5 Free Family Friendly Attractions in Forest Park
If you live in the Saint Louis area odds are you know about Forest Park. It has been called the “Heart of Saint Louis” and offers a wide array of local attractions. However, most Saint Louisans take the park for granted. Perhaps you’ve lived in Saint Louis all your life and are simply used to all the great things the Park has to offer. But what about your kids? Maybe it’s time to revisit Forest Park with the little ones and open their eyes to the wonders of one of the biggest urban parks in the country.
Forest Park has numerous kid friendly attractions. The Zoo and The Science Center cater to kids with plenty of kid centric exhibits, but the History Museum, Art Museum and the Muny all welcome kids as well. The best part of these five attractions is that they ALL offer free admission! Paying for yourself is one thing, but once you add a spouse and a few kids the typical outing can multiply in price rapidly. Luckily, in Forest Park, you’re multiplying zero!
The Saint Louis Zoo has consistently been rated one of the best zoos in the world. They are home to a wide variety of animals and are always working to expand and rotate new attractions through to keep things fresh. The newest renovation is the McDonnell Polar Bear Point. A $16 million, 40,000-square-foot exhibit that brings visitors nose-to-nose with a swimming polar bear!
The Science Center is the next best spot in Forest Park to take the kids. The kiddos will have a blast learning through tons of hands-on exhibits. Just like the Zoo, the Science Center is always creating new exhibits to keep people coming back. If you haven’t been in a few years chances are there’s a lot you haven’t seen. The Omnimax, which is a spherical movie screen, always has something for the kids that will entertain the adults as well. They currently have three different shows, one about robots, another about space, and one about humpback whales.
The Art Museum and History Museum aren’t as specifically focused towards kids as the Zoo and the Science Center, but they are still great places to walk through with your kids. The Art Museum offers youth classes and guides to print out ahead of time for your visit with the family. Meanwhile, the History Museum also offers a variety of youth and family programs.
Finally there’s The Muny. Not every kid will be able to sit through the entire show, but some kids will absolutely love it and be singing and dancing for weeks afterwards! The Muny still offers 1,500 free seats to every show if you’re willing to get there a little early.
So, if you haven’t taken your kids to Forest Park recently, there’s definitely something new to experience. No matter what kind of interests your child has there will be something for them in Forest Park. If you’re going out to eat before or after your adventure in the park, then be sure to rate the restaurant on the Eat Kid Friendly App to help the community make the most informed decisions possible when dining out with their families.
