Winter Outside of Your Pittsburgh Apartment: It’s Not Just a Polar Vortex

When you rent a Pittsburgh apartment, you may not know what to expect. It’s an eclectic city known for football, steel mills, and zombies. And, yes, it gets cold here. But, if you brave these chilly winter squalls, you’ll discover the city outside of your Pittsburgh apartment is an adventure any time of year.

Once you figure out how to navigate those winding, one-way streets and that interesting public transportation system, you’ll find so many attractions and activities when you venture out of your Pittsburgh apartment.

South Side’s Annual Soup Contest

On Saturday, February 22, South Siders and those who enjoy the South Side will take part in a different kind of crawl. A soup one. This year marks the tenth annual event. South Side eateries and local host businesses open their doors and warm the chilly crawlers with inventive soups. It’s then your civic duty to vote for the best.

Ice Skate in Schenley Park

Set in the trees of the park is a full hockey rink for skating. Skating. Not checking your buddies into the boards. Not even during adults-only Friday night public skates.

Penguins Hockey

The Pens are good. There’s a whole bunch of them heading to Sochi this year. They score a lot of goals. They acquire scoring titles and MVP trophies like a college student acquires road signs. They’re fun to watch. Students, take advantage of their Student Rush specials that enable those with a valid student ID to get into the always-sold-out arena for $25. Or, just walk out the door of your Pittsburgh apartment. Whether you’re in Shadyside, South Side, or Dormont, there’s a bar nearby with a Pens game special.

Museums

Cold weather is a perfect excuse to stay indoors. When you have three rivers filled with kayaks, several neighborhoods of gallery crawls, and new outdoor dining options popping up all the time, it’s hard to justify checking out a museum when the weather’s nice. Let winter be the excuse. Pittsburgh’s art museums — including the Mattress Factory, Andy Warhol Museum, the Carnegie Museum or Art, and the Frick Art & Historical Center — are world renowned. Then there are those niche exhibits that may prove just as memorable as their mainstream counterparts. The Photo Antiquities Museum of Photographic History on the North Side features a room of cameras and photos of Pittsburgh taken during the Great Depression. The Cultural District’s Toonseum is a celebration of comic books and otherwise cartoon art. And, if you’re in the mood for a mini road trip, the Living Dead Museum in Evans City, located right next to the cemetery from Night of the Living Dead, is an homage to another Western Pennsylvania pop cultural contribution — zombies.

When you rent a Pittsburgh apartment, you’re becoming a citizen of a dynamic city with opportunities for entertainment year-round. Yes, even on the cusp of a polar vortex.