By Lindsay

Got littles to entertain? Here are some of the best places to take them in Northern Virginia:

Hal & Berni Hanson Park in Aldie

This is probably the nicest playground in the area. There are two playgrounds to choose from; one is visible from the main road & the other is across the street from the nature center.

The playground visible from the main road is geared toward younger children.

The playground by the nature center has a toddler area & areas for older children. Track wildlife prints in the cement leading to statues of our local wildlife at this playground.

At both playgrounds, search for hidden animals in the rock structures of the equipment. Both playgrounds feature rubber instead of mulch, which seasoned parents tend to appreciate!

In the summer, enjoy a splash pad with different animal shaped water features located beside the playground across from the nature center.

Ellanor Lawrence Park & Walney Pond in Centreville Virginia

Park at the pond & enjoy a short hike with easy terrain for littles to the nature center to visit animals & enjoy nature themed activities. A wonderful new playground was recently installed across the street from the pond at the sully woodlands stewardship center. It is nature themed featuring native wildlife play structures, musical flowers & trees, giant Lincoln logs, a slide, a rock climbing structure, a balance beam, & more. Children’s activities are regularly held at the nature center. Both the nature center & the stewardship center have real bathrooms.

Frying Pan Park in Herndon

There is no entrance fee to visit Frying Pan Park. At the farm you will be able to visit friendly farm animals, walk around in fresh air, play on a play ground, shop the general store, and ride a wagon or carousel (for a fee). Check their schedule of events to watch horse shows, kids events & classes, 4H events, & more. Mostly gravel surfaces & some mud is usually around so bring boots & a stroller or wagon with good tires. There are real bathrooms on site.

Cox Farms in Centreville

A generational tradition in NOVA, Cox Farms offers basic fall fun that simply cannot be topped.

The fall festival is held from September to November. Enjoy visiting foamhenge, music performances, slides, hay rides, playgrounds, petting & feeding animals, a variety of photo ops, a maze, delicious apple cider donuts & kettle corn, & picking 1 mini pumpkin (included with admission).

In the summer, visit the corner market for farm fresh produce, plants, apple cider donuts & kettle corn, a variety of unique playgrounds, fun photo ops, & “smokin’ Saturdays” barbecues.

Bobby G Pets in Dulles Mall

Bobby G Pets is an educational reptile experience, a walk through petting zoo of mostly rescued reptiles. Always staffed by approachable, knowledgeable employees who are happy to answer questions and offer a wonderful personal touch to each visit. Reptiles may be petted, held or fed for additional fees. They also host birthday parties.

Dulles mall also offers a ride on train, carousel, & other experiences.

Fire Station Tour at Evergreen Fire Station

Located at 3510 James Madison Hwy Haymarket VA 20169, Evergreen Fire Station allows walk in fire station tours! Get a personal tour of fire trucks & your very own fireman’s hat on your schedule.

Messicks’s Pick Your Own & Farm Market in Bealeton

Messick’s farm market has a variety of local goodies & gifts. Behind & around the store, you’ll find goats to feed, animals to visit, playground equipment & activities, & pick your own fields as different crops are seasonally available. Check their Facebook page during march – may to see strawberry picking availability.

Yankey Farms in Bristow

Yankey Farms in Bristow offers seasonal pick your own strawberries in the spring & pumpkins in the fall, a small play area, friendly animals to pet, wagon rides, & a corn maze in the fall. There was a fee to enter the play area & it was geared towards the preschool or toddler age group, including hay bales to climb up to slides, ride on tractors, corn sensory bins, & ride on bouncy cows. Check their Facebook page for up to date hours & if strawberry or pumpkin picking are available.

Leesburg Animal Park in Leesburg

Visit a variety of fun & friendly animals, attend a special animal show, play in 2 play rooms, & check out the cutest village of playhouses! All ya-ya’s will be expelled by the time you leave with a variety of play structures & big slides to play on. Check their website for seasonal events, too.

Great Country Farm in Bluemont

Great Country Farms could easily be a day trip because there is so much to do! Explore a large outdoor area that includes goats, mini golf, a catch & release pond (bring your own equipment), a maze, a corn play area, a ninja course, multiple playgrounds, a variety of fun activities & a bouncy area.

Ride a wagon to pick your own fruits.

Shop in the store for delicious goodies.

Hope & Serenity Farm Sanctuary in Nokesville

Hope & Serenity Farm is a sanctuary for farm animals. Not only is it fun for children to visit the animals, but the fees paid support animal rescue – win win!

The owner, Renee, is very kind & is always happy to patiently encourage children to overcome their fears of interacting with animals.

Bring snacks to feed the animals as well – again fun for littles while cleaning out your fridge & benefitting the animals.

Feed Giant Koi Fish at Blue Ribbon Koi & Marine in Catharpin

Blue Ribbon Koi & Marine sells salt water fish, corals, koi fish & speciality Betta fish.

Inside the store you can see many colorful salt water fish, which is interesting for littles. When visiting, be sure to be a polite guest by not banging against the glass of the fish tank & walking around quietly.

A visual lesson for littles is available here too; when you walk to the store from the parking lot, there are outdoor koi tanks to pass on your way in. The smallest one closest to the parking lot contains small baby koi. As you walk closer to the door, the koi get a little bigger. Then when you are at the door, if you turn right, there is a large above ground pond containing the biggest koi you’re likely to see in the area.

The most fun thing to do at this store is to visit this giant above ground pond containing the biggest koi because you can feed them!

Bring quarters to purchase handfuls of food to feed them; a gum ball machine is placed on the edge of the pond to dispense koi food. If the gum ball machine is not available, ask a clerk if you can purchase koi food to feed them, as sometimes if the machine isn’t out, you can purchase a small bag at the cash register in the store.

