Welcome To Morgantown, WV

Greetings from Morgantown: hidden gems & THINGS TO DO 

Downtown Morgantown starts at the water. Grab a paddle and float the Monongahela River as it curves past the district, or stay on solid ground and pedal the Rail Trail into town — either way, you end up downtown, where the real story is. This is a place built by makers. Take time to wander, and you’ll find painted murals turning alley walls into open-air galleries, and small shops where local artists and makers are quite literally leaving their mark on the City — one art print, one handmade good, one First Friday for the Arts at a time. Pull up a chair at a downtown table, and the same spirit shows up on the plate: independent kitchens and coffee counters run by people who know your name by the second visit. Then there’s the energy that comes rolling in from WVU just up the hill — tens of thousands of students who keep downtown loud, young, and alive ten months out of the year. On fall Saturdays, that energy peaks: Mountaineer football empties into downtown bars and restaurants, and the “Let’s Go! Mountaineers” chant rolls down the same streets where, hours earlier, someone was enjoying their morning cup of coffee. And downtown never really stops moving. Live music echoes off the river at the Ruby Amphitheater in the summer, local business owners host pop-up markets all year long, and downtown theaters serve as gathering places for art lovers. There’s always a storefront, sidewalk, or stage primed for connection. Most people who spend a season in Morgantown find themselves longing to return or planning their next visit before they’ve even hit the highway headed home.

Morgantown, WV became recognized as a “Certified Arts Community” by the West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture, and History in December 2020.