Weekend in Pittsburgh with a toddler
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Anonymous
| Hello, I'm going to Pittsburgh for the first time with my family in May. Do you have any suggestions on toddler friendly places/attractions, cafes and bakeries, and parks to check out? We will have a car. Thanks |
Anonymous
| The Children's Museum is fantastic, as is the Zoo. Bethel Bakery and Oakmont Bakery are the top two in the area. The Aviary is also fun. |
Anonymous
| Ride the incline and walk around The Strip District. Children's Museum is a must--it's one of the best ones I've been too (but sadly my kids are too old now). Heinz Museum is fun too but probably not so much for a toddler. Zoo is very nice and there is also an aquarium at the zoo. |
Anonymous
|
How old is the toddler? That will help better tailor the recs.
Either way, I second the Children's Museum! There is lovely, nostalgic exhibit on the top floor with the original Daniel Tiger's neighborhood characters from the Mr. Roger's Neighborhood show. If you're on the North Side, you can stop by Commonwealth Coffee and walk over to Randyland (https://www.discovertheburgh.com/randyland/) Riding the incline can be fun, there are two in the city that offer nice views. If you're near Pitt's campus, there are some lovely green spaces and Schenley Plaza has a carousel. Pamela's Diner has amazing breakfast (multiple locations) and very kid friendly. |
Anonymous
| In Oakland Carnegie museum has some of the best dinosaur exhibits in the country!! |
Anonymous
| +1 to the Children's Museum, Incline, and Carnegie Museum. Depending on the exact dates, weather, and your family's interest in sports I may recommend going to a Pirates game. The tickets are usually pretty cheap because the team is so bad, so it isn't heartbreaking if you leave early. The stadium is easy to get to and has a nice view of the city. My sisters and I loved the pierogi races when we were very young and it's easy to walk around with a toddler there. |
Anonymous
| The Aviary is awesome |
Anonymous
|
I live in Pittsburgh! And I have three little kids; I'm your girl. Depending on how long you're here you might want to check out Idlewild Park. It's an amusement park in the middle of the woods - feels very back in time, and very geared toward families and smaller children. There's Story Book Forest, Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood, and my personal favorite, Jumpin' Jungle which has a giant ball pit, lots of things to climb, balls you can make float in the air. Great little rides perfect for toddlers, too. It's about an hour from the city of Pittsburgh. https://toddlingtraveler.com/2019/07/09/idlewild-with-a-toddler/
I second the Children's Museum - we have a membership to all of the big kids attractions here (Museum of Natural History, Heinz History Center, National Aviary, Carnegie Science Center, Pittsburgh Zoo, Phipps Conservatory) and by far the Children's Museum is the kids' most requested place to go. They never tire of it. I also second a Pirates game - the park is gorgeous and it's a nice experience. Have fun; I love my city. |
Anonymous
Idlewild Park is great for little kids (and my tweens still like the water park). Just know that the giant ball pit at Jumpin Jungle has been closed since 2021. |
Anonymous
| The Grandview Bakery is close to the top of the Monongahela incline stop. It's under a mile from there to the Dusquene incline station, and there's the Mount Washington branch of the library along the way (closed Sundays) if you need a restroom/picture book break along the way! My toddler niece enjoyed the Heinz History Center because she loves ketchup and there is a big display about it there. |
Anonymous
| Prantl's bakery is an institution. The burnt almond torte is really good. The one on East Ohio Street is close to the children's museum. |
Anonymous
With a toddler?? Ugh no way. |
Anonymous
|
Reviving this thread as we are stopping in Pittsburgh this summer. We had just planned to do a day on our way elsewhere, maybe like 36 hours but when we started researching it looked like there’s tons of toddler friendly stuff to do. How long should we stay to do the must dos? We’ll have a 9 month old and 3 year old. Our whole trip is two weeks so we do have some time to work with.
Suggestions for a convenient neighborhood to stay in? |
Anonymous
| 2-3 days? Fit in the children’s museum for sure (do that mid week if possible) and the incline on the same day. Pirates game the next day. And the Carnegie’s- my favorite is the science museum, but my kids also love the natural history museum. If you’re going to do idlewild, that’s about a full day and a decent drive from Pittsburgh. If your kids are older you could consider kennywood or sandcastle, but don’t go with toddlers. Zoo is nice too, but if you’re from DC I’d probably skip it and just do the aviary- which is right next to the children’s museum. For places to stay- hmm- I know mostly Shadyside area or squirrel hill, but you’d need a car for all these anyway. |