Fort Lauderdale is a great place to visit with your family, with many exciting things to do with kids, from beaches and parks to zoos and museums. The city is home to many family-friendly attractions, such as the Aquarium of the Atlantic, Florida Aquarium, and Atlantis Submarine Adventures. These places will provide hours of entertainment for your whole family!
We’ll show you some of our favorites!
- Bluefoot Pirate Adventures
Bluefoot Pirate Adventures is a family-friendly attraction in Fort Lauderdale that offers an interactive pirate adventure for kids, families, and adults alike. Located on the beachfront at Fort Lauderdale Beachfront Park, this activity will have you playing pirates, exploring new lands, and learning all about what it means to be a pirate!
The activities include:
- Swinging on ropes (ages 8+)
- Climbing up onto the ship’s rigging (ages 9–12)
- Tying knots with ropes (ages 12+)
- EZride Surf School
EZride Surf School is a fun place for kids and adults alike. The surf school offers lessons on how to surf, including beginner courses, intermediate classes, and advanced classes. They also offer board rentals for those interested in trying new skills at the beach or pool.
If you want more than just learning how to surf, there’s also an option for group trips where groups can meet and travel together while knowing about different waves worldwide!
- Butterfly World
This attraction is a must-visit place if you’re looking for an indoor tropical garden full of butterflies and insects. Butterfly World is a butterfly conservatory that houses more than 1,000 species worldwide. You can see them flying around in their habitat and take photos with them! They also have some unique exhibits if you want to learn more about these fantastic creatures. Kids love it because there’s always something new to see at any given time: maybe it’ll be a monarch butterfly or even a giant water bug swimming around. You never know what will happen next!
- Funderdome
If you and your kids love playing with balls, there is no better place to go than Funderdome. This indoor playground has a ball pit, climbing wall and slides, and trampolines that are perfect for bouncing around. There’s also an area where you can try out your balance by walking on some rope bridges or balancing yourself on the handles of spinning balls while they spin around (if this sounds fun).
Funderdome is open during the day and evening, so parents can take advantage of its fun activities while their little ones have fun at home on their own! The facility offers classes for ages 3 – 12th grade, which teach children about health & fitness issues through interactive games. These games include physical activity like jumping jacks or running laps around campus which helps develop healthy habits later on in life when it comes time for college applications or job interviews later down the road.”
- Fort Lauderdale Sun Trolley
The Fort Lauderdale Sun Trolley is free to get around Fort Lauderdale. It runs all day, every day, and stops at many tourist attractions. You can hop on the trolley to go from one attraction to another without worrying about parking or walking for a long.
The trolley is wheelchair accessible, so this might be an option if you have kids with mobility problems!
The trolley runs every day, from 9 am to 10 pm. The main route runs from the Port Everglades Cruise Terminal in downtown Fort Lauderdale, through Las Olas Boulevard, and down to the beach. You can get off the ride and return to another trolley in a different direction.
- Sawgrass Recreation Park
Sawgrass Recreation Park, the largest Park in Broward County, is an excellent place to spend a day with your family. The park has 18 holes, a driving range and tennis courts, an 18-hole disc golf course, and a skatepark. Numerous picnic spots allow you to bring food or drinks to enjoy your stay there!
The park also has a dedicated part as a dog park, where you can bring your furry friend to play! The dog park is in the southwest corner of the grounds.
The park is also home to a beautiful lake, which is the perfect place for swimming or fishing. The lake is famous for being well stocked with bass, catfish, and bluegill so that you can catch your dinner! Two pavilions are available at the park: one that seats 200 people and another that seats 50 people. The picnic areas are also available for rent (depending on availability).
- Young At Art Museum
Young At Art Museum is a non-profit art museum for children in Fort Lauderdale. The museum features interactive exhibits, workshops, and art classes. There are also special events like their annual summer concert series or Art Camp for kids ages 4–12 who come together to create original works of art!
The Young At Art Museum gallery space features interactive exhibits such as a butterfly garden, pirate ship, and dollhouse—they’re great places to explore with your little ones! They also have a tea party area where you can make snacks while waiting for someone else’s turn to be an artist (or maybe just an observer).
- Las Olas Gondola Tours
Las Olas Gondola Tours is a must-experience and a great way to see the city. The boat is air-conditioned and wheelchair accessible, so it’s perfect for anyone who wants to get around Fort Lauderdale without worrying about getting overheated or lost. Las Olas Gondola also has a snack bar on board where you can get food while enjoying your ride through the city’s beautiful waterways.
The boat tours are also a great way to see the city above since you can look down on the buildings and people below. The time lasts about an hour and a half and takes you through Fort Lauderdale’s beautiful waterways.
- Hugh Taylor Birch State Park
This attraction is a beautiful state park in Florida. It is located in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and named for Hugh Taylor Birch, a state senator from Fort Lauderdale. The park encompasses over 6,000 acres of land and offers miles of hiking trails along saltwater canals that Native Americans once used as burial grounds.
The park has many dedicated picnic areas with grills or fire pits; there are also playgrounds for kids to play on while they’re there!
