Zoos + Farms

Get up close with more than 150 animals at the Saginaw Children’s Zoo! Visit African penguins and a two-toed sloth, and discover rescued animals in the Forgotten Forest. Be sure to take a spin on the hand-carved carousel — and, of course, ride the Iberschoff Special miniature train! Kids will love the whistle and the ride, and "big kids" will appreciate 10 acres of landscaped paths, beautiful gardens, and animal exhibits. Enjoy a tasty lunch at the Train Whistle Café, or bring a picnic into this gorgeous zoo!

Encounter the Reptile Sanctuary and Rainforest Experience at Birch Run's Wilderness Trails Zoo. Explore this 56-acre park with more than 200 exotic animals of 50 different species, get hands-on in the large petting area, and have a meet-and-greet with a parakeet! Picnics are welcomed, but lunch (and an impressive gift shop) can be found right on-site.

Take a step back in time, and be part of a wholesome tradition that continues today at Grandpa Tiny’s Heritage Farm. Pet the farm animals, including Rosie The Donkey and Mr. Nibbles (the adorable bunny who doesn’t nibble), tour the one-room schoolhouse, and enjoy family-friendly fun while learning about life on the farm!

Experience farm fun and one of the area’s oldest working orchards at Leaman’s Green Applebarn. Take a hayride, try your hand at chores, pet, hug, and feed baby animals, head out for a scavenger hunt, and even ride the Apple Barrel Express! Stop by the Country Store for cider slushies, and grab fresh cider & donuts for a delicious souvenir. Be sure to watch for special summer events like Kids' Goat Yoga and Sunflower Days!

Beat the heat at the epic Celebration Square Splash Park! Toddlers to teens will enjoy this high-energy, interactive splash park — with sections uniquely designed for different age groups. Let toddlers get their feet wet in (non-threatening) water misters and low-pressure fountains, and whoop it up with bigger kids underneath geysers and water soakers!

Spend time together at Frankenmuth Jaycee Spray Park, and enjoy a place where people of all abilities can have a ball. This handicap-accessible and family-friendly splash pad offers a zero-depth water play area with 18 different fountains, sprays, geysers, and other water features. Pack a picnic and stay for the day — there’s plenty of shade and picnic areas for snacks between soakings!

Splash around at Longview Spray Park, and enjoy a day under the spray — and dumping buckets and waterspouts that are activated by movement! Experience fun for all ages from dawn to dusk and turn a hot summer day into cool memories.

Frolic at Gerstacker Spray Park and cool off where families have been beating the summer heat for 20 years! Right near the Tridge and the Pere Marquette Rail Trail, spray, sprinkle, and splash your way through waterspouts and dumping buckets at this Downtown Midland spray park.

Outdoor Mini-Golf + More

Putt-putt your way up and around a rushing waterfall during 18 holes at Dutch Village Adventure Park. Swing at a bucket of balls in the batting cages and choose between 32 flavors of Hudsonville ice cream.

Get a hole-in-one, race go-karts, play arcade games, run through laser tag — it’s all about fun at Press Play 989! Hit the batting cages, rock out the bumper boats, enjoy an 18-hole miniature golf course, and have a blast at this place created for families.

Choose your adventure at Alpine Mountain! Decide between two 18-hole mini-golf courses, or play a round on each. Jump into single or double bumper boats and go-karts, test your skills at bank-shot basketball, and enjoy arcade games before filling up on delicious ice cream!

Enjoy a fun-filled day at Buoy 18 Miniature Golf, Arcade & Ice Cream Shop, and experience an 18-hole miniature golf course that overlooks the Liberty Harbor Marina. Step inside the game room, free with your golf purchase, and spring for double scoops of Ashby’s Sterling ice cream!

Indoor Family Fun Zones

Head to Valley Lanes Family Entertainment Center for 20 bowling lanes, indoor miniature golf, an arcade, billiards, a laser maze challenge, bumper cars, Hologate virtual reality, and two escape rooms!

Step into stylish bowling shoes and try for strikes at Stardust! Roll a few frames on 25 public lanes, and head into the entertainment center to enjoy more than 60 arcade games, four escape room adventures, a two-story laser tag experience, and indoor bumper cars!

Drop into retro gaming fun at Crazy Quarters Arcade! With dozens of pinball and arcade games, play classics including Skee-Ball, Pac-Man, Galaga, Asteroids Deluxe, Space Invaders Deluxe, and Dance Dance Revolution. Or, bring the kids to Brinstar for a mix of 16 video arcade and pinball games, plus creative burgers and fresh, hand-cut fries.

Let the kiddos burn off energy while parents take a break at The Playground! Adults are invited to kick back with a latte while kids slide, climb, roll, swing, and have a ball at this indoor play palace!

Defy gravity on more than a dozen attractions at Airborne Adventure Park. Flip, fly, and soar to new heights on wall-to-wall trampolines or get creative and practice tricks on Freestyle Jump. Look for special jump times for smaller kids, and enjoy your family “hang-time” in the air!

Watch your family (literally) find your way through 2,000 feet of life-sized mirrors and glass at Ultimate Mirror Maze, and check out The Vault Laser Beam Challenge to test your skills over, under, and around light beams! Try River Place Game Room, with more than 40 arcade games, and earn prizes in the redemption center that make perfect souvenirs!

Uncover what it means to be an inventor at Spark!Lab® Smithsonian at Midland Center for the Arts. Work as a team to problem-solve together in this one-of-a-kind, hands-on learning lab, and “spark” something new in your family this summer!

Visit the largest collection of motorized fire trucks in the world at the Antique Toy and Firehouse Museum! Home to horse-drawn ladder carts, hand and steam pumpers from the 1800s, and 60 motorized fire trucks, your family can’t miss the mighty FDNY Super Pumper! The largest land-based fire truck ever built, explore the Super Pumper that once delivered 8,800 gallons of water per minute at distances greater than a quarter-mile, and get a family photo in front of the legend!

Kids' Shopping

Explore seven gift shops stocked with unique toys, candy, and souvenirs at Bavarian Inn Castle Shops — and let the kids pick something fresh from the bakery!

Challenge each other in the arcade, shop for souvenirs together, and sample fudge to gourmet cupcakes at Frankenmuth River Place Shops.

With Gap Kids to Go! Games & Toys, discover more than 100 stores and incredible discounts at Birch Run Premium Outlets.

Shop gifts, goodies, and nostalgic candies at Happy Go Lucky, find kites to wooden toys at Toyberg, or wander into Joyful Tantrum to experience “a toy store, unplugged”!