Free things to do with kids around Washington DC
DC may be the cheapest big city in America to raise kids in: every Smithsonian museum and the National Zoo are free, the National Park Service runs free farms, and the Montgomery and Fairfax county park systems are nearly all free. Nothing here charges admission (national and state parks that charge a few dollars per car or person are listed separately), and many of these are the highest-rated places on the site.
Start with Lake Needwood and the Meadowside raptors in Rockville, the Cabin John playground in Bethesda, Brookside Gardens in Wheaton and Sligo Creek in Silver Spring; in Northern Virginia, the Clemyjontri accessible playground, the Frying Pan farm, the Huntley Meadows boardwalk and plane-watching at Gravelly Point. In the city: the National Zoo, the Natural History and American History museums, Udvar-Hazy, the US Botanic Garden, the Kogod Courtyard and the Capitol Columns at the National Arboretum. And the libraries, of course: every MCPL branch has a good children's room.
- 45 places
- 45 free
- 43 stroller-friendly
- closest is 5 min away
45 places
Drive times from Rockville
Rockville Memorial Library
5.0Rockville · 5 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Rockville Town Square garage, 2 hours free with library validation; 5-minute walk from Rockville station on the Metro Red Line
Lake Needwood (Rock Creek Regional Park)
5.0Rockville · 10 min drive
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Several free lots at the dock and picnic areas, fairly full on fall weekend afternoons
Cabin John Regional Park playground and train
5.0Bethesda · 10 min drive
2.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lot by the playground off Westlake Dr, plenty of room on weekend mornings
Hadley's Playground (Falls Road Local Park)
5.0Potomac · 10 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lot at the Falls Rd park
Bohrer Park at Summit Hall Farm
5.0Gaithersburg · 10 min drive
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lot at the S Frederick Ave entrance
Meadowside Nature Center raptor aviary
5.0Rockville · 10 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free nature center lot
Bethesda Library
5.0Bethesda · 15 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Small free lot behind the library and metered street parking on Arlington Rd
Germantown Library
5.0Germantown · 15 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lot shared with the BlackRock arts center
Brookside Gardens
5.0Wheaton · 15 min drive
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lot at the Glenallan Ave visitor center; if full, park at Wheaton Regional Park and walk over
Black Hill Regional Park (Little Seneca Lake)
5.0Boyds · 20 min drive
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lots by the visitor center and the dock
Sligo Creek Trail
5.0Silver Spring · 20 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Several free lots along Sligo Creek Pkwy; some stretches close to cars on weekends, so check which section is open
South Germantown Recreational Park (Adventure Playground)
5.0Boyds · 20 min drive
2.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Schaeffer Rd entrance, big free lot by the playground
Silver Spring Library
5.0Silver Spring · 20 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: County garage on Wayne Ave, free on weekends; 8-minute walk from Silver Spring station on the Metro Red Line
Rock Creek Park Nature Center and Planetarium
5.0Washington · 25 min drive
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free nature center lot, plenty of room on weekend mornings
Clemyjontri Park
5.0McLean · 25 min drive
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lot, full after 10am on sunny weekends, street parking available
Smithsonian National Zoo
5.0Washington · 25 min drive
3.5 h · stroller-friendly · reservation needed
Free · Parking: Zoo lots $30/car and often full; Metro Red Line to Woodley Park or Cleveland Park and a 10-minute walk (downhill from Cleveland Park)
Arlington Central Library
5.0Arlington · 30 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lot beside the library; Metro Orange/Silver to Virginia Square and a 5-minute walk
Gravelly Point plane watching
5.0Arlington · 35 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lot reachable only from the northbound GW Parkway, packed on sunny weekend afternoons
Centennial Park lake loop
5.0Ellicott City · 35 min drive
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lots at the Centennial Lane main entrance and the west entrance
Ellanor C. Lawrence Park (Walney Visitor Center)
5.0Chantilly · 35 min drive
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lot at the Walney Visitor Center
Claude Moore Park
5.0Sterling · 35 min drive
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lot at the Cascades Pkwy entrance, next to the nature center and playgrounds
Frying Pan Farm Park
5.0Herndon · 35 min drive
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Big free lot, plenty of room on weekend mornings
