Kansas City, MO

Sprint Center
$276 million basketball arena opened in 2007, that has Kansas city on the prowl for an NBA franchise; today it hosts large concerts and family shows; within the venue lies College Basketball Experience, a highly-interactive venue where fans of any age can immerse themselves in the game of college basketball; within BCE, the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame honors deserving coaches, players and contributors who have made significant impacts on the game while educating and entertaining fans and visitors through interactive exhibits that test a visitor’s basketball skill level and knowledge; 1401 Grand Boulevard; 816-949-7500; http://www.sprintcenter.com

Union Station - Science City
Opened as the nation's second largest train station in 1914, it remained operational until 1983, all but closing due to the decline in train travel; in 1999, Kansas City officials unveiled this magnificent adaptive re-use of the ornate station, now featuring restaurants, theaters, shops and Science City - a tremendous edutainment destination for the family whose exhibits include Tree House Nature Center, Science City Tower, Einstein Towers, Train Overlook, Crime Lab, and weather Park; an IMAX Theater is also on the premises; since the building is open from 6a to midnight daily, it’s a great place to people watch; 816-460-2222; http://www.sciencecity.com

Kansas City Zoo
Features 200 acres of African and Australian animal exhibits, including an Elephant Sanctuary which is reportedly one of the nation’s best, and a Australia exhibit and an IMAX Theater; train & pony rides are always popular; you be quietly awestruck by the family of giraffes when they are feeding or cavorting; Sea Lion Training Demonstrations are at 10:30a and 1:30p daily, except Wednesdays; Discovery Barn and Peekaboo Treehouse are great for the wee ones; the Carousel Café restaurant has also been significantly upgraded and more zoo amenities are coming; Adults $6, Children $3; November-February, daily from 10a-4p, March-October, daily 9:30a-5p; admission varies by season; 6800 Zoo Drive in Swope Park; 816-513-5700; http://www.kansascityzoo.org

Worlds of Fun & Oceans of Fun
There’s something for everyone at these two great theme parks: plenty of rides for those who want dry thrills and a waterpark with 18 water slides on 60 acres; Worlds of Fun theme park has 6 world-class roller coasters, including hands-free inverted coasters like the Patriot that let you feel like Superman flying and the so high its scarily good Mamba roller coaster; when its hot, Oceans of Fun lets you lazily drift in a tube along with the kids and visit the children’s playground, and when you need quiet time you can visit the “adults only” pool; admission prices are less than DisneyWorld and SeaWorld, which means they are packed with value considering all the great rides and discounted tickets available after 4p; both parks open during the spring and close in the fall; 4545 Worlds of Fun Ave; 816-454-4545; http://www.worldsoffun.com

Truman Sports Complex
Kansas City led the nation in building modern separate facilities in 1972; one for its pro baseball team, the Royals, the other for its pro football team, the Chiefs; as a result, Kansas City paid a tenth of the cost of what other metro areas are spending (hundreds of millions of dollars) for new separate facilities; on game days Arrowhead Stadium for the Chiefs seats 78,000 and the interior looks like a red sea, since 95% of fans wear red tops; Royals ball park seats about 40,000; you can look down from a hill into both architecturally captivating stadiums; off I-435 freeway interchange, exit at Blue Ridge Cutoff, south; http://www.kcchiefs.com/arrowhead

Bonner Springs, MO

National Agricultural Center & Hall of Fame
Over 30,000 artifacts covering 172 acres; honors America’s farmers; 630 Hall of Fame Drive; open March-December; 913-721-1075