Outdoor Activities

Animals / Zoos
Old Mine Ranch Come join the fun farm experience at this children's pony and pet farm ranch! They offer a hands-on family ranch that is fun and educational all at the same time! Spring, Summer, or Fall...there is always plenty to do.

Bug Box is a live insect zoo located in Fredericksburg. There’s plenty of family fun and activities at Bug Box. Their zoo features exotic insects, arachnids, and crustaceans from around the world. Yikes, they also have a pet snake—“Fred”, two family member turtles named Big Boy and Toby, frogs and toads, Sammy salamander and so much more! Visitors can view hundreds of specimens and study educational displays.

Smithsonian National Zoological Park is a beautiful park offering family fun and excitement, stimulating education programs, and a peaceful place to enjoy nature. There is something new to discover on every visit. The National Zoo has a long history of innovation and leadership in the care and exhibition of wild animals. Today, their exhibits are more than just places within the Zoo, they include educational and scientific programs both on-site and around the world.

Prince William County Children's Farmoffers youngsters a chance to touch and learn about animals. Hand-raised animals on the farm include sheep, goats, a potbelly pig as well as assorted chickens, ducks, turkeys, rabbits and peacocks. Due to Health Department regulations, strollers, bottles, pacifiers and sippy cups are not permitted on the farm. For safety, guests are asked to wear closed-toed shoes or boots.

Reston Zoo is a surprising find in the heart of urban Fairfax County. It's a thirty-acre, family-friendly zoo: an oasis in the middle of the city! Zoofari wagon rides (included in admission fee) take young and old to see zebras, antelope, bison, ostrich, and lots more. Park staff lead regular animal demonstrations. Reston Zoo encourages animal interaction. There are plenty of places to get "up close and personal" with the animals. Animal feed and lamb bottles are available, too! You won't want to miss the alligators, camels, reptile house, or waterfowl. You'll be amazed that such an opportunity is so close to you!

Amusement Parks
Paramount King's Dominion is a 400-acre amusement park with thrill rides, kids rides, a water park, plenty of shopping, food, games and more.

Busch Gardens
Six Flags

Camping

Historical
Maymont
Mount Vernon

Music and Entertainment
Inited States Navy Band

Hurkamp Park in downtown Fredericksburg (between Prince Edward and William Streets) offer a Concert in the Park Series from the 1st Tuesday in May until the end of June. Buy or bring your lunch and enjoy live music. Time: 11:30am - 1:30pm. Cost: $0. Contact Phone: 540-372-1086

Parks
Stafford County Parks Main Page. For the most recent activities booklet click here.

Curtis Memorial Parkis a beautifully wooded park located at 58 Jesse Curtis Lane off Hartwood Road (SR-612), 2 miles north of Warrenton Road (US-17). It has hiking opportunities in a varied natural setting, a nature trail, picnic shelters, playground, ball field, amphitheater, two sand volleyball courts, an Olympic size swimming pool with diving area, a zero-depth entry wading pool with water umbrella, tennis courts, skateboard park, a 91-acre fishing lake, and an 18-hole golf course.

Aquia Landing is located at 2846 Brooke Road (end of SR-608), 7 miles east of the Stafford County Courthouse. This popular public beach offers sunbathing, picnicking, fishing, volleyball, concessions, and lifeguard protected swimming areas from Memorial Day-Labor Day.

Burke Lake features a 218-acre lake with fishing, boating, rowboat rental, camping, a miniature train, a carousel, outdoor volleyball courts, open fields, an 18-hole par 3 golf course, clubhouse with snack bar and driving range, disk golf, horse shoe pits, an ice cream parlor, picnic areas with grills, 3 playgrounds, trails, amphitheater, and a brand new miniature golf course. The TRAIN is fantastic fun for younger kids and it's hard to find a working carousel!

Locust Shade Park has everything you need to "get in touch with nature". They offer opportunities for fishing, boating (rental canoes and paddle boats), picnicking, playgrounds, batting cages, driving range, mini-golf and more. See what we have to offer for your enjoyment. Check out the programs they hold at their amphitheater (Schedule).

Prince William Forest Park is an oasis of natural beauty and human history located only 35 miles south of Washington, DC. 37 miles of hiking trails and 21 miles of bicycle-accessible roads and trails traverse this 15,000 acre piedmont forest. Beneath its canopy lies evidence of human history reaching back to 8,000 B.C.

Frying Pan Farm Park preserves and interprets a 1920's through 1950's farm, agricultural process, rural community life and landscape for the educational, cultural and recreational enrichment of citizens and visitors of Fairfax County. They have a country store, animals to pet (check out the babies in the Spring), wagon rides, and more. For a special events list click here

Playgrounds
Autumn Ridge
Willomere
Smith Lake Park
Curtis Park

Alum Spring Park has a fantastic wooded playground with playsets for kids of all ages. Make sure to bring a bucket to collect acorns and then stroll down to the bridge over the stream and toss them in. You'll love driving through the stream to get into the park!

