St Louis Family Vacation Ideas, What to do
INSIDE : Check out some of the best St Louis Family Vacation ideas, including our favorite lodging and what to do! We took a full week and traveled by car – see some of our must see spots to stop (and we also brought our dog!).
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Planning a St. Louis family vacation? See our favorite free things to do! We share the best stops for a family with a teen girl and boy – from the City Museum to the St. Louis Zoo.
This summer we decided to take a road trip across the country from New Mexico (where we live) to St. Louis, Missouri. We were in STL for three full days and we loved every moment of it. Our children are early teenagers, my elderly mother was with us, as was our two year old Havanese dog, Lou.
We had a wide variety of ages and mobility levels to work with on our summer vacation. Check out our favorite things to do, places to eat and where we stayed while there (our Air Bnb was absolutely incredible).
Things to do in St Louis
3 Day St. Louis itinerary with teenagers
Some of these were free family activities in St. Louis and some were not. I will note which were paid admittance.
City Museum
City Museum is like nothing we’ve ever experienced before. It reminded me of old school Sesame Street in that it was full of creativity, but almost in an inner city/grit and grime way. That somehow makes it sound unpleasant, but believe me when I say it was a huge highlight for my two teens and all of us adults.
The facility is three different stories with each story having numerous attractions like a full building slide, tunnels to explore in numerous spaces, an incredible rooftop area with views of the city while you are scaling a giant prying mantis.
It is kooky, crazy, creative, loud and so much fun. They kept saying you should rent knee pads, but I was able to climb, crawl and shimey all over without them. If you are traveling to St. Louis with children, I would say this is an absolute must do.
St. Louis Gateway Arch National Park
The Gateway Arch is another item that you really just can not skip if you are traveling through the St. Louis area.
We choose to take the Tram tour to the top (our son was a little nervous, as was I to be completely honest), but in the end we were BOTH very happy we did it. You take a SMALL little metal pod with 5 seats to the top. It does have a small window, which helps to feel less claustrophobic. It also takes less than 4 minutes to get to the top, so that is nice. Once at the top, you are allowed like 10-15 minutes to walk along the inside at the top of the arch. There are windows on each side and informational plaques to read. Then back down you go.
It’s important to reserve tickets online ahead of time because the line was long at the Museum of the Gateway Arch. We also got the tickets that included the Gateway Arch movie and that was actually really cool. It showed the history of building the arch way back when they really did not have advanced technology like they would now. I forget how long it was, but well worth it in our opinion – maybe 20 minutes max.
If you decide not to do the Museum and travel to the top, there is still a cool outdoor area, viewing spots and access down to the Mississippi River all around the Arch.
Forest Park
I love visiting local Botanic Gardens whenever we travel, but Forest Park is far more than just your ordinary garden! There is so much to do in this 1,300 acre park it’s almost overwhelming. It’s a huge green space and major hub of the city with the Missouri History Museum, St. Louis Zoo and the Saint Louis Science Center there.
Jewel Box Greenhouse
We tried to visit the Jewel Box greenhouse, but it was closed due to a private event (I think a wedding was happening later that day – such a gorgeous wedding location!!). Typically it is a $1 admission fee and it looked gorgeous. Even the building was beautiful with an Art Deco look to it.
The Boathouse at Forest Park
The Boathouse was probably one of our favorite adventures in Forest Park. We parked at their parking lot and then went to Big Muddy Adventures at the Boathouse to rent a few water items. My husband, mom and son shared a paddle boat and then my daughter and I rented paddle boards. We moved all around the Post-Dispatch Lake and had such fun!
You can also rent bikes, which I wanted to do – but after all the paddling around everyone was feeling tired. But we did go back a second time because they sold the coolest graphic tshirt that my mom, daughter and I all bought!
World’s Fair Pavilion
Just around the bend (by car) is the World’s Fair Pavilion which we throughly enjoyed. The World’s Fair Pavilion was built in 1909 with proceeds from the 1904 World’s Fair held in Forest Park. Government Hill’s colorfully lit fountain and reflecting pool were added in 1930.
And our big draw to this spot was from the street to the pavilion, is the Kerth Fountain which was very busy with people and we loved it. It was a huge cascading fountain – lovely to be in or near during the hot summer weather!
The Cascades
Another very cool water feature I wanted to check out, but we didn’t end up having time for was the Cascades. Built in 1937, this popular site, has been a setting for romance, family gatherings and quiet moments for millions of visitors.