- Museum of Discovery and Science
The Museum of Discovery and Science is an excellent option if you’re looking for fun things to do in Fort Lauderdale with kids. The museum is located on the beach at 1725 Oakland Park Boulevard and features interactive exhibits allowing visitors to have adventurous learning about different animals and plants.
The aquarium features sharks, dolphins, and sea turtles; there’s also a butterfly garden if you want to see butterflies up close! You can also check out other aquariums around Florida if this one isn’t your thing (they’re all super cool).
The museum is open 9 am-5 pm daily except on Monday when it’s closed until 4 pm. There’s no parking lot nearby, so plan!
- Bonnet House Museum and Gardens
Bonnet House Museum and Gardens is an excellent place for kids to learn about the history of Fort Lauderdale. It’s open every week except Sunday so you can visit any time.
The museum has many exhibits that fascinate your kiddos, including photographs from old newspapers and postcards from famous visitors like Elvis Presley and John F Kennedy. Your family may also enjoy learning about how pirates lived at this location as an important port city in South Florida during its heyday.
After touring the museum, take a walk through their gardens (which have been restored to look just like they did when built initially), then finish with dessert at one of their restaurants!
- Flamingo Gardens
Flamingo Gardens is a botanical garden in Davie, Florida. The gardens are open to the public and home to many different types of birds and animals. They also have a bunch of plant varieties that you can see!
They have a butterfly habitat, and you can see many different butterflies there! They also have many kinds of animals and plants that you can see.
They have a lot of different types of plants, flowers, and trees that you can see in the gardens. They even have a butterfly habitat where you can see many other butterflies! They also have an aloe garden where they grow aloe vera plants.
- Fort Lauderdale Beaches
The beach is excellent for walking, catching rays, and relaxing. There are many beaches to choose from in Fort Lauderdale, but you can’t go wrong with them! On all of them, you’ll find plenty of things to do: swimming, surfing or just playing in the sand.
Beaches are great because they provide both physical activity and relaxation simultaneously. You can enjoy yourself while moving your body, letting your mind wander as you stare out at the ocean, or watch kids playing together on the sand or water’s edge (or maybe even their parents!).
The beaches in Fort Lauderdale are beautiful, clean, and accessible. You shall find a beach that fits your needs, whether you want to go swimming or relax with friends, family, or a significant other. You’ll find some of the fantastic and beautiful beaches in Florida right here!
- Jungle Queen Riverboat
The Jungle Queen Riverboat is a great way to see the city from above. As you cruise down the New River, you’ll see manatees, dolphins, and other wildlife, including alligators and crocodiles. It’s also an excellent way to get some exercise if your kids don’t mind getting their feet wet (you should keep an eye on them).
The food on board is delicious too! You can order lunch or dinner at one of Jungle Queen’s restaurants, which serve delicious Caribbean cuisine like Jamaican jerk chicken or pork sandwiches with macaroni salad on top! If that doesn’t sound like something your family would enjoy eating together, then perhaps another option would be ordering some drinks – they have plenty of them available too!
- Intercoastal Waterway Water Taxi
The Intercoastal Waterway Water Taxi is a great way to get around the city. It’s like an old-fashioned trolley that takes you from one point to another, except it floats on water!
The Intercoastal Waterway Water Taxi runs from Fort Lauderdale’s North Beach area across Boca Raton and into Port Everglades, where you can catch it again at its south end. You can ride back to Fort Lauderdale’s North Beach if you want—it’s free!
The best part about this boat ride? You don’t have to spare a penny for anything unless your kids want some fun toys or souvenirs while they’re riding with us (and trust me: they will).
- Fort Lauderdale Beachfront
A beach is an excellent place for kids to spend their time and is also a great place for adults. There are plenty of activities that you can enjoy with your family while on the beach—including swimming, playing in the sand and water, or just sitting down and relaxing. If you’re excited about something more active than simply soaking up sun rays with your children, Fort Lauderdale Beachfront has plenty of options!
The city’s beaches are lined with restaurants where families can grab lunch before heading back onto the sand or deeper waters. Some restaurants even provide lifeguard services, so parents don’t have to worry about watching over their children during mealtime (though this isn’t always true).
If you’re long planning for some fun things to do with kids in Fort Lauderdale without needing much planning ahead of time, then check out our list below:
- Las Olas Boulevard
Las Olas Boulevard is a fantastic place to go for shopping and dining. There are numerous restaurants and shops along the street, as well as many hotels that can be found here. This place is also a great attraction for people watching because you can see the beautiful sights of Fort Lauderdale from your window!
There are numerous fun-oriented things to do in Fort Lauderdale, whether you’re looking for something exciting or relaxing. You can go on a cruise, visit the beach, or even take a ride on a speedboat! If you’re excited about something more adventurous, try skydiving or parasailing. Plenty of museums and art galleries in Fort Laude will keep you entertained all day.
In addition to these top attractions, you can visit several museums, including South Florida Museum at History Park or Broward County Main Library. You’ll enjoy learning about history while visiting these museums!
So this was our list of the best things to do in Fort Lauderdale with kids.