Blandair Regional Park playgrounds
5.0Columbia · 35 min drive
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Big free lot at the Oakland Mills Rd entrance
Van Dyck Park
5.0Fairfax · 35 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lot at the Old Lee Hwy entrance
Kogod Courtyard (American Art Museum)
5.0Washington · 35 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Downtown garages about $15–25; Metro to Gallery Place-Chinatown puts you at the door
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library (DC central library)
5.0Washington · 35 min drive
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Downtown garages from $15; easiest by Metro to Gallery Place-Chinatown or Metro Center, 3-minute walk
City of Fairfax Regional Library
5.0Fairfax · 35 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free garage under the library
United States Botanic Garden
5.0Washington · 35 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Street parking around the Mall is free on weekends but hard to find; Metro to Federal Center SW and a 5-minute walk
Smithsonian National Museum of American History (Wegmans Wonderplace)
5.0Washington · 35 min drive
2.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Metro to Smithsonian or Federal Triangle and a 5-minute walk; street parking is free on weekends but hard to find
Oxon Hill Farm (Oxon Cove Park)
5.0Oxon Hill · 40 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lot, never seen it full
Yards Park canal and fountains
5.0Washington · 40 min drive
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Navy Yard garages about $10–15 on weekends; easier to take the Metro Green Line to Navy Yard-Ballpark and walk 5 minutes
Huntley Meadows Park wetland boardwalk
5.0Alexandria · 50 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lot at the Lockheed Blvd entrance, next to the visitor center
Chessie's Big Backyard (Lee District Park)
5.0Alexandria · 50 min drive
2.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Telegraph Rd entrance, free lot by the playground, full at midday on summer weekends
Kinder Farm Park
5.0Millersville · 55 min drive
2.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Lot inside the park, about $6/car for non-Anne Arundel County residents (check the website)
Theodore Roosevelt Island
4.0Arlington · 30 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lot reachable only from the northbound GW Parkway, full after 10am on weekends; or Metro to Rosslyn and a 10-minute walk
Riverbend Park
4.0Great Falls · 35 min drive
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lot by the visitor center; fills on April bluebell weekends
Patuxent Research Refuge National Wildlife Visitor Center
4.0Laurel · 35 min drive
2 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Big free lot at the visitor center
Long Bridge Park plane and DC views
4.0Arlington · 35 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Park garage and street parking on Long Bridge Dr, free on weekends (check the signs); Metro to Crystal City and a 10-minute walk
United States National Arboretum
4.0Washington · 35 min drive
2.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Several free lots inside the grounds; driving from stop to stop is the easy way
Kenilworth Park & Aquatic Gardens lotus ponds
4.0Washington · 35 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Free lot, fills on July lotus-festival weekends
Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
4.0Washington · 35 min drive
3 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Street parking around the Mall is free on weekends but nearly impossible; Metro to Smithsonian or Federal Triangle and a 5-minute walk
Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum (National Mall)
4.0Washington · 35 min drive
2.5 h · stroller-friendly · reservation needed
Free · Parking: Easiest by Metro to L'Enfant Plaza and a 5-minute walk; street parking is free on weekends but almost impossible to find
Udvar-Hazy Center (Air and Space Museum at Dulles)
4.0Chantilly · 35 min drive
3 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Admission free, parking $15/car (free after 4pm); the lot is enormous and never fills
Scott's Run Nature Preserve falls
3.0McLean · 25 min drive
1.5 h · carrier recommended
Free · Parking: Two small lots on Georgetown Pike (the east one is closer to the falls), free but full after 10am on weekends, no roadside parking
Sugarloaf Mountain
2.0Dickerson · 35 min drive
2.5 h · carrier recommended
Free · Parking: Drive all the way up to the East View and West View lots, free (private preserve, donations welcome); line at the entrance after 10am on fall weekends
💡 Good to know
- Free doesn't mean no reservation: the National Zoo and the Air and Space Museum on the Mall need free timed passes from their websites.
- The hidden cost downtown is parking: weekend street parking near the Mall is free but nearly impossible to find, so ride Metro from Rockville or Shady Grove, where weekend parking is free.