| Norton Museum |
| 1451 S. Olive Ave, WPB |
| 832-5196 |
|
| www.norton.org |
|
 So you're in the Norton, walking around looking at beautiful artwork, maybe you're there to catch the latest exhibit. Suddenly a scream rips through the air - it sounds so bad you think any minute guards are going to be rushing past you. Nope, it's just me with my kids. To me the Norton means "Bring the kids." It's "let's go count the 'babies' in the sea room." I have taken the kids to see the Dale Chihuly exhibit (twice), Red Grooms, various costume exhibits, impressionists, quilts. There was once a little mini exhibit with things made out paper - a paper pirate ship. We totally freaked my daughter out with the statue of a man that looks completely real. They move him around so you never know where he'll turn up. |
|
| Flagler Museum |
| One Whitehall Way, Palm Beach |
| 655-2833 |
|
| www.flaglermuseum.us |
|
 Back in the day when you really wanted to visit the Flagler, it wasn't air conditioned. Phew. Those days are long gone. Thank goodness. I love the Flagler Museum. |
|
| Johnson History Museum |
| 300 N. Dixie Hwy, WPB |
| 832-4164 |
|
| www.historicalsocietypbc.org |
|
 This museum is the first county-wide history museum in Palm Beach County. It’s great to go and learn about the area - it’s also perfect for school age kids. The wonderful-amazing thing about this museum is it’s located in the old 1916 Courthouse. I used to work downtown and I remember the nasty old building that wrapped around (and all over) the original building. I can’t believe the building now. It’s fantastic and I’m so impressed that people in the Palm Beach area valued it enough to work so hard at getting it fixed up.
|
|
| Eaton Fine Art |
| 435 Gardenia St., WPB |
| 833-4766 |
|
| www.eatonart.net |
|
 I’ve driven by this gallery for ages but, silly me, I’ve never investigated it. What a mistake. This gallery blurs the line between gallery and museum. The one acre sculpture garden reminds me a little of the Ann Norton Sculpture Garden. It’s worth going or checking on the website first and seeing what their current exhibitions are.
I wonder if they rent out their garden for wedding receptions.... |
|
| Chesterfield Hotel for Tea |
| 363 Cocoanut Row, PB |
| 659-5800 |
|
| www.chesterfieldpb.com |
|
 As Eloise says (in threes) I love, love, love doing this. You have to call an make a reservation but it's worth having to plan ahead. The Chesterfield knows how to do tea. The only time I ever had tea that was better than this was at someone's house in Palm Beach who's from England (funny story - I didn't know tea could have so much caffeine in it - I COULD not stop talking after one cup of tea, I thought I had had one of those energy drinks). Anyway, the Chesterfield is such a treat to go to. Little tip, my husband's grandmother goes there a lot for lunch and bridge and she says it's usually freezing so you might want to take a sweater. |
|
| WannaDo City |
| 12801 West Sunrise Boulevard Anchor D |
|
| Sunrise, FL 33323 |
| 1-888-WANNADO |
|
| www.wannadocity.com |
|
 Yes, I know, this is really pushing it for driving far from Palm Beach, but when you have nothing else to do to entertain a bunch of kids you will be glad you know about this place. I really think the ideal age for kids to go here is just before kindergarten through maybe 10 years old. I once spent seven hours here. The whole point of this place is that kids pretend to be different things. At the fire station they get to be fire fighters and put out a pretend fire. If you want to go to the beauty salon you can either do someone's nails or have your nails done. There's a Publix, police station, airplane, tv studio, newspaper, courtroom, climbing wall, jewelry store, bakery and lots of other places in the "city" which is all indoors. It's attached to Sawgrass Mills Mall and there are lots of places to eat if you don't want to eat the food inside WannaDo City. One other really nice thing about it is that the kids wear arm bands as well as the adult with them. At any time you can scan your arm band and see where everyone else in your group is. Also, none of the kids can leave the facility without the adult. When I used to take my two older kids I would sit in the adult lounge (equipped with computers that hook up to the internet and tvs and coffee bar) and hang out while the kids would run around like crazy. This place is worth the drive and the money. In some ways I think it's better than Disney because the kids participate in the activities. They're not just being entertained. |
|
| Museum of Science and Discovery |
| 401 SW 2nd St., Ft. Lauderdale |
| (954)467-MODS |
|
| www.mods.org |
|
 Okay, I know this is way out of the area for things to do around town but if it's like July and you've done everything else, drive down to Ft. Lauderdale to this museum. We been here so many times I actually have restaurants I like to go to when I go down there (Noodles Panini and Crossain' Time). Downstairs is a great section for smaller kids. There's a big swamp tree that the kids climb up that goes all the way up to the ceiling. There's also a building that can be constructed and taken apart. The best bit is an orange grove with plastic oranges that the kids take out and put on conveyor belts. There's also live critters downstairs. Upstairs is science and learning activities for older kids. This museum also has an IMAX theater (which makes me sick so I've only done once). |
|
| South Florida Science Museum |
| 4801 Dreher Trail North, WPB |
| 832-1988 |
|
| sfsm.org |
|
 This small museum, located right behind the zoo, is a great way to spend a couple of hours with the kids. I've gone on numerous occasions for birthday parties, field trips (they dissect sharks there, ew!), and for special exhibits. I think the best age for kids is elementary to middle school. I brought my two year old, but were were pretty much stuck at the bubble section for a good part of our time there.
