What To Do In St. Louis with Kids {Day 2}

October 24th, 2013

{Start with Day 1 over here}

When I asked for recommendations of family-friendly things to do in St. Louis last week, many of you were adamant about us visiting The City Museum. In fact to quote my friend, Katy, “If you don’t take the boys here, I cannot forgive you.”

So after we stuffed our faces (literally i.e. Henry) with the FREE breakfast at The Drury Plaza Hotel at the Arch, we headed there on the downtown trolley {$2 for adults/ $1 for kids all day pass – Much better than paying for parking and navigating traffic} to check it out for ourselves. 

You guys, I don’t even know how to describe this place, so I’ll use pictures over my words, and then you just HAVE to promise me that you’ll go experience it all for yourselves. 

Now I get it.  I understand why this was so imperative to our trip.

If  urban + playground + industrial + art + adventure + eclectic + architecture + recycled + surreal + imagination + daring gave birth, this is what their child would look like.

The City Museum is housed in a 600,000 square foot abandoned International Shoe Company, and it’s an experience unlike any other of your life.

The outdoors features  anything from 10 story slides, to climbing cages, ball pits, a school bus hanging off the roof,  to two salvaged airplanes suspended high above the ground.  

The inside of the museum is a twist of tree houses, caverns, caves,  and mazes.

But the outdoor roof and the outdoor play land located in front of the building was where we spent the majority of our day. The boys preferred knowing where they were going, and being able to see what was coming over some of the darker and unfamiliar paths indoors.  Next time might be entirely different as they feel braver – we’ll see!

I promise I felt like I was having some strange dream at times, and my palms definitely got a little sweaty seeing my babies suspended so high above the ground. {And climbing up there myself.}

A  Few Tips on Visiting The City Museum Based On Our Experience:

• Bring kneepads for adults or purchase them for $4 in the gift shop.  Unfortunately, we found these gem of a souvenir at the end of the day when our knees had already taken a beating.
• Dress comfortably.  Trade in the skinny jeans and riding boots for tennis shoes and workout clothes.
• Bring a flashlight for the darker areas.
• Ditch the purse or bag or check it in the coat check.  It will only drag you down.
• Remind your kids to stick together and review what to do in case you get separated. Wear clothes that are easy to spot. Make sure they have your cell phone number memorized or have temporary ID Tattoos.
• Wait until they are ready.  As much as I think the boys would have loved this even at a younger age, I think they were the perfect age to really enjoy it this year. For our family, it would have been a nightmare for us to keep track of them from age 4 and under, and they would not have been physically able to do some of the climbing. 
• Let go. This museum for helicopter parents. Let your kids explore, be brave, and conquer their fears. 

Since the Government shutdown was officially over, we decided to check out the beautiful Old Courthouse, which is part of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial National Park on our way back to our hotel.

Completed in 1828, the Old Courthouse was the site of much of our  history including the Dred Scott cases. It was a great history lesson for our boys on the Westward Expansion, The Underground Railroad, and our judicial system.

And since the National Parks were back open, we decided to check and see if it was possible to go up in The Gateway Arch. We expected it to be sold out, since it had been shutdown for over 2 weeks, but much to our surprise, we were able to purchase tickets for The Journey to the Top.

That’s one tiny elevator for the tram ride to the top., not for the claustrophobic at heart for this 4 minute ride.

However, the views from the top are spectacular. The boys looooooved going up in the arch so much, and I’m so glad that our timing worked out.

All of it made for one amazing family getaway – with so much off our list in a little over 24 hours.

Next time we hope to take in some of St. Louis’ famous eats as well these family-friendly attractions:

• Fitz’s Bottling Company (FREE)
• The Science Center (FREE)
• Grant’s Farm (FREE)
• The Hill (FREE)
• The Magic House

and more of your fabulous suggestions! 

We were so impressed what a family-friendly destination St. Louis is, and how many of their attractions are FREE.  Definitely something that we’ll come back for as a family of six!

So what’s the most Family-Friendly city YOU’VE visited?  We’d love to add it to our list to visit someday!

Related:

• What To Do In St. Louis with Kids – Day 1 
• 8 Free Things to Do in Indianapolis with Kids