Family-Friendly Activities in The Entrance

Sep 15, 2025

Things to do with the Family in The Entrance

Most first trips to The Entrance with kids follow the same shape: someone gets overexcited about the pelicans, someone else refuses to leave the splash park, and by mid-afternoon the main negotiation is which ice cream shop wins. It's not a bad way to spend a day. The town has built up decades of low-effort, high-payoff activities for exactly this kind of holiday, packed into a stretch of foreshore small enough to cover without needing the car more than once.

What follows is grouped roughly by age, since what keeps a toddler happy in The Entrance and what keeps a ten-year-old happy are rarely the same thing.

For Toddlers and Preschoolers

Vera's Water Garden, the free splash park beside Memorial Park, is the obvious first stop. It's shaded, fenced, and gentle enough for children who aren't strong swimmers yet, with paved surrounds that make it easy to keep an eye on a toddler while still managing a pram. There are no entry fees and no bookings, and free wifi in the outdoor seating area means one parent can keep half an eye on emails while the other is on splash duty.

The historic carousel next to Memorial Park suits this age group just as well. It dates back to the 1800s in Germany and is recognised by the National Trust as one of the oldest carousels still operating in the country, cared for today by a family who have worked in circus and carnival trades for generations. It's a gentle ride at a small ticket price, and the pace suits children who'd find the nearby Ferris wheel a bit much.

Worth Knowing

Vera's Water Garden is busiest between 10am and 2pm on hot days, exactly when the sun is strongest and shade is hardest to find. Arriving before 10am or after 3pm gets the same splash park with a fraction of the crowd and considerably less sunscreen top-up.

For School-Age Kids

School-age kids have more options here, since they can sit through a longer talk, swim confidently in a pool, and manage a bit more independence around the foreshore:

  • Pelican Time, the free talk and feed at Pelican Plaza in Memorial Park, at 3.30pm most weekends, on public holidays and daily through the NSW school holidays. It holds a school-age attention span better than a toddler's, since the volunteers from Marine Wildlife Rescue Central Coast explain what they're doing rather than just performing it.
  • The Grant McBride Ocean Baths, a heritage-listed pool beside the Surf Life Saving Club with both a shallow, child-friendly section and a deeper lap section. Robert's Beach, along Ocean Parade, is a quieter fallback if the baths are crowded, and Toowoon Bay and Blue Bay, a short drive south, are calmer, better-shaded beach options for families after sand rather than a pool, both covered in more depth in A Local's Guide to The Entrance.
  • The Entrance Markets, taking over Memorial Park on the third Saturday of each month from 9am to 2pm with local produce, crafts and food stalls, an easy, unhurried outing for families who'd rather browse than commit to a full activity.
  • The foreshore carnival, running on weekends and through school holidays with a Ferris wheel, dodgem cars and inflatable rides aimed at this age group and slightly older.

 

Worth Knowing

The foreshore carnival at Memorial Park runs on weekends and through school holidays, weather permitting, rather than every single day. If a specific ride is the plan for the trip, it's worth checking that the visit lines up with a weekend or holiday period before promising the kids a Ferris wheel.

Down at Picnic Point, The Entrance

Picnic Point Reserve, at the northern tip of The Entrance North, is worth the short walk or drive for families with kids who've outgrown Vera's Water Garden but aren't quite up for a full day of adult-paced sightseeing. It's a genuine multi-activity space rather than a single attraction:

  • The skate park, used by skateboarders, BMX riders, scooter riders and rollerbladers, with plenty of space to watch from the side if the kids would rather ride than spectate.
  • The boat ramp and fishing spot, right on the channel and an easy option for a family fishing session without needing to book a boat.
  • A playground and shared foreshore path connecting back to Memorial Park, flat enough for scooters and bikes the whole way.
  • Home base for The Entrance Park Run, a free, timed 5 kilometre event most Saturday mornings that older kids can usually keep up with.

A Treat Along the Way

An ice cream stop rounds off most family days here, and there are two worth knowing about. 

The Great Australian Icecreamery on the waterfront strip is the nostalgic option, the sort of place a lot of Central Coast parents remember visiting as kids themselves, while Ciao Bella Gelato on Coral Street is the better bet for anyone after proper gelato rather than soft serve.

