Stand on the canal walk in Bricktown as a water taxi slides past, brick warehouses on one side and the downtown skyline rising on the other, and you have the picture most visitors carry home from Oklahoma City. The city spreads wide, but its strongest draws cluster near downtown and on the north side, which makes a short trip easy to organise.
This guide suits anyone with a day or two who wants the memorial, the museums, the neighbourhoods and the cattle yards rather than a checklist of suburbs. Everything below comes from the places named in the source material, with notes on how to combine them.
Top things to do in Oklahoma City
1. Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum
The memorial commemorates the Oklahoma City bombing and is described as one of the most visible attractions in the city. The outdoor symbolic memorial is free and open 24 hours a day, so you can walk it at any hour, including after dark.
The Memorial Museum sits in the former Journal Record Building next door and can be visited for a small fee. It is widely regarded as very well done, so allow real time for it rather than treating it as a quick stop.
2. Bricktown
Bricktown is the city's fast-growing entertainment district and its tourist showpiece, rebuilt around a water canal added during the city's redevelopment programme. Water taxis transport passengers within the district, adding colour and activity along the canal.
Water Taxi of Oklahoma offers a narrated canal cruise, which is an easy way to see the district and get your bearings. The Oklahoma City Thunder of the National Basketball Association also play in Bricktown, so check whether a game falls during your stay.
3. Oklahoma City Museum of Art
The museum is home to the largest collection of Chihuly glass in the world. It also holds an arthouse and revival theatre and a restaurant, so it can fill an afternoon on its own.
It sits north of the memorial, making the two a natural pair. Combine them in one downtown stretch rather than crossing town twice.
4. The Myriad Gardens
This is an impressive urban park with a seven-storey botanical garden, built in the heart of downtown as part of the city's efforts to bring life back to its core. The Crystal Bridge conservatory is the modernistic glass structure at its centre.
Because it sits downtown, it works well as a breather between the museum and Bricktown. Step in when you need a pause between indoor stops.
5. The Paseo
The Paseo is a ramshackle artist colony in a 1930s-era urban neighbourhood, built in conscious imitation of Kansas City's Country Club Plaza but since developed into a gritty bohemian character. Dozens of art galleries, restaurants and clothing stores cluster in the area.
Strictly speaking it is a single street lined with Art Deco Spanish revival buildings, though the theme spreads into the surrounding neighbourhood, including a stretch of storefronts on NW 23rd Street. The Paseo sits northwest of downtown near the Oklahoma City University campus.
6. Asian District
West of the Paseo along Classen Boulevard, the Asian District is home to the city's majority Vietnamese Asian community, formed after refugees were relocated to Oklahoma City following the fall of Saigon in 1976 and joined since by later immigrants and Vietnamese Americans from elsewhere.
The district is home to many good restaurants and to Super Cao Nguyen Supermarket, the largest Asian market in the state. Come hungry and pair it with the Paseo, which is a short way east.
7. Oklahoma City Zoo and the Adventure District
North of the capitol, the Adventure District holds the highly ranked Oklahoma City Zoo, the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum, and the Kirkpatrick Center, which features a children's science museum, an air and space museum and a photography museum.
Remington Park and Casino, a thoroughbred and quarter horse racing track with a casino and off-track betting, is also here. This cluster is far enough north that it deserves its own half-day rather than being squeezed between downtown stops.
8. Oklahoma History Center and the capitol complex
On the northeast side of the city, the capitol complex is interesting in itself and the Oklahoma History Center sits alongside it. The city grew up around oil, and derricks dot the capitol grounds.
The historic Lincoln Terrace neighbourhood lies between the OU Health Science Center and the state capitol and is worth a look if you enjoy historic architecture. The Harn Homestead is also nearby on NE 16th Street.
9. Stockyards
The Stockyards is a neighbourhood built around one of the largest cattle markets in the world, and cattle are still bought and sold there every Monday morning. It resembles a Wild West-themed amusement park without the rides.
