We’ve had so many guests this summer from out-of-town, out-of-state and even out of the country that I decided to study up on the best of Columbus to give them all the best possible stay with us.
Luckily, this was easy to do thanks to the Experience Columbus Insider program. I’m now a certified Experience Columbus Insider and know even more about our city than I did before.
If you’re someone who likes to know a lot about the place you live and if you’re passionate about showing outsiders a good time, then you may want to get certified as an ECI, too. It costs $39 and a few hours of your time, which seems a reasonable price to pay for great information, resources and yes – even some cool insider perks. You can take the course either online or at several in-person offerings.
For me, getting certified as an Experience Columbus Insider felt like a natural extension of the work I’ve done in the past as part of the public relations agency teams for both Tourism Ohio and Experience Columbus. It also makes sense since I’m constantly trying and reviewing new restaurants as part of the Yelp Elite squad. And, as a local blogger, I love being in the know and sharing recommendations on everything from dining and parks to new local experiences.
Here are some of the fun facts I learned during my accreditation:
- Columbus is home to 905,000 residents and growing fast. I wonder how long it will be before we hit a million?!
- We get about 50 million visitors each year generating $6.5 billion for the tourism industry.
- We have 52 colleges and universities. I knew we were a college town, but I didn’t know it was that many!
- There is an actual type of pizza known as “Columbus style.” It has a thin crust, edge-to-edge toppings, is square-cut and has a slightly sweet sauce.
If you’re a long-time reader, you know I’ve already blogged about my favorite places to take new visitors to Columbus – but I’m always finding cool new places to explore and write about. I love the quirky things about Columbus, like our iconic deer statues downtown. And I love that only people who have lived other places can truly appreciate how good we have it here in central Ohio.
The Experience Columbus Insider program made me realize just how much this town has to offer residents and visitors. From arts and cultural offerings to amazing parks and green spaces. From three professional sports facilities (hockey, soccer and baseball) to not one but two public, year-round markets filled with dining and shopping vendors (North Market and East Market).
I realized during the course that there are several nationally-acclaimed places I haven’t been to yet in Columbus, including the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks (Ohio’s only UNESCO World Heritage site) and the National Veterans Memorial and Museum, which would have been a great thing to do with E’s dad while he was visiting us.
I guess I’ve already got a good start to my fall bucket list in Columbus! What are your latest favorite discoveries in central Ohio – or wherever you live? I’d love to hear your recommendations in the comments below or over on Facebook or Instagram.
