Summer or not, sometimes Florida’s heat keeps kids from playing outside where they can stretch their legs and fuel their imaginations. Fortunately, a lot of malls in Tampa Bay have indoor play areas where kids are welcome to run, play, and explore.
Some malls have several play areas throughout, so take a stroll to discover each one. Look for Nursing Stations in Westfield Mall locations that are for you and your infants or toddlers. Find merry-go-rounds, ice skating rinks, and more as you and your kids beat the heat with indoor play areas at these Tampa Bay malls.
Nursing Room - Westfield Brandon Town Center
Tampa
Westfield Citrus Park Mall has not one or two, but three indoor spaces for kids. The play area near Dillard’s offers under-the-sea fun with soft sea creatures to climb, a slide, and plenty of space to run. The Family Playhouse is the perfect place for kids to do quiet activities like reading, coloring, or playing with toys. The mall also has a large, indoor carousel by the food court that kids love. Watch your little ones spin round and round while sipping your favorite pick-me-up from nearby Starbucks or Teavana!
Not far from the University of South Florida, University Mall’s play area guarantees fun for your little landlubbers with pirate ships, sea creatures, and rocks to climb as well as a slide. There’s also plenty of room to run and explore with 1,500 square feet of play space. This indoor play area can easily be found between Sears and Burlington Coat Factory inside the mall.
Known for its premium shopping, International Plaza also delivers ultimate fun for kids with their Busch Gardens Play Area. This unique indoor play area near Nordstroms offers soft baby jungle animals, a safari truck, train, and 14-foot Cheetah Hunt Tower for children to climb and explore. It’s also close to a couple of restaurants where you can grab a bite with the family including Nordstrom’s Ebar cafe and California Pizza Kitchen.
WestShore Plaza brings the beach inside the mall with its play area sponsored by The Tampa Bay Times. Right near the food court, this indoor play area features soft sand castles, jet skis, lighthouses, and sea creatures like stingrays. Kids will feel like they’re having fun in the sun as they play and run around this beach-inspired area.
Merry-Go-Round Westfield Citrus Park
Brandon
The play area at Westfield Brandon Town Center can be found near Sears and Tilly’s. Kids will have lots of fun climbing animal characters, solving puzzles, and running around. Starbucks and Teavana are conveniently located near this indoor play area so you can charge up for a day of shopping while your kids power-down.
St. Petersburg
Tyrone Square Mall’s play area is definitely ruled by kids with its clubhouse theme and cute outdoor objects to climb like a pig, plane, ladybug, and car to climb on as well as a library nook for reading. This indoor play area is near JCPenney as well as Auntie Anne’s Pretzels where you can get a delicious, salty snack for you and the kids.
Clearwater
Located on the first level near JCPenney, Westfield Countryside’s Living Ocean PlaySpace allows you to relax while your children read a book, watch an educational program, or enjoy a quiet activity. If you have an adventurous child who loves to try new things or an older child who wants something to do, stop by the ice skating rink to see where you can free skate!
Register on 813area to stay connected and easily find more fun things to do to beat the heat this summer with your kids on our Family, Events, and Things to Do pages.
(Photo credit: Mall Facebook Pages)
