Newcomer to Plano looking for things to do for toddler boy

[PlanoGirl]

I'll write more later about other activities, but for sand boxes, I can't think of any park in Plano that has sand. But few other places nearby spring to mind:

Villages at Fairview (75 and Stacy) have a "beach" area with a sand playground...plus the kiddos can run through the Fountain afterwards to get all the sand off...BONUS!

Frisco Commons Park (near Main and Preston) has a great huge wooden playstructure, lots of swings, and a sand play area. Splash pad there too, as well as a lake for feeding the ducks.

Maybe Craig Ranch (in Mckinney)?? They have a "beach" but it might just be volleyball.

[xS☺B☺s]

I definitely second the Dallas Zoo. The children's Zoo is sweet. Just remember the DEET!

Originally Posted by JohnDenver2

We have a toddler and just moved to the FAR FAR north side of Dallas, on the edge of Plano.

Here is what we have done thus far:

*Our library (Frankford/Hillcrest) is also subpar, though they do have story reading activities on Tuesday evenings that our boy likes.
*We have a park at the intersection that we also use, he likes the merry-go-round and slides. It is all sand in the play area.
*Signed him up for Gymboree and take him to the open gym hours, in addition to the scheduled class times. He loves it.
*He liked the children's aquarium in Fair Park, but I found it dumpy. The Dallas World Aquarium is awesome, but expensive and BUSY. So we joined the Dallas Zoo and he loves it. Mainly the children's area with the water area..
*I have been meaning to take the boy to this: Museum of the American Railroad > Home -- but it looks like it is now closed because it is moving to Frisco.
*He LOVES going to the play area in the Willowbend mall. It is probably his favorite thing to do.. During the summer heat, it was his main outlet because the park was too hot.

Good to know about Central Market play area. Now I recall seeing it, but stopped noticing.

The Arbor Hill Nature Preserve in Plano is a good area to let your boy run around. City of Plano - Home

[fndmom]

JohnDenver2 had some good suggestions and I live close to the area he describes and the Dallas branch library on Frankford is disappointing. I prefer to take my kids to Parr library on Communications or Haggard library on Coit in Plano and really like their children's areas and story times.

My kids like the children's museum in Ft Worths science museum. The Dallas one is okay, I have higher hopes once they open the new location in December near Victory Park. The Plano recreation centers offer lots of classes for preschoolers. We have been happy with the Tom Muhlenbeck center. There is a park with a sandbox in Far North Dallas at 6011 Bentwood Trail, zip code 75252.

[Vintage Life]

Depending on where you live in Plano, Parr is nice if you live more west. If you live closer to east, I love the Wylie Library in Wylie off of Country Club. We love the kids area there!

[DitsyD]

Heritage Farmstead Museum in Plano is a great place for kids to see farm animals. They have "Fun on the Farm" events on many Fridays for pre-schoolers with a parent or other adult. The Fun on the Farm events do require prior registration, but are lots of fun for the kids.
Home | Heritage Farmstead MuseumHeritage Farmstead Museum | Celebrating 25 Years of Preserving History

Each of the libraries in Plano is different and offer different story times and activities. Try the different libraries to see if one works better than another. The below website lists the schedules for the different libraries as well as the story times and a "Kids" tab just for kids stuff.
City of Plano - Home

Trains? DART is good. The McKinney Avenue Trolley is better. There is the Tarantula steam train that runs from Grapevine to the Ft. Worth Stockyards and back to Grapevine. The Tarantula also has a day with Thomas the Tank Engine in April.
MATA - McKinney AvenueTransit Authority - M-Line
https://www.grapevinetexasusa.com/Th...7/Default.aspx

The Children's Museum should be improved when the new Perot Museum of Nature and Science opens in the Victory Park are of Dallas, near downtown. The museum is moving from their re-purposed museum to a much larger facility.
About the Perot | Perot Museum of Nature and Science

I have found that while older kids and adults like the Dallas World Aquarium in the West End of downtown, the younger ones are much happier in the Children's Aquarium at Fair Park. Not as large or noisy or overwhelming as the DWA, they can also pet horseshoe crabs and stingrays.
About the Perot | Perot Museum of Nature and Science

While I think that the Ft. Worth zoo is a much nicer zoo than the Dallas zoo, I think that the Dallas zoo is fine for little ones. Take the DART train from Plano to the zoo station, and you have a great day for a toddler. You can rent a stroller or wagon at the zoo, so you don't even have to worry about how to take one on the train.

The Heard Natural Science Museum and Wildlife Sanctuary in McKinney is also a great outdoor place with little ones. From Oct. 2-Feb. 3, they will be hosting Dinosaur Live! with life-size animatronic dinosaurs.
The HEARD Natural Science Museum & Wildlife Sanctuary, Mckinney Texas
The HEARD Natural Science Museum & Wildlife Sanctuary, Mckinney Texas

[davidnyc]

I am a stay at home Dad to an almost 3yr old. What I have been doing:
Dallas zoo - I am a member. I have been there 5+ times already. At 9am there is much less traffic and it takes about 35 minutes from Murphy. It is almost empty during school days in the morning. We love it.
Dallas World Aquarium - I am a member. Park on the street early for a pocket change not in the lot for $5. Again early during the week have the place almost to ourselves.
Guitar center - there are tons of cool instruments to look at and someone is always jamming
Petco - the mini zoo
Barnes and noble - mini library (I do buy a book here and there)
Supermarkets - the produce. Play games. A is for... Etc
Playground off of 15th in downtown Plano
Construction sites to look at all the equipment

I honestly avoid McD or Chick-fil-a playgrounds, but we do like a few games at chuck e.

[tyanger]

For next summer when the heat comes back around there is a good size splashground and playground in Allen - I think it's called Celebration Station. There is also a smaller one by the Purple Cow in Fairview (Stacy/75). The Heard Museum in Mckinney is nice this time of year when it's not too hot or cold - it's a small natural history museum with outdoor nature trails. The Dallas Arboretum is nice almost any time of year - the fall/pumpkin stuff should be starting soon. I think the Heard Museum and the Dallas Science Museum share membership benefits - or maybe it's the Zoo? can't remember exactly.

[tuesday2]

Have you tried Coyote Creek Park in West Plano? Just east of Midway and just south of Windhaven. Fairly shady. Two playgrounds - toddler and bigger kids, separated by a creek - open grassy area, pavilion, paved pathway, basketball courts.

There is a nice Plano branch library on the north end of the park, you can walk to it from the park. They have a nice children's section and lots of kids programming, especially in the summer.

My kids also used to really enjoy the story times at the various Barnes & Nobles around town. They usually had a craft to go with the story and they loved the Thomas the Train table.

[dallasboi]

Main Event has a plano location...To me its the Wal-Mart of children entertainment(adults Too).

[DitsyD]

Originally Posted by dallasboi

Main Event has a plano location...To me its the Wal-Mart of children entertainment(adults Too).

I've never been to Main Event. I've heard all about the birthday parties for school age kids and the fun stuff for adults, so, what do they have for toddlers?