Group Itineraries, Group Events, Ohio Events - clinton county

Pull on your poodle skirt, roll down your bobby socks and get ready to rock 'n' roll at the Banana Split Festival in Wilmington. Enjoy this tribute to the Elvis era, complete with vintage cruise-in, games, crafts and collectibles, and great food. Attend free concerts by well-known entertainers. After the concert on Friday evening, check into your deluxe accommodations and rest up for the next fun-filled day. Enjoy breakfast before heading out to the Paramount Kings Island Amusement Park. After a day of riding the rides, watching the musical and theatrical shows, or jumping the waves at the Kings Island "wave pool," head back to Wilmington to resume your rock 'n' roll adventure at the Banana Split Festival. Before getting situated for the Saturday evening concert, be sure and get the best "banana split" around, and then travel back in time while listening to the music of yesteryear. Your evening accommodations will be waiting for you at the end of the day. Sleep in or rise early for a continental breakfast before heading out for Cowan Lake State Park, an ideal place for a little relaxation. Your group can take a pontoon tour on the lake and watch the sailboats, take in a little fishing, go on a hike and enjoy the natural resources of this beautiful park, swim at the beach, and have a summer picnic before heading home. It's a restful end to a perfect weekend.

Begin the day by heading to downtown Wilmington for shopping at an historic mill that includes an antique mall and a unique gift shop—all under one roof. From there it's on to the historic Murphy Theatre, for a catered lunch in the lobby, a personalized tour of the theatre, and then the curtain goes up for a private show. Built in 1918 by the owner of the Chicago Cubs, the 750 seat theatre has been the beacon of the historic district for over 80 years. The grandeur of the Murphy is reminiscent of the beautiful theaters built during that time period. The Murphy continues to hold monthly shows by nationally acclaimed performers, recording artists and entertainers. Next, it's on to Grandpa's Pottery, our local potter, who operates out of a barn on his farm. Watch as a lump of clay is turned into a beautiful piece of art on the potter's wheel and then see finished pieces in the showroom. Finally it's back to the hotel so the group can freshen up for dinner before heading to the General Denver for a home-cooked meal served in the dining room of this beautiful historic hotel. After getting a good night's sleep and breakfast, spend the day in Cincinnati enjoying their many attractions such as the Cincinnati Art Museum, Cincinnati Museum Center or the Freedom Center.

Wilmington in Southwest Ohio is the starting place for this special package focusing on the local heritage. Take home memories of your visit to the Clinton County Historical Society Museum, the county's historical museum. The museum's curator will give you a unique look at the past through her "traveling trunk." You'll be amazed by what is in it! After meandering around the museum, with its many treasures and artwork by world-renowned Quaker artist Eli Harvey, it's time to move on to the Clinton County Courthouse. A recent restoration returned the original beauty and splendor to this historic landmark. The story of the restoration unfolds as you experience the architecture, the art of scagliola, the original hand-painted murals uncovered from layers of paint and the magnificent dome. Next on the agenda is lunch at #1 China Buffet, followed by a trip to downtown Wilmington where you will experience this nationally registered historic district. A walking-tour is outlined in your own personal booklet, giving you the ins and outs of each historic structure. The movie "Lost In Yonkers" found the downtown district to be a perfect backdrop for their film. Travel just a few blocks to Wilmington College's new Quaker Heritage Center. The only center of its kind in the nation, the facility is dedicated to celebrating the local, regional and national history of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). Learn about the Quakers' long history of activism on issues such as peacemaking, civil rights, racism and social justice. Visiting exhibits and speakers are just part of the experience. Travel to your motel and freshen up for dinner at the beautiful Snow Hill Country Club, originally an inn and tavern built in 1820. Start out the next morning with breakfast before you head for home or your next destination.

