Fun Indoor Things to Do with Kids in Erie, PA

Splash Lagoon is consistently ranked one of the Top 10 Water Park Resorts in the country by USA Today’s Readers’ Choice. It’s a tropical oasis with nine thrilling slides, a 200,000-gallon wave pool, FlowRider surf machine, the Tree Tops Ropes Course, arcade, food court, and a newly renovated Tiki Tree House complete with water sprayers, mini dumping buckets, and a giant tipping coconut! There’s also a new Froggy Family splash pad featuring a zero-depth pool, fun water sprayers, and colorful frog figures. Day passes and overnight packages are available year-round.

Relive fond memories of going to the arcade and share them with a new generation at Play Port, where over 100 games are set to “free play”, no quarters needed! The bright neon colors and amazing collection of retro arcade games will transport your family back to the 80’s and 90’s with classic arcade games such as Pac-Man, Centipede, and Donkey Kong, among others.  Play Port also features laser tag, glow golf, virtual reality games, and glow pool. General admission includes all “free play” video games and one round of glow golf.

There’s always something imaginative, inventive, and immersive happening at the newly updated expERIEnce Children’s Museum. The newly remodeled facility (which finished an $18 million expansion in 2024) gives its littlest guests more room to unleash creation, exploration, imagination, and play. Many exhibits pay homage to the Erie community. “Lake Life” boasts the second-largest interactive water table in the country, featuring miniature versions of the Bicentennial Tower and the Land Lighthouse, two of Erie’s iconic structures. “My Town” is a kid-sized town packed with hands-on experiences from taking orders at a restaurant to changing the oil on a car. “Erie Recycles” features a gallery of smaller exhibits focused on real-world steps such as sorting recyclables, shredding plastic, and watching it transform into new products.

Dedicated to teaching its visitors about the history of Presque Isle State Park, the Tom Ridge Environmental Center (affectionately referred to as “TREC”) is a free facility with two floors of engaging and interactive exhibits, and a glass-enclosed observation tower offering panoramic views of Lake Erie.  Through these hands-on exhibits, visitors learn about the importance of preserving and appreciating the natural beauty that is Presque Isle. A visit to TREC is incomplete without taking a moment to set the three towering whirligig structures near the main entrance in motion, bringing to life a multitude of hand-carved figures.

It’s all about immersing yourselves into worlds of live-action adventures at 5 Wits, located on the southwest end of the Millcreek Mall. Participants choose from a variety of quests such as Espionage, Drago’s Castle, and Tomb and are placed in real-life sets that rely on hands-on tasks, puzzles, and challenges to finish. Each story has multiple endings, adaptable difficulty, repeatable challenges, changing solutions, and dynamic outcomes, complete with synchronized sound, lighting, and special effects. Unlike escape games where escaping is the objective, 5 Wits offers story-driven games where there are always different endings to each story. All ages are admitted, however, children under 13 must be accompanied by an adult.