Cincinnati OH Ohio

USA

The suspension bridge appears well before the gangway. Its blue cables span the Ohio in a single sweep, linking Kentucky to a row of glass towers. Designed by John A. Roebling and inaugurated in 1866, it served as a test-bed for his next work, the Brooklyn Bridge. It is under its gaze that river boats dock at Cincinnati, in the heart of the refurbished riverbank downtown.

Docking at the Heart of Downtown

Ships moor in the riverfront sector called The Banks, an entertainment district born between the city's two stadiums. Everything is done on foot from disembarkation—cafés, patios, museums and the riverfront park stretch along the water. Smale Riverfront Park unfolds its gardens, fountains and swings facing the water; residents run there in the morning, families linger there in the afternoon. You quickly take the pulse of an agglomeration that has turned its heart toward the Ohio after long turning its back to it.

Freedom at the River's Edge

A few steps from the dock, the National Underground Railroad Freedom Centre holds a symbolic place. The river marked here the frontier between slave-holding and free states, and the museum traces the courage of men and women who crossed it toward freedom, as well as that of the clandestine networks that aided them. The testimonies, including a period slave pen reassembled beam by beam, give the riverfront walk a depth you did not suspect upon disembarking.

Baseball, Breweries and Older Quarters

Just nearby, Great American Ball Park welcomes the Cincinnati Reds, baseball's oldest professional franchise. On game days, streets fill with supporters in red and the mood spreads to the patios. Farther inland, Fountain Square serves as public plaza, and the Over-the-Rhine quarter lines one of the country's largest assemblies of nineteenth-century architecture, inherited from German immigrants. Its brick façades now shelter restaurants, craft breweries and shops around Washington Park and Music Hall.

A Detour to the Hills

With a bit more time, Eden Park, perched on the heights, brings together the Cincinnati Art Museum and the Krohn Conservatory greenhouse, with viewpoints over the Ohio's meanders. Excursions offered by river companies often include Union Terminal, an art deco railway station converted into a museum centre, whose rotunda ranks among the most beautiful halls of its kind in the United States.

Tasting the City

Those curious about food will want to try Cincinnati chili, served over spaghetti and topped with grated cheddar, a local speciality you either adopt or debate, but never forget. Several local establishments have served their own version for generations, each swearing it holds the best recipe. Breweries in the riverfront sector offer a more consensual solution, with a view of the barges working upstream.

As you return to the ship, Roebling's bridge lights up and reflects in the Ohio. You leave with the image of a river city that has managed to make its river a connecting thread, between two shores, between two eras, and between serious history and the ordinary celebration of a game night.