Heritage Square Amusement Park is worth a visit with the little ones.  Activities include go kart tracks, bumper and paddle boats, miniature golf, some amusement rides, ponies, and fishing.  The Heritage Rio Golden Train circles the park.

The Heritage Square Children’s Theater offers very funny adaptations of classic tales such as Robin Hood. The actors invite audience members up on stage to help with the play.

A wide variety of parks can be found all over Golden. Lions and Parfet Parks are closest to downtown Golden. If you want to venture south of Golden on Illinois Street, a couple of prehistoric dinosaurs can be found in Discovery Park. East of Golden is Ulysses Park, a regional athletic complex, and north of Golden is the Tony Grampsas Memorial Sports Complex.

Kids love the slide on the south side of Parfet Park. It drops from the edge of the park down to the bank of Clear Creek. The creek can be fast and dangerous, so be sure the kids have plenty of supervision.

The trace fossils discovered adjacent to the Fossil Trace Golf Course are visible at this interpretive site. The trail is only a half mile long through a cross-section of old clay quarries, and signs explain the geology and life of 68 million years ago. Click here for a map to the trail.

This collection of old buildings on the south side of Clear Creek is one of Golden's many historic treasures.  The buildings in the park are not original to the site; instead, they are all buildings that were slated for demolition in the mountains West of town.  A number of Golden-area residents attended school in the one room Guy Hill School House.  The Reynolds cabin, root cellar, blacksmith shop, and chicken coops are all relicts of pioneer times.  The Park is open to the public.  To arrange tours of the buildings, see their web site.

When the weather is summer hot, head for The Splash where you'll find water slides, sand, an activity pool, fountains, and more.  Lawn chairs provided and concession stand available.

A delicious stop on a hot day. Yummy! 1299 Washington Avenue.

• Movies and Music in the Park
  During August, head to Parfet Park on Friday nights to listen to a band and then watch a movie on a giant screen.
• Children’s activities at the Arts Festival
  ArtReach’s Activity Tent provides a fun environment for kids while they learn the history and origin of traditional crafting. Olde Golden Christmas Parades and Events - Every Saturday morning in December shoppers line the streets to watch the Olde Golden Christmas Parade wind from the Golden Visitors Center up Washington Avenue.
• 4th of July picnic with free rides
  The Golden Lions Club puts on quite an eventful 4th of July celebration in downtown Golden.  Many activities for children and their families are available, including free rides, live music and, of course, fireworks after dark.
• Rides and Wild West Show at Buffalo Bill Days
  In July, Buffalo Bill Days has plenty of activities for the little ones, including Mutton Bustin, a parade down the main street, a wild west show, and plenty of food.
• Easter Egg Hunt
  The Downtown Merchants Association and the Kiwanis Club work together to make the Saturday before Easter a fun community event.  The day starts with a brief and very intense Easter Egg Hunt in Parfet Park.
• Halloween
  The Downtown Merchants Association give away candy, and the street is packed with hundreds of children (and sometimes adults) in costume.  It runs from about 3 till 6, or until the merchants run out of candy.

The Golden Community Center offers many classes for tykes and teens, such as drawing, music, ceramics, dance, computer, sports, babysitting and first aid courses, and yoga.  An on-site preschool program is fun and educational two mornings a week during the school year.  Child-care is also available for a fee for children ages six months to seven years for people using the facility.

A small fishing pond is located in Lions Park at the west end of 10th Street where children and their parents can spend a relaxing afternoon.  Kids love to throw in a line whether or not they catch any fish!

The Lookout Mountain Nature Center has wonderful programs and interactive exhibits for play groups and individual families.  The trails are very manageable for hikers of all ages.  Take a picnic lunch and enjoy the vanilla scent of the ponderosa pines.

Kids love to sit and wave out the windows of the many types of rail cars at the Colorado Railroad Museum.  Another highlight is the toy train display inside the museum building.  Thomas the Tank Engine periodically visits as well.