//
City in West Virginia, US
Photo: Brandon W. Holmes, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Wheeling, also known as the "Friendly City" or the "Nail City", is a city of 26,000 people (as of 2019) in West Virginia. Wheeling is known for having more Victorian architecture than any other city in the United States.
From the travel guide. Select a place for details, a map and what is nearby.
Wheeling has more Victorian architecture than any other city in the US, much of it having undergone extensive restoration.
Called Wheeling's "Crown Jewel", Eckhart House is a restored 1892 three-story Queen Anne town home with most of its original architectural features intact. Gift shop on-site. Tours are available W-Sa 1-3:30PM for $3. Parlor teas available.
Called the "birthplace of West Virginia" because the Wheeling Convention was held here in 1861, during which 32 counties in Virginia voted to secede and join the Union. Restored interiors, an interpretive video, audio tours, authentically-costumed guided tours, and an exhibition on West Virginia's statehood featuring dramatic displays with period artifacts.
1,700 acres of parkland with dozens of activities, including shopping, golfing, miniature golf, swimming, pedal boats, tennis, horseback riding, fishing, skiing and snowboarding, walking trails, museums, a zoo and planetarium, floral gardens, and a resort.
Oglebay Park
406 acres including a swimming pool with waterslide, playground, boating, pedal boats, miniature golf, ice skating, tennis, soccer, and an outdoor aviary.
Over 80 species of animals from North America, South America and Africa, nestled in 30 acres of flowers, trees, hills, and valleys. Also features an indoor Discovery Lab where kids can learn about animals; a barn petting zoo with llamas, donkeys, deer and other animals; a 1.5-mile train ride past the ostrich exhibit; a wetlands walk; and a planetarium with family programs and an annual Astronomy Day.
An environmental center constructed with environmentally-sensitive building products using environmentally-friendly building processes. Includes an exhibit hall, bird observation areas, a children's awareness area, and programs throughout the year.
Dance and fitness, music, live theater, movies, choral singing, and the only hands-on art center in the region. Workshops and classes available.
Over 3,000 examples of Wheeling glass made from 1829 to 1939. A highlight is the Sweeney Punch Bowl, the largest piece of cut lead crystal ever made, at five feet tall and 225 pounds. The Carriage House Glass gift shop offers the area's largest selection of West Virginia decorative glass.
Features an extensive array of Imperial glassware, including Candlewick, Carnival and glassware donated by the National Imperial Glass Collectors Society and the former Bellaire Glass Museum.
In the Artisan Center. Open 11AM to 7PM Monday through Thursday, 11AM to 9PM Friday and Saturday, and Sunday by appointment. General store representing the 1800s to the present, with items made in Wheeling. Gift shop on-site.
A restored Victorian-era schoolhouse with thousands of toys from dolls and dollhouses, to toy soldiers, trucks and cars, trains, planes and ships, Western toys, space toys, cartoon characters, ride-on toys and more. Interactive displays, operating O and HO gauge train layouts, a room dedicated to Ohio Valley history and culture, a restored railroad caboose, and a gift shop on-site. Guided and self-guided tours available.
The nation's first federally-funded interstate highway, which began in Cumberland, Maryland and eventually reached Saint Louis Metro East in Illinois. The highway crosses the West Virginia panhandle from Little Wheeling Creek near Mt. Echo over Wheeling Island to the Ohio border. To drive it, follow the Historic Route 40 markers.
Mt. Wood Overlook is called "The Castle" by locals or "Stone House" to some people. It was going to be a house until the owner's wife had died so he was heartbroken and stopped building it and sold it to the city and opened it to the public.
A 1928 movie theatre - the oldest and largest in West Virginia - which is home to the second-oldest country music program in the country, Jamboree USA. Weekly country music shows on Saturday night, touring Broadway musicals. Dinner show packages available.
Established in 1929, and today offering 11 concerts annually in their Masterworks series, Pops series, Symphony on Ice concert and free outdoor summer concerts. Tickets are $12-56 (student price $5), subscriptions are $93-218 (student price $15-218).
Shows begin at 7PM on Saturday. Variety shows provided by local talent - including the Ohio City Revue, the Friendly City Band, and Elvis impersonator Earl Brown - in the restored Victoria Theatre.
Part of the East Coast Hockey League, the Nailers play October through April at the WesBanco Arena in downtown Wheeling. The Nailers are the AA minor league affiliate of the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Philadelphia Flyers. Tickets start at only $10.
On Wheeling Island, +1-877-WIN-HERE (946-4373; gaming center) or +1-877-WHEELING (943-3546; hotel reservations). Open 7AM to 4AM. Over 2,400 slot machines, multi-line nickel games, video lottery games including Keno, 20 poker tables, and greyhound racing. Four restaurants and hotel on-site.
