6 Free or Cheap Things for Families to Do in St. Louis, Missouri

We live in a nation where there are so many wonderful places to visit from coast-to-coast. Our country has it all including: mountains, deserts, Great Lakes, mighty rivers and massive oceans. We have big cities and small towns, fast-paced cities of lights and quite dimly lit towns and villages in the countryside. Families can find something to do in all 50 states and sometimes at little or no cost! Take Missouri, for example.

Missouri is well known for being the "Show Me State" and if you have a chance to visit Missouri ask the natives why they are called this. St. Louis, Missouri, located in the middle of our country, has a population of approximately 2,800,000. The number of visitors or tourists frequenting St. Louis, on an annul basis, well exceeds hundreds of thousands and this is not surprising. St. Louis has so many different tourist attractions that it is often difficult to narrow down your priorities unless you are planning to stay for weeks.

This article has been written to help families, who are vacationing on a tight shoestring, to know about a few of St. Louis' reasonably priced to free tourist activities. It highlights several fun activities that can be done on a short weekend visit to a nice vacation getaway week.

For the kids a visit to the St. Louis Science Center is not only educational but fun as well. It is located on Oakland Avenue which is just a few miles off Kings Highway. You can access this location from any major interstate. There is no fee for general admission but there may be charges for different activities and parking.

The St. Louis Zoo is another attraction for the family. There is no admission fee for the zoo but there is a parking fee. When you see just how well managed and loaded this zoo is you will wonder how St. Louis can offer such an attraction for free. You will be amazed and pleased with all the spectacular animals shows that are provided at no cost.

Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site and Interpretive Center offers an impressive view of the most fascinating archaeological remnants remaining from the best prehistoric native civilization north of Mexico. This site is 2,200-acres and can be found only a few miles east of St. Louis outside of Collinsville, Illinois.

Take a walking tour on the banks of the Mississippi and visit the Gateway Arch. The Arch is part of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial that towers over the Mississippi River at 630 feet!

For the pet enthusiasts Purina Farms offers an exciting view into the lives of our four-legged friends. Here you can learn through interactive exhibits about the world of animals. They offer a tractor pull around the visiting center, gift shops, a children's play area and a maze all at no cost.

Situated close the St. Louis Zoo is Forest Park which is another St. Louis attraction that offers a variety of different areas to explore. The park spans over a 1200 acre area with bike trails, walking paths, areas to play golf or tennis and for those that like to stay in the shade there's the gift shops and museums you can visit and learn the history of Lewis and Clark.

These attractions represent only the tip of the iceberg for free to low cost things to do in St. Louis. In fact, there is so much to do in St. Louis one could spend an endless amount of time just trying to narrow down where to go and what to do.

Sources:

http://www.free-attractions.com/Attraction_Pages/cahokia%20mounds%20st%20hist%20site.htm
http://www.free-attractions.com/st_louis.htm