I went to Instagram for some recommendations on our city’s best places to take out-of-town guests. I posed the question: “If you were to spend 24 hours in Cincinnati, how would you spend it?”

The responses garnered a list much too long for a day trip in the Queen City. But, hopefully it provides a lot of inspiration for your next trip to the 513… or, if you’re a lucky native, your next weekend at home!

First things first, you’re going to want to familiarize yourself with my neighborhood key:

Heart of Cincinnati: The Banks, Downtown, Over the Rhine (OTR), Pendleton, Clifton, Uptown

East Side: Pleasant Ridge, Oakley, Hyde Park, Mount Lookout, O’Bryonville, Columbia Tusculum, Mariemont

West Side: North Side, East Price Hill

North of the City: Kenwood, Montgomery, Blue Ash, Montgomery, Sharonville, Mason, West Chester

Across the River: Newport, Covington

Now that we’re all on the same page, let’s go!

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WAKE UP IN THE MORNING

Whether or not you feel like P. Diddy, it’s prime time to start exploring the city. Here’s a list of recommended breakfast spots to kickstart your day.

Heart of Cincinnati

• Nation
• Tuckers Restaurant
• Taste of Belgium
• Cheapside
• Boomtown
• Pleasantry
• Hangover Easy
• Bow Tie Cafe
• Holtman’s

East Side

• The Echo
• Sleepy Bee
• Sugar N Spice
• National Exemplar

West Side

• • Blue Bird Diner
  • Happy Chicks Bakery
  • Melt Revival

North of the City

• Maplewood
• First Watch
• Le Peep
• The Original Pancake House
• Northstar Cafe
• Toast and Berry
• Half Day Cafe

Across the River

• Lils Bagels
• Baker’s Table

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CAFFEINE KICK

Coffee is a necessity. Here’s a list of the best coffee shops and bakeries in town where you can get your fill of caffeine and carbs.

Heart of Cincinnati

• Coffee Emporium
• Brown Bear Bakery
• Urbana Cafe
• 1215 Coffee + Wine Bar
• Landlocked
• Sitwells
• Highland Cafe
• Rohs Street Cafe
• The 86 Club

East Side

• Deeper Roots
• Lookout Joe
• Awakenings
• Mad Llama
• Coffee Please
• The BonBonerie

West Side

• Collective Espresso
• Wyoming Community Coffee

North of the City

• Sharonville Coffee Depot
• Cavu Coffee
• True West
• Kala Coffehouse
• Lot #1

Across the River

• Roebling Point Books and Coffee
• Carabello Coffee

And if you have to go to Starbucks, we think the Mariemont and Mason locations are  best.

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THE GREAT OUTDOORS

The weather in Cincinnati doesn’t always elicit prime time in the sunshine, so when you have a day with great weather, you need to take full advantage. Here are some great spots to seize the day.

Heart of Cincinnati

• Washington Park
• Smale Riverfront Park
• Ziegler Park + Pool
• Fountain Square
• Bellevue Hill Park
• Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Gardens

East Side

• Ault Park
• Krohn Conservatory
• Alms Park
• Eden Park
• Pleasant Ridge Rec Center Pool
• Mount Adams Pool
• Cincinnati Nature Center

North of the City

• Kings Island
• Summit Park
• Top Golf

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BREAK FOR LUNCH

It’s everyone’s third favorite meal of the day!

Heart of Cincinnati

• Bakersfield
• Gomez
• The Eagle
• MOTR
• Findlay Market
• Lucius Q BBQ
• Alabama Q
• Bibibop

East Side

• Carl’s Deli
• Quatman Cafe – Norwood Location
• Frenchie Fresh
• Taglio
• Eli’s BBQ
• Zips Cafe
• The Loving Hut
• Allyn’s Cafe
• Mazunte
• Dutches
• Rooted

West Side

• Bridges
• Tickle Pickle
• Incline Public House

North of the City

• Northstar Cafe
• Troys Cafe
• Rootbeer Stand
• Blue Ash Chili
• The Lucky Dog Grille
• Bones Burgers
• Frutta Bowls
• Flipdaddy’s
• Taqueria el Monarca

Across the River

• Frida’s

If you’re up for a Cincinnati classic, get a 3-way from Skyline Chili. There are locations all over the city.

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SHOP TIL YOU DROP

Cincinnati is home to entrepreneurs who have done an amazing job of creating brands and storefronts that make shopping local easy, affordable, and desirable.

Heart of Cincinnati

• Homage
• Mica
• Wolfpack
• Idlewild
• The Native One
• Elm & Iron
• Gia & The Blooms
• City Flea – see site for dates

Vine, Walnut, and Main Street is a great area to walk around and shop

East Side

• Poeme
• Spotted Goose
• Corporate
• O.F.F. Market – see site for dates

West Side

• Pixel19 Vintage

North of the City

• Liberty Center
• Kenwood Mall
• Camargo Trading Company

South of the River

• Handzy Design Studio

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STOP! DINNER TIME

It’s time to lay down the MC Hammer because we take dinner seriously in this town.

Heart of Cincinnati

• Abigail Street
• Sotto
• Mitas
• Salazar
• Please
• Krueger’s Tavern
• The Eagle
• Salazar
• Yard House
• Condado Tacos
• Metropole
• Sartre

East Side

• Precinct
• E+O
• Dewey’s
• Casa Figueroa
• Branch

North of the City

• Carlos & Johnny’s
• Senate at Summit Park
• Grand Finale
• Montgomery Inn
• Padrino
• Two Cities Pizza
• The Blue Goose

For another Cincinnati classic, try a hand-tossed pizza from LaRosa’s. There are locations all over the city.

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I LOVE THE NIGHTLIFE

You love to boogie? Disco floor or not, you will have a fun time if you end up at any of these spots.

Heart of Cincinnati

• Treehouse Patio Bar
• Sundry & Vice
• Rhinegeist
• Salsa on the Sqaure
• Japp’s
• Mecca
• Tokyo Kitty
• Longfellow
• Rosedale (patio)
• MOTR (live music)
• Pins
• The Blind Lemon
• Sky Star
• FC Game
• AC on the Banks Rooftop
• The Rook
• Jefferson Social
• Northside Distillery
• Schwartz Point Jazz Club
• Three Points

East Side

• Madtree
• Breakout – Escape Rooms
• Karrikin Spirits
• Comfort Station
• Myrtle’s Punch House
• Woodburn Brewery
• Nine Giant

West Side

• Arcade Legacy Bar Edition

North of the City

• March First Brewery
• Narrow Path Brewery
• Sonder Brewing

South of the River

• Dart Rush

Cincinnati is full of great breweries and many of them have awesome food options if you’re looking for a late-night snack.

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SLEEP TIGHT

Now that it’s time for some shuteye, might we recommend one of these spots to lay your head? Get some rest because, if you’re lucky, you’ll have another full day in the Queen City tomorrow.

Heart of Cincinnati

• 21C Museum Hotel
• The Summit Hotel

East Side

• Mariemont Inn
• The Little Lemon House – AirBnb

North of the City

• Land of Love House – AirBnb

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Cincinnati, be mine.

I WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! LET’S KEEP BUILDING THIS LIST.