Frank Lloyd Wright Kraus house
I am a huge Frank Lloyd Wright fan. I took a semester class about him in college at Purdue University and now whenever we travel, I like to see if there are nearby homes we can tour that he designed. You are in luck in St. Louis because the lovely little Kraus House is tucked away in a woodsy neighborhood waiting to be visited!
I got tickets for my family to do a guided tour and it was such fun. Even our teenagers enjoy these types of tours. The home was gorgeous, the architectural details always amaze me and the tour at just about an hour long is the perfect length. Definitely a must see if you are into things like that.
Six Flags Amusement Park
This was another place we fully intended on visiting, but the day we had planned to visit it ended up storming wildly and we were heading out that afternoon, so we had to cancel this event. Six Flags is open from 11am to 7pm and is a great day for roller coaster enthusiasts. Maybe we will get to visit on another trip!
Where to stay in St. Louis with a family of four
Marriott Hotel Saint Louis, Autograph Collection
I love Autograph hotels. I LOVE THEM and this downtown Saint Louis Marriott was a gem. We walked to a delicious Thai restaurant for dinner and it felt clean, safe and big city. This hotel is located at 705 Olive in downtown and their lobby, elevators and staircase look like original art deco time period.
Our room had a king bedroom, a gorgeous bathroom and the perfect pull out sofa for our children. We also had a balcony and it was pet friendly. The highlight for my son was the working record player, ha.
Missouri Airbnb rental home
I just really could not handle the ADORABLENESS of the Airbnb home we stayed in for the majority of our stay. The entire neighborhood had brick streets and sidewalks. The brick did make moving around a bit difficult for my older mother, but oh my heavens… it added such charm in my opinion!
Our home was a precious blue and I would have been happy to have moved right in forever. The backyard was cute, the front was cute, the street was precious, the home had such character. It was a 10/10 for me!
We loved it so much, later that year I did a HGTV video and mentioned / crafted a blue house that reminded us of this trip and home.
Where to eat in St. Louis with a family
We are a family that loves to try new foods and restaurants everywhere we go. We love to notice the ambiance, decor and then talk endlessly about the food we are enjoying. Foodies through and through!
Salt + Smoke BBQ
We walked from the Arch to Salt + Smoke and I would probably not recommend doing that – ha. It wasn’t SO far, but far enough that my mom was getting tired. The decor of Salt + Smoke was darling and we enjoyed the bbq food. They specialized in barbecue, bourbon and beer.
It was located right beside the Busch stadium ballpark, which was fun. However, if there is a game that day – you probably will want to find another place to eat as the wait can get very long.
Adriana’s On The Hill
We found ourself going to “The Hill” a few times during our St. Louis visit and stumbling upon this amazing sandwich shop, Adriana’s On The Hill for lunch was such a happy accident! We all had various subs and seeing Italian grandma’s making them in the back – we KNEW this was going to be delicious! The yellow and blue vibes felt fun and classic. And we even went back and bought their bottle of “dressing” to bring home. Yum, yum!!
Peacemaker Lobster & Crab
We decided to try a seafood spot one night during our travels and Peacemaker seemed like a great one to try. It was full, which is always a good sign and their decor was really darling. This was a very authentic seafood spot – we got peel and eat shrimp, a lobster roll and a steamed crab (yum!). I also got a spiked slushies which was delicious.
Charlie Gitto’s Italian Restaurant
Charlie Gitto’s was our last evening’s dinner and oh my gracious, it did not disappoint! We sat ourside in their patio and with the twinkly lights overhead made it feel so sweet. Our waiter was exceedingly knowledgeable about the menu and he was a sommelier – so we know our wine choice would be amazing.
He recommended we try their Toasted Ravioli, which is apparently a STL staple – delicious. And every single dish we ordered was just divine. We could definitely go back here for another fancier meal.
Jenni’s Ice Cream
Whenever we travel, we have to check out if there is a nearby Jenni’s Ice Cream and we were in luck because there was! We very possibly went every evening of this trip, that’s how much we enjoy it. We like to get two scoops and being able to mix the flavor combinations is one of our favorite things. Double Dough is an all time favorite for all of us!
St. Louis, MO Must See Spots
- Gateway Arch
- Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis
- Old Courthouse
- Soulard Farmers Market
- Forest Park
- Missouri Botanical Garden
- Tower Grove Park
- City Museum
- St. Louis Zoo
- St. Louis Art Museum
- St. Louis Aquarium at Union Station
I hope the Saint Louis Family Vacation ideas are helpful as you plan your next trip there!
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