4 Kid-Friendly Activities to Enjoy in Richmond Before Fall

It’s September, school is back in, and summer is winding down. While big vacations are done, now is the perfect time to enjoy some weekend family fun close to home—and Richmond has plenty to offer!

Smaller crowds and weather that’s warm but not sweltering make September the perfect time to fit in some outdoor family fun.

My family and I enjoy visiting popular summer attractions late in the season. Smaller crowds and weather that’s warm without the sweltering humidity of mid-summer makes for a pleasant experience. Below is a list of our favorite family friendly activities in Richmond that are easy to fit into a single day.

Spend a day at the Metro Richmond Zoo.

With more than 2,000 animals from over 150 species, a trip to the Metro Richmond Zoo can easily fill an entire day. Begin with a visit to their new animal nursery, which houses a variety of baby mammals, birds and reptiles. Next, attend one of the daily Keeper Talks, where your kids can ask questions and learn while watching zoo staff feed a penguin, otter, or Siamang gibbon. When hunger strikes, take a lunch break at one of their two cafes, or save money by bringing your own picnic to enjoy (outside food is allowed). As you continue your tour, be sure to visit Kumbali and Kago, a cheetah and yellow labrador retriever that have grown up at the zoo together and formed a fierce friendship. They live right beside the kangaroos!

Time permitting, a zip line canopy tour at the adjacent Treetop Zoofari park is an experience your kids will love. The Junior Explorer course is perfect for ages 4 & up. You can buy Zip & Zoo combo tickets for a discount on admission to both parks.

Take a trip back in time with a visit to the Maymont Estate.

Learn how the upper crust lived in the Gilded Age of the 1880s through 1910s while getting hands-on education about nature today. The 100+ acres of the Maymont Estate has something for the entire family. Begin with a tour of the Victorian-era mansion’s 33 rooms, where you can see what life was like both “Upstairs” and “Downstairs.” Then, give the kids some time to run around in the estate’s vast lawns and gardens. After a picnic lunch, stop by the Nature Center to see hundreds of aquatic and amphibian species, from seahorses to otters to venomous snakes.

Maymont also has a calendar full of kid-friendly events, ranging from geocaching to their unique “One House, Two Worlds” experience, scheduled for September 14, which helps kids 8 & up learn about the dichotomy of life between the well-to-do and their service staff.

Choose your own adventure at the James River Park system.

The James River Park System is one of Richmond’s greatest assets, offering a variety of free outdoor activities. If you just have a few hours on a sunny afternoon, spend them hiking, mountain biking, or playing on the rocks at Belle Isle. Add on more park sites to fill out the day. Pony Pasture, Riverside Meadow, and Huguenot Flatwater offer great fishing spots, and the park system’s numerous access points make it easy to string together walks for an easy stroll or a longer hike. A number of outfitters offer boat rentals and guided tours for canoeing, stand-up paddleboarding, and more throughout September.

Explore our amazing universe at the Science Museum of Virginia.

A trip to the Science Museum of Virginia is one of my family’s favorite things to do in Richmond, especially on a rainy day. With three stories packed with interactive exhibits, live science labs and demos, and a giant screen movie theater, my kids never get bored and never want to leave. Start your day with Boost!, the museum’s network of challenges for the mind and body. Next, stop into the Live Science Lab to dissect an owl pellet or design a robot. After a healthy lunch at the Periodic Table, check out amazing images of the galaxy at the Out of this World exhibit. Top it off with a giant screen movie, where you can feel like you’re flying through the Grand Canyon, swimming with the Great White Shark, or witnessing the Northern Lights.

I hope you found something on this list that seems perfect for you and your family to do before summer comes to an official close. For even more ideas for family activities and events in Richmond, check out Visit Richmond VA. Whether you’re coming into town for a few days or you’re a local, you will find our city has more than enough to keep the kids entertained while helping them exercise their minds and bodies. One last thing—make sure the entire family is wearing a broad-spectrum sunscreen before heading out to enjoy the outdoors.