Family days in Kokomo, season by season

Kokomo is an easy city to raise children in if you know its parks. The city's parks department looks after more than thirty of them, from pocket playgrounds to the 100 acres of Jackson Morrow Park, and many of the best family outings cost little or nothing. Here is how a Kokomo family year can go, from the first warm spring Saturday to the gray weeks of February.

Spring and summer: water, wheels and wide lawns

When the weather turns, Highland Park on Defenbaugh Street is the place most families start. Its 83 acres hold the city's main accessible playground, three smaller playgrounds including a tot lot, a pond, a gazebo and a walk bridge to a creek island. The red Vermont Covered Bridge, moved here from the town of Vermont east of Kokomo, is a good spot for a family photo.

On hot afternoons, head for water. The splash pad at Jackson Morrow Park on South Park Road is free, open daily from morning to evening when the weather allows, and ADA compliant, with separate areas for children of different ages, a small slide and a tipping bucket. Downtown, Al Berryman Park on North Main Street has a splash pad of its own beside the Industrial Heritage Trail. For a full day in the water, Kokomo Beach Family Aquatic Center on West Park Avenue has a zero-depth leisure pool, a lazy river, slides and a splash zone, plus swim lessons and family nights; tickets and season details are on the city's reservation site.

New this year, Cutler Park on East Vaile Avenue added a mini-golf course along with tennis and pickleball courts. Kokomo Little Links, an 18-hole mini-golf course with a shaved ice stand on East Murden Street, also finished its first year and has closed for the season, thanking families on its site. Its work program, run with Bridges, gives students job skills and work experience.

For older children with boards and bikes, the city runs skateparks at Foster and Studebaker parks and the Northside Pump Track on North Main Street, and it offered skateboard lessons this year. Families with a teenager or a tandem can borrow bikes free from KokoGo Bike Share downtown in spring, summer and fall; an adult must be 18 or older with ID and a card on file.

Summer evenings bring free concerts to Foster Park and the downtown Riverwalk, and the parks department's Family Movie Nights and Summer Playground Program fill in the weekdays. The 2026 program guide on the city's site has the details.

Fall and winter: museums, animals and a rink

When it gets cold, Kokomo's indoor spots come into their own. The Kirkendall Interpretive Nature Center in Jackson Morrow Park has a large diorama of animals native to Howard County, live animal exhibits and a bird-watching area. It keeps winter hours from September through April, and the visitors bureau lists it as free to visit.

In Highland Park, the visitors center holds two of Kokomo's oddest treasures side by side. Old Ben, born on a farm near Bunker Hill in 1902, grew to more than two tons (4,585 or 4,720 pounds by the city's records) and stood 6 feet 4 inches at the shoulder; the city has displayed him since 1919. Next to him is the Sycamore Stump, a hollow trunk about 57 feet around that was hauled to the park by tractor in 1916. Children rarely forget either one.

At the southeast corner of the same park, the Elwood Haynes Museum tells the story of the inventor who hired Elmer and Edgar Apperson to build his first automobile in the 1890s and lived in this house for the last 35 years of his life. Admission is free, with a donation welcome, and it keeps weekend and afternoon hours in the off-season.

For animal lovers, the Kokomo Humane Society runs the Kokomo Cat Café on East Hoffer Street, where walk-in visitors can sit with a colony of adoptable cats at no charge. Children must be at least three, with one adult for every two children under 12.

The Kokomo-Howard County Public Library is the rainy-day standby, with its main library on North Union Street downtown and a South branch on East Center Road. Its children's pages list storytimes and the free 1000 Books Before Kindergarten program.

And when there is snow, Kokomo sleds. The city lists a man-made sledding hill at Jackson Morrow Park and winter sledding at Highland Park and Miller-Highland Park.

Holiday traditions

The Frozen Sandlot, the outdoor rink at Kokomo Municipal Stadium, opens its ninth season on Friday, November 27, with skate and helmet rentals. On Saturday, December 5, the City of Kokomo's Christmas parade, Miracle on Main Street, comes down Main Street with snow machines along the route and Santa photos afterward. December at the Seiberling Mansion means rooms decorated by local groups, with free evening hours on select Thursdays and Fridays. At the Kirkendall Nature Center, the parks department's Christmas at Kirkendall brings free cookie decorating, crafts and a visit with Santa and a reindeer.

A family meal

After a morning at Jackson Morrow or Highland Park, Half Moon Restaurant & Brewery on South Lafountain Street is a short drive away, with smoked barbecue, burgers and sandwiches, takeout and a private dining room for bigger family gatherings. For a treat after shopping downtown, Kokomo Toys & Collectibles on Sycamore Street is a fun browse for anyone who loves action figures.

Whatever the season, check the city's parks pages before you go: hours change between summer and winter, and the weather has the last word.