Top 12 Free (or Cheap) Activities for Young Children in Northern Virginia and D.C.

As a parent of young children, we are always looking for free or cheap activities to do with our kids here in northern Virginia.

This list is not exhaustive, and obviously we haven’t been everywhere, but these are some of my favorite places to take my kids. They’re currently about 4 years old and 7 months.

I’ll try to add some pictures later, but I just wanted to get the list done for now.

1. Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center (National Air and Space Museum) in Chantilly, VA. Cost: Free admission; $15/vehicle for parking but FREE after 4pm. Usually closes at 5:30. This place is huge! There are a ton of aircraft here, including the SR-71 Blackbird, Enola Gay, Concorde, and even the Space Shuttle Discovery. Be sure to check out the observation tower (last elevator trip is at 4:30). You get a close-up view of the planes coming in to land at Dulles International Airport. I like coming here because it’s close to my son’s preschool, and I can take him for a quick 30-45 minutes on a whim for free after 4. There’s a McDonald’s inside and a Chick-Fil-A nearby if you need a quick meal for your kids.
2. Clemyjontri Park in McLean, VA.Cost: Free. This is a huge outdoor playground. The name is derived from part of each of the four children’s names of the donor. The playground is specially designed for children of all abilities, including those with disabilities. There is a carousel and there are reservable areas for birthday parties. Parking can be a little tough on the weekends, but a new parking lot is currently under construction. Also, there is additional parking across the street and at a nearby park. Afterward, grab a meal in nearby downtown McLean or in Tysons Corner.
3. Frying Pan Farm Park (Kidwell Farm) in Herndon, VA. Cost: Free. Does your kid love animals? This is the place to go to see live animals in northern Virginia. They have horses, chickens, peacocks, rabbits, sheep, goats, cows, and pigs. You can pay a few bucks to take a wagon ride as well. Walk around and check out the farm. We enjoying coming here at least once or twice a year.
4. Burke Lake Park in Fairfax Station, VA. Cost: Free for Fairfax County residents. There is a charge for non-county residents on weekends and holidays from April through late October ($10/car). Burke Lake Park is a great place to have a picnic. If your kid likes trains, they have a train that runs from at Memorial Day to Labor Day (and a few extra days in Oct.-Dec.) as well as a carousel. Tickets are $2-4 depending on train/carousel and weekdays/weekends, and kids under 2 are free. They also have an ice cream shop and a couple outdoor playgrounds. If you enjoy hiking, you can take a lap around the lake. The trail is 4.5 miles long.
5. Meadowlark Botanical Gardens in Vienna, VA. Cost: $6 for adults 18-54, $3 for kids 6-17 and adults 55+, free for kids under 5. This is a great place to enjoy the outdoors when the weather is nice. There is a very nice koi fish pond that your kids are sure to enjoy. They recently installed a Korean Bell garden that is also worth checking out.
6. Smithsonian’s National Zoo in Washington, D.C. Cost: Free. This one may take some planning as parking isn’t exactly plentiful in D.C. However, we’ve gone early (around 10am on weekends) and have been lucky enough to find street parking every time. The zoo has lots of animals and features pandas as well. The zoo runs on a hill, so be ready to have a workout at least in one direction of your trip. Food is a bit pricey, so if you have time, pack your own food and snacks and bring plenty of water.
7. Gravelly Point Park in Arlington, VA. Cost: Free. This is right near Reagan National Airport (DCA). The main point of coming here is to watch the planes land from really close. The planes literally fly right over your head maybe 100-200 feet away, so it’s loud. It might be a little scary for very young children. There isn’t much else to do here, so you can stop by for 10-15 minutes if you have time to kill before picking someone up at the airport. You can also bike here on the Mt. Vernon Trail that runs along the water all the way down to Mount Vernon.
8. Shirlington Dog Park in Arlington, VA. Cost: Free. We used to love bringing our dog here when we lived in Alexandria. Sadly, Jack died last year. If you have a dog, this is the place to go. If your kids love dogs, you can walk around here but make sure to keep an eye on your kids. You can also enjoy a cup of coffee, brunch, or a nice meal at the nearby Village at Shirlington.
9. National Mall in Washington, D.C. Cost: Free. If you’re new to the D.C. area, the National Mall is NOT a shopping mall. I was once naive enough to think it was. The national mall is home to the memorials and tons of free museums. No list of top things to do in the D.C. Metro area would be complete without including this, so here it is. There will be lots of walking, so wear comfortable shoes and bring some food or grab a bite at one of the food trucks that are usually there.
10. Great Falls Park in McLean, VA. Cost: $10/vehicle, free with national park pass. This is the Great Falls Park on the Virginia side, not to be confused with the one on the Maryland side. The one on the Maryland side is home to the famous Billy Goat A trail. The Virginia side has some great overlooks of the Potomac River and some hiking trails. You can also bring some food and a blanket and have a picnic.

Here are some other places that didn’t make my top 10 but deserve an honorable mention.

11. Huntley Meadows Park in Alexandria, VA. Cost: Free. We used to live in Kingstowne and would come down here to take a nice walk through nature. There is a boardwalk and a bird watching area as well.

12. Nottoway Park in Vienna, VA. Cost: Free. This is probably better for older kids, but you can bring your younger children here to run around on the fields or play in the playground. There are tennis courts, a beach volleyball court, basketball courts, baseball and softball fields, as well as a fitness trail and a wooded nature path.

13. The Washington & Old Dominion Trail from Arlington to Purcellville, VA. Cost: Free. This also probably won’t work for really young children, but you can take your kids once they can ride a bike. This is a 45 mile bike trail. Obviously, you don’t have to do the whole thing. There are plenty of places to park, or you can ride to an entry point.