Stores sell just about anything western themed, from saddles to belt buckles to truly giant hats. The venerable Cattleman's Steakhouse has been serving hearty steaks and lamb fries for over a century, and it is one of the few places in the city where a newly purchased giant hat goes mostly unremarked upon.
10. Capitol Hill
Capitol Hill is one of the city's great contradictions, and it can also be one of the liveliest and most welcoming neighbourhoods. Its main street along SW 29th Street is full of bustling Mexican-owned shops and restaurants.
The Oklahoma Opry, which puts on traditional country and gospel shows, is here too, and seems somewhat out of place among the surrounding businesses. Go in daylight and treat the main street as the destination.
11. Wheeler Ferris Wheel
The Wheeler Ferris Wheel at Wheeler District offers rides overlooking the Oklahoma River and the downtown skyline. It is a straightforward, short stop rather than a half-day.
Time it for the view you want, since the appeal is the outlook over the river and the skyline rather than the ride itself.
12. Oklahoma City University
Just west of the Asian District, Oklahoma City University features a small art museum and a variety of cultural events and programming. It sits within the cluster of interesting early 20th century neighbourhoods northwest of downtown.
Pair it with the Asian District and the Paseo, which are close by, rather than making a separate trip.
13. Western Avenue District and the NW 39th Street Enclave
North of Oklahoma City University are the NW 39th Street Enclave, the largest LGBT neighbourhood in the state, and Crown Heights and the Western Avenue District, home to businesses and restaurants catering to young urbanites.
Sushi Neko, a fine sushi bar, and Will's, a coffee shop, both sit inside the restored Art Deco Will Rogers Theater complex and are worth a look. These are neighbourhoods for wandering and eating rather than single attractions.
14. Frontier City
Frontier City is a Wild West-themed amusement park in the city's northeast with roller coasters and water rides. It is the obvious choice if you are travelling with children or want a full day away from museums.
Because it sits in the northeast, it fits awkwardly with a downtown itinerary. Give it its own day rather than trying to bolt it onto a morning of sightseeing.
15. Performing arts
Oklahoma City hosts a range of theatre and music companies, including the Canterbury Choral Society, the Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma, the Oklahoma Opry and Oklahoma Shakespeare in the Park.
These are worth checking before you travel, since a performance can shape an evening that would otherwise be spent in Bricktown.
If you only have one day
Morning: Start at the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum, walking the outdoor symbolic memorial first and then giving the museum in the former Journal Record Building the time it deserves. Walk north afterwards to the Oklahoma City Museum of Art for the Chihuly glass collection.
Afternoon: Continue to The Myriad Gardens and its seven-storey botanical garden, then head to Bricktown. Take the narrated canal cruise with Water Taxi of Oklahoma to see the district from the water, and stay on foot afterwards for the surrounding streets.
Evening: Eat in Bricktown, or drive to the Stockyards for a steak at Cattleman's Steakhouse. If a Thunder game is on at Bricktown, that becomes your evening instead.
Frequently asked questions
Is the outdoor memorial free to visit?
Yes. The outdoor symbolic memorial is free and open 24 hours a day. The Memorial Museum in the former Journal Record Building next door charges a small fee.
How do you get around Bricktown?
On foot and by water. Water Taxi of Oklahoma offers a narrated canal cruise, and water taxis transport passengers within the district along the canal.
When is the best time to see the Stockyards?
Cattle are still bought and sold there every Monday morning, so that is when the neighbourhood is at its most active. Note that protesters can sometimes be spotted nearby.
Which neighbourhoods are best for eating?
The Asian District has many good restaurants, Capitol Hill's main street along SW 29th Street is full of Mexican-owned shops and restaurants, and the Western Avenue District and Crown Heights cater to young urbanites.
Pick your dates, decide whether the zoo and Adventure District or the neighbourhoods northwest of downtown get your second day, and start building the trip around the memorial and Bricktown.