Parental Giddiness Is Suggested

Ideal for kids, these spots offer more than just child's play

By Gail Friedman

If sitting through another kiddie cartoon isn't your cup of tea, you'll appreciate Boston 's adult-friendly children's activities. Museums ostensibly geared toward kids have plenty of gee-whiz appeal for adults too. And while grown-ups may act too cool for a Swan Boat ride or a Duck Tour, don't let them fool you. They're having as much fun as their tots. Some of the city's top choices for entertaining the kids:

Museum of Science : One of the best in the country, with more than enough permanent and traveling exhibits to fill an entire day. If playing virtual volleyball, watching live animal demos, or seeing real dinosaur tracks isn't enough, there are some 400 other interactive exhibits, plus an IMAX theater, a planetarium and an observatory. (617.723.2500)

Duck Tours : Amble through Boston 's historic sites on a WWII amphibious vehicle, which eases right into the Charles River for a waterborne leg of the tour. With costumed conductors who have names like Admiral Amnesia, Dr. Ima Quack and Red Sox Nathan, the tour is silly enough to keep the youngest engaged. Also, when the duck hits the river, the kids get to drive. April through November. (617.267.DUCK)

Boston Children's Museum: Tots and grade-schoolers love clambering up the two-story maze, dressing in costumes and trying their pudgy little hands at woodworking. Tiny Arthur groupies make a beeline for the famous aardvark. (617.426.8855)

New England Aquarium: You'll watch penguins waddle; see sea lions perform; learn the truth about piranhas (many are vegetarians); and marvel at the sea turtles, eels, sharks and colorful fish in the 200,000-gallon tank. (617.973.5200)

Fenway Park Tours : The 1912 icon is open all year long for glimpses into the unique religion that grips Red Sox fans. After stepping into the dugout, trying a Green Monster seat and hearing the lore of baseball's 2004 World Champions, you'll better understand what Sox fever is all about. How many teams have had fans draping loved ones' tombstones with banners and T-shirts after a World Series win? Only one that we know of. (617.226.6666)

Swan Boats: A quaint Boston tradition, the swan-shaped boats have roamed the Public Garden Lagoon since 1877. The pedal-powered boats run from April to September and provide an excursion that is charming in its simplicity. Their enduring popularity is comforting inside the hub of fast-track Boston . (617.522.1966)

Harvard Museum of Natural History: This historical storehouse may not have been designed with kids in mind, but that doesn't stop pint-size visitors from ogling, wide-eyed, the dinosaur bones and glittering gemstones. The next best thing to a live zoo, the museum's zoological galleries show off prehistoric animals, fossils, reptiles and more familiar mammals. In the mineralogical and geological galleries, you'll find meteorites and a 1,600-pound amethyst. Don't miss the famous glass flower exhibit in the botanical galleries — more than 3,000 plants and flowers look so real you'll swear they aren't glass. (617.495.3045)

MIT Museum : When there isn't time for the sprawling Museum of Science , head to a little-known center of hands-on learning, the MIT Museum . You can discover robots, see gigantic early computers, freeze your shadow on a wall and soak up some of MIT's ingenuity — without the tuition bill. (617.253.4444)