The French Quarter wears thin fast with kids in tow. These four sit in City Park and Uptown, where children can run, climb, and ride without weaving through Bourbon Street crowds.
1. Audubon Zoo, Uptown
Old live oaks shade most of the paths at Audubon Zoo, which matters in a city where summer heat ends outings early. The Louisiana Swamp exhibit recreates the wetlands with alligators, black bears, otters, and wading birds, and the rare white alligators draw the biggest crowds. Jaguar Jungle, the African Savanna, orangutans, and sea lions fill out the rest.
Kids get their own attractions. Monkey Hill gives children in a flat city something to climb and roll down, the Cool Zoo splash park helps on hot days, and the Gottesman carousel spins riders on endangered animals. A train called the Wonders of Nature Express loops the grounds.
The zoo sits at 6500 Magazine Street. It runs winter hours now, open Thursday through Monday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Last tickets sell at 4 p.m. Seniors 65 and up get $5 off. Call 1-800-774-7394.
2. Louisiana Children’s Museum, City Park
This museum moved into City Park and built its exhibits around hands-on learning. Five galleries cover markets, STEM activities, water tables, arts and crafts, and a hands-on journey down the Mississippi River. A toddler area lets the youngest visitors climb and crawl safely.
Outdoors, the museum has decks, bridges, sensory and edible gardens, a floating classroom, and interpretive wetlands. The Dickie Brennan restaurant group runs Acorn, the on-site café, with child-size booths and a menu that works for adults too.
The museum stands at 15 Henry Thomas Drive and opens Wednesday through Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Sunday from 11:30 a.m., closing Mondays and Tuesdays. Listed admission runs $14 per person for adults and children 12 months and up, $12 for seniors and active military. Call (504) 523-1357.
3. Carousel Gardens Amusement Park, City Park
The centerpiece here turned 120 years old. The 1906 carousel, known locally as the Flying Horses, is one of the last antique wooden carousels of its kind still operating in the country, housed under a 1906 pavilion.
More than fifteen rides surround it, including a miniature train, a Ferris wheel, a Tilt-a-Whirl, bumper cars, and a fun slide. Parker’s Cafe handles food inside the gates.
Admission runs $5 per person, with children 36 inches and under free. Rides cost $4 each or $18 for an unlimited wristband, and the ticket also covers Storyland next door. The park is seasonal, so check City Park for current operating days.
4. Storyland, City Park
Twenty larger-than-life sculptures of storybook and fairytale characters fill this playground next to Carousel Gardens, and children climb on nearly all of them. It reopened after renovations and remains one of the most photographed spots in the park for families.
A Carousel Gardens ticket includes Storyland admission, so the two work as one visit. Around them, City Park offers free playgrounds, walking trails, fishing at Big Lake, and the Besthoff Sculpture Garden at no charge, plus City Putt mini golf and the Botanical Garden for a fee.
City Park sits about ten minutes from the French Quarter straight out Esplanade Avenue, with free parking throughout and the 48-City Park streetcar running from Canal Street.
