Home > Multicultural Ohio > A Family Affair

It doesn't take much to talk your family into gathering for a good time.

Just promise them a day filled with laughter, home-cooked food, and soul-stirring music — bound to inspire a line dance or two — and an impromptu Sunday get-together suddenly turns into a standing-room-only event.

But if there's one thing more enjoyable than spending time with loved ones, it's doing so in a place that also lets them experience new adventures.

Calling All Thrill Seekers!

As home to some of the most beloved amusement parks in the country, Ohio is tailor-made for family fun. Sandusky's Cedar Point alone attracts millions of ride fanatics each year, eager to soar to new heights on one of the destination's record 17 roller coasters. Meanwhile, families at Kings Island in Cincinnati find plenty of reason to gaze skyward. As if the longest wooden coaster in existence, The Beast, wasn't eye-catching enough, the park greets visitors with a one-third-scale model of the Eiffel Tower. And for travelers who've dreamed of merging the amenities of an outdoor park with the comfort of an enclosed facility, there's good news: Ohio is riding a wave of indoor water parks. The state boasts many places where a warm climate and wet attractions are always in season — from the water-basketball games and inner tube rides at Newark's CoCo Key Water Resort at Cherry Valley Lodge, to the 6,000-square-foot, tropical-themed atrium of Splash Harbor in Bellville.

Into The Wild

Exotic animals are always the main attraction at Ohio's award-winning zoos. Families can pretend they're on safari at Toledo Zoo's African Wildlife exhibit, where white rhinos, meerkats and African elephants roam settings meant to mirror the savanna. Or, they can scope the native wildlife of Indonesia's islands at the Akron Zoo, where a couple of Komodo dragons are among the most popular residents. More than 700 species from nearly every continent call the Columbus Zoo & Aquarium home, while the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo is noteworthy for its collection of 34 species of primates. And although the 500 animals at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden share space with 20 breathtaking gardens, there's no doubt as to the primary draw at The Wilds in Cumberland. This hidden treasure features 10,000 acres populated with camels, bison, giraffe and other species for a setting that feels more like the Serengeti than southeast Ohio.

Celebrate Tradition

Ohio also allows for family vacations that accent quality time with ethnic customs and authentic cuisine. Festival Latino in Columbus is the largest event of its kind in the state, enriching downtown in June with handmade Mexican pottery, Guatemalan arts and crafts, Latin jazz and much more. Live music fills the air during Maumee's Latino Fest, also in June, bringing the Lucas County Fairgrounds to life with a day of dancing and non-stop concerts. And families can honor their backgrounds in an appetizing way during the Dayton Hispanic Heritage Festival in September, when food from Puerto Rico, Colombia and other countries add flavor to RiverScape MetroPark.