Dayton is the birthplace of aviation: the Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur, lived here and perfected their design for the first practical aircraft. It is also home to one of the few multi-site National Parks in the U.S., the Dayton Aviation Heritage Park. There are several things to do and see in the city and its suburbs.
Dayton is known as the Gem City. It is a city of about 141,000 (2016) in the Miami - Scioto basins in Ohio. It is the center of the Dayton-Springfield-Sidney metro area with a population of 1,075,000 (2016). Dayton has a humid continental climate, which means, like the rest of Ohio, that it sees four very distinct seasons. Winter being situated in the Midwest, winters are cold. Snowfall isn't particularly excessive; but it can at times fall at a rate that will cause havoc with traffic. Spring often cool, with cold and mild days sprinkled throughout the period. Storms during this period may produce tornadoes. Summer characteristically hot and humid.
Travel in the region is easy by car and you can move from the urban city to the rural county in minutes. The Greater Dayton Regional Transit Authority operates bus routes (including electric trolley bus service) within Montgomery County. Getting on the bus is no longer as easy as putting $2 in the slot; before boarding, you must either install their app on your phone or go to a transit center to buy a reusable card.
1 Miami Valley Trails (Bicycle and Shared Use Paths), 111 E Monument Ave. Ohio's Miami Valley area offers an outstanding system of trails and bikeways for residents and visitors. Over 300 mi (480 km) of trails stretch across ten counties surrounding the Dayton and Springfield region. The Little Miami Scenic Trail is the most popular, but only the beginning of the fun. (updated Jul 2019) 2 Wright Patterson Air Force Base, ☏ +1 937-257-1111. Wright Patt is a significant part of the local economy with some 23,000 employees and a reason behind most tourism, boasting the National Museum of the U.S.
1 Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra, 109 N Main St (Performance Place at the Schuster Center), ☏ +1 937-228-3630, fax: +1 937-449-5068, Info@DaytonPhilharmonic.com. Tickets sales are managed by Ticket Center Stage. 2 Dayton Ballet, ☏ +1 937-228-3630, fax: +1 937-449-5068. The Ballet performs at two locations so be sure to call and find out where the performance will be held. Tickets sales are managed by Ticket Center Stage. 3 Human Race Theatre Company, 126 N Main St (the Loft Theatre), ☏ +1 937-228-3630, fax: +1 937-449-5068. (updated Jul 2019) 4 Dayton Air Show, 3800 Wright Dr, Vandalia, ☏ +1 937-898-5901, fax: +1 937-898-5121, info@daytonairshow.com.
1 The Chop House, 7727 Washington Village Drive, ☏ +1 937-291-1661. Steakhouse 2 House of Thai, 3230 Seajay Dr, Beavercreek (across street from Beaver Valley Mall and Lofino), ☏ +1 937-429-2236. M-F 11AM-3PM, dinner M-Th 5PM-9PM, F 5PM-9:30PM, Sa noon-9:30PM, Su 11AM-9:30PM. Excellent and most authentic Thai restaurant in the Fairborn - Xenia - Beavercreek area. Traditional Pad Thai, curry dishes and lot of Thai specialties. Sushi is also available. Lunch $8, dinner $10-15. (updated Jul 2019) 3 Marion's Piazza, 3443 N Dixie Dr, ☏ +1 937-277-6553.
1 Canal Street Arcade and Deli, 308 E First St, ☏ +1 937-220-9333. Interesting place with drinks and reuben sandwiches and arcade games that are free to play. 2 Dublin Pub, 300 Wayne Ave (Oregon District), ☏ +1 937-224-7822, info@dubpub.com. Serves traditional Irish food with some flair and claims to be the #1 seller of Irish whiskey in Ohio. (updated Jul 2019) 3 The Fieldhouse, 1126 Brown St, ☏ +1 937-461-2111. A classic college bar popular with University of Dayton. Specialty is the Fishbowl, a large concoction of assorted liquors in many flavors for sharing. Collectible pint glass refill specials on Thursday nights feature catchy slogans. 4 Flanagan's, 101 E Stewart, ☏ +1 937-228-5776.
Guide content from Wikivoyage contributors (CC BY-SA) — abridged; the full article has much more.
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