By Rachel Hoeing

If you have decided to stay in town for Spring Break this year and are looking for fun family ideas, have no fear! Today’s blog will give you ideas for quick day-trips as well as ideas for fun right here in the Triad. Feel free to comment below with other favorites.

Have a wonderful break and Happy Easter!

Indoor Jumping

Take the kids to any of the following places where they can run, jump, climb, and play indoors! Level Up, Rockin’ Jump GSO, Rockin’ Jump WS, Bumper Jumpers, and SkyZone

Charlotte

My family is in Charlotte at least once a month to visit family and friends, and I can say that we have never run out of things to do! Pop down to Charlotte for a few days or an afternoon and enjoy so many different activities. (Don’t forget to leave time for some great shopping!) A few of our favorite ideas: Kinetic Heights, Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden, Exit Strategy, ImaginOn, Freedom Park, Discovery Place, Discovery Place Kids, SouthPark Mall, riding the Light Rail, IKEA, catching a Charlotte Hornets game, Crowders Mountain, NASCAR Hall of Fame, Little Sugar Creek Greenway, Epicentre, Historic Latta Plantation, Carowinds, Sky High Sports, and Inner Peaks.

Parks & Playgrounds

If you are not familiar with all of the options in our area, use our directory here! It will summarize all of the favorite spots in the Triad for you and will give you tips on which parks have equipment, shade, restrooms, etc. Why not make it a challenge to visit as many new parks as you can this spring?

For the Love of Books

All of our local Barnes & Noble stores have amazing story times and family events each month. We include these on our TMoM events calendar, and you can also see the events for each specific store on their website here. The Greensboro location donates a free book to our readers each time we do a Book Nook blog giveaway. Be sure to read our Book Nook blogs here to find great recommendations for children of all ages and adults, too.

Not only can you do the obvious and stock up on some reading materials for the whole family at our local libraries, but most branches have extra events added to their calendars these next two weeks in order to accommodate for Spring Break. You will find some of these library activities on our TMoM events calendar. You can also visit each county’s website below to see a full calendar of events for the branch that is closest to you.
Alamance County
Davidson County
Davie County
Forsyth County
Greensboro/Guilford
Northwestern (Stokes, Alleghany, Surry and Yadkin)
Randolph County

Blowing Rock

Why not take a day trip to the mountains? There are tons of things to do in the Blowing Rock area, but some of our family’s favorites include: gem mining, walking along the main street and shopping, hiking at Herbron Rock Colony, enjoying Bass Lake, finding excitement at High Gravity Adventures, driving along the Parkway (be sure to stop at Price Park), hiking up to The Blowing Rock, visiting Tweetsie Railroad and shopping at the outlets. You can also visit Grandfather Mountain, which is only about 20 minutes from Blowing Rock.

Easter Egg Hunts & Visiting with the Bunny

You can find plenty of Easter Egg Hunts and opportunities for photos with the Easter Bunny on our Events Calendar here and our Egg Hunt list here. Another cute idea is to take a Easter Bunny Train Ride at the NC Transportation Museum in Spencer!

Arts & Crafts

Pull out the glitter and glue! You’ve got the time, and fingers crossed that the weather will be nice and you can do this outside! Check out our Crafts section and find some unique crafts for every age. Of course you can visit Pinterest for a plethora of craft ideas as well. If you want to take the art out of the house, you will love Painted Grape, ArtQuest Studios at Greenhill Center , Wine & Design, Merlot & Van Gogh, Color & Coffee, An Originals By You, Little Blank Canvas or The Mad Platter! All fabulous fun, even for teens and tweens!

Animal Fun

Kids of all ages love to see animals! North Carolina has a great mix of zoos where you can view the animals from afar, as well as unique habitats where you can get up close and personal with animals. Check these places out!
Aloha Safari Zoo
All-a-Flutter Butterfly Farm
Carolina Raptor Center
Conservators Center
Dan Nicholas Park
Greensboro Science Center
Homeland Creamery
Kaleideum North
Lazy 5 Ranch
North Carolina Zoo
Zootastic Park

Take Me out to the Ballgame

Both the Winston-Salem Dash and the Greensboro Grasshoppers are already back on the ball field! There are plenty of home games to catch over break. Visit their websites to view their schedules and also get the details on upcoming special family events. (Burlington Royals start their games in June and Hi Toms begin in May, so be sure to check our Event Calendar to stay in the loop!)

Stone Mountain State Park

Not to be confused with Stone Mountain in GA, this area is tucked away right here in NC. Located in Roaring Gap, NC, you can arrive at this destination in 1-2 hours from the Triad. This is one of the most peaceful and serene places for hiking, camping and enjoying nature. There is a 600 foot granite dome that you will see on your hike. The view is breathtaking! You can also fish and rock climb while you are here.  This is one of my favorite places for tent camping, and also has spots for RV’s. Get all the details on their website here.

Boone

I am biased because I went to Appalachian State, but the mountains near Boone are just gorgeous. It is right next to Blowing Rock, so if you choose to do a weekend, you can hit some of the venues I mentioned above as well as spend a day in Boone. One of our favorite things to do is tour the campus, which changes every time we go. We love to visit the Mast General Store and stock up on clothing for mom and dad and candy for the kids!  For lunch, our family loves Boone Bagelry and Macados. We also like to drive up to Howard Knob, which gives you an amazing view of Boone and the ASU campus. Right outside of town you can also visit Mystery Hill. In all my years of being in Boone, I have never been here, but have heard from many that it is worth popping by.

US National Whitewater Center

This is such a fun venue for families, especially those who have teens who may never want to do anything! It’s located in south Charlotte, so you can easily turn it into a few days of exploring the Queen City if you wish. Visit their website here to get details on zip-lining, outdoor concerts, whitewater rafting, paddleboarding, kayaking, rope climbing and more!

Museum Fun

We’ve got hands-on museums, kids museums, history museums, you name it! The local ones are a great idea especially if you have friends visiting from out of town. They will be amazed at what our Triad area has to offer.  Many of these will also have Easter activities this weekend. Be sure to visit the gardens at Reynolda House. They are beautiful!
Charlotte Nature Museum
Children’s Museum of Alamance County
Greensboro Children’s Museum
High Point Museum
Kaleideum Downtown
Marbles Kids Museum (Raleigh)
Museum of Anthropology
Museum of Life and Science (Durham) 
NC Museum of History  (Raleigh)
NC Museum of Natural Sciences  (Raleigh)
NC Transportation Museum (Spencer)
Morehead Planetarium and Science Center (Chapel Hill)
Old Salem Museum and Gardens
Reynolda House Museum of American Art

If you need even more ideas, visit our Directories page to search for anything else you may need. In addition, click the Recreation tab to see blogs on additional Day Trips, Camping, Arts & Crafts, Vacations, and more!

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