Texas summers are legendary. With scorching temperatures in the triple digits, it can be hard to keep your cool. So when you and the kids need some relief from the heat, use our guide. Here are six fantastic places to chill out around Cedar Park this year.

Twin Lakes Family YMCA

The Twin Lakes Family YMCA on East Little Elm Trail is one of Cedar Park’s coolest destinations with sports fields, hiking trails, picnic areas, a ropes course, and a waterfall. This state-of-the-art lakeside facility offers an outstanding aquatics program and other youth sports. Its caring and qualified staff provide numerous water-based programs for all ages, including:

• Swim Lessons: Learn this vital life skill while your family gets fit with multiple age-appropriate classes.
• Swim Programs: Indulge your child’s competitive side with more advanced swimming classes that improve your child’s skills and promote proper form.
• Water Exercise Classes: Parents can take advantage of low-impact workouts for all fitness levels that improve cardiovascular endurance and build strength.
• Certifications: Earn your certificate in life-saving techniques, like CPR, which is an essential part of every family’s water safety plan.

Brushy Creek Lake Park

Soak up some Texas sun on a kayak at Brushy Creek Lake Park this year. It’s the perfect place to get some rest and relaxation this summer. While you can’t swim in the lake, you can boat it. If your family enjoys paddling out to the middle of the lake in a canoe or stand-up paddleboard, you can rent one right onsite. Explore the pristine 38-acre waterway while you take in the stellar views of the surrounding tree-covered hillside and fields of wildflowers.

The 92-acre Brushy Creek Lake Park also has splash pads, so the kids can cool off, 6.4 miles of nature trails, sand volleyball courts, and a fishing pier. You can visit this destination every day from a half-hour before sunrise until 10 p.m. The water park is open from May through August every day between 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and on the weekends during September.

Splash Shack

Grab your kids, their flip-flops, and a towel, and let the summer fun begin at the Splash Shack. This awesome Cedar Park attraction is an ideal destination when you don’t feel like baking in the sun because it’s an indoor interactive water park. It has everything kids and adults want from a wet-and-wild play structure, including slides, underwater wheels, and a giant tipping bucket.

Make your summer splish-splashy fun here, and never worry about reapplying sunscreen or fending off a chilly breeze. The temperature inside is set for comfort all year long, and this 10,000 square foot facility will keep your children ages 1-10 busy with its 30-foot-tall play structure.

Parents love that there’s no deep water anywhere in the building, just in the slide run-outs. Its smaller size also makes it a better experience for your little ones than the bigger parks, and the staff encourages parents to assist kids on the slides. Mark your calendar for Wednesday afternoons and head on over for Splash Happy Hour between 4 and 6 p.m. to get 50% off passes.

Chaparral Ice

When it comes to summertime in Texas, anything is possible, including adventures on ice. Beat the heat and go skating at Chaparral Ice at The Crossover Sports complex on Scottsdale Drive. This world-class facility offers skaters two full-size NHL regulation-sized rinks. It’s a refreshing way to cool off in the summer while making lifelong memories the whole family can share. 

Whether your kids love to glide across the ice during open skate or take on friends and neighbors in the youth and adult leagues hockey, you can do it here. The staff offers figure skating classes, broomball, curling, birthday parties, and summer camp programs. After a few laps around the rink, chill out with food and fun within the complex. It offers a place to dine with your family, a high-speed gaming center, and numerous wellness centers that will help keep the athletes in your family healthy. 

Lake Travis

Have a nature-filled experience while you cool off at Lake Travis that will send you right into summer vacation mode. Embark on an outstanding outdoor experience with a local twist at Lake Travis’s Waterloo Adventures. Enjoy the ultimate water park experience at this ingenious floating obstacle course and private island getaway with 1,500 feet of shoreline.

Kids of all ages will love playing on a series of more than 21 different elements over 600 feet of thrilling obstacles. Test your skills on nearly two football fields of bridges, climbing walls, hurdles, monkey bars, and balance beams. Lake Travis is just 20 minutes from Cedar Park in the rolling Hill Country. It’s open from mid-May until September each year.

Scoop & Score Ice Cream and Coffee Parlor

One of the best ways to enjoy summer in Cedar Park is with a big cone filled with ice cream. If you want the best in town, you’ll go to the Scoop and Score on North Vista Ridge Boulevard. They serve some of the most delicious flavor combinations that will make you wish for summer all year long. Kids and ice cream go hand in hand, so order a couple of scoops of your favorite in a homemade waffle cone.

Everyone in the family can indulge your sweet tooth with classics like butter pecan, cookies and cream, and mint chocolate chip. They even have raspberry and lemon sorbet if a light, fruity sensation sounds yummy to you. Don’t wait until the end of the season to try scrumptious frozen treats and icy drinks from the Scoop and Score. 

So, there you have it. Crème de la Crème of Cedar Park, Texas, shared this guide to some of the city’s coolest destinations with you. What do you think of the places we picked? We hope you enjoy your summer in the sun and stay cool at some of these awesome water features. Let us know if we forgot your family’s favorite place to spend the hot summer days in Texas. Send us a note so we can add your ideas to our next article. If your child is sad to see summer water days go, dont fret! Back to school means after school care at Crème de la Crème. Schedule a tour today!