Location: Indianapolis
Top Things to do in Indianapolis
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What to do and see in Indianapolis, Indiana (IN): The Best Historic Sites
High-speed, history and good old Hoosier hospitality are a few reasons to put Indianapolis on your list of great getaways. Sports is another. From the legendary Indianapolis 500 to the Pacers and the Colts, the city offers ample opportunities to view professional and amateur sporting events, take part in athletic events and visit sports museums. At the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Hall Of Fame Museum you can tour the famous track (try to reserve tickets if there is a race in town) or visit the museum dedicated to automobiles and auto racing. Other sporty museums include the NCAA Hall of Champions. To get in on some of the action, head to SportZone which features six acres of indoor athletic facilities the whole family will enjoy. Those less interested in sports, or with kids in tow, can still find tons to do in and around the city. History, art and other cultural attractions abound. Visit the Children's Museum or checkout the zoo. Stroll along cobblestone streets past 19th-century buildings in the Lockerbie Square District or visit any number of historic landmarks. Known as the "Crossroads of America," more interstate highways bisect Indianapolis than any other city in the country, making it an exciting and easily accessible destination.
Restaurants in Indianapolis
1. Indianapolis Museum of Art
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,446 reviews
With a collection of more than 54,000 works of art, an early-20th-century estate, 152 acres of gardens and grounds, including an outdoor art and nature park, the IMA campus offers experiences that feed both the heart and mind.
Reviewed By 732lancel - Denver, United States
IMA has an excellent and very large collection. I focused on the contemporary and modern collection and was very impressed. What is exceptional about IMA, is that in addition to the main complex, the museum is situated on 100 acres of park, including sculpture gardens, AND the Lilly country home, with extensive formal and informal gardens. What a treat!!!!!
2. Hook's American Drugstore Museum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 29 reviews
This museum, which explores the 400-year history of the American drugstore, is set to re-open in 2002.
3. Morris-Butler House
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 4 reviews
Built in 1865 in the Second Empire style, Morris-Butler House is an ideal rental venue for smaller weddings, receptions, dinners, and other special events, educational programs, and small meetings.
4. Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 412 reviews
The Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site is a not-for-profit, tax-exempt organization dedicated to maintaining and preserving the Site as a museum and memorial to the only U.S. President elected from the State of Indiana. Open to the public as an educational and historical service, the Site seeks to promote patriotism and citizenship through appropriate educational activities and by artfully exhibiting the Victorian time period as Harrison and his family might have experienced it. We are proud to be designated a National Historic Landmark by the U.S. Department of the Interior.
Reviewed By TouristMD - Baltimore, United States
I recently did a tour of the Benjamin Harrison house and thought it was a great tour. It’s a very nice home filled with mostly original belongings of Harrison and his family. Great for anyone who loves history or touring historic homes. Very friendly guide.
5. Benton House Historic Garden
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 3 reviews
Reviewed By 866TaylorB - Chicago, United States
The Benton House is one of the most historic houses in Indianapolis. Located at 312 South Downey Avenue, in the historic Irvington neighborhood, the two-story, Second Empire-style brick dwelling with a mansard roof was built in 1873 and was the home of Allen R. Benton, a two-time president of Butler University. The 10-room house sits on a stone foundation and features an entrance tower, ornate windows, fine woodwork and oak floors. It is the only house on Indianapolis' East Side that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (1973) that is open to the public. However, despite the house's impressive history and trappings, what attracts most visitors to the property are the unique gardens with their display of pre-1900 heirloom plants, thousands of daffodils, including some hybridized between 1977 and 1897 that are in bloom in early April of each year. Other spring bloomers include ground-hugging species tulips: T. biflora (1776), T. humilis (1860), T. marjoletti (1894) and T. turkestanica (1875). Walking the grounds offers visitors an opportunity to see what amounts to a botanical display garden or fernery or greenhouse that also features as crocus, snowdrops, peony, poppies, blue bells, wild ginger, cultivars, Tiger Lilys and other flowers, some first brought to this country during the colonial period. If you enjoyed the gardens at Garfield Park, the Lilly House, White River State Park or the Indianapolis Museum of Art, you owe it to yourself to visit the Benton House.
6. Fountain Square Theatre Building
7. Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church
Overall Ratings
3.5 based on 4 reviews
The oldest black church in Indianapolis was also a station on the Underground Railroad.
8. The Indianapolis Propylaeum
Overall Ratings
3.5 based on 14 reviews
Historic Mansion immediately north of downtown Indianapolis. Built in 1890 as a family home for the Schmidt family thanks to the success of their brewing company. It was purchased in 1923 by the Indianapolis Propylaeum, an organization of women suffragists who had been fighting for the right to vote since their formation in 1888. The Indianapolis Propylaeum was founded by May Wright Sewall as a way to bring women together and act as a gateway to culture, starting with the right to vote. The Indianapolis Propylaeum still exists today as a 501(c)3 non-profit and is both an active organization promoting women's leadership, arts and cultures, and historic preservation, as well as an event venue for programs, private events, weddings, and overnight stays. The Propylaeum is open weekdays from 9:00am to 4:30pm for free self-guided tours. The Cafe at the Prop is open Weekdays from 11am to 2pm.
9. The Cyrus Place
Welcome! The Cyrus Place is a wedding, events, and performing arts venue located in the Historic Core of Downtown Indianapolis. Originally, the church itself was built in 1882 by German-born architect D.A. Bohlen. The Cyrus Place has been beautifully transformed into a stunning full-service event facility
10. Hannah House
Overall Ratings
3.0 based on 2 reviews
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