Kick off the coming of fall in Southwest Ohio at Clinton County's long-standing Corn Festival, where the county's rich agricultural heritage is celebrated. Get an up close and personal look at antique farm machinery and classic demonstrations of how things were done on the farm in yesteryear. Demonstrations of wheat thrashing, meal grinding, apple butter making, quilt making, and draft horse and tractor pulling are just a few of the activities you will see. There is also ample opportunity to shop for crafts, wares, and antiques, listen to country, bluegrass and gospel music, and eat some of the best food around. Retire to your accommodations for the evening and rest up because the next day begins with a continental breakfast, and then it's time to move on to the Corn Festival Parade in downtown Wilmington. Take another look at what American heritage is all about. After the parade, it's on to Bergefurd's Farm Market. This independently owned business is keeping the spirit of our farm heritage alive with home-grown produce and a greenhouse. After leaving Bergefurd's, it's on to Young's Jersey Dairy in Greene County for lunch. Enjoy home-style cooking and learn how Young's makes all of their own ice cream from the whole Jersey milk that is produced right on the farm. Activities abound at Young's—everything from a petting zoo, putt-putt golf, specialty shopping, watching the making of their private label ice cream or the fun corn maze. Finish off the day by returning to the Corn Festival in the evening for the Corn Olympics, a hilarious competition set to a special theme. Watch as local corporations and service organizations compete in the "Hog Calling Contest," the "Outhouse Race," the outrageous "Obstacle Course" and more. The next morning enjoy a hearty breakfast before heading home.

We'll help you pace yourself for this whirlwind spree in Southwest Ohio. The excursion begins at Shoppes at the Old Mill, a unique old mill that is more than a century-and-a-half years old and has been converted into an antique mall. Shop and relish the relics from long ago and visit the accompanying specialty shop—Home Again II—for hand-crafted items, baskets and food items. Upon leaving, it's time to have lunch on your own at the Tanger Outlet Mall in Jeffersonville, with over 100 outlet stores. After lunch, shop at your leisure before returning to your lodging accommodations to freshen up for dinner. Dinner will be at Max & Erma's, and then it's time to turn in for the night and rest up for the next day. Enjoy breakfast the next morning before departing for the Village of Yellow Springs, a community of shops with everything from herbs to crystals, to hand-made pottery, custom jewelry and import items. You'll be ready for a quick lunch stop at the Golden Jersey Inn for a wonderful home-cooked meal. Then it's on to Waynesville known by many as the antique capital of the Midwest. Shop to your heart's content and later enjoy dinner at McD's Pub. Rest up after dinner and get a good night's sleep before your last day of shopping. Rise early, and after your continental breakfast strike out for Caesar Creek Markets. Hopefully you'll find the bargain of bargains at this 68 acre mega-market as the grand finale to your visit to Clinton County!

Clinton County in Southwest Ohio is home to Cherrybend Pheasant Farm, a nationally known pheasant farm and hunting reserve. This 600+ acre farm offers the ultimate bird hunting experience. Enjoy their sporting clay course and then experience a lunch prepared especially for you; succulent pheasant with all the trimmings, all home-cooked and piping hot. Your next destination is Roberts Arena, a regionally acclaimed horse arena. Tour the facility and its indoor and outdoor arenas. If the timing is right, you may get to watch one of the many horse shows that grace the facility year-round. The rest of the day it's time for outdoor fun with a beautiful lake as your backdrop. Travel to Cowan Lake State Park where your group will take a pontoon tour on the lake; a wonderful, peaceful time with great opportunities for the shutterbug. Return to a campfire and a cookout by the park's staff before heading back to the hotel for a good night's rest—the prerequisite for the next day's activities. Enjoy breakfast before traveling to Morgan's for some rafting down the Little Miami River. Education tours with guided excursions are available. It's scenic, it's fun and it's an experience you won't forget. Or how about flying on the Ozone Zipline Adventures, the Midwest's largest tree-top zipline tour? This zipline crosses the Little Miami River at 200 feet in the air and treats guests to incredible sights and heights.

What gets the adrenaline going better than a good ghost story? Well, Snow Hill Country Club has opened its doors to the public to share the unusual phenomena that occurs there regularly. Staff members over the years have experienced rooms that have become disheveled after straightening, cold air moving through the building while doors open and close, the scent of perfume in unoccupied rooms, photos of light "orbs" moving through the rooms, the unexplained filling of a bathtub in an unused portion of the facility whose water suddenly disappeared leaving behind a fine granulated sand and more. The experiences are so real that no staff members will remain in the country club alone. To further explain if what had been experienced could possibly be connected to paranormal activity, professional ghost hunters visited Snow Hill with their scientific paraphernalia, as well as individuals who have a reputation of having psychic abilities. Photos were taken, tape recordings were made and many walked through the rooms of Snow Hill. What was found you might ask? Audio tapes recorded voices speaking that were inaudible to others in the room when the taping occurred, photos revealed more "light sources" or "orbs" and psychic individuals experienced the presence of the dearly departed.

