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Where to stay in or near Jefferson city
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Linda/OH from Ohio on 7/22/2025 2:40:15 PM:
I'm trying to plan a 6 day ride with stays in B & B's or hotels near the trail. I'm having a hard time figuring out the Jefferson City stop. Is the city easy to bike in? I prefer no street riding. Every place near there is booked for the dates in September but a couple of hotels.Help!
 
Bill R. from Wentzville on 7/22/2025 2:50:18 PM:
Jeff City is considered a hilly city. MY limited exposure there is that it is not much of a joy to ride within the city limits. Lot of controlled intersections and vehicle traffic. Once out on the trail, it's very different, obviously.
 
Anonymous on 7/22/2025 2:54:38 PM:
We've stayed at the Capitol Plaza hotel several times. It's any easy ride from the trail and is bike friendly.
 
Ray (webmaster) on 7/22/2025 3:26:59 PM:
Like Bill said, Jeff City can be hilly and/or busy if you venture very far into it.

However, you will not experience much of this if you stay within a few blocks of the river. The Jeff City webpage at https://bikekatytrail.com/jefferson-city.aspx lists a few B&Bs and hotels that are all easy to reach.

Getting to Jeff City, from the N. Jefferson trailhead, is not hard. You'll ride maybe a mile and a half to the river, then up a series of ramps to get to the bridge level. Riding across the bridge, you're rewarded with great views of the river and the capitol building. The bike portion of the bridge is totally safe and separated from car traffic.

I've found the streets between the bridge and the state capitol to be very easy to navigate and usually really quiet. Most of the buildings around there are state agencies, so the traffic only picks up when state workers are heading into the office or leaving for the day.
 
Gary from Near Tebbetts on 7/22/2025 3:30:16 PM:
Jefferson City is like any other small town, traffic? sure morning, noon, late afternoon work traffic. Use google maps set to bicycle to get directions on how to use the bike/pedestrian bridge over the Missouri and to get around in Jeff. Google maps has an advantage over Apple Maps in that it shows more restaurants,hotels and B&Bs there are many once you cross the river. Just avoid the main highways and Missouri Blvd which are high traffic areas. Google maps will show you how to get to get where you want to go on side streets. Hills? Of course, the secret is to ride east/west directions as much as you can to avoid the up and down hill rides. You will see the exceptions to this general rule.
 
Gary from Near Tebbetts on 7/22/2025 3:35:50 PM:
I’ll just add to Rays post, Google maps set on bicycle mode is a great tool to use to get around in Jefferson City and find hotels, restaurants, and B&Bs.
 
Bill R. from Wentzville on 7/22/2025 4:38:54 PM:
Prison Brews is a kinda cool place to dine. Craft beers. Great burgers/fries. Ice cream? Central Dairy, of course. But only get one scoop. They are HUGE!
 
Mark from Lee's Summit on 7/22/2025 8:48:23 PM:
http://katytrailcottage.com/ ... Katy Trail Cottage is about as close as you can get. From there you can walk or bike on sidewalks for a few blocks to restaurants. If you are willing to ride a few blocks then Central Dairy Ice Cream is well worth the adventure.
 
Linda/OH from Ohio on 7/23/2025 5:33:04 PM:
I really appreciate all the responses. Google maps set on bicycle is a so helpful getting around - new places especially. I went ahead and booked at the Capitol Plaza, Katy Cottage was booked. Thanks for explaining the city and how to navigate it.
Looking forward to our September ride. I may post again. You guys are the best!
 
Cathy from Churchill, PA on 7/26/2025 2:25:59 AM:
All the above comments give excellent advice. And you chose well to go with the Capital Plaza, wonderful hotel, you will be able to get there without much stress. I lived in Jefferson City and know what's what there. Biking over the Missouri River on the safe bike/pedestrian section of the bridge is a wonderful experience, especially seeing the capitol building from that vantage point.

Once you check into the hotel, consider taking a Lift or Uber to the Central Eastside (corner of Ash and High St): O'Donoghues Steaks and Seafood, Prison Brews, The Mission (a cool bar with live local music, open mike night every Wednesday) and JQ's on High.

You might consider adding a day to your trip to spend in Jefferson City so that you can tour the Capitol building, enjoy their lovely downtown and everyone's favorite, ice cream at Central Dairy. If you can fit it in somehow, add a tour of the Missouri State Prison (MSP), Missouri's historic prison site, opened before the Alamo (I'm not kidding, book a tour and you'll hear all about it!).
 
Cathy from Churchill, PA on 7/26/2025 2:31:51 AM:
I forgot to mention that back in the day (2017 and before) when I lived in Jefferson City, they used to joke about the "traffic jams" in the city core: 7:30 am to 8:30 am and 4:00 pm to 5:00 pm when state employees started and ended their work days. So avoid biking during those times and you'll be fine. But like someone else mentioned, stay off Missouri Blvd, stick to getting from the trail to the Capital Plaza and then back to the trail. You can bike to the places I mentioned above (Prison Brews, etc.) but if it were me I'd just Uber to avoid the hills, or biking back to the hotel after enjoying the night life.
 
Jerry from Fort Worth on 7/31/2025 2:24:00 PM:
If you want a great treat to eat, right across from the Capital is Arris' Pizza. Best pizza and Greek food around. Every time I go back to MO I eat there and get a few pizzas for the road. When riding the Katy I stop in Jeff City and take the loop to Columbia and go to Arris' 1020 Green Meadows in Columbia.
 
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