Last-minute kid-friendly trip ideas for MLK weekend?

[Anonymous]

Dither charlottesville children's museum is definitely geared towards younger kids. Four may be the top end of finding it fu for an extended period of time. It's small, the exhibits are small, and one can go through it quickly.

[Anonymous]

We have done Charlottesville weekend trips twice and love it. Wineries, Monticello, the Downtown Mall, children's museum down there, lots of good local restaurants, can walk around UVA campus, etc.

We've also done Pittsburgh and it was AMAZING. I could not believe how awesome Pittsburgh was when I had all along had this really bleak view of it as being a grimy rust belt city with nothing to do.

Richmond also has a lot going on.

We're doing the same thing and I think we're shooting for Norfolk/Va Beach this time. Great Dismal Swamp, USS Wisconsin, Norfolk Botanical Garden, etc.

[Anonymous]

Just saw someone else's rec'd Charlottesville... no offense, but aside from the Children's Museum, don't use their list. There's a LOT of nice little local restaurants in Cville- you don't need to eat at Mellow Mushroom or Cici's. Revolutionary Soup, The Nook (old fashioned diner), Eppie's, Citizen Burger Bar, Bodo's Bagels, Albemarle Baking Co are all good local options, some of which are right on the Downtown Mall. You also don't need to do a Bounce House there- there's lots to do that you can only do in Cville.

In addition to Monticello, there's Ashlawn-Highland right up the road from there, which was James Monroe's home.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just saw someone else's rec'd Charlottesville... no offense, but aside from the Children's Museum, don't use their list. There's a LOT of nice little local restaurants in Cville- you don't need to eat at Mellow Mushroom or Cici's. Revolutionary Soup, The Nook (old fashioned diner), Eppie's, Citizen Burger Bar, Bodo's Bagels, Albemarle Baking Co are all good local options, some of which are right on the Downtown Mall. You also don't need to do a Bounce House there- there's lots to do that you can only do in Cville.

In addition to Monticello, there's Ashlawn-Highland right up the road from there, which was James Monroe's home.

My list of restaurants was geared toward our picky peanut allergic dd and our other picky dd. Cici's isn't great, but they love that everything there is peanut free - even the brownies, and we have always had a good allergen free meal at Mellow Mushroom. I would love to expand our dining list if we didn't have food allergies to worry about.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. I'll (sheepishly) disclose that I'm actually originally from the Tidewater area, but moved away at 21, and have only moved back to the mid-Atlantic region recently. So have no idea what activities would be appropriate for a 4yo down that way.

Wouldn't a kid who just turned 4 be a bit young for Jamestown etc.? I'm kind of liking some of the Richmond animal exhibit ideas--however, growing up I always heard Richmond was king of a high-crime area? I guess there must be some nice areas, like any city..

We're going on our first trip abroad with the kid soon after, so looking for a cheapo MLK weekend. Thanks so much for the recs so far--please keep them coming!

We didn't have any problems with crime in Richmond. We did Maymount and the zoo. The zoo there is nice because they have giraffes that you can feed and also a small zipline course for kids. The day we went to Maymount was a lovely Spring day, and it was well attended by families having fun. We stayed out in the suburbs to save money. I would recommend this hotel. It is also near Skye Zone Trampoline that looked like a lot of fun, but we didn't make it there.

http://hamptoninn3.hilton.com/en/hotels/virginia/hampton-inn-richmond-midlothian-turnpike-RICMDHX/index.html

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have done Charlottesville weekend trips twice and love it. Wineries, Monticello, the Downtown Mall, children's museum down there, lots of good local restaurants, can walk around UVA campus, etc.

We've also done Pittsburgh and it was AMAZING. I could not believe how awesome Pittsburgh was when I had all along had this really bleak view of it as being a grimy rust belt city with nothing to do.

Richmond also has a lot going on.

We're doing the same thing and I think we're shooting for Norfolk/Va Beach this time. Great Dismal Swamp, USS Wisconsin, Norfolk Botanical Garden, etc.

