8 Fun Ways to Explore KC

The Best Fun for FREE in KC:

If you’re looking for family fun on a shoestring, Kansas City offers an abundance of terrific free choices. These are a few of our top picks for FREE family fun! See our Kansas City Calenar  for free fun all year long!

It’s no coincidence that our readers always rate Kaleidoscope as one of the best destinations in Kansas City. Imaginations know no limit as kids create jigsaw puzzles, glow-in-the-dark art, crowns and more at this hands-on art center. After your visit, head next door to the Hallmark Visitor’s Center, where you watch as greeting cards are made on factory machines and make your own souvenir bow with the press of a button. Next, cross the street to Crown Center (2450 Grand Blvd., Kansas City, MO), where children enjoy free hands-on exhibits, including “Funville: What will You Be?” this spring and “Curious George” (summer 2013). Tempt your taste buds on a tour of Chip’s Chocolate Factory on the second floor, where fudge makers demonstrate their craft and serve samples.

Visit one of the nation’s largest galleries of worldwide masterpieces at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. For added fun, check out our Nelson-Atkins scavenger hunt the kids will love!

Little ones love the “KidScape” exhibit at the Johnson County Museum, a hands-on child-sized suburban streetscape, where children role play as community figures in educational environments.

For unforgettable free fun, visit the Money Museum, where you’ll take home a souvenir bag of cash… shredded cash that is! Interactive exhibits explore banking, basic economics and the financial policies affect your family.

Get Out and Play

Race go-karts outdoors at Cool Crest or Paradise Park, where you can also enjoy miniature golf, arcades and more. Or go indoors to put the pedal to the metal and race your loved ones at Sadlers. This track is home to go-karts imported from Germany that allow racers to reach speeds of 45 mph. Couple dinner with games at Dave & Buster’s arcade restaurant, where you’ll find everything from classic to interactive to video.

CoCo Key Water Resort offers a wonderful 55,000-square-foot indoor water park with a wading pool, slides, fast tube rides, activity pools and more! Play for a day or stay overnight at the Holiday Inn (where CoCo Key is located).

Monkey Bizness is a fun-filled indoor amusement park for young children boasting a variety of moon bounces, slides and inflatables. Speaking of inflatables, you’ll find many more great indoor play places with our online guide.

Tip: Save on many of these attractions and more when you visit www.KCParent.com/Coupons/.

Stand Up and Cheer

Spectators enjoy state-of-the-art auditoriums and arenas celebrating the finest in arts and athletics.

The Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, the new jewel of the downtown skyline, showcases live performances from the Kansas City Ballet, Lyric Opera, Kansas City Symphony and touring productions.

The quintessential summer destination, Kansas City’s Starlight Theatre, hosts the best Broadway entertainment with starry nights, great food and light-hearted laughter, unmatched performances and memorable music. The 2013 lineup includes fan favorites for adults and families. Monty Python’s Spamalot, Catch Me If You Can, Flash Dance, Footloose, Miss Saigon and the family-favorite Disney’s Little Mermaid promise summer nights of unforgettable entertainment.

Adrenaline junkies love to cheer for their favorite drivers as the Kansas Speedway hosts NASCAR races. The Speedway offers many experiences adding to the entertainment for families, whether you purchase a pit pass or scanners to track cars throughout the race.

Nearby, Sporting Park breaks the mold for soccer-specific stadiums with its high-definition lighting, crystal clear video boards and modern, solar-friendly roof that ensures all 18,467 seats remain dry in the event of rain. Home to Kansas City’s own soccer team, Sporting KC, the stadium also hosts concerts of acts including the likes of Willie Nelson, Dave Matthews Band, Neil Young and John Mellencamp.

Legendary LEGOs

Consistently topping toy lists as a favorite for children of all ages, LEGO® is at home in Kansas City where the young and the young-at-heart enjoy creativity and inspiration.

One of Kansas City’s newest attractions, LEGO®land Discovery Center is a favorite for families. Imaginations run wild at the 30,000-square-foot interactive attraction featuring hands-on play areas, a 4D cinema, master classes from the LEGO® master model builder, LEGO rides and exhibits, including Miniland, a celebration of Kansas City’s most beloved landmarks in a model city created entirely with LEGO® bricks.

This summer, Powell Gardens  brings “NATURE CONNECTS: LEGO® Brick Sculptures” June 1-Sept. 29 to the Metro. Walk under an 8-foot tall hummingbird, pose beside a 7-foot rose, go nose-to-nose with a 5-foot butterfly, and then create your own LEGO® design! Built from nearly 500,000 LEGO® bricks, the NATURE CONNECTS exhibit features 27 larger-than-life sculptures set in 14 scenes built by New York artist Sean Kenney.

Union Station, home to the KC Rail Experience, features KC Brick Lab’s LEGO® exhibit among the model trains. Each season, the exhibit is updated with new themes, including an electric LEGO® train.

To the Moon and Beyond

The exploration of outer space captivates imaginations young and old, and visitors to Kansas City can share in the wonder at local attractions and unique exhibits.

Explore the solar system with hands-on science at Union Station’s Science City, home to the Challenger Learning Experience, where children learn about astronauts and American space exploration, and the Gottlieb Planetarium, one of the largest 360-degree domed screens in the Midwest, featuring presentations on the solar system for all ages.

On weekends, venture out to the Powell Observatory in Louisburg, where visitors view the constellations and planets through the largest telescope in the five-state area. Or, take a trip to UMKC on a Friday (May thru October) to visit the Warkoczewski Public Observatory for a view of the moon, planets, star clusters and nebulae.

