Lots of destinations boast about family-friendliness. In Durham you will find more children, young adults and fur babies in tow on family adventures than in many urban epicenters.

Places like the Museum of Life + Science provide fun and educational experiences through hands-on, engaging exhibits. Unique businesses like trampoline sports arenas DefyGravity and Sky Zone give children a fun outlet for their energy, and parks like Rolling View State Recreation Area offer areas to explore the outdoors. No matter the age, areas of interest or the budget, kids have a wealth of activities available in Durham.

For adventurous sorts, the skate park in Durham Central Park is the place to go. Bring your skateboard and safety gear, and try out the quarter pipe, launch boxes, handrails, street clam and eight-foot bowl. As a bonus, the Central Park District is home to a farmers' market and art market with food trucks on Saturday mornings, which makes it the perfect place for both adults and kids.

Just down the hill from the skate park is an interactive play area featuring two slides, a climbing net, a boulder climb and other areas that kids can't help but get excited about. The playground is situated within the larger Durham Central Park, which includes large green areas where you can picnic, relax, or run around.

Feeling the heat? Durham Parks and Recreation maintains five special public parks with spraygrounds, which, in addition to more typical playground equipment, have water features. Perfect for a hot summer day, you can press a button to spray your kids with water as they play. Head to the City of Durham website to find the sprayground that’s right for you. If you’d prefer to stay dry, Durham Parks and Recreation also maintains a park locator tool handy for searching outdoor spaces by amenities, field types, picnic areas, dog parks, and more.

Need to stretch your legs? Two of Durham's public parks along the Eno River, West Point on the Eno and Eno River State Park, feature miles of trails that wind through the trees along the waterway, ripe for exploring. There are also several swimming holes, fishing opportunities and canoe and kayak rentals. (There are no lifeguards, and the current varies, so it's best for experienced swimmers and a watchful chaperone.) West Point also features three historic buildings you and your family can tour.

While Durham’s temperate climate is generally conducive to being outdoors, Durham also has some fantastic places to go when you don’t want to go outside.

If you or your child is a budding artist, engineer, or architect, head to the Scrap Exchange, a creative reuse arts center, which collects materials from over 250 local industries to be used for crafting. Bull City Craft offers a range of programs and activities for children too in their drop-in craft time, or the kids can get loud at Notasium, a one-of-a-kind, music-based play space.

Don't forget about Durham's public indoor pools during the cooler weather months,. Both the Edison Johnson Aquatic Center and the Campus Hills pools offer daily recreational swim periods.

Whether it's serious energy burn, or arts and crafts creativity you're looking for, Bull City has you and your rambunctious bunch covered.