s Jamaican and Nigerian heritage and his mission to bring affordable chef-prepared meals to the local community. Menu highlights include jerk chicken, jollof rice and plantains, as well as lesser-known specialties like maafe, a hot peanut stew from West Africa.
Located in the Flats East Bank, the new waterfront restaurant
Jade features Asian fusion cuisine and three levels of dining spaces, including a rooftop bar and lounge.
Ultra-modern décor and a DJ-guided soundtrack provide the backdrop for Instagrammable moments at the new dining and nightlife destination
Filter. Chef Jarrett Mine guides the not-your-typical-steakhouse menu, while the décor and atmosphere promise to leave a lasting impression.
- Juneberry Table (April 2022)
Breakfast is on the menu with the opening of
Juneberry Table, a contemporary urban diner by acclaimed chef Karen Small. The all-day breakfast and lunch menu is influenced by Appalachian classics like greens, cured meats and preserves.
Acclaimed chef Doug Katz’s Indian fusion ghost kitchen,
Amba, will become a permanent restaurant in the Ohio City neighborhood. Adjoining Amba will be A Bar, where visitors can enjoy cocktails in a casual, lounge-style atmosphere.
Cordelia will be a celebration of “Midwest Nice” hospitality when it opens on Cleveland’s East 4
th Street. An inviting, classic interior will complement the menu of sharable “modern Grandma” cuisine featuring in-house butchering, fermentation and curing.
- Agave & Rye (Summer 2022)
The newest location of this fast-growing restaurant group will bring “epic tacos and epic experiences” along with street art-filled interiors to Downtown Cleveland.
Agave & Rye’s unique taco fillings include butter poached lobster with truffle and kangaroo meat.
Chef Josh Admon relocated his family from Jerusalem to Cleveland Heights to open neighborhood bagel shop and bakery
Nubeigel. Admon’s fresh-baked bagel flavors of plain, salt, sesame and mish-mosh will be paired with schmears, lox, fish salads and vegan spreads.
- Fahrenheit (Relocating Fall 2022)
Chef Rocco Whalen’s signature fine dining restaurant
Fahrenheit is relocating to a prominent location on Cleveland’s Public Square. This longtime culinary staple of the Tremont neighborhood expands into a two-story space with rooftop seating.
Raise a Glass at New Breweries & Bars
The Cleveland area boasts more than 40 brewhouses and dozens of beer bars serving up unique craft ales and lagers of all kinds. New breweries, bars and lounges include:
- Pins Mechanical Co. and 16-Bit Bar and Arcade (March 2022)
The Ohio City neighborhood gains a big attraction with the opening of
Pins Mechanical Co. and 16-Bit Bar and Arcade. Game lovers will delight with entertainment options including duckpin bowling, pinball, bocce ball, arcade and video games.
- Rum Runners (Spring 2022)
Laid-back beach energy and live music (reggae, acoustic and rock) will greet visitors to the Flats East Bank with the opening of
Rum Runners. The waterfront club will offer beachy cocktails, cabanas and Polynesian décor.
- Cherie Wine Bar (Spring 2022)
Featuring velvet seating and French flare, wine enthusiasts will revel in the
Cherie Wine Bar & Lounge experience. Guests can look forward to a curated wine selection with a range of styles to enjoy in flights, glasses or by the bottle. The indoor-outdoor bar sits on the riverfront and will offer a selection of small plates and shareables.
- Pulpo Beer Co. (Summer 2022)
The
first Latin-owned brewery in Ohio will open a new taproom at the Crocker Park lifestyle center, located a short drive west of Downtown Cleveland. Visitors can sip signature brews like a Blonde Mamacita ale, Pulpo Libre lager or El Generalissimo stout in the new 4,000-square-foot taproom.
New Hotel Projects Welcome Visitors
The latest updates to Cleveland’s hotels enhance the visitor experience as well as the city’s landscape. Recent and upcoming projects include:
- ROOST Apartment Hotel (March 2022)
ROOST Apartment Hotel blends the comfort and practicality of an apartment with the amenities and design of a boutique hotel. The hotel spans three floors of The May building, an adaptive restoration of a historic department store designed by architect Daniel Burnham in 1915. The 62 studio, one- or two-bedroom apartments are available for short- and long-term stays, with amenities including a yoga studio, three-story open-air atrium and panoramic rooftop terrace.
Photos available here.
A 1960s modernist skyscraper in Downtown Cleveland will host a new
W Hotel, opening in 2023. Plans for the 210-room hotel include a 15,000-square-foot ballroom and event center, a full-service spa and gym and a restaurant and bar on the 38
th floor with panoramic city views.
After extensive renovations, the
Renaissance Cleveland Hotel will be rebranded as the Hotel Cleveland, returning the city's second-largest hotel to its original name. The 491-room hotel will be part of Marriott’s Autograph Collection. Renovations to the 1918 building are underway and set to be completed in 2023.
Looking Ahead
Over the next few years, Cleveland will welcome visitors for several notable events. Here’s a look at what’s ahead.
- 2024 NCAA Women’s Final Four
After hosting this Championship in 2007, Cleveland will again welcome the NCAA DI Women’s Basketball Tournament Final Four in 2024 at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. The top teams in collegiate women’s basketball will face off for the championship trophy.
It will be a blackout in Cleveland on April 8, 2024, as the city is in the direct path of the Total Solar Eclipse. Ohio will be one of just 13 states left in the dark as the moon passes between Earth and the sun. The darkness will be longest in Northeast Ohio, for an estimated 3 minutes and 52 seconds.
- 2024 Pan-American Masters Games (PAMG)
Held every four years in the Americas,
PAMG is an Olympic-like sports festival for athletes over 30 years old. It features nearly 20 medal-contending sports including track and field, tennis, basketball, pickle-ball and cycling. The event is expected to be the largest international gathering in Northeast Ohio’s history, bringing over 7,500 athletes from more than 50 countries.
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ABOUT DESTINATION CLEVELAND: Destination Cleveland is Cleveland’s destination marketing and management organization. This private, non-profit organization’s mission is to drive economic impact and stimulate community vitality for Greater Cleveland through leisure and business travel. In 2020, the COVID-19 global pandemic reduced visitation by 30 percent, with 13.8 million visits occurring. Prior to the pandemic, Cleveland hosted 19.6 million visits annually, with the County experiencing annual visitation increases that surpassed the domestic travel growth rate for nine consecutive years. For more information, visit www.thisiscleveland.com.