Kid-Friendly Spots Where the Whole Family Will Love Spending Time Together
Nine family-friendly venues where a pig named Kevin Bacon, a cubby house inside a brewery, and gluten-free doughnuts do the heavy lifting of keeping everyone happy.
A cubby house next to a 30-tap bar. A pig called Kevin Bacon. A working urban farm where the restaurant menu tracks what's actually growing outside. None of these venues treat kids as an afterthought — the play space, the animals or the menu get as much thought as anything built for the adults, which is the reason a day out here doesn't (necessarily) end in a meltdown by 2pm.
The spread runs from a former US Navy officers' mess turned all-day riverfront cafe in Brisbane to a night market built from 180 recycled shipping containers, by way of a pub running reptile shows through the school holidays. Presented by Honda ZR-V, these are nine days out that the whole family will enjoy together.
Read other guides in our A to Z with Honda ZR-V series:
Cheap Eats That Over-Deliver On Their Modest Price Tag
Fish and Chips to Take Down to the Water on a Warm Evening
Independent Cinemas with Interesting and Unexpected Screenings
In partnership with
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Things to DoCollingwood Children's Farm
18 Saint Heliers Street, Abbotsford
Duck pond water gets filtered and piped straight into the orchard at this working farm on the Yarra, run by a community committee.
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Things to DoMoPA: Museum of Play and Art
247 Bay Road, Sandringham
A six-metre-high miniature city and one of the world’s largest soft play areas anchor this museum, one of four MoPA sites.
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BarStomping Ground Brewery & Beer Hall
100 Gipps Street, Collingwood
A cubby house sits inside this converted warehouse brewery, where kids play while the taps run through 30 different beers for the adults.
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BarCamperdown Commons
31A Mallett Street, Camperdown
A working urban farm with an interactive kids’ play space and a restaurant menu built around what’s growing on site.
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CafeThe Grounds of Alexandria
2 Huntley Street, Alexandria
Kevin Bacon (the pig) and Russell Crow (the rooster) roam the animal enclosure at this cafe village, complete with its own playground.
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PubPublic House Petersham
292 Stanmore Road, Petersham
Reptile shows and pizza-making classes run through the school holidays at this pub, where kids eat free with every adult meal.
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BarEat Street Northshore
221D MacArthur Avenue, Hamilton
Kids enter these night markets free, with an arcade, roaming magicians, fire eaters and acrobats keeping them entertained.
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CafeNodo South Bank
114 Grey Street, South Brisbane
Doughnuts and secret off-menu kids’ meals draw families to this South Bank cafe, a short walk from the parklands playground.
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BarOfficers Mess
50 Oxlade Drive, New Farm
Steps from New Farm Park’s playground, this riverfront diner’s back lawn is built for letting the kids run between meals and drinks.
This guide was produced in partnership with Honda ZR-V. To learn more about the ultimate car for urban discovery, click here.