Snow Hill's all new "Dinner and A Ghost Hunt" begins with a buffet style dinner sure to appeal to anyone's appetite and budget. Indulge yourself in Snow Hill's delicious food while dining in an intimate candlelit setting. Following dinner you will learn more about the history of Snow Hill Country Club, originally built in 1820 as an inn and tavern. The tour is sure to keep everyone peering over their shoulders anticipating what will happen next. The Inn has all new EDP recordings and photos to share with your group. A ghost hunt begins after the dinner and tour, when the group is encouraged to explore on their own. Cameras and flashlights are allowed. This is the time when members of your group can try and capture positive proof of the "dearly departed." To schedule Dinner & A Ghost, call Snow Hill at (937) 987-2491. After the haunting evening, travel to Cowan Lake State Park where family size cabins await your group. Located on the lake, the group will feel right at home in these roomy accommodations. The next morning depart for Waynesville and go on a guided Ghostly Walking tour in Ohio's most haunted village. Travel to Lebanon and have lunch at the Golden Lamb, Ohio's oldest continuously-operating inn. The Golden Lamb is nationally known for their Americana fare and hospitality, as well as the antique and Shaker décor. Each room in the inn has been named for some of the most prominent political and literary figures of the 19th century who stayed here, such as Charles Dickens, Ulysses S. Grant and Mark Twain. Rumor has it that the Golden Lamb has a few ghosts of its own. After doing a little shopping in Lebanon, return to Cowan Lake State Park and see the lake from a different perspective aboard a pontoon. Freshen up and get ready for an evening around a bonfire, roasting hot dogs and s'mores and singing camp fire songs. After a good night's sleep, depart for your next destination.

For those who enjoy the outdoors and getting back to nature, your day begins at Culberson State Nature Preserve, a 238 acre preserve that is one of the few examples of the "white swamp forest" which once covered the uplands of southwestern Ohio. The forest grows on poorly drained, "white clay" soil which formed on the glacial materials deposited during the Illinoian glacial period. The swamp forest is dominated by red maple and pin oak with substantial stands of shagbark hickory, shellbark hickory, swamp white oak, American elm and sweet gum. The northern shrub, winterberry, grows here near its southern limit, while the sweet gum, a southern species, is near its northern limit. Summer wildflowers include purple fringeless orchid and cardinal flower. The state-listed northern fox grape also occurs here. Culberson is the perfect setting for camera buffs and bird watchers. After leaving Culberson, it's on to Cowan Lake State Park for a special lunch in the commissary. After a little rest and nourishment, the park's naturalist will reveal the story about the lake and how it was used for missile testing. Then you're off to discover the beauties of Cowan on foot. The park provides four miles of hiking trails. A Lotus Cove self-guided trail provides a boardwalk view of an American Lotus (water lily) colony while the Emerald Woods Trail meanders through a mature beech forest. Next it's on to the marina for a Cowan Lake pontoon tour which takes in many of the lake's coves. It's time to check in at your hotel and rest up before a dinner at the Spillway Lodge famous for their steaks and crab legs. Get a good night's sleep because following breakfast the next morning, a new day begins with a trip to Collett Woods, a 60 acres Nature Preserve. The preserves' forest is dominated by American Beech, Sugar Maple, White Ash, White Oak, and Black Walnut. Wild Black Cherry, Hackberry and Shagbark Hickory are also found in limited quantity. Also found is the Spicebush, Dogwood and PawPaw, as well as plant life including the Giant Trillium, Jack-In-The-Pulpit, Leeks, Spring Beauties, Stinging Nettle, Trout Lilly and numerous wildflowers from late March through May. Over 58 species of birds are known to breed within one mile of these woods with at least another 100+ species migrating through the preserve in the fall and spring migration. It's time for lunch at Young's Jersey Dairy, with home-style cooking. After lunch it's on to Yellow Springs and a visit to the Glen Helen Nature Preserve; a 1,000 acre nature preserve with hiking, raptor center and trailside museum.

Have dinner at Wilmington's historic General Denver Hotel before taking in a special musical extravaganza at the historic Murphy Theatre. The Murphy Christmas Show comes alive the first weekend in December with a cast of 200. It is sure to put you in the holiday spirit. Get a good night's sleep at the hotel before departing for Lebanon the next day to enjoy holiday shopping and their Horse-Drawn Carriage Parade and Christmas Festival. Peruse Lebanon's many specialty and antique shops and visit the street booths before watching the parade. After the parade, have lunch at the Golden Lamb, Ohio's oldest continuously-operating inn, nationally known for their Americana fare and hospitality, as well as the antique and Shaker décor. Each room in the inn has been named for some of the most prominent political and literary figures of the 19th century who stayed here, such as Charles Dickens, Ulysses S. Grant and Mark Twain. It's back to the hotel to freshen up before leaving for the dinner theater at LaComedia for another Christmas show. Then return to the hotel for a good night's sleep before departing the next morning.

