🏨 Where to Stay

The Crossroads Arts District sits between downtown and Union Station — galleries, Boulevard Brewing, Strange Days, Border Brewing, Corvino, The Antler Room, and First Fridays. Smaller hotel inventory than Power & Light but the best dining base in KC. The free KC Streetcar connects it to the Fan Festival in 5 minutes; Crown Center (Arrowhead shuttle) is a short walk south.

18th & Vine is the historic Black Kansas City — American Jazz Museum, Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, the Blue Room, Mutual Musicians Foundation (after-hours jam sessions), Arthur Bryant's BBQ. Lower hotel density (most visitors stay in Power & Light or Crossroads and Uber out for the evening), but a handful of nearby boutique and VRBO options.

Westport is KC's oldest neighborhood (1833 trailhead) — bar strip, late-night food, and a 10-minute walk to the Country Club Plaza. The Plaza is the open-air shopping and dining district that opened in 1923 (the first US suburban shopping district), styled after Seville, Spain. Quieter, leafier base than downtown; great for visitors who want walkable dining without the convention-hotel feel.

For visitors driving themselves, the south Johnson County suburbs (Overland Park, Lenexa, Olathe) and Lee's Summit east of the city offer cheaper, more abundant hotel inventory and shorter match-day drives to Arrowhead — especially if you're renting a car. Overland Park is also the densest halal restaurant cluster in the metro and home to the Islamic Center of Greater Kansas City. Trade-off: you're away from Power & Light's walkable nightlife.