Most people would drop the food into the water, but you can have a more immersive experience. Koi do not have teeth, so they can even be hand fed! Fair warning, you will likely be splashed, but the pond is so well maintained it’s not the worst water to be splashed with.

The inside of their mouths feels like wet, slippery, smooth, thick cartilage, & they will suck on your fingers. If you’d like to hand feed, be sure to arrive with hands clean by soap & water then rinsed thoroughly, not coated with hand sanitizer or lotions, to keep the fish safe.

Pro tip: bring a container of water & soap, or wet ones hand wipes to wash hands at your car after hand feeding.

If you need another activity before or after you visit the koi, Catharpin Recreational Park is just a few minutes down the road from the store. This park has a high quality playground with shaded areas. It is great for getting those extra ya-yas out!

Imagine That! in Dumfries

A small but unique indoor playground, Imagine That! Features a mini village of wooden play houses. The little town features a movie theatre, fire house, pet shop/grooming salon, grocery market, cafe, school & play house, as well as a pirate ship & a castle.

Bonus! When we visited, it smelled like disinfectant when we walked in the door. 🤩

Baby Goat Snuggles at Silver Maple Goat Farm in Berryville

Silver Maple Farm offers baby goat snuggle sessions! These babies are small & tolerate snuggling quite well, making them great for littles who may be anxious about interacting with them.

Swim Kids Swimming Lessons available at multiple locations

Ensure your children have the life saving skill of swimming! Classes are available for babies (low cost), toddlers & older children.

The Little Gym available at multiple locations

Work on your children’s coordination & confidence in a fun & welcoming atmosphere with lots of padding for the inevitable spills.

Clemyjontri Park in McLean

Clemyjontri Park is known as one of the best playgrounds in NOVA. Designed specifically for kids of all abilities, everyone in your playgroup will be able to enjoy this playground. Because the playground is designed for children with disabilities to access, it’s also ideal for young children who are still learning to walk. Bonus: the ground is the pressed rubber ground, not mulch!

Dulles Kids Club at Dulles Town Center in Dulles

On the 3rd Thursday of every month, Dulles Town Center hosts Kids Club, which features a free event for kids.

This event occurs on the lower level. There is access to the lower level from outside doors if you prefer to avoid elevators.

Heritage Farm Museum in Sterling

The Heritage Farm Museum offers exhibits where children can step back in time to play & experience farm life:

• Run the wax pool general store / post office.
• Milk a life size cow & collect eggs from life size chickens.
• Read books.
• Play with a life size horse.
• Harvest fruits & veggies.
• Attend school or conduct classes in a 1 room school house.
• Prepare meals in Grandma’s kitchen.
• Explore exhibits.
• Attend special events.

The Air & Space Museum

Located in Chantilly, the Air & Space museum is a fantastic place to walk on a hot day with lots of interesting sights for littles.

Tuesdays & Thursdays at 10:30 & 11 they have a FREE story time for littles! Check the events tab on their website for more info.

Visit the gift shop or get a souvenir astronaut photo.

Pro tips: take in the bare minimums to get in efficiently as security searches bags, & after 4:00, admission is free!

Burnside Farms in Nokesville

Pick your own tulips in the spring & sunflowers in the summer at Burnside Farms. As of 2024, tickets include picking a certain number of flowers, then whatever you pick thereafter you must pay extra sore. As of 2024, children under 5 have free admission with an adult. Complimentary baskets & clippers are available at check in. Walk the fields to select your flowers & play in the play areas. The flower fields make a great location for family photo sessions! Complimentary cutting & wrapping stations are available after you’ve selected your flowers. A gift shop also offers vases & a variety of local goodies.

Indoor Water Parks

Don’t like the heat or looking for something different to do in the winter? Check out one of these indoor water parks:

• Warrenton WARF
• Claude Moore Rec Center
• Cub Run Rec Center

Goat Play Time at Hidden Gems Farm in Centreville

Hidden Gems Farm offers play time with goats by appointment on weekends.

Library Events

Check your local library’s website for story times & other children’s events.

Events at the Dulles Expo Center in Chantilly

Visit their website for a current schedule of events. Find events such as:

• Life size Dinosaur walks.
• Lego events.
• Pet events.
• Comic-cons.

The National Children’s Museum

The National Children’s Museum in DC makes STEM fun for children of all ages! It is an under taking to go, but worth it!

The Children’s Science Center

The children’s science center at fair oaks mall is mainly geared towards older children, but there were activities for younger children that my toddler enjoyed there.

Lego Discovery Center

The Lego Discovery Center is not a fun place to drive to or park at, but it is a fun place to visit for the whole family! There is something for all ages. The Duplo area for toddlers is a lot of fun & even features a slide. The attendants are kind & helpful. Create & play, then shop in the Lego store on your way out.

Get Creative

Make everyday adventures fun by being creative in ways your kids enjoy, such as:

• Pretending the car is a train, airplane or rocket ship as you drive.
• Get an activity book.
• Going on scavenger hunts when you walk around your neighborhood or favorite park. Here are some fun themed ones: bird scavenger hunt, park scavenger hunt, plant scavenger hunt, wildlife scavenger hunt, or wildlife in the water scavenger hunt.
• Making binoculars out of paper towel tubes & going on a safari in your favorite park.
• Making your own story book with construction paper, markers & stickers.

Check out my Etsy Shop Made by Mama RRR for instant digital download activities.

Preschool Activity Books

Check out my preschool activity books in my Amazon store. If you’re in Haymarket or Gainesville, Virginia, or a surrounding area, I offer same or next day delivery if you order directly from me. Message me on instagram @Madebymamarrr to order from me directly.