Any wineries in the Charlottesville area that seemed kid friendly?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have done Charlottesville weekend trips twice and love it. Wineries, Monticello, the Downtown Mall, children's museum down there, lots of good local restaurants, can walk around UVA campus, etc.

We've also done Pittsburgh and it was AMAZING. I could not believe how awesome Pittsburgh was when I had all along had this really bleak view of it as being a grimy rust belt city with nothing to do.

Richmond also has a lot going on.

We're doing the same thing and I think we're shooting for Norfolk/Va Beach this time. Great Dismal Swamp, USS Wisconsin, Norfolk Botanical Garden, etc.

Any wineries in the Charlottesville area that seemed kid friendly?

We did Pippin Hill and Jefferson and both were very kid friendly. Jefferson a bit more than Pippin Hill only because it's less crowded/popular but both were fine. Kids saw a bride and groom having a first look in the vineyards at Pippin Hill and thought it was the coolest thing ever. It by far has the better view as well. I imagine Blenheim, Dave Matthews' winery, is also pretty family friendly but haven't been so can't confirm on experience.

[Anonymous]

Most wineries and breweries in the area are kid friendly. Many are own or ran by people with kids.

Blenheim is lovely and kid friendly, but if it's cold, the tasting building is on the smaller side and gets crowded, so for younger kids it could be more difficult.

King Family Vineyards in Crozet, Early Mountain Winery in Madison, Blue Mountain Brewery & Devils Backbone (brewery) in Nelson County are kid friendly.


Agree there are many, local restaurants that are kid friendly, no need for chains, unless you have a specific need.

[Anonymous]

Wintergreen resort. It is 45 minutes from Charottesville. They have skiing, tubing, ice skating.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Here's my list for Richmond.

Maymont Children’s Farm and Children’s Farm Barn features rare breeds of domesticated farm animals while the Maymont Wildlife Exhibits provide outdoor habitats for native Virginia wildlife including black bear, bison, fox, bobcat, birds of prey, White-tail and sika deer. The Nature & Visitor Center features James River exhibits, interactive galleries, 20-foot waterfall, fish, turtles, owls, river otters and more. Also on site are an Italian and Japanese Garden, a Carriage Collection; an Arboretum and a Café.

Zoo
8300 Beaver Bridge Rd, Moseley, VA 23120
[phone]

Children’s museum - Phone: [phone] • Fax: [phone]
CMoR Central: 2626 West Broad St. • Richmond, VA 23220
CMoR Short Pump: 2200 Old Brick Rd. • Glen Allen, VA 23060
CMoR Chesterfield: 6629 Lake Harbour Dr. • Midlothian, VA 23112
http://www.c-mor.org/
Science museum – 2500 west broad street, Richmond, va 23220, 804-864-1400
http://www.smv.org/visit/admission

No op but also interested in short day trip. What is the difference between all these addresses for children's museum in Richmond? Are these all close to each other or different museums in separate locations?

What would you choose Richmond or Philadelphia children's museum? I keep reading on these boards how great they are but didn't go to either. My kids are 3 and 7.

Thanks

[Anonymous]

We're heading to Pittsburgh. Not a bad drive and it really is nice.

[Anonymous]

We went to Williamsburg with a 3 and 5 year old. We bundled up and did the Jamestown Discovery center (museum, fort, Indian village and ship), a walk to the tip of Jamestown island, The Yorktown Victory Center (farm animals, renactors fire a musket in a Revolutionary camp setup) and Yorktown Pub, walked Williamsburg for one afternoon (spent too much time at the hotel indoor pool and jacuzzi, went to a little white sand beach at the marina at Kingsmill, would have liked to go to "Kidsburg" playground (MidCounty Park) and one of the James River plantations but we ran out of time. Nice if it is sunny and bearably warm.
Have been researching Davis, WV/Canaan Valley, they say the XC ski place and both downhill resorts are open and the mechanized sledding hill at Blackwater Falls State Park is prob. open too. Winter fun and hiking.