Arena District in Downtown Columbus is Your Destination for Fun!

The Arena District is the ultimate sports destination in Columbus, Ohio! A centralized location for sporting events, food and drink, the Arena District is where it all happens!

Thanks to The Arena District for sponsoring this post.

The Arena District in downtown Columbus, Ohio is home to three professional and minor league sports teams: the MLS Columbus Crew, the Columbus Clippers and NHL Columbus Blue Jackets. In addition to hosting the Blue Jackets, Nationwide Arena is also home to special events and concerts!

This guide will help you and your family plan your day out in the Arena District! In addition to seeing your favorite team, you’ll know where to eat, how to take the stress out of parking, plus tips for making most of your day in downtown Columbus!

Premier Sports Venues in the Arena District

As I mentioned above the Arena District is home to some of Columbus’ favorite sports teams! On game day, the Arena District is the place to be!

I’m especially highlighting the Columbus Crew and our experience attending our first match at Lower.com Field in this post, but I will also include information for visiting Huntington Park and Nationwide Arena.

Lower.com Field

We were completely pumped to attend our first Columbus Crew match at Lower.com Field! I had been lucky enough to get a sneak peek tour of the arena before it opened, but to actually attend a match took the experience of this incredible destination to another level!

How can I explain the experience except to say that it was electric! We sat near the Nordecke supporters stand and it was really exciting to get a taste of Columbus’ enthusiastic support for the Crew!

Lower.com Field is an incredible venue and there really isn’t a bad seat in the house! The stadium features a plaza for activities before the game, fan terraces and a beer garden. You can grab a meal from some of your favorite restaurants like Barrio Tacos, Dirty Franks, Hot Chicken Takeover, Schmidt’s and more!

The match we attended on July 3 was the 1 year anniversary of Lower.com Field! There were special activities and photo ops in the Community Plaza and we enjoyed a festive fireworks show after the match! An after party took place featuring live music in the plaza. It was quite the celebration!

If you want to get in on the fun, upcoming home matches for Summer 2022 will take place on 7/17, 7/23, 8/3, 8/6, and 8/21! Get your tickets here!

Huntington Park

We love watching the Columbus Clippers Triple-A baseball team! Attending a game is a ton of fun! You can even get bleacher, lawn or standing room only tickets for $8! These games are great for families or for a date night in Columbus!

Games are played at Huntington Park April through September. Several games offer fireworks afterwards. Keep an eye on the schedule for Dime a Dog night when hotdogs are just $.10 each!

Nationwide Arena

There’s always a game to watch in the Arena District! When soccer and baseball seasons end, head to Nationwide Arena to watch the Columbus Blue Jackets play hockey beginning at the end of September through April!

When the Bluejackets aren’t playing, Nationwide Arena is home to popular concerts, entertainers and family-friendly shows! We’ve seen Disney on Ice, a rodeo and Jim Gaffigan at Nationwide Arena, just to name a few!

Related: The Ultimate Columbus Staycation for Families

Food and Drink in The Arena District

There are over a dozen restaurants within walking distance of Nationwide Arena, Huntington Park, and Lower.com Field. Our family chose to have a delicious lunch at the newly opened Goodwood Brewing!

The menu at Goodwood Brewing features southern favorites like shrimp and grits, blackened catfish and fried green tomatoes! There is really a little bit of something for everyone! You can also choose an entree salad, wings or one of their gourmet burger or handheld sandwiches!

I loved that the kids’ menu came with activities on it! My kids choose chicken fingers and my oldest son exclaimed “these taste normal!” Which, believe me, is truly a compliment from my picky eater! 😉

My husband and I both chose burgers to eat and we each chose a drink from their signature menu! I loved the Kentucky Sangria!

Goodwood Brewing has a large dining area and they also have a large outdoor patio so this makes this a great choice for warm or cold weather sports!

More Great Dining Options in the Arena District

Some additional restaurants that I have personally enjoyed and would recommend in the Arena District are Boston’s The Gourmet Pizza, NADA and Ted’s Montana Grill. Check out the list of nearby restaurants to plan your day!

Arena District DORA

Another great thing about planning your game day outing is that the Arena District now has a Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area (DORA)! For three hours before the start of every Blue Jackets, Clippers and Crew home game and until midnight, you can carry a to-go beverage within the district!

For a complete list of DORA establishments and Do’s and Don’ts visit: https://www.arenadistrict.com/dora

Parking in the Arena District

Did you know you can reserve your parking spot in the Arena District in advance? Before we attended the Crew match at Lower.com field, I did not! This is a great feature that takes a lot of the stress out of parking.

The Arena District is home to 7 parking garages and 9 surface lots. In order to pre-pay for your parking spot, visit arenadistrictparking.com and select your spot by date and location. When you arrive on game day, scan your permit at the garage. (Do not take a ticket.) Easy peasy!

I loved this option because parking is something I always stress about. Reserving a spot in advance helps you know exactly where you will be parking! It takes the guesswork out how far you will have to walk, especially with young kids!

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I hope this guide helps you to plan your family’s day out in the Arena District in Columbus, Ohio!

Read more: Top 10 Things to do with Kids in Columbus, Ohio