Kansas City is also home to the outdoor educational exhibition Voyage: A Journey through Our Solar System, a 1:10 billion scale model of our solar system located along a mile-long stretch of Baltimore Avenue. The model begins at the “sun” entry point at 13th & Baltimore in the Power & Light District and end at the “explorers stanchion” in front of historic Union Station. Informational materials are available for educators and tourists who are interested in learning more about the program.

The Kansas Cosmosphere, a Smithsonian-affiliated museum in Hutchinson, KS (just a few hours west of KC), chronicles the Space Race through personal stories, displays of real spacecraft, hands-on exhibits, live rocket shows and more.

Amazing Animals

Meet exotic animals at the Kansas City Zoo, where 2013 promises the arrival of the much-anticipated Helzberg Penguin Plaza—a 100,000-gallon cool pool laced with snow for cold water penguins and a 25,000-gallon warm wet area laced with sand for warm water penguins. The zoo also recently celebrated the arrival of Berlin, Nikita the polar bear’s  girlfriend, making quite a splash at the Polar Passage, and the new Sumatran Tiger Exhibit lets visitors view the big cats enjoying wide open spaces to roam and play.

Sea Life Aquarium takes you under the sea on a 2- to 3-hour journey from the fresh waters of the Missouri River, into the mighty Mississippi River, then out into the warm blue coral strewn waters of the Caribbean Sea, ending in the deep dark abyss of the Atlantic Ocean. Come nose to nose with sharks and enjoy astonishingly close views of everything from starfish and seahorses to graceful rays. A favorite is the tropical ocean tank with a walk-through underwater tunnel.

Cedar Cove in Louisburg, KS, is an animal refuge for a variety of endangered or rescued big cats. Tour Cedar Cove, where you will see leopards, cougars, wolves, bobcats, a white tiger, black leopards and caracals. Every Saturday at 2:00, Cedar Cove hosts public feedings of the cats, weather permitting.

Meet favorite farm animals at Deanna Rose Children’s Farmstead, where children enjoy pony rides, fishing, a petting zoo and educational programs. This destination consistently ranks among the top picks for KC Parent readers.

Great American Main Streets of Missouri

With the revitalization of historic shopping districts in recent years, many areas have been transformed into beautiful places to live, work and play, bringing the Great American Main Street back to life.

Recently, Downtown Lee’s Summit was awarded the "Great American Main Street Award," and it's easy to see why! This shopping district is one of the most vibrant in the area. Start with a discovery of the area’s history at the Lee's Summit Railroad Museum, housed in a 1905 train depot in the heart of downtown. Ladies enjoy full tea service at Henry’s Antiques & Tea Room (401 SE Douglas St., 816.524.3992). And, the day isn’t complete without shopping at local boutiques.

Historic Downtown Liberty is legendary for history buffs and shoppers alike! The most infamous landmark is the Jesse James Bank Museum, site of America's first daylight bank robbery. The square is home to a variety of restaurants and shops, one of the most unique being the James Country Mercantile (111 N. Main St., 816.781.9473), selling supplies for historic re-enactors and 19th century memorabilia.

Independence Square is best known as the home of President Truman, but before Truman, the Civil War raged, and before that, pioneers journeyed! Step back in time with a mule-drawn wagon ride courtesy of Pioneer Trails Adventures (816.456.4991). Your guide will tell tales of the trails, the Civil War and, of course, Harry Truman. After your tour, enjoy shopping and dining or a movie or game of bowling. For lunch, pay tribute to the king of rock ’n’ roll as you eat an “Elvis,” the signature grilled peanut butter and banana sandwich at Clinton’s Soda Fountain (100 W. Maple, 816.833.2046), the location of the original Crown Drug Store, Truman’s first boyhood employer. Or, dine below street level at The Courthouse Exchange (113 W. Lexington, 816.252.0344), where rock walls create a cozy atmosphere as you enjoy pub-style dining.

Great American Main Streets of Kansas

Imagine a leisurely day of shopping and dining at locally-owned businesses where you are greeted with a smile.

Historic Downtown Overland Park is one of the most eclectic districts in the area, with a strong celebration of the arts, including the art deco Rio Theatre (7204 W. 80th St., 913.383.8500), one of Kansas’ original movie theaters, that shows independent films. The district features many favorite eateries, including Great Day Café (7921 Santa Fe Dr., 913.642.9090), where restaurant owners play live music or demonstrate a potter's wheel. You’ll soon discover that many of the shops offer classes from sewing and scrapbooking to culinary arts, including the Culinary Center of Kansas City (7920 Santa Fe Dr., 913.341.4455), which offers classes ranging from gourmet cooking to beginning skills.

Famous for its prisons and the military fort bearing its name, Leavenworth, "The First City in Kansas," is also a fun and nostalgic day trip courtesy of Leavenworth Main Street. Begin with a visit to the C.W. Parker Carousel Museum, one of the most whimsical sites in Kansas. Learn the history of Parker’s carousel business, from crafting hand-carved horses to the introduction of aluminum animals, and conclude with a spin on a 1913 carousel! Take a historic tour on the Leavenworth Trolley (913.682.1023, Sat. 11:00) and let the kids ring the bell at the end of the ride. Eat at the Corner Pharmacy (429 Delaware, 913.682.1602), an old-fashioned lunch counter and ice cream shoppe, or the Pullman Place Family Restaurant (230 Cherokee, 913.682.0200), decorated with railroad memorabilia, including a special glass-top table with a model train running inside!