 |
| |
Country Club Plaza, 4745 Central, Kansas City, MO 64112, 816) 753-0100 -- Email: info@countryclubplaza.com. www.countryclubplaza.com
Boat Cruises on Brush Creek, Brush Creek at Wyandotte, (816) 756-1331. 30-minute narrated cruise on the canal along the Country Club Plaza. Seasonal.
Kansas City Trolley Tours, regularly scheduled to Kansas City’s top attractions. Narrated. (816) 221-3399 or 1-888-471-6050.
Crown Center Ice Terrace, (816) 274-8412, Crown Center complex. 25th and Grand in the heart of Kansas City. The city’s only public outdoor ice skating rink is open seven days a week, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., November through March.
Kaleidoscope, Crown Center, at 2501 McGee, Kansas City, is Hallmark Cards’ creative art experience where children ages 5-12 are invited to explore, create and enjoy. Kaleidoscope, outside the third level of Hall’s next to the Hallmark Visitors Center, offers four 55-minute public sessions beginning at 10:45 a.m., noon, 1:15 and 2:30 p.m., and it’s always free. Tickets are distributed in the lobby on a first-come, first-served basis beginning at 10 a.m. until maximum capacity for each session is reached. Reservations are needed for groups of six or more. During the school year, reservations are required at weekday sessions. For summer schedule and up-to-date information, call (816) 274-8300.
Science City, (816) 460-2222, Union Station, 300 Pershing in Kansas City. The jewel of Union Station, this “hands-on” museum experience features five different neighborhoods, including a theater district. A city within the station, museums, science centers and theaters. Traveling exhibits such as the Titanic treasures and the T-Rex named Sue. www.sciencecity.com
Union Station, (816) 460-2222, 300 Pershing in Kansas City. The renovated Union Station (a $250 million, bistate project completed in 1999) holds seven restaurants, shops and a theater district that features a 440-seat large-format theater with five-story screen; a state-of-the art planetarium and multimedia domed theater; and a live performance theater with shows designed for learning and entertainment.
The Kansas City Zoo, (816) 513-5701, in Swope Park, Kansas City, Mo. East entrance off I-435 at Gregory Boulevard; west entrance at Meyer Boulevard and Swope Parkway. Hundreds of animals from around the globe in natural habitats. Open daily year-round except Christmas and New Year’s Day. IMAX Theatre, (816) 513-4629.
Powell Gardens, 20 miles east of Lee’s Summit on U.S. Highway 50, (816) 697-2600. 915 acres of ever-changing gardens, nature trails, café and gift shop and year-round events and classes.
Springs of Excelsior Springs. Visitors from around the world (in its heyday over 500,000 a year), visited the town north of Kansas City known worldwide for its healing waters. Siloam Springs is still the only natural source of iron-manganese water in the United States; five specific mineral waters are here, more than in any other locale in North America or Europe. The Hall of Waters, (816) 630-0753, built in 1937, holds the longest water bar in the world.
Wonderscope Children’s Museum is 13 rooms, each with a different theme, of hands-on, interactive exhibits in arts, science and technology for children, from toddlers to 10, at 5705 Flint in Shawnee. For admission price and schedule call (913) 268-8130.
Lakeside Nature Center, 4701 E. Gregory Blvd., Kansas City, Mo., (816) 513-8960. Wildlife education/interpretive programs with live animals, trails and exhibits.
The Native Hoofed Animal Enclosure, in Fleming Park in Jackson County, is open to the public with no admission fee from sunrise to sunset. A safari tour through the enclosure on a hay-filled truck with a close-up look at bison and elk can be arranged by calling (816) 229-8980 for admission price and schedule.
Missouri Town 1855, on the east side of Fleming Park at Lake Jacomo near Blue Springs, is a living history museum composed of over 35 buildings depicting the lifestyles of the mid-19th century. Interpreters are dressed in period costumes. (816) 795-8200, Ext. 1260. Many special events.
Old Shawnee Town at 57th and Cody in Shawnee is a recreated frontier town that includes a log cabin, sod house, blacksmith shop, barbershop, undertaker shop and the first jail in Kansas, built in 1843. Call (913) 248-2360.
Weston Historical Museum, 601 Main St. in Weston, Mo. A preservation of Weston and Platte County history, including prehistoric Indian artifacts, Civil War objects and an exhibit of items focusing on Ben Holladay, the “Stagecoach King.” Call (816) 386-2977.
CUBE, 104 W. 9th, in American Institute of Architects, (913) 262-8222. Center for Understanding the Built Environment for kids, includes walking tour. Story reading happens on a regular basis at many area libraries, which are also good sources for activity brochures from around the metro.
|
|