6 Travel-Inspired Meeting Spots in Ohio
Ohio's always going places, and so is your meeting at these cool destinations sure to draw attendees.
With planes, trains and automobiles, Ohio is home to several places honoring innovation in transportation. From a chugging train car to a collection of historic planes, try these unique spots for your next meeting.
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in 2020, but was most recently checked in October 2024 to ensure that each location was still open. At this time, conference room usage at the Honda Heritage Center is on hold due to ongoing construction at the plant.
Planes
Take your event soaring to new heights at Ohio's airplane museums. Reserve the Willis Wing at the WACO Airplane Museum in Troy where the background of vintage 1920s and 1930s biplanes serve as a unique environment to foster great ideas. Spend the afternoon touring the museum or going on a biplane ride. The National United States Air Force Museum in Dayton, the world's largest military aviation museum, will encourage your guests to reach for the stars with hundreds of historic planes. Check out the presidential exhibit and and walk through the retired Air Force One planes that carried Presidents John F. Kennedy and Bill Clinton. The National Hall of Fame Boardroom or the STEM learning nodes are ideal for smaller groups. The theater, which seats 400, allows your bigger presentations to take flight.
Trains
Start your meeting on the right track at one of Ohio's iconic railroads. Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad in Akron offers group sale tickets as well as private train car rentals, some of which can accommodate a private bar, catering services and a drop presentation screen. Outside the windows, breathtaking views of Cuyahoga Valley National Park pass by. The Lebanon Mason Monroe Railroad in Lebanon offers a multitude of different rides from a Wine and Cheese Train to an interactive Murder Mystery Train, both of which are ideal after-hours events. Elect to ride coach and sit in 1930s restored Lackawanna Coach cars, or book the Deluxe Coach Class car which seats parties of up to 60.
Automobiles
Rev your engines and race to the Honda Heritage Center in Marysville. Located next the the manufacturing facility, the center offers conference rooms along with a free tour. Get an inside look at how Honda makes its cars and host a successful meeting in one of the 200-seat conference rooms. Cruise over to the Crawford Auto-Aviation Museum of the Western Reserve Historical Society in Cleveland. Your guests can spend their free time riding on the Euclid Beach Park Grand Carousel and admiring the expansive display of antique cars and the rotating exhibits. Rent the Crawford Rotunda which seats 500 and punch your event into high gear.