Make sure you check out their website for their current exhibits, I've missed some good ones because I wasn't up-to-date on it (I know, I actually miss out on some things that go on around here).
|
|
| Schoolhouse Children's Museum in Boynton Beach |
| 1290 E. Ocean Ave., Boynton Beach |
| 742-6780 |
|
| www.schoolhousemuseum.org |
|
 This is a great little children's museum east of the interstate in the old part of Boynton Beach. I don't recommend it for older kids. I think the best age is pre-school up to kindergarten (maybe 1st). It's in a wonderful old building and there's a fantastic playground next door.
There are usually activities going on during the week at the museum so it's worth checking out the website before you go. |
|
| A Latte Fun |
| 9820 Alt. A1A #206, PBG |
| 627-1782 |
|
| www.alattefun.com |
|
 Woohoo! This is a whole lotta "Was that my kid running past?" This is going to be a new regular on our schedule. It’s an indoor, which believe me sometimes you really need, play place located in the Promenade shopping center. To put that in PBChick terms - super close to the mall and Paul’s and Five Guys. There’s a big inflatable slide, a trampoline that’s the same level with the floor, a slide that goes into a foam pit, a play kitchen area, a dress up area and places scattered around with other toys. It seemed to me that the ideal age was up to four or five. Every time I tried to grab my two year old she would just bounce off of me and go in another direction.
As you can tell by the name, they have coffee and gourmet treats too.
|
|
| Society of the Four Arts Story Time |
| Four Arts Plaza off Royal Palm Way (in Rovensky building) |
| 655-2776 |
|
| www.fourarts.org |
|
 This is one of the staples of our week. Usually storytime is on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays but they're not usually held in August and September. When it's a special day, like when the firemen come or when there is a petting zoo, it can get really crowded. But, most of the time it's calm. There's always a craft afterwards. We love going here. There's also a little playroom for toddlers and computers for older kids. |
|
| WPB Library Story time |
| 100 Clematis St., WPB |
| 868-7700 |
|
| www.wpbpl.com |
|
 I'm not as certain of the schedule at the West Palm library but I love storytime here. The times I've been, I've found it to be a much smaller crowd than at Four Arts (which sometimes you're in the mood for). The person leading it gave new people laminated cards with songs so that we could sing them at home and everyone got a copy of the book that was being read. |
|
| Armory Art Center |
| 1700 Parker Ave., WPB |
| 673-7530 |
|
| www.armoryart.org |
|
 If you're visiting, I don't know if the Armory will have activities that you can drop in on, but if you live here, the Armory is something you have to learn about. If you have kids, they have wonderful art classes and camps in the summer. If you're interested in classes for yourself, they have a whole schedule for adults (hopefully the Armory will be around long enough for me to take some of these). |
|
| Calypso Bay |
| 151 Lamstein Lane, Royal Palm Beach |
| 790-6160 |
|
| www.co.palm-beach.fl.us/parks/aquatics/waterparks/calypsobay |
|
 Even though we're in South Florida, you can really only enjoy this park in the summer. I've been early in the year and cold water isn't much fun. This water park is great because it's affordable and the size is manageable if you're in charge of the kids by yourself. It's owned by the county, that's why the price is reasonable (not cheap but do-able). There are two big slides, a lazy river, a huge pool and a big playground set in a shallow pool for smaller kids. There are also lifeguards everywhere which helps keep things under control. A good thing to do is to go early to the park then leave and eat somewhere decent and then go back for round two. Also, another tip, rent a locker so you don't worry about your stuff getting stolen. That tip sounds a little negative, but I highly recommend this park. |
|
| Palm Beach Zoo at Dreher Park |
| 1301 Summit Blvd., WPB |
| 533-0887 |
|
| www.palmbeachzoo.org |
|
 I'm going to be really non pc - I'm not an animal lover. I can't really fake it so I'm not going to even try. But, in the past year I've been to the zoo three or four times. That's, I don't know, shocking for someone like me. In recent years this zoo has been expanded and renovated so it doesn't feel rinky dink. They've let the trees grow so there's plenty of shade too (very important). I love the pre-Colombian area (great photo-op), the bats are gross although the kids love them, there are some very frisky otters, a lazy bear, loads of other animals, and best of all, what adds an hour to our visit, a water fountain the little kids can cool off in. One year my son did a summer camp here too which he loved so that's another thing worth checking out. |
|
| Sugar Sand Park |
| 300 S. Military Trail, Boca Raton |
| 561-347-3900 |
|
| www.sugarsandpark.org |
|
 I recently visited Sugar Sand for the first time and really enjoyed it. Boca (locals almost never say Boca Raton - don't know why) seems like it has a really strong parks system. Sugar Sand has loads of activities. First, there's a great carousel. I noticed in the list of events they had that there was something for Valentine's Day centered around the carousel with a chocolate desert and some other things - how cute. There's also an incredible playground. It's all wood and it must be three levels. Don't worry, there's an area for smaller kids too. If that isn't enough, there's a science exhibit inside for children to do and it's free (I kept expecting someone to ask me for some money but they didn't). Def worth the drive.
