Three Bears Acres is a fun, homegrown, outdoor adventure park offering lots of great activities for the kids!
We recently had a family fun day at Three Bears Acres so I thought I’d let you in on the scoop! My 4 and 3 year old had a great time and wanted to stay longer, while my 1 year old was a little fussy and clingy while we were there. I think he was mainly just hot, but he also had trouble participating in a lot of the activities due to his age.
The jumping pillow
We started out in the open field where there are some tunnels you can run in, corn hole, and an obstacle course. We skipped most of that and my kids headed straight for the giant jumping pillow! Unfortunately, the surface of the pillow was pretty hot since it’s in direct sun, so my kids didn’t last long on it. I, however, had a blast! Just keep jumping and it won’t burn your feet! It’s like jumping on a bowl of jello! Watch your dismount though! 🙂
Outdoor Painting
After that we of course had to do the outdoor painting! My kids love to paint, so that giant canvas was just calling their name! It also has a shade canopy over it, so definitely a plus there!
Mud Kitchen
We made our way over to the mud kitchen, but mommy wasn’t quite brave enough to give them free reign of the mud. There were some older kids there that cooked us up some mud spaghetti, but luckily my short kids weren’t tall enough to reach into the bathtub of mud. I wasn’t complaining! This part is also in direct sun so after a while we were ready to head into the shade!
Giant Slide
By far my favorite activity at Three Bears Acres is what I call the giant slide. It’s not really a slide though, since you ride on sleds with wheels attached to the bottom. They have constructed a long hill that you ride down, and as you can see below, it goes pretty fast! My kids were a little scared the first time they rode it, but after that they kept asking for more! We spent a lot of time on this slide!
The Tree House
Once I pried my kids away from the slide, we went over to the tree house area. Someone spent a long time building a huge tree house fort for the kids to play in. There are multiple slides, a playhouse, a net to climb up, and swings attached all over. My older two kids were able to climb up the net, but I was a little worried about them falling so my husband stayed right behind them. I didn’t let my little guy try it at all since it’s pretty steep.
Make some outdoor music!
Once you’ve had your fill of the treehouse, you can make your way over to the outdoor music section. There are a variety of xylophones, gongs, and drums that your child can bang on to their heart’s content! I spent some time over here with my one year old since he enjoyed listening to the different sounds!
Three Bears Cafe
By this point we were ready for lunch! We had packed a picnic so we headed over to the many tables available. There’s also a cafe onsite ran out of a food truck. I didn’t look at the menu, but I saw a lot of people eating popsicles so I know they offer those!
Bear Pond Paddle Boats
After lunch we stopped by Bear Pond. I wasn’t ready to take my three kiddos out on a paddle boat, but there were many available and we saw lots of older kids riding them. We opted for the 3-tiered water table instead, which was the biggest one I’ve ever seen! This kept my toddlers entertained for quite a while, just scooping and splashing!
Summertime Water Play
If you visit Three Bears Acres during the summer months, there is a water play area available in the back. It consists of a sandbox with a sprinkler system in the middle. There was also a giant slip n’ slide, but everyone had trouble sliding on it. They just had sprinklers spraying on it, so there wasn’t a lot of water flow to help you slide. I asked for some soap to try and make it more slippery, but they didn’t have any.
I personally was a little disappointed in the water play area, so I wouldn’t go here for just that, but there’s plenty of other activities to keep you busy! When we got home all the kids took long naps, so I’d say it was a win!
Get more information on pricing and schedules at their website! They have fall activities and even an Easter egg hunt in the spring so you can visit at different times of year and have new things to do! Try going on Toddler Thursday when one parent gets in free with a paying child aged 5 and under, or check out their annual pass!
Another comparable farm in the area is Hill Ridge Farms. If you’re looking for better water play, check out one of the many splash pads and other places with great water activities listed on our blog here!
Pros
- lots of activities to keep the kids busy, a lot in the shade
- nice restroom facility onside
- cafe and picnic tables available
- super fun giant slide
- paddle boats included in admission
Cons
- First section of activities is in direct sun so jumping pillow gets hot
- summertime water play leaves more to be desired