About PlayATX

Hi. I'm an Austin dad. Most weekends start with the same question: where should we go today? The answers online were buried under ads, sponsored lists, and pages that hadn't been updated since the place closed. So I started keeping my own list, checking every place against its official source, and writing down the stuff parents actually need: ages, hours, cost, parking, shade, and whether there's a changing table.

PlayATX is that list, shared. It starts where we live (Dripping Springs, Driftwood, Wimberley, Bee Cave, and Southwest Austin) and leads with ages 0–5. It's a public-good project: nobody pays to be here, and it will never sell placement or data.

The promises

• No ads

  No banners, pop-ups, or ad networks. Ever.

• No affiliate links

  Links go straight to the venue's own site, with no tracking codes or referral fees.

• No sponsored spots

  Order comes from your filters, ages, weather, and distance. There's no 'featured' slot for sale.

• No pay-to-list

  Listing is free and editorial. Businesses can send corrections but can't buy their way in.

• No tracking

  No accounts, no cookies, no analytics scripts, no tracking pixels. We don't know who you are, and we like it that way.

• No kid photos

  We use simple icons, not photos of children. Ever.

How we verify

• Official sources only for the core facts: whether it's open, address, hours, price, and website come from the venue's own site, a city, county, or library site, or a visit.
• Every page shows its “Last checked” date and links to the source we checked.
• Unknown is honest. If we haven't confirmed something (a changing table, stroller access), the page says “Unknown, help us check” instead of guessing.
• Check-by dates. Events are re-checked weekly, storytimes and classes every two weeks, hours and prices monthly. Anything overdue is flagged, then hidden until someone checks it again.
• Closures are clear. Closed places drop out of search and the map, but keep a page that says so, with nearby alternatives.
• Our own words. We don't copy descriptions from venues, Yelp, Google, or Facebook groups. Parent reports help with details like shade and parking, but never with whether a place is open.
• No comps. We don't accept free tickets or gifts for coverage. If we visit, we pay like everyone else.

Drive times

Drive times are rough estimates (“about 15 min”) based on distance from the center of each town, not live traffic. Good enough to tell a quick hop from an outing; check your maps app before you go.

Privacy

This site sets no cookies and runs no analytics or tracking scripts. The map on the Explore page loads tiles from OpenFreeMap, a free, open map service; nothing about you is sent to us.

Weather & today's picks

Austin weather comes from the National Weather Service, with the latest reported temperature at Camp Mabry and one forecast for today. At 10 p.m. Austin time, the forecast and suggestions look ahead to tomorrow. We refresh the weather about every ten minutes. Conditions can differ in Dripping Springs and the Hill Country.

When the next six hours include a rain chance of 50% or more, snow or ice, thunderstorms, or temperatures at or beyond 40°F and 95°F, indoor places move up. After 10 p.m., we use tomorrow's 6 a.m.–8 p.m. forecast instead. Ages 0–5 still lead the default order. Your filters always apply, and you can switch back to the usual order. If weather data is missing or out of date, we use the usual order. These suggestions don't confirm that a venue is open or that an outdoor activity is safe.

Weather requests use one fixed Austin location through PlayATX. We don't ask for your location or send visitor information to the weather service.Check National Weather Service alerts before heading out in severe weather.

Help keep it current

Spot something wrong, closed, or missing? Suggest a place or report a change, or email hello@playatx.com.