Family Fun

Brainerd Minnesota is home to a wide variety of great family activities and our Brainerd Lakes amusement parks are a great addition to any visit. Whether it is a stop at Paul Bunyan Land and This Old Farm Pioneer Village or Pirates Cove for mini golf or go cart racing there are plenty of great memories to be made.

Make sure when building your list of things to do in Brainerd you include these and be sure to stay at one of our great Brainerd and Baxter Minnesota Hotels, Water Parks and RV Park to give you centralized access to these great Brainerd amusement parks and everything else that the Brainerd Lakes area has to offer.

Plus take a look at our Brainerd Hot Deals page where you may find discounts on these great Brainerd Lakes amusement parks and other great places.

Brainerd is home to three of the best Minnesota waterparks. In addition to our great lake resorts, we have some of the best Minnesota water parks you’ll experience! Each offers a unique lodging experience from giant water slides that dive and swirl through well-designed pools and playgrounds—to quiet gentle pools, treehouses and hot tubs—you’ll find pure water fun for the whole family at our Brainerd Minnesota water parks!

Think a Minnesota water park vacation will be noisy? Not at our Brainerd water parks. Some of the most advanced water park technology has been used and the water park resorts have been designed to offer quiet places to relax and retreat. There’s something for every member of the family at Brainerd MN water parks.

What better way to book a weekend family retreat? Enjoy the best water parks in Minnesota, explore greater Brainerd lakes area, dine at our famous restaurants and enjoy hours of shopping, fishing, snowmobiling and world-class golf! After hours of fun in our famous Minnesota indoor water parks, escape to your comfortable suite—many feature classic Up North Lodge décor and furniture, and offer unique “themed” suites.

Think Brainerd water parks are just for family fun? Brainerd water parks make a perfect business lodging experience! Book your corporate retreat or meeting here, and enjoy the fun-filled water and relaxing pools in your downtime. We’ve got great dining, lounges and all the conveniences you need to make a Brainerd water parks lodge your next business destination!

Brainerd Minnesota and Baxter Minnesota both have an excellent selection of scenic parks and sandy beaches with modern facilities and plenty of green space for picnics, events, weddings, reunions, or to just walk the dogs. All in, near, or withing a short droive of Brainerd and Baxter Minnesota.

Baxter offers Whipple Beach which is accesable by biking trails with a fishing pier, play area, boat landing, and large picnic area attached to a large sandy beach. While Brainerd offers the Lum Park beach in an expansive park setting with the same ammenities as Whipple beach plus a Frisbee Golf course.

This in addition to several other parks offering tennis courts, ice skating, gazebos and much more. All within a quick drive of our Brainerd/Baxter hotels and waterparks.

Fritz Loven Park – Lakeshore – Photo Gallery
Shhh…this is a secret! This beautiful park just a few minutes from Brainerd/Baxter offers a trout stream with Brook trout running through it. It also includes hiking trails, play areas, covered picnic areas, & a sledding hill. This is a local favorite for getting away to a scenic quiete park and offers excellent bird watching.

Gregory Park – Brainerd – Photo Gallery
This beautiful park near downtown Brainerd hosts two tennis courts, play areas, plenty of green space, a gazebo, and a bandstand. The park hosts events throughout the year including the very popular Arts In The Park.

Lum Park & RV Park – Brainerd – Photo Gallery
Lum Park offers a large park with plenty of green space, beach, fishing pier, boat landing, covered picnic areas for small and large groups, play areas, and frisbee golf course. There is also a very nice RV Park here.

Whipple Beach – Baxter – Photo Gallery
Whipple Beach in Baxter MN near Brainerd offers a beautiful large beach area, large grassy shaded picnic area, bathrooms, shower, play area, fishing pier, and boat landing.

Brainerd has long been Minnesota’s racing destination with two great race tracks surrounded by all that the Brainerd Lakes Area has to offer. Our Brainerd hotels & RV Park offer you the perfect centralized location to access both tracks and everything else that the Brainerd Lakes Area has to offer.

Brainerd is home to the upper Midwest’s largest racetrack, Brainerd International Raceway, which each August hosts the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals, when Top Fuel and Funny Car drivers compete. BIR also is host to the BIR Performance Driving School, Street Smart Teen Driving School, and a variety of other racing.

In addition to BIR Brainerd is also home to North Central Speedway that offers dirt track racing at its finest.

North Central Speedway has 2 kids nights, one in August with a 50 bike giveaway, and another one in August where 100 backpacks full of school supplies are drawn for.  In addition to all their unique and fun Saturday night events they host IMCA Modifieds, Northern Sport Mods, Supers, Mod4s, Stock Cars, Sport Compacts, and NCS Pures.  Enjoy the race from the tailgate area, bleachers, or a comfortable booth. North Central Speedway also hosts World Of Outlaw racing in July and Season Champs in August.