Fun Winter Activities in Cleveland Heights, Ohio

January 27th, 2022 by

Cleveland Heights, Ohio, is a beautiful place to be in the winter, thanks to its many cold-weather activities for adults, children, and families. Some allow you to stay warm and cozy, while others offer opportunities to enjoy the outdoors. Either way, there’s always something fun to do in Cleveland during the wintertime.

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Picture Perfect Frozen Waterfalls

Although the area doesn’t experience polar vortexes or arctic blasts very often, when it does, you’ll love the excitement of the ice cascades found in northeast Ohio. With any luck, local Metroparks areas, like Cuyahoga Valley National Park, may allow you to capture the beauty that only an icy, snowy waterfall can bring.

Dine Inside a Heated Igloo

Ever hung out inside a heated dome or igloo? Imagine having a fantastic meal inside one while watching the snow fall around you. Cleveland features several restaurants where you can rent your private igloo oasis for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

More and more local eateries are installing these domes in 2022, giving you some impressive options for staying warm while dining in the winter. Some of the most popular spots offering heated igloos include:

Party at a Winter Festival

Cleveland Heights locals enjoy plenty of events and festivals during the wintertime. Most of the city’s communities want their versions of Christmas tree lighting celebrations during the holiday season. Some popular ceremonies include:

  • Wintertide at Gordon Square
  • Light Up Lakewood
  • University Circle Holiday Circlefest
  • Winterfest Downtown

And the fun doesn’t end there. Once the holidays are over, other winter festivals that offer family fun and entertainment for 2022 include:

  • North Coast Harbor Ice Fest: This is an outdoor winter festival held in January of each year on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
  • Brite Winter: Held during February, this festival in the Flats is all about music.
  • Medina Ice Festival: An annual event held each February close to Cleveland.
  • Cleveland Polar Plunge: Leap Lake Erie during the frosty winter month of February, if you have the guts.
  • Cleveland Kurentovanje: Also thrown in February, this cultural festival is dedicated to the Central European country of Slovenia.
  • Winter Beerfest: Held in March at the Huntington Convention Center, a beer tasting festival for adults seeking winter entertainment near Cleveland Heights.

Ride the Snow Like Waves

Northeast Ohio is not known for hills for thrilling snowboarding and skiing adventures. But not far away from Cleveland, you’ll find two incredible resorts:

  • Alpine Valley Ski Resort
  • Boston Mills/Brandywine (BMBW)

Both ski resorts near Cleveland Heights offer skiing lessons and rent out high-quality equipment for your winter enjoyment. Enjoy snow tubing accessed by dedicated runs and lifts. And don’t forget to check out the family-friendly, more affordable option offered by BMBW, known as Polar Blast Snow Tubing.

January and February are expected to be busy months at these ski resorts. So, it’s best to make reservations for dining and purchase your lift tickets in advance because of limited crowds due to COVID-19.

Masks are still required in these public locations. But as cold as it gets near Cleveland Heights, you should do that anyway to protect your face from frost on the slopes. Also, to dine indoors, you must show proof of vaccination.

Slide Down the Toboggan Chutes

Thanks to the Toboggan Chutes, Strongsville’s Mill Stream Run Reservation is a popular Northeast Ohio winter attraction. It opens each year during Thanksgiving weekend and stays open until March, operating every single weekend.

Enjoy 700-foot-long, 70-foot-tall chutes that have been known to reach speeds of 40 miles per hour. This is a local tradition for family winter fun-time, as each toboggan can hold up to four people at a time.

It’s also a good workout, as you must climb 108 stairs to get to the top before taking the plunge down the chutes. But don’t worry about having to lug your toboggan up there with you. Thanks to innovation, that process is now automated.

The Toboggan Chutes are open throughout winter; however, you must make a reservation in advance to get a time slot.

Skate Across the Ice

Cleveland Heights locals have multiple choices for ice skating outdoors during the cold winter months. These pop-up rinks are great outdoor entertainment for single adults, romantic couples, children, and entire families.

The Cleveland Foundation Ice Rink is open from Thanksgiving weekend until mid-February. Then, just west of Cleveland, is Westlake’s Crocker Park outdoor ice rink and Halloran Park, a seasonal local rink.

In early December, University Circle’s Rink at Wade Oval opens just in time for the Wade Oval’s Holiday Circle Fest. Open until February 22, 2022, admission is only $2 per person, and it’s just $3 to rent ice skates.

Then, there’s a new Cleveland ice rink that just opened in November 2021 named Merwin’s Wharf as an essential part of the city’s Winter RiverFest.

Not really into skating on ice in the Cleveland outdoors? Prefer the cozy atmosphere only an indoor ice rink can offer? Here are some local options for you:

  • Lakewood’s Serpentini Winterhurst Arena
  • Euclid’s C.E. Orr Ice Arena
  • Parma’s Michael A. Ries Ice Rink
  • Cleveland Heights Community Center Ice Rink

Take a Drive Through the Snow

Prefer the warmth of your car while touring Cleveland Heights in the winter? What an outstanding idea. There are so many sights to see that will amaze you and your entire family.

Just don’t forget to put the chains on first. We wouldn’t want to see you stranded. Also, be sure your vehicle is ready for a drive in the snow with a winter road-ready maintenance package from Honda of Cleveland Heights.

Are you interested in trading in your car for something more suitable for the snow? Click here to learn how much you could get for your trade-in from Honda of Cleveland Heights today!

Posted in Local, Ohio