Barrington
Post-war family streets around Barrington Elementary, ten minutes' walk from Kingsdale and the best-value base in the city.
Post-war brick ranch houses and wide lawns on a Barrington Road side street
Why people stay in Barrington
Barrington is south-central Upper Arlington: the grid of quiet streets around Barrington Road and Barrington Elementary at 1780 Barrington Road, built out mostly in the late 1940s and 1950s when the city spread south and west of the original Thompson plat. The houses are brick ranches and modest two-storeys on wide lots, the lawns are absurdly well kept, and there is a basketball hoop over half the driveways. It has none of Old Arlington's architectural swagger and all of its safety, at a meaningfully lower price.
The practical case for staying here is Kingsdale. The shopping centre at Tremont Road and Northwest Boulevard is a ten-to-fifteen-minute walk from most of Barrington, and it has the Market District supermarket, pharmacy, casual restaurants and the civic buildings clustered nearby on Tremont Road. That combination — walkable groceries plus free parking plus a genuinely quiet street — is rare in suburban Columbus and it is why Barrington is the value pick in this guide at around $88 on a January Monday, cheaper than Old Arlington or the river bluff.
Evenings are exactly what you would expect. On a July night the sound is a sprinkler and a diving board somewhere; the municipal pools run roughly from Memorial Day to mid-August and they are the social centre of the neighbourhood for ten weeks a year. Come 9pm in February there is nothing at all, and the nearest place still serving is a fifteen-minute drive to Grandview Avenue. Nobody has ever described Barrington as lively and nobody who lives here wants it to be.
Stay here if you are a family, if you are visiting relatives or scouting schools, or if you simply want the cheapest safe bed with easy access to Ohio State and downtown. Do not stay here if you want atmosphere, if you are here for a wedding in the Short North, or if you cannot drive — the walk to Kingsdale is fine but everything else is a car trip. And do not expect sights: Barrington's assets are a school, a park and a supermarket, honestly described.
The sweet spot is the block of streets west of Tremont Road and north of Northwest Boulevard, close enough to walk to Kingsdale but off the arterials. Expect $88 to $135 a night on normal dates, $115 to $170 in late May and June, and $250-plus on Ohio State home-football Saturdays, when nearly every property in the north-west of the metro imposes a two-night minimum. Almost all bookable beds are whole-house or garden-suite lets; the nearest chain hotels are two to three miles east on Olentangy River Road, which is where to look if you want a front desk and a breakfast buffet under $110. Avoid anything directly on Northwest Boulevard or Tremont Road — both carry real traffic from 6:30am and neither has the tree cover the side streets do. Parking is free everywhere, including at Kingsdale.
Things to do in Barrington
The Giant Eagle Market District at 3061 Kingsdale Center is the anchor: hot bar, sushi, bakery, cheese counter, and a seating area that stays busy into the evening when the rest of Upper Arlington has gone dark. Surrounding units cover pharmacy, casual dining and services. Free parking, ten to fifteen minutes' walk from most Barrington streets.
The city's family pool at 3675 Reed Road, with slides, a zero-depth entry and shade. Open roughly Memorial Day to mid-August with reduced hours once schools go back; day passes for non-residents are modest but check the city website for the current rate before you turn up with towels.
At 3480 Kioka Avenue off Reed Road, a well-shaded neighbourhood park with a playground, shelter, ball fields and a path loop. Five minutes' drive west of Barrington and reliably quieter than Northam Park on a summer weekend. Free, unstaffed, gates open dawn to dusk.
Loop the streets around Barrington Elementary at 1780 Barrington Road on a weekday morning and you will see the actual texture of Upper Arlington: crossing guards, dogs, joggers, and more bicycles than cars. Twenty-five minutes, sidewalks the whole way, and the best free way to judge whether you could live here.
Fifteen minutes southeast, Grandview Avenue between First and Fifth is the nearest genuine restaurant strip — patios, breweries, and kitchens open past 10pm. Book a table for Friday or Saturday, expect $18-$32 for a main, and park on a side street off Grandview rather than circling the main drag.
The Municipal Services Center at 3600 Tremont Road, the library's main branch at 2800 Tremont Road, and the parks in between make a pleasant slow morning. In summer a small farmers' market sets up on the civic side of Tremont Road — seasonal and weather-dependent, so ask locally before building a plan around it.
What to see
Hotels near Barrington
No hotels are listed in Barrington yet. The nearest ones are on the region page.
Getting around Barrington
From John Glenn Columbus International take I-670 west to SR-315 north and exit at Lane Avenue or Fifth Avenue, 20-25 minutes and $35-$45 by rideshare. Barrington has the best public transport position of any area in this guide, which is a low bar: COTA Line 3 runs Northwest Boulevard past Kingsdale to downtown Columbus in about 25 minutes for $2.00, with a $4.50 all-day pass, and Line 5 covers West Fifth Avenue toward Grandview. Both run roughly every 30 minutes on weekdays, much less often evenings and Sundays, with last departures well before midnight. Within the area you walk to Kingsdale and drive to everything else; parking is free and never a problem.
Questions about Barrington
Generally yes, of the residential areas — from around $88 on a January weekday against $105-$119 in Old Arlington and on the river bluff. The genuinely cheapest beds in the vicinity are the chain hotels on Olentangy River Road and Bethel Road, three miles out, which sit around $75-$95 off-season. Barrington buys you a quieter street and a walk to groceries for the difference.
Yes — the Giant Eagle Market District at Kingsdale is ten to fifteen minutes on foot from most Barrington streets, with continuous sidewalks and a signalled crossing at Northwest Boulevard. It is the best food shop in Upper Arlington and stays open late by local standards. There is also a Whole Foods on Lane Avenue, about two miles north, which is a drive rather than a walk.
COTA Line 3 from the Kingsdale area runs into downtown in roughly 25 minutes for a $2.00 fare; a day pass is $4.50 and pays for itself on the second trip. Weekday frequency is about every half hour, dropping off sharply after 8pm and on Sundays. If you are coming back after a late dinner in the Short North, budget $18-$22 for a rideshare instead.
It is a sensible one. Ohio Stadium is about three miles east, twenty minutes on a bike down Lane Avenue and considerably faster than driving on game day. Rates here still jump to $250-plus with two-night minimums, but less brutally than on-campus hotels. Book by midsummer for autumn Saturdays and confirm your parking arrangement in writing.
