Wichita is the largest city in Kansas and has long been called the "Air Capital of the World" — Cessna, Beechcraft, Learjet, and Spirit AeroSystems all have roots here, and aviation still dominates the economy. The city sits where the Arkansas and Little Arkansas rivers meet, and the riverfront has been redeveloped into a pleasant area for walking and cycling.
Old Town, a warehouse district east of downtown, is the liveliest part of the city, with restaurants, bars, and live music venues. The Keeper of the Plains, a striking 44-foot steel sculpture at the confluence of the two rivers, is dramatically lit with fire columns at night and has become the city's most recognisable landmark. The Wichita Art Museum has a strong American art collection including an impressive Charles Russell holdings, and the Museum of World Treasures covers everything from dinosaurs to presidential artifacts. Architecture enthusiasts should not miss Frank Lloyd Wright's Allen House — one of the finest Prairie houses in the country — and the Kansas Aviation Museum fills in the story of how Wichita became the air capital it claims to be.
Wichita is a practical stop on a cross-country drive through the Great Plains, and it has more going on than most people expect from central Kansas.