Museums and Attractions

Indianapolis has several nice museums, a few within walking distance of the conference hotel.  The Indiana State Museum (where one publisher will host a party on Thursday night) is a nice space on the canal.  As its name implies, the museum focuses on all things Indiana--displays about natural history, history, commerce, and famous Hoosiers.  Not all exhibits are Indiana-related:  we geeked out over a Star Wars exhibit last spring.  The architecture is quite nice, featuring Indiana limestone, and sections of the exterior showcase each of Indiana's 92 counties.

The museum has an IMAX theatre and several decent and reasonably priced restaurants.  The old L.S. Ayers Tea Room is an historical replica of the tea room in the original flagship department store (like Macy's or Marshall Fields).  Many people can't stop raving about the chicken velvet soup, which is a little rich for us.  The Market Cafe features locally grown, casual dining options.

Indiana State Museum with the Canal Walk in foreground

Next door is the Eiteljorg Museum of western art.  We've never actually been there (not sure why), but we hear it's a decent museum with exhibits focusing on the West and Native American art.

Nearby is the White River State Park, connected to the canals and featuring lots of green space and an outdoor concert space.  The Indianapolis Zoo and White River Gardens (indoor botanical gardens) are open year round.

Baseball fans will appreciate Victory Field, home of the Indianapolis Indians, a AAA affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates.  While tours are not available until April, when the season starts, a nice view of the ballpark is visible from the JW Marriott.

IMA Sutphin fountain

The Indianapolis Museum of Art (IMA) is within driving--not walking--distance.  The IMA is worth the trip, and rumor has it another publisher is hosting a party there on Friday evening.  The IMA is free unless you'd like to see one of the special exhibits, and it recently opened a design wing featuring modern and contemporary furniture, housewares, and so forth.  We really enjoyed a special exhibit featuring Ai Weiwei (one of the best exhibits we've seen anywhere), and we often stop by to look at the Asian art, Georgial O'Keefe paintings, Japanese prints, and a Calder mobile.  The grounds of the IMA are quite nice, especially during spring and summer months when everything is in bloom.  Visit the Lilly House and gardens, the greenhouse, the nature park featuring trails.

View of the IMA glass atrium entryway

The Children's Museum is also a drivable destination.  It features the usual science, cultural, and nature-related exhibits, and it's great if you've brought your children with you or if you want to bring out the child in you.  The gift shop has a large selection of educational toys.

Curious Dino peeks into the Children's Museum