Ready, Set, Shop.

Downtown Morgantown is a vibrant, diverse shopping and entertainment district offering goods and services that appeal to visitors, the WVU community and residents alike. Its establishments present a surprising variety of must-have merchandise from gourmet chocolates and fine wines to jewelry, gemstones and beads; fine native arts and crafts to women's couture fashion; lost-in-the-'60s retro accessories to all manner of outdoor clothing and accoutrements; and custom leather goods and shoes to interior decorating services and unique furnishings. With approximately 2,000 on-street, surface lot and garage parking spaces in three strategically-located structures, parking in downtown Morgantown puts shoppers, diners and after-hours revelers within a pleasant stroll of stores, specialty shops, restaurants, theatres, bars and clubs.

Great Ideas, Morgantown Heritage.

Sound like a native Monongalian in no time by adopting the verbal shorthand of referring to both as the "Mon" River and "Mon" County. Both Mon (or Monongalia) and Preston Counties offer history buffs ample opportunities to explore the Greater Morgantown Area's rich and diverse architectural, commercial and social heritage.

Main Street Morgantown offers an historic audio walking tour of downtown Morgantown at the Greater Morgantown Visitors' Center located on High Street. It includes info on the district's landmark Metropolitan Theatre and the Monongalia Arts Center on High Street; the restored Garlow/Lewin House on Spruce Street; and the county's oldest standing stone building, (appropriately named the Old Stone House - circa 1795) on Chestnut Street.

Culture, Culture and More Culture.

West Virginia Public Theatre launches its 21st season at West Virginia University's Creative Arts Center this year as plans for the construction of its own 1,500-seat performing arts center in Morgantown's developing Wharf District continues. Known for bringing the best of Broadway to North Central West Virginia, WVPT stages classics like Beauty and the Beast, Pump Boys and Dinettes, Hello Dolly, and Evita during its summer season, late June to mid-August. Check www.wvpublictheatre.com for shows and performance times.

Billed as "West Virginia's most beautiful playhouse" when it opened July 24, 1924, the landmark Metropolitan Theatre in downtown Morgantown hosted performances by Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Don Knotts and Helen Hayes in its earlier years - and more recently, WVU theatrical productions, local dance recitals and graduation ceremonies. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984, the Met is putting the finishing touches on a $3 million, decade-long restoration. Under the management of the City of Morgantown's Board of Parks and Recreation Commission, the historic structure is reclaiming its status as a popular venue for live theatrical productions, musical and dance performances, classic $lm presentations, concerts and community events.

Community theatre has a strong tradition in the Greater Morgantown Area as well, with the Morgantown Theater Company, the MT Pockets Theatre Company and the Monongalia Arts Center (MAC) showcasing talented local performers in more intimate surroundings. With over 500 musical and theatrical performances produced annually in its recently-renovated Clay Concert Theatre and Davis Studio Theatre, WVU's Creative Arts Center on the University's Evansdale Campus also hosts exciting faculty and student exhibits in its Mesaros Galleries.

Even the downtown Morgantown Public Library and Monongalia County's Courthouse Square serve as arts venues - with storytelling sessions for kids, special exhibits and periodic used book sales at the library and a free noontime concert series every Tuesday and Thursday, June through October at Courthouse Square. The area's visual artists display their creations year 'round at a variety of local display spaces including the MAC's Benedum Gallery, the Morgantown Art Association's gallery in the Mountaineer Mall and at private galleries around town. Visit ZENCLAY on WVU's Evansdale campus, Appalachian Gallery, Tonique's Trilogy and Contemporary Graphics in downtown Morgantown to view (and purchase) their works.

* Content Source: Our Friends at the TourMorgantown.com