Things to do in Madison, WI with kids: indoors and out

The big ones

• Henry Vilas Zoo (702 S. Randall Ave.): Madison's free zoo since 1911. In the holiday season, Zoo Lights (opening November 20, 2026) is a separately ticketed evening walk with carousel rides and photos with Santa.
• Madison Children's Museum (100 N. Hamilton St., on the Capitol Square): hands-on exhibits on several floors plus the Rooftop Ramble, with a pond, chickens and a climber. Admission is free on Thursday nights from 4 to 8 p.m., kids under 1 are always free, and there's reduced-price Family Access admission for qualifying families.
• Olbrich Botanical Gardens (3330 Atwood Ave.): the outdoor gardens are free, and the Bolz Conservatory, a tropical glasshouse with free-flying birds and a waterfall, is warm all winter (separate admission). In the holiday season it hosts the Holiday Express flower and model train show.

Free museums downtown and on campus

• Wisconsin Veterans Museum (30 W. Mifflin St.): free, on the Capitol Square.
• Chazen Museum of Art (750 University Ave.): UW–Madison's art museum, open daily and always free.
• Madison Museum of Contemporary Art (MMoCA) (227 State St.): free, with family learning centers and a rooftop sculpture garden.
• UW Geology Museum (Weeks Hall, 1215 W. Dayton St.): free rocks, minerals and fossil skeletons, with a self-guided booklet in English and Spanish. Open weekdays and Saturday mornings.
• Wisconsin State Capitol tours (Capitol Square): free guided tours every day, starting in the ground-floor rotunda. The observation deck is open from mid-April through December, weather permitting.

Heads up: the Wisconsin Historical Museum is closed while the new Wisconsin History Center is built on the Capitol Square (the Wisconsin Historical Society now says early 2028; see our museums guide), and UW's Space Place closed in June 2026.

For a cold or rainy day

• Madison Public Library: the Central Library (201 W. Mifflin St.) has a Children's Room, storytimes for babies through age 5, and free hands-on making programs in the Bubbler. The new Imagination Center branch at Reindahl Park (1814 Parkside Dr.), open since September 2026, has storytimes (including bilingual), Play & Learn and a science club.
• Aldo Leopold Nature Center (330 Femrite Dr., Monona): indoor Nature Nooks for young children plus free trails outside.
• Boulders Climbing Gym (129 S. Carroll St.): bouldering a block off the Square, with youth programs.
• Urban Air Adventure Park (7309 West Towne Way): indoor trampolines and climbing, with a Sunday-morning toddler time; grip socks required.
• Vitense Golfland (5501 Schroeder Rd.): an indoor mini-golf course year-round, plus batting cages and heated Toptracer bays.
• Cave of the Mounds (Blue Mounds, about 25 miles west): guided cave tours year-round; it's about 50 degrees underground in every season, and kids 3 and under are free.
• Badgers games: volleyball, basketball and hockey run through the winter, and kids in 6th grade or younger can join the free level of the Bucky's Buddies kids club.

Parks and playgrounds

• Henry Vilas Park, next to the zoo, has three playgrounds, including the 1962 "Old Woman in a Shoe" slide.
• Elver Park on the far west side is the city's largest, with an accessible playground and, in summer, a free splash park.
• Madison's four free splash parks (Cypress, Elver, Reindahl and Rennebohm) run from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
• The UW–Madison Arboretum is free and has family nature walks for elementary-age kids and younger; leave the dog at home.
• On a nice day, the Monona Terrace rooftop (1 John Nolen Dr.) has lake and Capitol views and room to run.

When the snow and ice arrive

• Sledding: the city suggests hills at Elver, Garner, Olbrich Park, Warner, Aldo Leopold Park, Arbor Hills, Berkley, Hiestand and Orlando Bell. Only Elver is monitored: its hill is lit for evening sledding, with a warming shelter and sled rental when staffed.
• Skating: Madison Parks runs free skating on rinks and frozen lagoons in 14 parks, ice permitting. Tenney Park's lagoon is the classic, with a warming pavilion; skates can be rented at Tenney, Elver, Vilas and Door Creek, and Olbrich, Rennebohm, Warner and Westmorland have free loaner skates.

For more ideas, see our things to do in Madison guide, the events calendar and this weekend's events.