The summer season brings so many exciting adventures for the whole family but also the not-so-enjoyable summer heat! While getting plenty of fresh air and sunshine is essential for overall health, it’s also important to ensure you don’t overheat in the hot sun. Planning indoor activities for the whole family will help keep you active and protected from too much heat and sun exposure.

Becoming overheated in the summer sun can cause heatstroke. Heatstroke can cause permanent damage and occurs when your body is unable to cool down on its own. Make sure you know the signs of heatstroke and what to do if this happens to you or a loved one. As you make your summer bucket list, help your crew beat the summer heat by adding plenty of indoor activities to help you stay cool inside. Here are 12 of our favorite indoor activities for the whole family to enjoy!

Indoor waterparks provide a fun experience for the whole family! Enjoy the thrills of playing in the water without worrying about becoming overheated or applying sunscreen throughout the day! Many indoor waterparks also offer an outdoor section giving you the best of both worlds! Enjoy fun in the sun, but head back inside for more waterpark fun when you need a break from the heat.

Some indoor waterparks include a luxury resort stay giving you the option of turning a day at the indoor waterpark into a mini staycation! Or, if you just need to beat the summer heat with a day of fun, many indoor water park resorts offer a day pass for visitors to the resort.

For example, Great Wolf Lodge has 18 locations throughout the United States, with more on the way. Stay for a night (or 5!) or pay for a waterpark pass for the day. This is definitely a summer activity you will want to add to your summer bucket list!

Check out this helpful list of indoor water parks in the United States and start planning your day of fun today!

If your kids long for the water but could use a break from the sun and chlorine, aquariums are the perfect place to beat the summer heat! And with so many animals to explore, your kids will stay active while learning! 

Many aquariums offer hands-on experiences like touching stingrays, working alongside a sea animal trainer for the day, or even enjoying a shark cage dive at the Georgia Aquarium! Seeing the beautiful colors and different types of sea creatures are relaxing and exhilarating activities all at the same time!

Enjoy a day trip to your local aquarium or take a road trip to visit one of the best aquariums in the country. Aquariums offer so many fun activities for all ages. See if your local aquarium made the Travel Channel’s best list of aquariums in the United States!

Museums are a fun and educational way to beat the summer heat! From science and history museums to art museums, there is sure to be a museum for everyone to enjoy. Children’s museums offer educational exhibits and hands-on sensory activities for all ages. And with the addition of so many iMax theaters in museums, your kids won’t realize they are learning while enjoying a fun movie!

Stay active this summer while using critical thinking skills in an escape room! As one of the trendier indoor activities, this is a definite must when making your summer bucket list. And with so many escape rooms popping up throughout the country, you will easily find an exciting escape room theme that appeals to the whole family.

With only 1 hour to escape the room, work together as a family to solve clues hidden throughout the room. Figuring out how to escape is an exciting and fun activity for all ages. And don’t forget to check Groupon before you go! Escape rooms are constantly showing up on Groupon with great deals!

If you’re worried screen time will be the go-to activity to beat the summer heat, consider purchasing a membership to a trampoline park. Most trampoline parks offer more than trampolines! With indoor playgrounds, obstacle courses, trampoline sports, and more, your kids will stay entertained while burning off plenty of energy!

Most trampoline parks don’t require parents to pay unless they plan to play too! So bring a book or tablet and relax in the seating area or café while your kids play! Trampoline parks are also an excellent option for summer birthday parties! Check out Urban Air or Altitude Trampoline Park to find a location near you!

Find a local gym or community center offering indoor sports. Volleyball, basketball, swimming, racquetball, and kickball are all fun and competitive indoor sports at many gyms and recreation centers.

Whether you want to sign up the whole family in a league or just enjoy a day playing a favorite sport inside the gym, this is a great way to exercise while having fun as a family.

If you or someone in your family has dreamed of having their spot in the winter Olympics, test your skills at an ice skating rink! Enjoy the cool air from the ice while you glide in circles to some of your favorite pop songs. Not only is this a great form of exercise, but it is also an enjoyable way to beat the summer heat!

Or, if you aren’t feeling the ice, find a roller rink and introduce your kids to roller skates! Skating circles through the strobe lights while dancing your way around the rink will bring back so many fun memories while creating new ones with your family! Just don’t forget to enjoy a Slurpee and play a game of Pac-Man before you leave.

Indoor playgrounds are a popular summer activity to help beat the summer heat. While places like Chick-fil-A and McDonald’s used to be the best way to play while staying out of the heat, more and more franchises have opened up throughout the country, offering fun and educational play spaces.

With activities for all ages, indoor playgrounds offer learning activities and fun playground equipment to keep your kids active while staying out of the heat. For example, Playstreet Museum provides an indoor play space for younger kids with Montessori-type play and activities to encourage exploration and child independence.

Or, for kids and adults of all ages, check out somewhere like Funtopia in Illinois. This fun summer activity offers indoor playgrounds, ropes courses, obstacle courses, and more! The indoor play space isn’t just for kids. It’s for adults too! Bring the whole family for a day of friendly competition or bring your colleagues for a team-building session. Funtopia even has massage chairs and a cafe so parents can sit back and relax while their kids play!

For a creative summer activity, take the family to an art studio and let the kids express their artistic side without ruining your living room! Find a pottery studio or sign up for a glass blowing class. Sign-up for art lessons or find a studio where you can free paint for a couple of hours. Stay out of the heat while encouraging the kids to tap into their creative side.

If you’re interested in different crafts to fit everyone’s interests, try somewhere like Pinspiration! As you may have guessed, Pinspiration offers the latest and trendiest crafts that you may see floating around popular social media sites like Pinterest.

Make a reservation or just show up and select from dozens of crafts. Pinspiration provides all the supplies you need as well as step-by-step instructions to complete your craft. And with such a fun and decorative craft studio, you will definitely be inspired to create more than just one masterpiece!

Pinspiration offers beverages and snacks to help make your creative process even more enjoyable! Some locations offer splatter paint room packages for a fun and crazy day for the whole family! This indoor activity will help keep the family cool and creative and might even make your summer bucket list twice!

Bring out your family’s competitive side with a friendly game of bowling! Whether you enjoy a traditional bowling alley or a more contemporary venue with other fun activities for all ages like Main Event, grab a fun snack and enjoy an indoor activity for the whole family to enjoy!

Split off into teams or compete individually for total bragging rights. Bring prizes or awards for added fun. Bowling is a simple but classic summer bucket list item that is sure to be a memory maker!

Sometimes there is nothing more exciting than catching a movie in the middle of the day! This is a great way to beat the summer heat while taking time just to relax and unwind. Sometimes kids just need a break, so don’t worry about your screen time limitations and enjoy a tasty treat while watching the latest flick.

Introduce your kids to some of your all-time favorite games while enjoying a day of friendly competition. Show off your air hockey skills or try to master a new game. Split into teams to see who can win the most tickets or work as a family to try and win the biggest prize.

While the arcade isn’t necessarily educational, it does encourage better hand-eye coordination and is a fun way to enjoy each other without melting in the heat!

What are your favorite indoor activities for the whole family to enjoy? Did any of our summer activities make your summer bucket list? Comment Below!