Free (or Cheap) Spring Break Activities 2009551

Looking for fun and inexpensive entertainment for the kids during the spring break? In addition to our listings of School Vacation Day Camps, we've rounded up a slew of events happening at venues throughout the city and beyond.

Of course, it wouldn't be spring break in Seattle without Whirligig! The annual Seattle Center blow-up bash at Seattle Center runs from March 27 to April 12 and features enormous inflatable rides, clowns, face painters, and more. A day pass is $4.50 for toddlers and $7.50 for older kids. The rides are free on Thursdays, but expect big crowds.

Seattle Parks and Recreation celebrates Youth Appreciation Week during the spring break and we've compiled a list of free activities, including a bunch of cool field trips, for kids ages 11 to 18 at community centers throughout the city.

The Japanese Garden is one of our personal favorites for inexpensive fun. Admission is $5 for adults, $3 for kids six and up, and free for ages five and under. Food for the koi is less than a dollar and sold at the gate - cheap entertainment for even the youngest kids. Tours of the garden are free with paid admission and are held from April through October on Wednesdays at 12:30pm and Saturdays and Sundays at 12:30pm and 2:30pm.

March 31: Spring carnival fun held in both the north and south ends of the city, including the Springfest celebration at High Point Community Center and a Spring Break Carnival at Magnuson Park.

Author Jeremy Tankard reads from his new book for young children at the U District University Book Store and at Secret Garden Books in Ballard.

April 1: Childish Things, a new maternity and children's consignment store in the Greenwood/Broadview area, hosts a French Storytime for young children led by Polly Glot Tots.

The Skagit Valley Tulip Festival begins on April 1 and continues throughout the month and offers many free activities.

The Pacific Science Center's annual Spring Fling runs from April 1 through April 5. Although the activities are included with admission, we can't say that this one qualifies as free or cheap, but pony rides within walking distance of downtown are a rare treat indeed.

April 2: Seattle's South Park Branch Library teaches kids to create "wearable robots" out of recycled and reclaimed materials during a workshop.

Admission is free from 5pm to 8pm at the EMP and from 5pm to 9pm at The Museum of Flight. Kids Discovery Museum on Bainbridge Island also offers free admission on April 2.

Older kids can get an introduction to opera at movie theater prices when Cornish College stages Puccini's Suor Angelica at Poncho Concert Hall from April 2 through 4. The one-act opera tells the story of a nun's revelations of her dark past. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for kids.

April 3: The Northgate Community Center holds its annual Bunny Sock Hop.

A two-day run of Hansel and Gretel at the Knutzen Family Theatre in Federal Way is only $6 a ticket.

Admission to Bellevue Arts Museum is free all day. Also on the Eastside, Music Works Northwest offers a free concert.