Things to do in Boca Raton with kids
Sea turtles, a free science museum, picture books on a trail, a carousel and a skate park — sorted by the ages each place names itself, with who runs it and what you need to bring.
A lot of what Boca Raton offers children is public, cheap or free, and run by the city — which means it is well kept, and also that it keeps office hours. This guide sorts it by the ages each place gives for itself, rather than by our guess at what a five-year-old will sit still for.
Hours and admission below are as each operator published them in October 2026. Check the linked page on the day.
By age
| Place | Ages it names | Cost to get in |
|---|---|---|
| Red Reef Park playground | Toddler and up | Beach park parking applies |
| Children's Science Explorium | 5 to 12, with a caregiver | Free |
| StoryWalks | Picture-book age | Free |
| Gumbo Limbo Nature Center | All ages; children must be supervised | Free general admission |
| Daggerwing Nature Center | All ages; programs by reservation | The county lists no admission charge |
| Tim Huxhold Skate Park | 5 and up, registered by a parent | Paid, with resident and non-resident rates |
| Boca Raton Museum of Art | Any | Free under 15 and for high school students |
Sea turtles at Gumbo Limbo
Gumbo Limbo, on A1A beside Red Reef Park, is the one most families come back to. It is a joint project of the city, the Beach and Park District and Florida Atlantic University, and its staff watch over the sea turtle nests on five miles of beach and rescue sick and injured turtles. For a child that means aquariums full of fish, a boardwalk, a butterfly garden and an observation tower to climb.
Admission is free. Its public programs for children and families are offered, in the center's words, at no-to-low cost. Minors must be with an adult at all times, pets are not allowed, and the boardwalk is closed to bikes and scooters but open to strollers. The center also publishes coloring pages and word searches for a rainy afternoon.
Science at Sugar Sand Park
The Children's Science Explorium in Sugar Sand Park is a free science center designed for children from 5 to 12 and the adults with them, with permanent exhibits and touring ones. Around the building:
- Science Stories on Saturday mornings, and a free demonstration one weekend a month in the afternoon (ages 7 and up).
- Sensory-Friendly Saturdays on the first Saturday of the month, an hour before opening, with sound and lights turned down. Sensory kits — headphones, light-reducing glasses, fidget toys — can be borrowed at the desk.
- Grab-and-go eco packs for a self-guided walk around the park, one per family. An adult has to leave a photo ID while it is out.
The carousel beside the science playground has 30 horses and two chariots, one of them wheelchair accessible. Rides are paid, and it is closed on Mondays.
Books on a trail
The city library's StoryWalks put a picture book along a path, one page per post, and swap the book through the year: in Patch Reef Park, at Serenoa Glade Preserve in George Snow Park, and in the Pondhawk Natural Area beside the Spanish River Library. The library's Kids & Teens page has the year's reading challenge, class brochures and the free digital collections — comics, e-books and streaming — that come with a library card.
A nature center out west
Daggerwing Nature Center is a county facility in Burt Aaronson South County Regional Park, in West Boca. It has an exhibit hall with live animals and a boardwalk open daily from sunrise to sunset. Its programs need a reservation. No running on the boardwalk, and no food, bikes or pets.
For older kids: the skate park
The Tim Huxhold Skate Park, at Memorial Park on Crawford Boulevard, takes skateboards and inline skates only, and a helmet is compulsory. Skaters must be at least 5, and anyone under 18 has to be registered by a parent or guardian. There is a daily rate or a pass, with a lower price for city residents — and the city reminds you that a Boca Raton address is not proof you live inside the city. Check which Boca you are in before you argue about the resident rate.
Museums
- Boca Raton Museum of Art in Mizner Park: children under 15 and high school students get in free.
- The Schmidt Boca Raton History Museum, in Historic Town Hall, has a youth ticket for students 5 and up, and is free for everyone on the first Saturday of the month.
The beach
Red Reef Park has a playground for toddlers and up, snorkeling areas, and Gumbo Limbo across the road. Parking needs the annual permit or the daily rate, and from 1 October 2026 the gatehouse takes cards and phone payments only. The beaches guide covers all three beach parks.
What is on this week
The calendar's kids and family pages list what the city, the library and the CRA have published. For things that cost nothing at all, see free things to do in Boca Raton.
Where this comes from
Checked against these on 2026-10-09. Fees, deadlines and portals change — if one of these pages disagrees with this one, the official page is right and we would like to know.
- City of Boca Raton — About Gumbo Limbo
- City of Boca Raton — Gumbo Limbo: Plan Your Visit
- City of Boca Raton — Gumbo Limbo Kids
- City of Boca Raton — Children's Science Explorium
- City of Boca Raton — Every Day in the Explorium
- City of Boca Raton — FREE Weekend Science
- City of Boca Raton — Sugar Sand Park Carousel
- City of Boca Raton — Red Reef Park Beach
- City of Boca Raton — Tim Huxhold Skate Park
- Boca Raton Public Library — Kids & Teens
- Boca Raton Public Library — StoryWalks
- Palm Beach County Parks — Daggerwing Nature Center
- Boca Raton Museum of Art — Visit
- Boca Raton Historical Society — Plan Your Visit
October 2026 — First published.
We record when a guide was published and when it was last revised. We do not yet record what changed, so this is a dating record rather than a changelog.
Written and checked by a person, and carrying the month they were published and the month they were last revised. Where a rule or a fee applies we link the official source rather than quoting a number that will go stale.
A fee that has changed, a link that has moved, an answer that is no longer right — tell us and we will check it and say we did.
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