Things to Do in Saint Peters

On 18 playing fields at two Wacky Warriors locations, players can storm a two-story castle, take cover behind barrels stacked in pyramids, and weave through red inflatables. Each 15-minute open-play game mixes novice and expert participants, who compete in matches such as hide-and-seek and capture the flag under the watchful eye of trained referees. Fighters take to the fields with their choice of more than 500 rental markers; spectators can monitor the action from netted areas next to the brickyard and airball fields.

Along with open play, Wacky Warriors hosts private parties and special events such as zombie-apocalypse scenarios. After bouts, players can relax in the pavilion, sign their artwork on opponents' gear, and grill up a feast in Wacky Warriors' massive barbecue pits.

The team at JitterSwing Dance Clubs constantly assures their clients that “JitterSwing is our name ... it is not a Dance.” Thanks to film and music videos, swing dance conjures images of acrobatics and leaping bodies, but JitterSwing’s instructors are popular for their approachable St. Louis Imperial style, which is slower-paced and accessible to students of any age. They lead couples and singles through group and private sessions that cover many other types of swing dance as well as country two-step, the cha-cha, and the river waltz. Partners preparing for a wedding dance can take advantage of private lessons, and youths aged 10–16 are invited to the juniors program. In addition to the multiple locations where instructors conduct their sessions, JitterSwing staff members also come out to private events to instruct guests of all ages.

Dance Pizazz founders David and Nikki Thompson believe that dancing is not just a fun way to spend an evening, but a way to celebrate life. Each boasting more than a decade of experience gracefully swirling across dance floors, they now share their fancy footwork with patrons of all skill levels at their own studio. They invite teens, adults, and seniors to explore the dance styles of ballroom, Latin, and swing on the studio's floating dance floor, whose low-impact surface relieves feet and joints. Singles and couples hone their technique in group or private lessons, and newly-weds-to-be can prepare for their first dance in wedding-oriented programs. To simulate a real-world dance setting, David and Nikki turn on the studio’s LED nightclub lights and release Richard Simmons for evening social dances, where students can gather to show off their newly learned moves.

Though built as a private home in 1901, the Victorian mansion stood vacant for years—until its first children's hands-on exhibits opened to the public more than 30 years ago. Since then, The Magic House's curators have worked to engage children of all ages in learning and creative thought through a range of interactive multimedia exhibits. Their exhibits enable visitors to service cars, climb treehouse ladders, and go fishing in a child-centric community, or play with pumps and pipes in a waterworks playground. They can also climb a three-story fairy-tale beanstalk or use detective skills, fingerprint analyses, and secret passageways to solve mysteries.

Museum staffers also organize a range of themed birthday parties, during which attendees play and complete special tasks as time travelers, scientists, or fairy-tale nobility. Family programs encompass monthly visits from outside professional artists, and educational sessions on car and bike safety. Visitors can refuel for exploration at the on-site Picnic Basket Cafe, whose menu highlights whole grains and healthy ingredients.

The Museum of Transportation sprawls across 129 acres, presenting its vast collection of automobiles, boats, planes, and trains dating from the mid-1800s to the present day. More than 70 massive locomotives reside in the museum, including the largest successful steam locomotive, the Union Pacific Big Boy—though later examinations revealed that the train is actually female. Explore rare autos—including a motor carriage dating back to 1901 and rides owned by Dean Martin and W.C. Fields—and a fleet of military aircraft that constantly snubs visitors by pointing their nose cones skyward. A miniature locomotive leads a following of bright-red cars around the museum grounds, and the hands-on Creation Station gives tots aged 5 and under the opportunity to familiarize themselves with modes of transportation outside of diesel-powered strollers.

In 1976, Joan Barnes—a Californian mom frustrated with the lack of spaces where she could take her kids for safe and age-appropriate play time—took matters into her own hands and founded Gymboree Play and Music. In the decades since Gymboree’s founding, Joan’s vision of a safe place where youngsters could build confidence and creativity has come to fruition and spread to 30 countries around the globe. Staffed by attentive and expertly trained instructors, each Gymboree outpost adheres to a curriculum of activities designed by experts to foster the development of children’s’ cognitive, physical, and social skills through structured play and close readings of Goodnight Moon. The staffers also conduct entertaining classes that cover subjects ranging from music to sports, imparting valuable lessons of imagination and physical activity to developing minds. To further set apart her business, Barnes employed nationally renowned playground designer Jay Beck to design the proprietary play equipment at her centers.