Your day begins with an elegant luncheon at Lucy & Ethel's – located in a private home in a beautiful country setting in Wilmington. A trip to Lucy & Ethel's will refresh the mind and renew the spirit. Sip a cup of fine loose leaf tea and enjoy the view while being pampered in a graceful setting. A sample menu for a full afternoon tea luncheon includes a featured tea/hot and cold, scones/shortbread, clotted cream/curd, fresh fruit, soup, quiche or crepes, tea sandwiches, desserts, sherbet, sorbet or ice. After a relaxing time at Lucy & Ethel's, depart for the Clinton County History Center and check out two special exhibits for the ladies – "Undie Cover," an exhibit of vintage women's undergarments and "Power of the Purse," a collection of nearly 100 purses. Check into the Holiday Inn and freshen up for an evening of pampering at Cutting Edge. Facials, manicures, pedicures and more are just a sample of the special treatment you'll receive. All this pampering will have you ready for a specially prepared dinner at the Roberts Conference Centre, adjacent to the hotel. After a good night's sleep, it's time to depart for your next destination.

The weekend after Thanksgiving is all about celebrating the holidays, when Wilmington closes its streets and opens its doors. Your group begins the day by shopping at a number of downtown specialty shops. A special lunch at the General Denver Hotel, built in the 1920s, is followed by a first hand look at the Clinton County Courthouse, a beauty to behold. Later, enjoy the MerryTuba Christmas concert, followed by the Hometown Holidazzle - Illuminated Parade and Festival. The entire downtown is filled with twinkling decorations, while the nighttime parade contains thousands of lights. Street vendors and strolling musicians add to the overall ambiance. Head back to the hotel to rest up. The next morning enjoy a continental breakfast before heading out for Waynesville, the "antiques capital of the Midwest," only 20 minutes away, for more shopping and another holiday parade.

Begin the day with a visit to see the World's Largest Horseshoe Crab structure located in the small town of Blanchester along SR 28. "Crabby" now ranks in the top five roadside attractions in the U.S. The structure was constructed by Academy Award winning designers of Farren & Associates for the Baltimore Maritime Museum in Baltimore, Maryland. It was then bought by the Creation Museum for a creation fossil display in Hebron, Kentucky, and then donated to Freedom Worship Baptist Church in Blanchester. "Crabby" sits at the entrance to the town in a Biblical scripture garden.

After saying good-bye to "Crabby," pick up lunch boxes from Ettalee's located just down the street (not your usual box lunch we might add), and then it's on to Horsefeathers Farm. Start off your visit with a picnic lunch. After lunch spend the afternoon watching wallabies of all ages play and interact. Other Australian animals such as the Island Bearded Dragon and Emu are also on site for personal viewing. Under the sponsorship of the Cincinnati Zoo, Horsefeathers Farm specializes in the propagation of the endangered Parma Wallaby. The farm is the perfect country setting for good times and good memories. Schedule an Australian Encounter Tour, a Picnic Package or Mule Wagon Ride. Canoes, paddleboats and fishing gear are all part of the package.

On your way out-of-town or back to the hotel, take a quick ride over the Martinsville Covered Bridge. Built in 1871, it is one of only 140 covered bridges left in the state of Ohio.

Set out for Bonnybrook Farms, situated on a picturesque 350 acre working farm. Work up an appetite before the lunch bell rings with Clodhopper Golf, Giant Slingshots, animals to pet and fish to feed. Enjoy a meal of Bonnybrook's own hickory smoked pulled port or chicken and your choice of farm fresh, locally grown sides. Dine in the post and beam Gathering Barn or on the Back Porch overlooking the farm pond. After lunch, take a wagon ride down an abandoned road which was once a pioneer pathway.

It's time to leave the Farm and meet your docent for the next leg of your day. Go on a guided tour and hear the inside scoop on the quilt patterns and history of the farms and barns of the new Clinton County Barn Quilt Trail encompassing a total of 54 barns. Choose how long you want to look at the beautiful quilt patterns displayed on barn sides and your guide will design the tour to your specifications. End your day with dinner at the historic General Denver Hotel. Located in downtown Wilmington, you'll be served a healthy dose of charm and grace with your delicious meal in their private dining room.