Family & Kids
Download an Albuquerque Kids Activity Book (PDF)
Albuquerque is possibly the best family vacation destination in the U.S. with amazing attractions, such as dinosaur exhibits, and great values. And as far as kid friendly vacations are concerned, just look at what all Albuquerque has to offer.
As you and your family explore the original city center in historic Old Town, you'll find several museums that will appeal especially to kids. At the American International Rattlesnake Museum, home to the world's largest collection of rattlesnakes, kids can test their bravery by holding a live snake! Even teens and tweens who don't think they're into museums will have fun at Explora, a hands-on science discovery center, or at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, home of disosaur exhibits and state-of-the-art Lodestar planetarium and observatory. And while you're in Old Town, you can't miss the National Atomic Museum, marked by a tall rocket that towers over the museum.
Kid friendly vacations are hard to find, but has you covered. Are your kids curious about Native American culture? Give them an invaluable experience with a visit to the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, where they can watch traditional Indian dances (often performed by children and teenagers) or learn how to make bread in an horno, an outdoor oven made of mud bricks. At the Petroglyph National Monument at the base of the volcanoes on the city's Westside, kids will have a blast scrambling among the boulders that bear more than 20,000 ancient rock carvings.
The ultimate for kid friendly vacations, the Albuquerque Biological Park includes a zoo, aquarium, botanic garden, heritage farm and three fishing lakes. At the aquarium, kids will be amazed by the giant shark tank, eel cave and tidal pool. And at the Children's Fantasy Garden they'll find a gigantic pumpkin and vegetables only Superman could lift! In the Rio Grande Heritage Farm's adobe animal barn you'll find a pair of Percheron draft horses, Alpine goats, Hampshire pigs, a Jersey cow, Churro sheep and Dominique chickens. The zoo, aquarium and botanic garden are connected to Tingley Beach by narrow-gauge, 3/4-scale trains. In the summer, visitors to Tingley Beach can rent paddle boats, bicycles and model boats.
If your family is into outdoor activities, you will find plenty to do here. Bike trails follow the meandering path of the Rio Grande and criss-cross the city. All year 'round, the Sandia mountains provide fantastic terrain for hikers and bikers, while cool summer evenings are perfect for baseball games. (Did you know that the Albuquerque Isotopes took their name from an episode of "The Simpsons") Also in the summer you can take a wild ride on "The Rattler," New Mexico's first super coaster, at Cliff's Amusement Park. In winter, Sandia Peak offers skiing and snowboarding overlooking the city, cheer on the Albuquerque Thunderbirds basketball team, a new addition to the NBA Development League and the New Mexico Scorpions hockey team plays in a brand-new arena in Rio Rancho. All of these attributes will help make Albuquerque the best family vacation destination you’ll ever visit.
Albuquerque is so affordable that you'll find your travel budget goes far. In 2006 the Hotwire® Travel Value Index listed Albuquerque as the 6th Best Overall Value for Visitors. The city was also named in the 100 Best Communities for Young People by America's Promise Alliance in 2006 and 2007.
If you’re looking for the very best family vacation destination, from dinosaur exhibits to sporting events, look no further than Albuquerque.