Quiet Play Across the Bridge

Not every child wants noise and crowds, and Memorial Park isn't the only option. Across the bridge at Terilbah Reserve, the Sensory Gardens are planted with native species chosen for how they look, sound and smell, designed as an inclusive space for children of different sensory needs and abilities rather than a standard playground. It's a genuinely useful option for a calmer stretch of the day, or for children who find the noise and crowds around Pelican Time overwhelming.

The Entrance also builds extra family programming into the calendar through the year, including outdoor movie nights and holiday activity trails at Memorial Park, and Chromefest, the classic car and rockabilly festival, draws plenty of families along for the atmosphere even if the cars themselves are the main event. Programming changes year to year, so it's worth checking the council's what's on page for exact dates before building a trip around any single event.

Rainy Day Options at The Entrance

The Entrance is a fair-weather town at heart, so a wet day takes more planning than a sunny one. 

Diggers @ The Entrance, on the hill above the town centre, combines a family-friendly café with the VROOM virtual reality experience, giving older kids something to do indoors without needing to drive out of town. For a quieter option, the covered areas and undercover picnic tables around Memorial Park still work for a low-key morning even in drizzle, particularly if the plan is simply food, a play on the equipment, and watching the lake.

Worth noting for planning purposes: The Entrance's long-standing local cinema closed permanently in 2021 after a dispute over building ownership, and despite still appearing on some older listing sites, it has not reopened. It isn't a current rainy day option.

Practical Tips for Families

Memorial Park itself is set up well for a family day, and a few practical details are worth knowing before heading out:

  • Facilities: toilets, shower facilities, BBQs and shaded grass areas are all within a short walk of Vera's Water Garden and the pelican boardwalk.
  • Getting around: the shared paths through Memorial Park, on to Picnic Point and Long Jetty are flat and paved, genuinely pram-friendly rather than just technically accessible.
  • Food on hand: Jimbo's Fish and Chippie, a short walk from Memorial Park, is the easiest option for a takeaway lunch eaten on the grass rather than at a table.
  • Sun protection: most of the foreshore activity happens on open grass or paved areas with limited shade outside the immediate splash park, so a hat, sunscreen reapplied through the day and a water bottle each cover most of what's needed.

Stay at The Entrance with HolidayCo.

A family holiday runs more smoothly when the property matches the trip, not just the dates. HolidayCo. manages a range of family-suited holiday homes and apartments across The Entrance, from properties within an easy pram-push of Memorial Park and Vera's Water Garden to quieter houses further along the peninsula for families who'd rather drive in for the day. The current range of HolidayCo. properties in The Entrance is below, with real-time availability so it's easy to check what suits before booking.

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    Clear Water At The Entrance

    3115646438117531130005S

    2025-02-24

    The Entrance North
    • 5
      Bedrooms
    • 2
      Bathrooms
    • 10
      Sleeps
    • 1
      Pet Friendly
    From $ 449 per night
    Clear Waters at the Entrance is a beachfront home with direct access to the shores of The Entrance Beach.
    Free cancellation up to 30 days prior to arrival (terms apply)
    • 1
      Pet Friendly
    • 1
      Linen
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    • Instant Book
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    Waterfront Oasis

    3115646438117531130006D

    2026-03-12

    Chittaway Point
    • 5
      Bedrooms
    • 3
      Bathrooms
    • 10
      Sleeps
    From $ 551 per night
    This exquisite, light-filled holiday home perfectly combines modern luxury with the natural beauty of its waterfront setting.
    Free cancellation up to 30 days prior to arrival (terms apply)
    • 1
      Pool
    • 1
      Linen
    • 1
      Fireplace
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    E RETREAT On Archbold

    3115646438117531130006J

    2025-03-18

    Long Jetty
    • 5
      Bedrooms
    • 3
      Bathrooms
    • 12
      Sleeps
    • 1
      Pet Friendly
    Contact agent
    This luxurious family holiday house is bathed in natural light and mere moments from the beach.
    Free cancellation up to 30 days prior to arrival (terms apply)
    • 1
      Pet Friendly
    • 1
      Linen
    • 1
      Fireplace
    View Property

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