National Museum of the Marine Corps has a nice partially shaded playground with sets of equipment for different ages.

Sporting Events
The Baltimore Orioles have a fantastic kid's club. For $15 you get a neat welcome package, 10 free tickets to select games and the opportunity to purchase additional seat for these games for $5 each. You can't beat that for a day at the ballpark! (there's even a day where kids get to run the bases after the game).

Washington Nationals have a fantastic kid's club. For $15 you get a neat welcome package, free tickets to select games and the opportunity to purchase additional seat for these games at a discount. You can't beat that for a day at the ballpark! (there's even a day where kids get to run the bases after the game).

Richmond Braves: enjoy professional baseball at a fraction of the cost! Take your kids out to the ballgame at one of the local minor league parks. You'll enjoy a closer view of the players. Be sure to join the Kid's Club!

Potomac Nationals: enjoy professional baseball at a fraction of the cost! Take your kids out to the ballgame at one of the local minor league parks. You'll enjoy a closer view of the players. Be sure to join the Kid's Club!

Washington Redskins - tickets aren't cheap but the new stadium is pretty neat.

Baltimore Ravens Football

Washington Wizards Basketball

Washington Capitals Hockey

"Things That Go"
The Flying Circus Airshow runs most Sundays May - October. Watch amazing stunts, look at old planes, go for a ride yourself... it's all there. You won't want to miss the Hot Air Balloon festival in August. Check their schedule to find a great time for your visit.

The Balitmore and Ohio Rail Museum Both children and adults will delight at the Museum’s family friendly exhibits and activities. Throughout the Museum campus, visitors will enjoy hands-on exhibits that make learning fun! From viewing exciting railroad flicks in our theatre car to climbing into the cab of a steam locomotive, there is plenty to SEE and DO here! Our seasonal family activity area is full of fun for the entire family. Climb aboard our wooden train play set, participate in a pump car demonstration or watch toy trains make their way through our G-scale garden layout.

The Burke Lake Train is a 1/3 scale replica C.P.Huntington steam engine that takes visitors for a ride over 1.75 miles of track lasting 10 minutes and reaching speeds of 10 to 12 miles per hour. After the chug-along, there's more old fashioned fun to sample - a spin on the carousel, a hand-dipped cone at the Ice Cream Parlor and a walk on the park trail rated one of the 10 best urban fitness trails in the nation by the American Hiking Society.

Water Parks
Planet Splash and Play: (703) 378-6600, 4600 Brookfield Corporate Dr. Chantilly, VA 20151

Fredericksburg YMCA Massad Center: You don't have to be a member of the YMCA to come and play.

Splash Down: Wildly Wet, Fabulous Fun is waiting for you and your family at Northern Virginia’s largest Waterpark. Splash Down features 5 different water areas along with all of your favorite summer foods at the Coney Island Café, Paradise Pizza and Sweets N Treats.

Dixon Park: great little area for the younger ones.

Waterworks: is located at 5301 Dale Blvd., near Mapledale Plaza, in Western Dale City. Waterworks offers state of the art outdoor excitement, including pools, slides, fountains, an expansive shallow beach area, and friendly, family fun. For basic information call 703-670-7112 x232.

The Watermine Family Swimmin' Hole: offers more than an acre of slides, flumes, sprays, showers, floatables and interactive play features, circled by Rattlesnake River with a 2.5 mile per hour current that gently nudges tubes along. A bit of the old west is recreated here. Kids careen off covered wagons, float on rattlesnakes and dash through showers tipped from water-filled ore carts. The centerpiece is Pete's Peak, a craggy mountain dotted with boarded up mine shafts and tunnels. Twin gang slides - Big Pete and Little Pete - jut from the mountain, giving youngsters a thrill ride they'll return to again...and again...and again.

Waterworks at King's Dominion: is free with park admission and offers more than 20 acres of water-filled, water-themed water fun.

Great Wolf Lodge: Indoor waterpark and resort all in one. Bring the whole family!

Massanutten Resorts: has an indoor/outdoor waterpark and pool area. The indoor portion of Massanutten WaterPark is open year-round and is always 84 degrees fahrenheit.

Water Country USA: is the mid-Atlantic's largest family water play park, featuring state-of-the-art water rides and attractions all set to a 1950s and '60s surf theme.

Ocean Breeze: is Virginia Beach's ONLY water park. Located less than 2 miles south of the Oceanfront, it's a quick trip from wherever you are. Ocean Breeze Waterpark offers 16 waterslides, the 1 million-gallon Runaway Bay wave pool, the Buccaneer Bay Water Playground and other fantastic attractions. Enjoy our private poolside cabanas, Island Trader Gift Shop or any of our annual events and daily activities!

Kalahari Resorts:Coming Soon! Planned opening December 2010. Indoor waterpark and resort in one.