21 Fun Things To Do In Tulsa, Oklahoma

Shae and I recently left Tulsa having spent nine days there while on our 5 year, 50 state road trip.

To be honest, I didn’t have high hopes for Tulsa. The extent of my Tulsa knowledge was that Chandler didn’t want to move there in Friends.

We were therefore surprised to find that Tulsa is a fun city to visit with loads to see and do. We didn’t even get to do everything we had planned, so missed out on the Philbrook Museum of Art, Woody Guthrie Center, Tacos Don Francisco and more.

There was a lot that we did get to experience though, so here are 21 fun things to do in Tulsa, Oklahoma that we loved.

1) Gathering Place

Gathering Place is a brand new park on the Arkansas River which is a mile or two south of downtown Tulsa. It only opened on September 8, 2018, so we got to visit it a couple of weeks after it opened.

It’s an incredible park and a huge asset for the city. It’s perfect for people of all ages with restaurants, food trucks, trails, small lakes and more.

There’s a ton of activities for kids too, with massive playground areas, climbing frames, splash pads, etc. The only downside for us was that dogs aren’t allowed, so we visited while our dog Truffles was off getting groomed at Paws On Pearl. (Side note – Paws On Pearl did a great job with her grooming and also offers doggy daycare services if you need them).

2) Hurts Donut

Hurts Donut Tulsa has phenomenal donuts – some of the best donuts we’ve ever had (and we’ve had A LOT). Apple pie, maple bacon, s’mores, Andes mint, salted caramel and chocolate, Cap’n Crunch Crunch Berries and more – they were so delicious we had to go back for more.

3) Murals

Tulsa has a large arts district called the Brady Arts District. The city therefore has loads of great artwork and murals to see as you walk around.

4) Welltown Brewing

We walked past Welltown Brewing while wandering around Tulsa, so Shae asked if pets are allowed inside. They said they are seeing as food isn’t served there, so we stopped there for a drink later on as we had Truffles with us.

Welltown Brewing is a microbrewery that has some great tasting beers. Be sure to visit on a Wednesday evening if you like trivia nights – we got there a little late to participate, but it seemed like a lot of fun.

The owner Jeremy was also extremely friendly and gave us several great tips for things to do in Tulsa (several of which are on this list!)

And hello to Kim and Dustin from Springfield MO who we met there – it was great chatting to you.

5) Architecture

There was a surprising amount of interesting architecture in Tulsa. OK, so it’s not Chicago, Charleston or New York, but it’s something we hadn’t expected of a city in Oklahoma.

6) Andolini’s Pizzeria

If you like pizza, you have to go eat at Andolini’s Pizzeria. They had excellent service and incredible pizza – you won’t regret it. Check out our full review of Andolini’s Pizzeria for more.

7) Centennial Park

Tulsa has parks dotted all around the city. One of the ones we visited was Centennial Park which is just outside of downtown. There’s a large pond in the center, several water features and a great view of Tulsa’s skyline.

8) Center Of The Universe

I’ll be honest – we visited the Center Of The Universe, took a couple of photos and left confused. That’s because we’d heard of it but didn’t know what to do there. There aren’t any signs at the site explaining what it’s about, so I investigated more later on. Shae and I therefore returned a few days later to experience it properly.

It turns out that the Center Of The Universe is, quite literally, an echo chamber. You stand in the center of the circle and speak, with the sound of your voice reverberating back at you. It’s an odd audible sensation, but worth visiting once you know what to do.

9) Pinkitzel

Pinkitzel is a cupcake and candy store located downtown near the BOK Center. We met Louise, Keith and Macy at the Tulsa State Fair and they recommended it, so we stopped by there on our final morning. Shae got a Double Truffle cupcake which was chocolate cake with a center of fudge ganache and chocolate buttercream.

I had a bite and it was so good, I wished I’d gotten one too. We were sadly 250 miles away by that point, so next time Pinkitzel, next time.

10) Arkansas River

The Arkansas River runs through southwest Tulsa and there are several parks and trails that run alongside it.

11) Penguin Sculptures

Back in 2002, Tulsa had a public art display around the city consisting of dozens of penguin sculptures. Many of these have found different homes, but you’ll hopefully be able to spot some while exploring the city.

If you like these types of public art displays, check out all the other sculpture hunting we’ve done so far on our 50 state road trip.

12) Mr Nice Guys

Shae and I were feeling peckish while visiting Gathering Place and there were a handful of food trucks there. One of those was a Mr Nice Guys food truck, so we grabbed some lunch from there. Shae ordered jerk chicken mac n’ cheese, while I got a jerk chicken taco and a spicy pork taco.

We both loved what we ordered, so we’d definitely get food from Mr Nice Guys again. It looks like they have a restaurant in downtown Tulsa in addition to the food truck.

13) Tulsa State Fair

If you visit Tulsa in the fall and your dates align, be sure to check out the Tulsa State Fair. We had a lot of fun there along with some excellent fair food. Check out our post about our visit to the Tulsa State Fair for more details.

14) No Traffic

Considering more than 400,000 people live in and around Tulsa, there was surprisingly little traffic in downtown Tulsa. We were there nine days and did a reasonable amount of driving around and I don’t think I got impatient once due to traffic!

15) Skyline At Night

Quite a few of the buildings downtown are lit up at night, so it’s worth taking a walk around the city after dark to check out the skyline.

16) Antoinette Baking Company

The first time we went for a drink at Welltown Brewing, Shae asked the owner Jeremy for a recommendation of somewhere to get cookies and desserts locally. He suggested the Antoinette Baking Company, so we stopped by there to pick up desserts on our way to visit some friends.

Apparently their cookies and macarons are excellent (we got those for our friends), while we tried a couple of their desserts which were also delicious.

The reason we got a cookie is that one of our friends set himself a win/win new year’s resolution this year. To eat one cookie a day… 365 of cookies! If he didn’t meet his resolution, he was eating healthier – WIN! If he ate a cookie each day, HE GOT A COOKIE EACH DAY – WIN! So far he’s met his goal each day and we wanted to bring an amazing offering towards the cookie count.

17) Williams Green

Williams Green is a small park in downtown Tulsa that’s next to the Hyatt Regency. It was great for walking Truffles around in while we were staying at that hotel. It has picnic tables, water features and several sculptures about Rotary International’s work in Tulsa.

18) The Boxyard

The Boxyard is a unique shopping center as it’s been constructed using shipping containers. Each container houses a boutique store, coffee shop, etc.

19) Joe Station Dog Park

I’ve mentioned our dog a few times in this post; if you travel to Tulsa with your dog as well, take them to Joe Station Dog Park. It’s just outside of downtown Tulsa, has separate areas for small and large dogs and the park is huge.

And hello to Cathy Sue, Harper and Hazel who we met at the dog park.

20) Ida Red General Store

While at the Tulsa State Fair, Shae fell in love with their mascot Dizzee the goat. She wanted to get some kind of Dizzee memento but couldn’t find one at the fair.

She asked one of the workers there who suggested visiting Ida Red General Store. Shae paid them a visit but they sadly didn’t have any Dizzees, but she loved their store nonetheless as it had a lot of great merchandise.

21) Central Library

When staying at the Aloft Tulsa Downtown, the city’s Central Library was next door. This 130,000+ sq ft library opened in 2016 and contains not only books but also a children’s area, 3-D printers, a garden, meeting rooms, a Starbucks and much more.

Question

So those were 21 things to do in Tulsa that we enjoyed, but how about you – what are some of your favorite things to do in Tulsa? Let us know in the comments below.