We spent a wonderful two weeks in Dallas. With so much to see and do, I created a list of the top places to visit in Dallas with kids that we truly enjoyed.

Top Places to Visit in Dallas with Kids

Our summer has been filled with so much travel. From Dallas to Austin to Florida, we have kept busy and had some wonderful experiences. It is nice to be back in Colorado though and I am looking forward to spending the remainder of the summer enjoying our city and state.

We were in Dallas for a total of two weeks. I was pleasantly surprised at what a nice city Dallas is and how much there is to do.  Today I am sharing with you the top places to visit in Dallas with kids based off of our experience in this city. So if you are thinking of spending time in Dallas I hope you will find this list useful.

(Want to find out why we were in Dallas, then click here)

Where We Stayed

Statler Hotel Residences 

To start, I can’t have a list about the top places to visit in Dallas with kids without talking about the place the place we called home for the two weeks we were there. We had a great stay at a vacation condo in the historic Statler Hotel downtown. It was built in 1956 and was the first major hotel in Dallas. The building has two sides to it, one side is an actual hotel and the side we were on had vacation condos and residences. The place was brand new and spotless. Better yet, there was a beautiful pool with cabanas all around, beach chairs, and even an outdoor TV and grills. The kids and I spent a lot of time at the pool. It was quiet, clean, and only 3 feet deep so it was perfect for us.

Places We Visited

Reunion Tower Lawn Party

One Saturday evening we met up with a friend of mine who lives in Dallas for an outdoor concert. The family friendly concert took place on the lawn in front of the Dallas landmark called Reunion Tower. It was like a huge block party, with food trucks, booths and an amazing live band. My little girl made friends with another little girl and they had so much fun dancing the night away.

Find out more about Reunion Tower by clicking here.

Klyde Warren Park

Thank goodness for my friend who knew of some great places to visit in Dallas, including this park. Klyde Warren Park is built over the freeway in downtown Dallas, and there is talk of something similar coming to Denver. Hopefully that will be the case and hopefully it’ll be as nice as Klyde Warren Park. The afternoon we visited the park there was a Zumba class, a splash pad, a restaurant, and live music. The website also lists a bunch of other events and activities that take place there throughout the week.

My kids’ favorite part was the splash pad. However, we were not prepared with a change of clothes so they were drenched by the end of the night. My son did not mind, but my daughter was not so happy to sit in wet clothes, so I let her borrow my undershirt for a pretty fashionable DIY dress.

Check out the Klyde Warren Park site here.

Alamo Drafthouse

We celebrated my birthday while in Dallas. I always love going to the movies for my birthday, but we had never taken both of the kids to the theater so we were a little hesitant. Fortunately, the Alamo Drafthouse had an all ages showing of The Incredibles 2 the morning after my birthday so we gave it a try. We each sat on big comfortable reclining seats, we ordered coffee and donuts, and all of us, including my energetic little boy, sat back and enjoyed the movie (which I highly recommend).

There is an Alamo Drafthouse in Denver, so we’re thinking a visit to see Hotel Transylvania 3 might be in our near future.

Visit their website here.

The Potter’s House of Dallas

My husband and I were so excited to be in Dallas on a Sunday so that we could attend T.D. Jakes’ church, The Potter’s House of Dallas. We have seen T.D. Jakes a few times when he has come to The Potter’s House of Denver and my husband has visited his church on his past trips to Dallas. T.D. Jakes’ teachings and words are common throughout our household by way of his podcast and online streaming. It was quite the experience to listen to God’s word from this great pastor at his home church.

Find out more about The Potter’s House here.

Dallas Public Library

One of the top free places to visit in Dallas with kids is the public library. I was surprised it took me so long to scout out the nearest public library since in Denver the library is one of our favorite places to visit. Our vacation rental was only two blocks away from the downtown library so one day the kids and I headed there to explore. It just happened that at the time we arrived the library was offering a free lunch for kids and teens. We sat in the children’s section while my kids ate a sandwich, fruit, broccoli (which neither of them ate) and some milk. The library had a huge children’s section with lots of toys and activity areas and of course a great assortment of books, including bilingual and Spanish-language.

My mama bear instincts kicked into gear when one little boy (probably about four) wandered over to where we were playing. He began hitting and pushing my kids to get to the toys they were playing with. His mom was nowhere to be found so I used my best firm-but-kind voice that I perfected as an elementary teacher to ask him not to hit and wait his turn.

Later I saw him fighting with other kids and his mom trying, with minimal effort, to control his out of control behavior. I saw the same frustration in the other parents’ faces that I had felt earlier. They waited for the mom to do something but when she didn’t they slowly guided their kids away.

This made me wonder, how do you deal with another person’s kid who is hitting one of your own? Have you every dealt with this type of situation? Leave me your thoughts in the comments below.

Check out the Dallas Public Library website here.

Dallas World Aquarium

The concierge would tell me almost every day to take the kids to the Dallas World Aquarium, so on one of our last days in Dallas the kids and I made the trek. I say trek because my husband had the car that day so to get to the aquarium the kids and I had to walk for a mile in 100 degree Dallas heat. We took lots of breaks, had lots of water and snacks but when we finally arrived sun-kissed and sweaty it was worth it.

I had never been to an aquarium and was looking forward to seeing one of those huge tanks that encircle you like in the movies. When we found that exhibit, we sat for a long time watching sharks and colorful fish swim over and around us. Our visit didn’t end with the wondrous sea life, we also walked through the winding path of the jungle themed building seeing crocodiles, snakes, monkeys and animals of all kinds.

I was so glad we finally took the concierge’s suggestion.

Visit the Dallas World Aquarium site here.

Next Time

I highly recommend these top places to visit in Dallas with kids. There were other places we unfortunately did not get to, including the zoo, the Dallas Farmers Market, and the Perot Museum of Nature and Science. We will save those for next time.

We also ate at some great restaurants, stay tuned for a post about our culinary experiences in Dallas.

Any other places you’d recommend in Dallas? I’d love to know your suggestions in the comments below.