|
|
| Recreation Center in Palm Beach |
| 340 Seaview Ave, Palm Beach |
| 838-5485 |
|
The rec center is like the center of Palm Beach (in my opinion). If you go sometime during the week and hang out for a while, you're going to pretty much see everybody (including Rod Stewart). I haven't seen Donald Trump there but I don't know if he exercises but don't worry, I'm sure his new baby will be signed up for stuff soon.
Anyway, if you're just in town for a bit, there's a playground. I don't know if you can drop in on any classes (like Gymboree or grown-up classes) but you might want to ask. There's also an incredible tennis program there. My kids do tennis camp there in the summer and love it. During the school year there's soccer, basketball, tumbling (for younger kids), and lots of others. We did soccer and basketball for a number of years. |
|
| Gym Like This |
| 3900 Fiscal Ct WPB |
| 842-8488 |
|
| www.gymlikethis.com |
|
 So this is one of my new favorite places. It's a great gym for gymnastics, cheerleading and kids play programs. I took my daughter and she loved it. She was so excited about all of the different activities that she ended up just skipping around in circles.
The classes go in sessions so make sure you call or check their website to find out when they're starting.
|
|
| Bike Trail in Palm Beach |
|
 The bike trail starts in Palm Beach at the Royal Palm Way bridge (there's a little bit of it on the south side if you want to ride on it to Worth Ave but it's so short it doesn't really count). It goes all the way up to the inlet, when you're just across a little bit of water from Singer Island. There are some great spots along the trail. There's the "big tree" at the Poinciana Chapel. Then right next door is the Flagler museum. While you're there look at the sign in front of Seagull Cottage. It claims to be the oldest house in Palm Beach. Then you can keep following the trail north along the edge of the Breakers golf course. If you didn't bring any drinks with you you can stop at Publix for something. The only tricky bit is around there - I don't think the crosswalk sign is long enough - I end up yelling to the kids as we're going across "Just keep going - Hurry!" From Publix north is easy breezy. Just past the location of the first Bethesda church there's a sign for the "other" oldest house in Palm Beach. There's also a sign further along marking the location of the first post office. I love taking the kids for a bike ride along the trail. It's great to ride along the water (once we saw a manatee). If you are feeling energetic, it's a great place to go running or rollerblading in the morning. I do advise against rollerblading over the bridge though. I had a learning experience about that once, fortunately I didn't break anything or get sued. |
|
| Jonathan Dickinson State Park |
| 16450 S.E. Federal Highway, Hobe Sound |
| 746-1466 |
|
| www.floridastateparks.org/jonathandickinson |
|
 This is quite a drive if you're coming from central Palm Beach County but it's good if you're looking for Florida like it used to be. There are great bike trails (although very, very sandy so be careful), also walking paths (better in winter), and a boat ride you can take. In the interest of full disclosure, watch out for the alligators. This pushes my outdoor girl impulses but enjoy. |
|
| Jupiter Lighthouse |
| 500 Captain Armour's Way, Jupiter |
| 747-8380 |
|
| www.jupiterlighthouse.org |
|
 Okay, I've never done this but I want to. When my son's class went I was pregnant and in one of those "Yeah right, I'm not walking more than five feet from my car" moods. I love the idea of lighthouses. Especially now that they're completely useless. Just like a Prada bag. No, I don't need a $1400 bag but isn't it beautiful? |