Attractions for Kids in Memphis
If you’re looking for a place where you can tour the home of a famous musician and have your pick of barbeque, head on over to Memphis!
Memphis is not only home to Graceland, Elvis Presley's estate (now a museum), it’s also the mecca of spicy barbeque and music for all. In fact, kids too, have plenty of action-packed attractions waiting for them at this Mississippi River waterfront city. Visit the Memphis Zoo, check out a museum created just for tikes, get nice and messy in a pint-sized garden or explore a miniature version of the Mighty Mississippi. View our Tennessee travel guide and pack up the kids to come on down for a visit. Our Memphis travel guide has great ideas for your trip. Why not hang out a while?
Pelicans and Pandas at Memphis Zoo
Pelicans, penguins and big cats are waiting for you at the Memphis Zoo in midtown Memphis, inside Overton Park. Over 3,500 animals call the place home. A special exhibit of nocturnal animals includes bats, armadillos and owl monkeys. Step into the Tropical Bird House and find speedy African pygmy falcons and toucans with their colorful bills. You'll find giant pandas in the China exhibit and giraffes, zebras and elephants in the African Veldt. The little ones will get a kick out of the Once Upon a Farm exhibit, where ducks, goats, chickens, prairie dogs and a Mediterranean miniature donkey await them.
Built for Kids—Children's Museum of Memphis
The zoo isn’t the only family friendly place in town. Check out the Children's Museum of Memphis and let their imaginations run wild. The place is designed specifically for kids, down to the giant building blocks spelling out "c-m-o-m" at the front entrance. Inside, kids climb miniature skyscrapers and colorful rock walls, dance in a re-created Times Square and pretend to be dentists in Smiles Inc. Toddlers 4 years and younger have a special place of their own filled with learning walls, interactive toys, a mini basketball hoop and more. Check out the outdoor playground and the seasonal H2Oh! Splash Park, all part of the fun. You'll find the museum at Central Avenue at S. Hollywood Street, at the Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium.
Its a Messy Life in my Big Backyard
My Big Backyard is a park within a park within an even bigger park. The Backyard is part of the Memphis Botanical Garden, which, in turn, is in Audubon Park in East Memphis. Check out the Seedling Circle, where kids can splash in a fountain, dig in the dirt and slide down the "hillside." Climb into an oversized birdhouse in Treetop Adventure and crawl through kid-sized worm tunnels in Wormville. Get your toes wet in Critter Creek while searching for frogs and other critters. In Nature Play, build a fort, get artistic or put on a puppet show, all using natural materials. Life can get messy in the Big Backyard, but that's part of the fun.
Explore the Mississippi—Mud Island River Park
Check out Mud Island River Park, where the five-block-long Riverwalk exhibit is a representation of the actual Lower Mississippi River from Cairo, Illinois, to the Gulf of Mexico. Splash down the middle of the "river" or follow along on the "shore." Once you get to the "Gulf of Mexico," go for a ride on a man-made pond in pedal boats that look like swans or pirate ships. For even more fun, take the monorail from downtown Memphis to the start of Riverwalk on Mud Island and get a bird's-eye view of the city and the Mississippi River.
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