When I heard that Meow Wolf had opened in Grapevine, I knew which area would be next up in our series of things to do this summer with kids around North Texas. There is definitely no shortage of fun summer activities for families in Grapevine, and the opening of Meow Wolf is just sweet neon icing on the cake. Here are just a few of the wonderful things to do with your kids around Grapevine this summer — both indoors and out.
Meow Wolf
If you haven’t heard of the mind-bending, interactive art exhibit known as Meow Wolf, you are in for a treat, because their fourth permanent installation just opened in Grapevine. This is the museum in Santa Fe that you enter through a portal in a dryer. The Grapevine exhibit is a collaboration among Texas and New Mexico artists called The Real Unreal. This exhibit involves a house, within a house, and possibly even another house still – which is a mystery you’ll have to solve for yourself. But there are definitely portals into a world not quite ours, and an experience unlike any other for your family, right here in North Texas.
NRH20 Water Park
NRH20 is a family water park that has something for everyone. There’s a great area for younger kids, as well as the big rides for thrill seekers. They have a sandy beach for playing and relaxing in the sun, and a wave pool, lazy river, and lots of games and activities. At $18-$28/ticket, NRH20 is a big step up from your neighborhood rec centers, but a big step down from the huge water parks like Hurricane Harbor, but with similar amenities to the large parks.
Grapevine Vintage Railroad
The North Pole Express on the Grapevine Vintage Railroad is a long-standing holiday tradition: so popular that tickets usually sell out around September. (Pro-tip: tickets go on sale July 25). But summer on the old-time train is just as fun.
You can take a ride from downtown Grapevine to the stockyards in Fort Worth, spend an hour or two shopping or site-seeing there, and then enjoy your ride back. We hear there might just be a train robbery somewhere along the way. (For people like my husband who sometimes miss my humor, it’s a show, with actors. The train doesn’t have a crime problem😆) You can ride indoors or out, and enjoy snacks and drinks along the way. Watch for special events like the August 11 Wizard Train ride in the style of the Hogwarts Express!
Grapevine Mills Mall
At Grapevine Mills Mall, you can get a three-for-one deal to visit three awesome attractions perfect for a day (or days) of family fun: Peppa Pig World of Play, Sea Life Aquarium, and Legoland Discovery Center. At Peppa’s world, you can visit activity centers styled after all your favorite characters familiar places, like Peppa’s treehouse, Miss Rabbit’s grocery store, and the family’s house. Play in muddy puddles, ride on Granda Pig’s train, and adventure in Rebecca Rabbit’s underground home.
The Sea Life Aquarium has wonderful interactive exhibits, a walk-through ocean tunnel, a sea turtle rescue station, sharks, giant turtle, and much more. The Legoland Discovery Center has everything a lego enthusiast could dream. From life-size characters to rides and virtual reality experiences, to building and inspiration, if you can dream it you can do it and Legoland.
Whether you want to imagine times past on an old-fashioned train ride, build the future with Legos, or step into another realm at Meow Wolf, there is a world of creative summer activities for families in Grapevine.
