14 Ohio Indoor Attractions To Enjoy When March Weather Gets Moody
March in Ohio rarely knows what mood it wants to be in. A bright, mild morning can turn into a cold, sleety afternoon before you have even finished making plans.
That kind of unpredictable forecast is actually a great reason to head indoors and explore some of the state’s best attractions. Ohio is full of excellent places to spend the day, from standout museums and science centers to halls of fame and botanical gardens, all offering plenty to see while staying warm and comfortable.
So grab your jacket, choose your destination, and make the most of the day, no matter what is happening outside.
1. Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Walking through the Cleveland Museum of Art feels like stepping into a world where every wall has something extraordinary to say.
Located at 11150 East Boulevard in Cleveland, Ohio, this institution holds one of the most impressive art collections in the entire country, with more than 61,000 works spanning 6,000 years of human creativity.
Admission to the permanent collection is completely free, which makes it one of the best deals in the state for a rainy March afternoon.
You will find everything here from ancient Egyptian artifacts to Renaissance masterpieces to contemporary installations that genuinely make you stop and think.
The museum also runs rotating special exhibitions that bring in rare works from around the globe, so there is always something new to discover even if you have visited before.
The architecture itself is stunning, with a soaring atrium that feels grand without being overwhelming. Plan to spend at least two to three hours, because this place rewards slow, curious exploration.
2. Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland, OH
Few buildings in Ohio carry as much cultural electricity as the one sitting right on the shores of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland.
The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, located at 1100 Rock & Roll Blvd, is a pilgrimage site for music lovers of every generation, and March is actually a fantastic time to visit because the crowds are thinner than in summer.
Inside, you will find handwritten lyrics, stage costumes, vintage guitars, and personal artifacts from some of the most iconic musicians who ever picked up a microphone.
The exhibits are organized in a way that tells the full story of rock and roll, tracing its roots through blues, gospel, and country before exploding into the genre that changed the world.
Interactive stations let you mix tracks, explore sound history, and even watch rare concert footage on large screens.
The inductee exhibits rotate regularly, so the experience shifts depending on when you visit. Budget at least three hours to do it justice.
3. Greater Cleveland Aquarium, Cleveland, OH
There is something genuinely calming about watching a shark glide silently overhead while the chaos of a March storm rages outside.
The Greater Cleveland Aquarium, situated at 2000 Sycamore Street in Cleveland, Ohio, is a hidden highlight of the city that locals treasure and visitors often overlook.
Housed inside the historic FirstEnergy Powerhouse building on the Flats, the aquarium blends industrial architecture with living ocean displays in a way that feels uniquely Cleveland.
The centerpiece is a 175,000-gallon sea tube where you walk through an acrylic tunnel as sharks, rays, and hundreds of fish swim all around you.
Other exhibits feature seahorses, jellyfish, freshwater species native to Ohio, and a touch pool where younger visitors can interact with marine life hands-on.
The aquarium is compact enough to explore thoroughly in about two hours, making it a great option for families or anyone who wants a focused, immersive afternoon.
Tickets should be purchased online in advance to skip the line at the entrance.
4. Akron Art Museum, Akron, OH
Bold, unexpected, and genuinely exciting, the Akron Art Museum is the kind of place that surprises you even before you walk through the door.
Found at 1 South High Street in Akron, Ohio, the building itself is a work of art, with a dramatic glass and steel addition that juts out over the sidewalk like a statement piece for the entire city.
Inside, the collection focuses on modern and contemporary art from 1850 to the present, with particular strength in photography, painting, and sculpture.
The museum is especially well-known for its photography holdings, which include rare prints from major figures in the history of the medium.
Rotating exhibitions keep things fresh throughout the year, and the March programming often features thought-provoking shows tied to emerging artists.
Admission is very reasonably priced, and the museum frequently offers free community days that are worth checking on their website before your visit.
The café inside is a pleasant spot to rest and reflect after a couple of hours with the collection.
5. Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, Columbus, OH
When March is doing its worst outside, stepping into Franklin Park Conservatory feels like teleporting to somewhere much warmer and far more colorful.
Located at 1777 E. Broad Street in Columbus, Ohio, this stunning conservatory houses thousands of plant species from around the world inside a series of climate-controlled biomes that range from tropical rainforest to arid desert.
