Historic Hotels & Inns in Omaha

The neighborhoods

Where to stay, by area

Downtown

Omaha was founded in 1854 on the Missouri River and takes its name from the Omaha Tribe, which ceded most of east-central Nebraska to the United States in a treaty that same year. Downtown is a street grid where numbered streets rise westward from the river and Dodge Street divides north from south, and Visit Omaha counts 3,500 hotel rooms and 90 restaurants and bars in a few walkable blocks. Two of our five stays are here: Hotel Indigo Omaha Downtown, in the 1918 Logan at 1802 Dodge Street, and Residence Inn Omaha Downtown, in the 1933 Federal Office Building at 106 South 15th Street. By address, the free Joslyn Art Museum is four blocks west of the Hotel Indigo, and the west end of Gene Leahy Mall is two blocks east of the Residence Inn. The Douglas County Courthouse, at 1701 Farnam Street, is where a white mob seized Will Brown, a Black packinghouse worker accused of rape, and lynched him on September 28, 1919, before any trial. Streetcar construction has been digging up several downtown streets, so check walking routes before you set out.

The Old Market

The Old Market is the brick warehouse district running roughly from 10th to 13th streets between Farnam and Leavenworth, built up in the late 1800s for wholesalers. Visit Omaha calls it walkable, with cobblestone streets, the plant-filled Old Market Passageway and galleries including KANEKO and the Bemis Center. None of our five stays is inside those boundaries. The closest are Hotel Deco, in the 1930 Redick Tower at 1504 Harney Street, two blocks west of 13th Street by address, and the Magnolia Hotel Omaha, in the Aquila Court Building of about 1923 at 1615 Howard Street, which faces the Orpheum Theater and says the district is within a five-minute walk. Just south, the Art Deco Union Station, now the Durham Museum and a National Historic Landmark, anchors the Omaha Rail and Commerce Historic District, the buildings that grew up around the Union Pacific main line; the railroad is still headquartered here.

The Blackstone District

The Blackstone District is a few blocks of restaurants and bars in Midtown, once the West Farnam neighborhood. Kimpton Cottonwood Hotel, at 302 South 36th Street, is the former Blackstone Hotel, built in 1916, and the stay Visit Omaha ties to the birth of the Reuben. The hotel counts 30 dining, shopping or entertainment spaces within four blocks and says the University of Nebraska Medical Center is steps away. This is not an Old Market base on foot: the hotel sits 23 numbered blocks west of 13th Street and describes downtown as a quick drive. The nearest ORBT stations by address are at 3304, 4105 and 4190 Dodge Street.

The RiverFront

The RiverFront is a remake of three connected downtown parks, 72 acres in all, between the Old Market and North Downtown: Gene Leahy Mall, Heartland of America Park and Lewis & Clark Landing, with a performance pavilion, a playground and slides, a skate ribbon, a pier, an urban beach, a prairie garden and the Kiewit Luminarium science museum. The Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge links the park to Council Bluffs, Iowa, and Visit Omaha bills it as the first walking bridge to connect two states. We list no stay here, but The RiverFront calls itself a short walk from several hotels, and by address the Residence Inn and Hotel Deco are about two blocks from the mall’s 13th Street end. The parks are open daily 5 a.m.–11 p.m., and most activities are free.

North Downtown

North Downtown, often called NoDo, is the sports and arts district north of The RiverFront, which Visit Omaha describes as walkable. It holds Charles Schwab Field Omaha (1200 Mike Fahey Street), home of the NCAA Men’s College World Series, and CHI Health Center Omaha (455 North 10th Street), the arena and convention center that hosts the Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting, plus Steelhouse Omaha, The Slowdown, Film Streams at the Ruth Sokolof Theater and Hot Shops Art Center. We list no stay here; the Magnolia says it is within a mile of CHI Health Center.

North Omaha

North Omaha is the historic center of the city’s Black community. We list no stay here, so plan on a car or rideshare. North 24th Street was known as the ‘Street of Dreams’ and was home to the Dreamland Ballroom, and Visit Omaha says Duke Ellington and Count Basie played the neighborhood. Malcolm X was born in Omaha on May 19, 1925; the Malcolm X Memorial Foundation keeps his family’s home site at 3448 Evans Street, with a historic marker, visitor center and events plaza, open Friday and Saturday noon–5 p.m. and by appointment on other days. The house is gone, and the site is on the National Register. Farther north are the Mormon Trail Center at Historic Winter Quarters and the 1846 Florence Mill.

Before you book

Planning your stay

Getting around

Eppley Airfield (OMA) is about 4 miles from the downtown convention district by Visit Omaha’s figure. It’s midway through a terminal program that Build OMA estimates will finish in 2028, so allow extra time; Uber, Lyft and taxis pick up on the ground floor of the South Garage. Visit Omaha says many downtown hotels run free airport shuttles, but the airport warns that the list changes and the Magnolia has none. The Omaha Streetcar isn’t running: it’s under construction, reports put the opening in 2028, and you shouldn’t plan around it. Metro Transit’s ORBT bus rapid transit runs along Dodge and Douglas from downtown to Westroads Mall; the fare is $1.25, paid by Umo app, card or a paper token from a station kiosk, not cash. Amtrak’s California Zephyr stops at 1003 South 9th Street, south of the Old Market, and Great American Stations lists the station as open only from 10 p.m. to 6:30 a.m. Downtown, the Old Market, The RiverFront and North Downtown work on foot; the Blackstone District is an ORBT ride or a drive, and North Omaha and the zoo take a car or rideshare.

Parking

Park Omaha’s 2023 rate sheet describes meters on nearly every downtown and midtown block with no time limits, priced by colored zone, enforced Monday–Saturday 9 a.m.–9 p.m. and free on Sundays. We couldn’t confirm current meter or garage rates, so read the sign at the meter. The Magnolia is the only one of our five stays with a published rate we could read: on-site self-parking at $32 a night. Ask the other four before you book. The Joslyn Art Museum and the zoo both have free parking.

When to go

Omaha’s big events come in May and June. The Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting at CHI Health Center is Saturday, May 1, 2027, and Berkshire’s 2026 shareholder guide says early May is typically in the high 60s to low 70s with an average low of 45. The NCAA Men’s College World Series is June 18–28, 2027, at Charles Schwab Field, with the June 28 final only if necessary. The Holiday Lights Festival runs from late November through January 1 in the Old Market, The RiverFront and on North and South 24th streets. Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium is open every day except Thanksgiving and Christmas, and adult admission is lowest from December through February, at $21.95.

Accessibility

The Magnolia publishes the fullest list among our five stays: accessible guest rooms with 33-inch doors, rooms with no steps, grab bars, accessible elevators and self-parking spaces, strobe alarms and TTY, and it asks guests to call 402-341-2500 for specific needs. We couldn’t confirm details for the other four, so ask before you book. All Metro buses, ORBT and MOBY paratransit are accessible, and The RiverFront has gently sloping paths, signed accessible routes and accessible restrooms in each park. Old Market streets mix brick, cobblestone and asphalt, and streetcar work closes some sidewalks, so check routes in advance.

Before you book

Book the Berkshire weekend (May 1, 2027) and the College World Series (June 18–28, 2027) early: Berkshire tells shareholders to make arrangements as early as possible. Of our five stays, only the Magnolia was on Berkshire’s 2026 downtown shuttle list, and 2027 stops aren’t published. Ask each hotel about minimum stays for those dates. The Magnolia takes a one-night deposit at booking, charges one night’s room and tax for late cancellation or early departure, requires guests to be 21 to check in and doesn’t accept cash.