United States · Missouri · Kansas City
Downtown, Kansas City — Area Guide & Where to Stay
Downtown is Kansas City's central business district, the largest in the metropolitan area, holding Union Station and the National World War I Memorial.
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Where to stay in Downtown
The practical side of choosing where to sleep.
Barney Allis Plaza sits at the centre of the convention trade. The largest houses stand around it, and the 21c Museum Hotel Kansas City is carried on the district's own landmark list rather than on a hotel directory alone. Grand Avenue runs through it.
You would book here to walk to Science City at Union Station, the National World War I Memorial and the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum rather than to drive in from the outer ring each morning.
Find hotels in Downtown
Direct booking searches for these neighbourhoods.
Barney Allis Plaza
Barney Allis Plaza is ringed by the convention houses, with the Kansas City Garment District Museum standing in the same downtown grid.Find hotels in Barney Allis Plazamuseum days built around Union StationUnion Station end
Science City sits inside Union Station and the National World War I Memorial is a walk away, which puts a whole museum day outside the door.Find hotels in Union Station endguests who want Downtown's older street architecture from the windowGrand Avenue
Grand Avenue Temple and the Grand Avenue Temple Building stand on the street that named them, among the district's earlier commercial masonry.Find hotels in Grand AvenueHotel links are affiliate links: booking through them may earn us a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never affects how places are ranked. How this works
Things to do in and around Kansas City
Ranked by global recognition; descriptions from Wikidata (CC0).
Museums & Galleries
3- National World War I Memorial Heritage
- Arabia Steamboat Museum
- American Jazz Museum
Churches & Religious Sites
5- Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception Heritage
- St. Mary's Episcopal Church Heritage
- Sacred Heart Church, School and Rectory Heritage
- Christian Church Hospital Heritage
- Grand Avenue Temple and Grand Avenue Temple Building Heritage
Stadiums & Sports
2- Exposition Park
- Barney Allis Plaza
Landmarks & Notable Places
4- Frank M. Howe Residence Heritage
- Joseph Grear Peppard House Heritage
- Maj. William Warner House Heritage
- Philip E. Chappell House Heritage
worth knowingacross 4 categories in and around Kansas City
About Downtown
What are the main landmarks in Downtown?
The National World War I Memorial stands at the head of the district's list. Kansas City's museums fill the rest. The Arabia Steamboat Museum, the National Airline History Museum and the Kansas City Garment District Museum each take a single trade as their subject, and the American Jazz Museum and the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum keep two chapters the city made its own.
Science City at Union Station, Sea Life Kansas City and the Legoland Discovery Center Kansas City take the family end, and the College Basketball Experience the sporting one. The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception holds the older ground.
What is the history of Downtown?
Four private houses still stand on the district's landmark list. The Maj. William Warner House, the Joseph Grear Peppard House, the Frank M. Howe Residence and the Philip E. Chappell House are what remains of a Downtown where people kept addresses rather than desks.
Grand Avenue Temple, Christian Church Hospital and Exposition Park belong to that earlier map. Kansas City built its offices around them. The Downtown Council of Kansas City fixed the working boundary that is most commonly accepted, and the Greater Downtown Area Plan of 2010 drew a wider one east to Woodland Avenue.
Where is Downtown?
Downtown runs from the Missouri River south to 31st Street, and from the Kansas-Missouri state line east to Bruce R. Watkins Drive.
Common questions
What is the best area to stay in Downtown?
Barney Allis Plaza: convention weeks that end on foot in the Garment District blocks. Union Station end: museum days built around Union Station. Grand Avenue: guests who want Downtown's older street architecture from the window.
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Updated October 2026