Ok - as promised here are some of the prime places to go to in the Greater Philadelphia Area if you have multiples (or even if you don't) where you won't break the bank to visit.  Mind you - our kids are 2 and 4 so the places are geared towards places for children at that age.  You will notice that we try to target places that offer family memberships.  Yes - we here at morrisquads.com buy our fun in bulk, you may say.  But seriously, scoping out the places that give family memberships is DEFINITLY the best way to go when you have multiples, but you should know approx. how many times you are going to go there first.

Bookmark this page and come back when you want to go out but can't think of anywhere to go.

These are listed in no particular order (after #1).

1.The Garden State Discovery Museum. http://www.discoverymuseum.com This place is, hands down, our favorite place to visit with the kids.  They have a HUGE toddler room that is closed in, complete with a slide, fake grocery store, fake kitchen, play pond for young'uns to crawl in, ball pool, coloring area, magnets galore, pretend house, and all of this is just in the closed in toddler area.  The toddler space is great because, even at 2 years old, we can let our kids run with minimal fear that they will hurt themselves and we can keep an eye on all of them at once.  Outside of the toddler area is a really cool diner where the kids serve fake food to the parents, a dog grooming store, a huge lite-brite, a boat, a fun construction zone, a dress-up theatre, a television news set, and more. If you are familiar with the Please Touch Museum in downtown Philadelphia this place has the same feel.  We think that it's a lot better than the PTM because it is a) not in the city where you have to deal with traffic/parking (the parking is free at the Discovery Museum), b) it is less crowded than the PTM, and c) if you live in NJ, you don't have to cross the bridge.

Individual Admission Prices:

$9.95 for kids and adults over 12 months old.

$8.95 for seniors

Membership Price:

$99.00  for two adults and all children in the immediate family.

You can cruise over to their site to see the membership details, but free admission for a year for the entire fam is the prime benefit.

2.The Philadelphia Zoo.  www.philadelphiazoo.org  One cool thing about the zoo is that it is open year round, so if there is a warm day in the winter (remember how many warm days we had this November thru January) you can load up the kids and take them to the zoo.  During the off season you can go there and not have to fight with crowds at all.  If you don't mind bundling up a little, it's really a fun time.  It's also a great place to when the ground is too muddy to go to the playground, but yet it is nice enough to want to be outside.  (The entire zoo is paved which is kind of ironic if you think about it).  One word of warning - if you do go on a weekend in the summer - GET THERE EARLY because if you don't it's a zoo... wait for it... there it is.  Look to see when they open and try to get there when the doors open.  We've gone in the morning and you not only beat the crowds, you beat the heat.  The parking is a bitch when it is crowded so be ready to trek a bit if you get there in the early afternoon on a summer weekend.  Also - I76 can get backed up at the Girard Street Exit when it is busy so if you know the streets or have a map you should consider taking them (not the best neighborhood, though).

Individual Admission Prices (In-season prices):

$16.95 Adult

$13.95 Child 2-11

Free Under 2

Membership Price:

$109 for two adults and children in your immediate family (up to 6 children)

$189 for two adults and children in your immediate family (up to 6 children)

(this second option gives you admission to all of the rides i.e. zoo balloon, swan boats, train, etc. that cost money) 

Again - look at their website to see all of the benefits but free admission and parking for the year are the biggest benefits.  Think about purchasing your membership online before you go to avoid the lines.

(Can I take a second here to say - I can't stand College Basketball in March  because all I really want to watch on TV is baseball.)

3.Linvilla Orchards.  www.linvilla.com

The best thing about Linvilla is that if you are really strapped for cash, you can take the family out for the day and not pay much at all.  However they have events that you can pay for and participate in if you want.  They have the best playground this side of Pleasant Kingdom (don't be upset if

this reference escapes you).  Linvilla has a bunch of wooden play gyms in a fenced in area.  Everything from pirate ships to big rigs.   Also - they have tons of animals that you can feed if you are into it.  You can purchase carrots and celery at their store for a couple of bucks and take them up the hill to feed the animals.  They also have tons of seasonal  activities like haunted hay rides, picking apples, picking pumpkins, concerts, festivals, etc.  This place is hoppin' in the fall.  Pack a lunch and have a fun day out at the farm.

Individual Admission Prices:

Free 

Memberships:

N/A

4.  Festivals:  i.e. Irish Festivals, Italian Festivals, Folk Festivals, etc.

Now that Spring is here (almost) pay attention to the weekend section in the Inquirer.  There are countless festivals and activities outside in and around Philadelphia.  Also - don’t be afraid if the festival that interests you isn’t in your immediate section of the city.  Be willing to drive an hour or so to go to the festival that interests you in Chester County or over the bridge in NJ.  For example, Mercer County has a HUGE Italian festival that we go to every year.  It is in NJ, near Sesame Place.  Bottom line is - it is free and it is lots of fun.  You can buy stuff if you want, but you can also pack a lunch and hear music and run around and not spend a dime.  The stuff that isn’t directly in the city usually has lots of wide open space where you can run and play.    

5.  Camden Riversharks Game  www.riversharks.com.  If you are a baseball fan, but the Phillies are a little too much $$, go over to Camden.  The Saturday Evening Riversharks games start a little earlier (5:05) than the standard 7:05 Phillies game start time.  They also have some weekday 11:05 games.  Their season doesn’t start until May.  A fun thing for kids to do is to take the ferry over from Penn’s Landing.  This way you get a boat ride AND a baseball game all in one.  The Riversharks have a big play area for kids.  Kids under 4 or so may have a tough time though because there tends to be a lot of older kids in there. 

More stuff later...