2019 Golden Teddy Awards — Out + About

Winner: Funtastic Playtorium

Bursting into the top spot this year in two categories, Funtastic Playtorium, with locations in Bellevue and Lynnwood, is ParentMap readers’ favorite rainy-day refuge. These indoor playgrounds for kids 10 and younger are based on the philosophy that kids deserve active play without restrictions on their movement and thrive on the exercise and social interaction that playtime provides.

Finalists

Ahoy Kitsap Playland in Bremerton won a boatload of votes for its climbing structures and adjacent café, where adults can relax. Readers love Ahoy for its all-day-play admission policy, positive staff, cleanliness, great play equipment and amazing birthday parties.

Last year’s winner, KiDiMu – Kids Discovery Museum is still a favorite worth the ferry ride to Bainbridge Island. This hands-on children’s museum brings sunshine to rainy days. The Waldorf-inspired Totally Tot space provides a calm oasis for younger visitors and their caregivers. 

Hands-on museums like KidsQuest Children’s Museum in Bellevue are a natural choice for wet-weather activities, but perhaps it’s a little surprising that “water features” are among the reasons this museum makes the short list. It’s not just the wet stuff, though. At KidsQuest, “There is something for all ages and bits of history, some Bellevue nostalgia,” enthuses one voter.

Offering three levels of fun for the kids and a welcoming environment for the parents (read: beer, wine and coffee selections), PlayDate SEA is an all-ages hit. Rainy or not, Saturday-night laser tag for kids ages 6 and older beats sitting on the couch at home!