About 4½ miles northeast of Wheeling are a series of boulders from the Monongahela Group along Long Run, where late Pennsylvanian fossils can be found. The most common local fossil is the fern Pecopteris, but others include fish, the gymnosperm Cordaites, horsetails, the scale tree Lepidophyllum, and seed ferns.
Held during one weekend in late July. The largest Italian festival in West Virginia, and the third-largest in the country. Bocce tournament, pasta exhibit, wine competition and tasting, ethnic foods, arts and crafts, carnival midway, live entertainment.
Wheeling riverfront. Held in mid-September. "Anything that Floats" raft race, food, live entertainment, children's playground, and lots of sternwheelers on display.
Fish, shrimp rolls, deviled crab, chicken, coleslaw and fries. Try the fish sandwich (fried fish on white bread) and clam strips.
Popular local restaurant with live bands on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Appetizers, salads, sandwiches, pasta, steak and seafood.
Old-fashioned meaty sandwiches (roast beef, ham, turkey, corned beef, pastrami, reuben and more).
Sports bar with a television at each booth. Appetizers, salads, sandwiches, beef, chicken, seafood, pasta, desserts.
Authentic, homemade Italian food. Soups, steaks, chicken, seafood, pizzas. Try the escarole soup and veal osso buco.
Neighborhood restaurant since 1932.
A unique crust loaded with toppings for a great price. Try the take n bake pizza that you can cook at home.
In Glen Dale.
Palace Road off US-250. Open April through November. 38 rooms, temple guest rooms, and 12 cottages. Buffet breakfasts, lunches and dinners available. Rooms and guest rooms are $30 peak season, $15 off-season; cottages are $125 - 150 excluding holidays.
104 rooms. Outdoor garden, exercise facility. Complimentary breakfast bar and USA Today.
170 rooms.
55 rooms. Exercise room. Complimentary continental breakfast.
212 rooms and 49 cottages. Indoor pool, outdoor pool at Oglebay, jacuzzi, sauna, fitness room, Wolff tanning bed, massage therapy, golf club with driving range. Four restaurants on-site. Complimentary newspaper. Packages include Mountaineer Buffet Breakfast. $135 - 275 peak season, $99 - 170 off-season.
151 rooms. Island-themed rooms with marble showers. 9 2-room suites and first-class end suites available. Fitness center. Breakfast-in-bed room service available. On-site casino, racetrack and restaurant called The Pointe.
In Glen Dale. 5 rooms. Fireplace, whirlpool tub. Gourmet candlelight breakfasts.
Fresh food, gift shops, galleries, antiques and restaurants, housed in and around two market houses - an 1853 cast iron columned market house (the only one in the country) and an 1890 brick market house.
Route 88 N. Seven gift shops, including Carriage House Glass (the area's largest selection of West Virginia decorative glass), Gourmet in the Gardens (gourmet and regionally produced food products) and the Palm Room seasonal plants and fresh flowers, herbs and hanging baskets).
A renovated building with a three-story atrium in downtown Wheeling, housing retail shops, galleries, historic exhibits, and working demonstrations by local artisans.
By plane
The closest commercial service is to Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT), which is approximately 40 miles northeast of Wheeling in Western Pennsylvania.
By car
Interstate 70 is the primary route for reaching Wheeling from the east or west. Travelers in Northern Ohio and Western Pennsylvania can reach Wheeling via OH Route 7 or WV Route 2.
By train
The nearest passenger rail service is in Pittsburgh, PA, and is provided by Amtrak's Pennsylvanian and Capitol Limited routes.
By bus
By car
Car is by far the most efficient way to get around Wheeling.
By bus
By taxi
Wheeling's primary taxi company is IC Cab, and they can be reached at +1 304 232-1313.
Choose an airport to see hotels, stations, taxi ranks and car rental desks around it.
Pittsburgh · International · PIT
Loading places around the airport…
Articles and travel topics about Wheeling and United States.
Travel tipsFind the cheapest countries to fly to from the US and UK in 2026. Compare realistic round-trip flight deals, budget airlines, and prime booking windows.
8 min read
Travel tipsFind the best time to visit Hawaii in 2026. Compare whale seasons, big-wave surf, dry shoulder months, hotel rates, and island microclimates.
9 min read
InspirationDiscover the best places to visit in April. Compare Dutch tulip fields, Thailand's Songkran water festival, Roman spring gardens, and cherry blossoms.
6 min read
Travel tipsA practical guide to travelling with medication and refrigerated drugs like insulin and GLP-1s. Learn airline rules, customs papers, and cooling tips.
7 min read
Every section of the guide. Open one to read it in full.