The toddler years are a time when most parents are looking for ways to get out of the house and explore as much as possible but it can feel difficult to find age appropriate and safe activities for this age group. With that in mind, I have put together a list of some of the best toddler activities in the Charlotte, NC area.
Indoor Activities:
Gymnastics Gym Toddler Time: A weekday open gym time for kids 5 and under where they get free rein of the gym to play on the mats and trampolines. Great for older babies through preschoolers.
- Perfect Balance Tot Time – check out my post here for more info.
- Charlotte Allstars Lil’ Bit Fit Time – check out my post here for more info.
ImaginOn (Uptown): A free public library uptown that also has several small play spaces for young kids. They also have regular story time sessions and a children’s theater with kid-friendly shows. See my reel here for a look inside.
Play House Play Cafe (Fort Mill, SC): An indoor playground and cafe for children ages 1-7. There is also a small baby play space and upstairs dress up area.
Unwind Play Cafe (Pineville): An indoor sensory friendly playground and cafe serving gourmet coffee and bakery items. Open for ages 1-7 years.
Library Storytime: All Mecklenburg libraries offer daily storytime sessions that involve the reading of books, songs, music, and puppets. Many libraries also have small play spaces for young kids.
Discovery Place Kids (Huntersville, NC): A children’s museum offering a wide variety of creative play experiences. It’s set up like a town center and kids can play make-believe through activities like a full size fire truck, ambulance, restaurant, grocery store, etc. Check out my post here for more info.
Discovery Place Nature (Dilworth): A children’s nature museum with live reptiles and insects, small play area, outside natural play area, and planetarium shows. It will undergo a major reno starting mid 2023. Check out my post here for more info.
Playland (Monroe): An indoor playground that has a smaller toddler area for kids 3 and under. The toddler area has a few play structures and a slide that ends at a ball pit. See my post here for more info.
Sports Connection (Ballantyne) Bounce House and Toddler Area: A family fun center that has a few smaller scale bounce houses for toddlers and a “playland” area designated for toddlers that is all soft materials and flooring. See my post here for more pics and info.
Spirited Sprout (Waxhaw): Indoor sensory play area with a variety of play options for kids.
Confete Soiree and Play (Huntersville): Small scale and modern indoor playground great for babies and toddlers.
Sea Life Aquarium (Concord): Small aquarium inside of Concord Mills Mall. It has a variety of small exhibits and a small soft play area.
Rock Hill Fire Dept Museum: The museum has an interactive children’s learning center. It also includes fire trucks and equipment to view.
Outdoor:
These playgrounds and outdoor play areas are my favorites for this age group.
Park Road Park (Central CLT/Park Road)- Has one of the best small scale playgrounds in the area plus a small sand box.
Stallings Park – Has a big and shaded toddler playground that is fully fenced and has a large sand box.
Tailhead Park (Tega Cay) – Fully fenced playground with soft rubber floor. Adaptable playground with ramp style structures great for toddlers.
Marion Diehl Park (Tyvola Road)- Small scale play area in the back of the drive. Soft turk flooring and easy to climb around structures that are great for toddlers. For more info and how to find this part of the park visit my post here.
Harrisburg Park (Harrisburg, NC): Turf flooring, ramp style play structures, and partially fenced. Nice toddler playground.
Miracle Park (Rock Hill) – Fully fenced playground with ramp style play structures and soft rubber flooring.
Adaptive Playground at Crooked Creek Park (Indian Trail): This playground is to the right inside the complex and has all ramp style equipment with soft rubber flooring.
Southpark Mall Playground – Small in scale play area with turf flooring
Sweetwater Farms (Huntersville): Small year round farm with multiple play areas, sandbox, farm animals, and concession stands.
Flat Branch Nature Preserve (Ballantyne): 0.4 mile flat trail loop that is a nice length for toddlers and younger kids.
Splash Pads: Pineville Lake Park, Crooked Creek Park, and Clarks Creek are my favorite splash pads for toddlers.
Classes:
This is a short list of classes that start at an early toddler age and many also have baby classes.
MyGym (Four Location across Charlotte) – Gym classes that involve jumping, climbing, and balancing all in a safe environment. Four locations in our area.
The Little Gym (Providence Rd) – Gym classes that involve jumping, climbing, balancing in a safe environment.
Romp N’ Roll (Northwest Charlotte) – Gym classes that involve art, music, jumping, climbing, balancing in a safe environment.
Music Together (Various locations across Charlotte) – Interactive music classes that involve singing and instruments. Many different locations offered.
Perfect Balance (Central Charlotte) – Gymnastics classes focusing on basic large motor skills and learning to watch, listen and follow instructions.
Charlotte Allstars (Matthews) – Intro gymnastics classes in a fun environment.
Zenith Gymnastics (Central Charlotte) – Intro gymnastics classes in a fun environment.
Aqua Tots Swim – Intro to swim classes starting at 4 months. Several locations.
Charlotte Aquatics Swim – Intro to swim starting at 6 months.
Little Otter Swim – Intro to swim starting at 6 months.
I hope this list is helpful as you look for activities to do with toddlers in Charlotte. As always I’m happy to answer questions in the comments!