Children’s Museums
The Children’s Museum of Winston-Salem offers hands-on activities for kids, such as an Enchanted Forest centered on storybook themes, a donut factory and an art studio. A library provides a place to rest while reading to your children, and a kid-sized supermarket teaches lessons about healthy food choices. About 30 miles east, sets at the Greensboro Children’s Museum allow children to pretend they’re news anchors, postal workers and doctors. Chef Alice Waters of the Chez Panisse Foundation selected the museum to host the country’s first Edible Schoolyard and Teaching Kitchens. Both museums offer themed seasonal events.
Science Museums
Winston-Salem’s SciWorks offers 25,000 square feet of space in seven science halls, a 17-acre environmental park with a barnyard and otter exhibit, an auditorium and a 50-foot-tall planetarium. The museum hosts summer science camp, birthday parties and seasonal events. Attractions at the Natural Science Center of Greensboro include a zoo with monkeys and wallabies, and a 3D, domed OmniSphere Theater. Museum exhibits include an extreme weather gallery and a Kids’ Cove, where children learn about aquatic life native to North Carolina.
Sports
The Winston-Salem Dash plays minor league baseball from April through September at BB&T Ballpark. A member of the Carolina League, the team fields players for the Chicago White Sox. Family-friendly Bowl Northside is the only alcohol- and smoke-free bowling alley in Forsyth County. The 24-lane facility has a full-service restaurant, a jukebox with more than a million selections and an arcade. Head 35 miles north to Madison for a tube ride down the slow-moving Dan River. Dan River Adventures also offers kayak and canoe trips.
Arts
The Children’s Theatre of Winston-Salem (childrenstheatrews.org) stages shows for children from pre-school age to eighth grade during its October-through-April season. The company offers acting classes and workshops for kids from kindergarten age through twelfth grade, sponsors summer theater camp and hosts birthday parties. Discovery Concerts by the Winston-Salem Symphony (wssymphony.org) include kid-friendly portions of symphonic classics like “Peter and the Wolf” and the “1812 Overture.” Magicians, acting troops and music ensembles interpret the compositions for children.
Amusements
Adventure Landing (adventurelanding.com) has three miniature golf courses, a 30-game arcade and bumper boats with built-in squirt guns. Daily specials include family fun days with discounted tickets, all-you-can-play days and Sunday game days where kids wearing their teams’ colors get a deal on arcade tokens. Custom-made trampolines cover the floors and walls at Airbound Trampoline Park (airboundtrampolinepark.com). Court supervisors make sure that things don’t get out of hand, and safety pads cover the trampoline frames and springs. Party packages include trampoline time, pizza and drinks.