The historic Victorian-era glass building at the center is both beautiful and functional, and it has been expanded over the years to include modern galleries and exhibition spaces.
One of the conservatory’s most celebrated features is its collection of Dale Chihuly glass sculptures, which are displayed permanently throughout the plant environments in a breathtaking combination of natural and human-made art.
Seasonal butterfly shows, special floral exhibitions, and educational programs for all ages make this a destination that works for solo visitors and families equally well.
Spring programming typically kicks off in March, so timing your visit early in the season means catching special displays at their freshest. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended.
6. COSI, Columbus, OH
Science becomes genuinely thrilling the moment you walk through the doors of COSI, Columbus’s celebrated center for hands-on learning and discovery.
Sitting at 333 West Broad Street in Columbus, Ohio, COSI stands for Center of Science and Industry, and it has been igniting curiosity in visitors of all ages for decades.
The exhibits cover an enormous range of topics including space exploration, ocean science, energy, the human body, and computing, all designed so that you learn by doing rather than just reading labels.
One of the most popular features is the high-wire unicycle, a crowd-pleasing demonstration that uses physics to show how balance actually works in a way that is impossible to forget.
COSI also houses a giant-screen theater and a planetarium, both of which show programs that run throughout the day.
The facility is large enough to fill an entire day, especially if you are visiting with kids who want to try every single interactive station, which, honestly, is completely understandable.
7. Columbus Museum of Art, Columbus, OH
Creativity has a home at 480 East Broad Street in Columbus, Ohio, and it goes by the name Columbus Museum of Art.
This institution has been serving the community since 1878, making it one of the oldest art museums in the Midwest, though its approach feels anything but old-fashioned.
The museum is particularly well-regarded for its collection of American and European art from the 19th and 20th centuries, alongside a strong commitment to contemporary works that reflect the world right now.
One of its most beloved spaces is the Wonder Room, an interactive gallery designed to spark creativity in visitors of all ages through play, experimentation, and open-ended making activities.
The museum also hosts a rotating schedule of special exhibitions that frequently draw national attention and bring in works that rarely travel to the Midwest.
March is a quieter month for Columbus tourism, which means you can move through the galleries at your own pace without fighting crowds. The on-site restaurant is a nice bonus for a longer visit.
8. National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, Dayton, OH
Nothing quite prepares you for the scale of it until you are actually standing inside, looking up at row after row of historic aircraft suspended in the air above you.
The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, located at 1100 Spaatz Street at Wright-Patterson AFB near Dayton, Ohio, is the largest military aviation museum in the world, and admission is completely free.
The collection spans the entire history of powered flight, from early biplanes to stealth bombers, with more than 360 aircraft and missiles on display across four enormous interconnected hangars.
Highlights include presidential aircraft, a replica of the Wright Brothers’ Flyer, and an entire gallery dedicated to the space race era that includes actual capsules and suits used in orbit.
The sheer size of the museum means you could spend a full day here and still not see everything, so it helps to download the map from their website before arriving.
This is one of those rare places where aviation enthusiasts and casual visitors both walk out equally impressed.
9. Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo, OH
Art lovers who have not yet made the trip to Toledo are missing out on one of the most underrated museum experiences in the entire country.
The Toledo Museum of Art, at 2445 Monroe Street in Toledo, Ohio, has free general admission and a collection that would be the envy of cities five times Toledo’s size.
The holdings include ancient Greek and Roman sculpture, European Old Masters, American paintings, and one of the world’s finest collections of glass art, which makes perfect sense given Toledo’s deep history in the glass industry.
The Glass Pavilion is a must-see, a stunning purpose-built structure made almost entirely of curved glass that houses the museum’s extraordinary collection of art glass spanning centuries and styles.
The galleries are spacious and well-lit, giving each piece room to breathe and inviting the kind of slow, thoughtful viewing that rushed summer visits rarely allow.
March weekdays are particularly peaceful here. Parking is free, the café is welcoming, and the whole experience feels like a well-kept secret that you will want to share.
10. National Museum of the Great Lakes, Toledo, OH
The story of the Great Lakes is one of the most fascinating chapters in American history, and Toledo happens to be the place where it is told best.
The National Museum of the Great Lakes sits at 1701 Front Street in Toledo, Ohio, right along the Maumee River, and it brings the maritime heritage of the region to life through artifacts, models, films, and an actual historic ship you can board.
