How to Have a Perfect Wichita Summer

To me, nothing says summer like a cold beer. With all the new local breweries popping up all over town, there's no chance of a beer shortage happening. Wichita even has some of the best patios! My personal favorites at the moment are Aero Plains and The Monarch. It's not summer without drinking outside.

Visit Local Parks

Why not bring along homemade food for a picnic? Or pick up a sandwich from one of the delicious delis in town. Pokemon Go is optional, but lunch is mandatory.

Catch Local Artists

Everyone may know about Final Friday, but everyone may not know about the local open mic nights that are happening weekly in town. You can catch both comedians and musicians at Barleycorn's, the BottleOpener, Kirby's Beer Store, and The Looney Bin.

Explore the City

Wichita is an absolutely gorgeous city, and now you can even rent bikes to see it from a new perspective! Bike rentals are now available downtown for just $3 an hour. It'll make seeing all the amazing murals downtown that much easier.

Go Wild

If you want to unleash your wild side, head on over to either Tanganyika Wildlife Park or Sedgwick County Zoo to see some of the baby wildlife! Tanganyika has baby cheetahs, while Sedgwick County Zoo has a baby gorilla.  

More than 1,000 restaurants exist in Wichita. There are only 93 official days in summer. If you were to eat at a new place for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, you would only be trying 279! That's pretty impossible for the average wallet, but you get the idea. There are also food trucks appearing almost daily at the ICT Pop-Up Urban Park.

Rockin Around ICT

First it was yarn, now rocks are appearing all over the city. You can check out the movement on Facebook, but Rock Around ICT is pretty rockin'. People are painting rocks and leaving them scattered throughout Wichita with the intention of spreading kindness.

See the Wichita Staples

You can't forget the staples of Wichita: Botanica, Starlite Drive-In, farmer's markets, Keeper of the Plains, Cowtown; the list goes on and on! I absolutely love that Wichita has hidden gems, so embrace the heart and soul of Wichita while supporting both local artists and the city. Taking a picture in front of one of the Wichita Flag murals while wearing one of my ICT flag shirts is at the top of my summer bucket list. I love the idea of sporting and supporting our flag and our community.

Get Out There

So how do you have the "Perfect Wichita Summer?" Get out there, explore and have fun! Do all the things you said you were going to do. I've been in Wichita nearly ten years and I haven’t experienced Botanica, Doo-Dah Diner, and several other popular Wichita hot spots. Wichita is always growing and changing. You never know what you'll find in your own neighborhood.

I'm ready to dive right into the heart of the city, are you?