The Col. James M.
Schoonmaker, a 617-foot Great Lakes freighter, is docked outside and open for tours during warmer months, but the indoor museum is fully accessible and endlessly engaging in March.
Exhibits cover the ecology of the lakes, the industrial history of shipping, notable shipwrecks, and the communities that grew up along the shores of these massive freshwater seas.
The museum is compact but thoughtfully curated, and it tends to draw visitors who leave knowing far more about the Great Lakes than they ever expected to.
It pairs beautifully with a visit to the Toledo Museum of Art for a full day in the city.
11. Dayton Art Institute, Dayton, OH
Perched on a hill overlooking the Great Miami River, the Dayton Art Institute has one of the most dramatic settings of any museum in Ohio.
Located at 456 Belmonte Park North in Dayton, Ohio, this Italianate building is as much a work of art as anything housed inside it, with a courtyard and grand staircase that make every visit feel a little theatrical.
The permanent collection covers more than 27,000 works spanning 5,000 years, with particular strengths in Asian art, European paintings, pre-Columbian artifacts, and American decorative arts.
The museum’s experiencenter is a hands-on space where visitors can explore the techniques behind different art forms through interactive activities, which makes it a smart choice for families with curious kids.
Rotating special exhibitions bring fresh energy to the galleries throughout the year, and March often features programming tied to the museum’s community engagement initiatives.
General admission is affordable, and the museum frequently runs free admission days that are listed on their website. The on-site Moraine Café is a relaxing spot to wrap up your afternoon.
12. Cincinnati Museum Center, Cincinnati, OH
If a building could win a personality contest, Cincinnati’s Union Terminal would take the trophy without breaking a sweat.
The Cincinnati Museum Center, at 1301 Western Ave in Cincinnati, Ohio, occupies one of the most spectacular Art Deco train stations ever built, a structure so beautiful that it is a National Historic Landmark in its own right.
Inside, the complex houses multiple museums under one roof, including the Cincinnati History Museum, the Museum of Natural History and Science, and the Children’s Museum, along with an OMNIMAX theater that shows films on a massive domed screen.
The natural history exhibits feature a remarkable reconstruction of an Ice Age cave complete with live bats, while the history galleries take you through Cincinnati’s fascinating past from its earliest days through the industrial era.
The sheer variety of experiences available under one roof makes this an ideal destination when the weather refuses to cooperate.
March crowds are manageable, and the building itself is worth the trip before you even look at a single exhibit. Plan for a full day.
13. National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, Cincinnati, OH
Some places carry a weight that stays with you long after you leave, and the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center is exactly that kind of place.
Situated at 50 East Freedom Way in Cincinnati, Ohio, right along the banks of the Ohio River, this museum tells the story of the Underground Railroad and the broader, ongoing pursuit of human freedom with honesty, depth, and profound respect.
The location is historically significant: Cincinnati sat on the border between free and enslaved states, making the Ohio River a critical crossing point for freedom seekers throughout the 19th century.
Exhibits include a restored slave pen, powerful first-person narratives, and displays connecting the history of slavery to contemporary human rights issues around the world.
The museum does not shy away from difficult truths, and that commitment to honesty is precisely what makes it so valuable and so moving for visitors of all ages.
Allow at least two to three hours to engage with the exhibits thoughtfully. This is one of the most important cultural institutions in the state of Ohio.
14. Pro Football Hall of Fame, Canton, OH
For football fans, walking into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton is the closest thing to a pilgrimage that the sport has to offer.
Located at 2121 George Halas Dr. NW in Canton, Ohio, this sprawling complex is the official home of professional football history, and it draws visitors from every corner of the country year-round.
The Hall of Fame galleries feature bronze busts of every inducted legend, along with jerseys, game balls, trophies, and multimedia exhibits that bring the greatest moments in NFL history back to life.
The GameDay Stadium experience is a fan favorite, placing you inside a theater designed to feel like a football stadium complete with a massive screen showing highlight reels that will give even casual fans goosebumps.
Interactive zones let you test your throwing arm, explore the science of the game, and learn about the coaches and players who shaped the sport across generations.
March is a great month to visit because the Hall is less crowded than during the summer season, and the staff has more time to engage with visitors directly.