A Weekend in Milwaukee

If you love cheese, beer, and music, then I have a destination for you! Milwaukee has a great vibe and is very family friendly. Known for its breweries (the first one opened in 1840!) and German influence, Milwaukee is a great weekend away with the family or a weekend of debauchery with a group of friends. There is certainly something for everyone in this Wisconsin gem. I would recommend this as a summer destination, especially if you’re free for a weekend in July. The Summerfest grounds are a real treat for festival and music lovers. Not only is there a great view of the city and Lake Michigan, but Summerfest attracts top-notch bands and entertainment as well.

When heading to Milwaukee, you’ll probably want a car. The city is pretty sprawling and actually offers ample parking options. There isn’t a lot of public transportation besides Uber/Lyft. If you want to make more than a weekend out of your trip to Wisconsin, check out The Dells, Lake Geneva or Door County for some extended family fun. If you do find yourself in Wisconsin during the winter months, there are plenty of indoor water parks (Great Wolf and Kalahari are our favorites) as well as a few easy ski hills like Cascade and Wilmot.

Let’s crack open a Spotted Cow (or a Sprecher Root beer for the youngin’s) and head to Milwaukee!

Would you like to see all of my suggestions on an easy interactive Google map? Just click HERE!

Day 1

Let’s explore some hotel options. Milwaukee has plenty of Marriott and Hilton properties if you’re looking for points options. The Fairview Inn & Suites Downtown (about $120 per night) is in a great spot across the street from a market and near the river. The Westin Milwaukee is closer to Lake Michigan and offers lovely views (about $200). The Hilton Milwaukee City Center is a great option too and in a cool historic building. But if you are in the mood for something unique and special, I’m going to strongly suggest The Iron Horse Hotel ($250). This hotel is a little south of most of the tourist attractions, but it’s in a really hip part of town that’s worth exploring. Their brunch on Sundays is insane.
Let’s grab some breakfast on our way to our first adventure. Try out the Downtown Kitchen. There are easy options for kids like pancakes, but also some elevated avocado toast and smashed tots for adults. We also love Engine Company No. 3. Their farm-to-table concept means that they work with local farmers and butchers for the best quality ingredients and some unique dishes. They also have a ton of breakfast cocktails and spiked coffees, so you can start your day off right!
I want to emphasize again that I’m assuming you have a car. You’re going to need to drive pretty much everywhere in Milwaukee. Parking is usually easy and ample. I do recommend the app SpotHero to find the cheapest parking in the area. Usually when I put together itineraries, I try to group spots together that make sense geographically. And while I’m still trying to consider the map, Milwaukee’s attractions are pretty spread out.
After breakfast, we’re heading to the lakefront to check out some museum options. Here are your choices:
- Betty Brinn Children’s Museum – this place is great for younger children! The museum opens at 9AM and costs about $12 per person. They have a whole room where kids can play “the floor is lava” which is pretty epic. They also have a hometown where kids can play vet, use a cash register at the grocery, and fix cars. I would say this is a great option if you have kids under 8 or so.
- Discovery World Museum – part exploratorium, part science museum, part aquarium, there is a lot to explore here and a lot of hands on exhibits. Open from 9-4, this museum costs about $20 per person and children under 2 are free. Personally, I think this is one you can’t miss if you’re in Milwaukee with kids.
- Milwaukee Art Museum – this building is a stunner! It’s made to look like a ship on the lakefront and is a great spot for snapping that family picture. This museum is open from 10-5 and runs about $30 for adults and $20 for kids. If you have littles under 5, they’re free!

The children have been educated, so now it’s time for some adult fun. We’re going on a little brewery tour! My favorite thing about Milwaukee is that they make activities like brewery tours family friendly.
- Let’s head north to Sprecher! Not only do they have great beers, but they make a top notch root beer and various sodas too. The tour is actually pretty good and they keep it moving at only 45 minutes. Afterward, you (and the kids!) can belly up to the bar and try the various beers and sodas. My kids love the root beer, cream soda and orange dream the best. They are open 11-8 on weekends and the tour costs $12 for adults and $7 for kids and that includes your 4 beer samples and unlimited sodas.
- My other brewery suggestion is Lakefront Brewery, which isn’t on the lake front at all. Lakefront also offers a 45-minute tour that is geared more toward adults. Kids are welcome to attend (and are free), but it’s not quite as engaging as Sprecher, in my opinion. The tour is $12 for adults and includes a beer for you to drink as you enjoy the tour. Lakefront does differentiate itself by having a huge beer hall and serving up a great fish fry. If you want some cheesy Wisconsin snacks, this is your place!
- I prefer a microbrew and craft beers, but Milwaukee is home to Miller. Kids are welcome on this tour too, but it’s a bigger commitment at 70 minutes and a lot of walking. Adults are $20 and kids are $10 (children 3 and under are free) which includes some beer samples along the way.
- Third Space Brewing is west of downtown, and I don’t believe it offers any tours. But it is a great place to sit down, have a beer, and hang out. They have a huge outdoor space to enjoy as well.
- MobCraft is a fun spot to hang out too. It has a quirky/artsy vibe and offers some great pizza along with their beers. No tour here, but a fun place to enjoy some beer.

Let’s explore some dinner options after a long day of exploring! Here are some options…
- Zarletti – this is an upscale option for great Italian food. There are options for kids like butter noodles and carbonara which will have them licking their plates. For adults, I suggest the pheasant pappardelle and the ossobuco. They make their own Limoncello in house along with some great dessert options like cannoli.
- Mader’s – Milwaukee is well known for it’s German heritage, so check out some great German food while you’re in town! Mader’s is also a little upscale in decor, but a great place for a beer in a stein and some Wiener Schnitzel. It’s in a really cool Bavarian-inspired building.
- Safehouse – are your kids interested in being spies? This is one of the best restaurants for kids ever! First you have to find the entrance to the restaurant which is tucked in a nondescript alley. Once you find it, your family will have to perform a task just to get into the restaurant’s secret entrance. When you finally make your way into the restaurant, the kids are encouraged to roam around the building while waiting for food and complete a scavenger hunt. You even get a “disguise” that includes a stick-on mustache. There is often a magician there to entertain the family as well. The food is fine – typical burgers and American fare – but the ambiance and experience is worth the visit!

Day 2

If it’s a Sunday, check out the brunch at Iron Horse Hotel or pop into a breakfast location you didn’t see on Day 1. There’s also Café Benelux who boasts a great Bloody Mary and some rooftop seating in the Third Ward neighborhood. There is also a super weird brunch spot called Don’s TV Repair. It looks like a TV Repair store, but is secretly a restaurant and speakeasy. It’s total 90s nostalgia including old cartoon favorites playing on the TVs. They have huge milkshakes for the kids, lots of food options, and a bathtub of mimosa for the adults – you even get a rubber ducky!
We’re heading a little out of Milwaukee today to see the Zoo! I love zoos, and this one does not disappoint. They have all of the zoo favorites including bears, giraffes, penguins, monkeys, snow leopards, tigers and so much more!
On the way back to downtown, spend an hour checking out the Mitchell Park Domes Horticulture Conservatory. It’s a fancy name, but basically they’re biodomes featuring plants from different areas of the world.
Hungry? Pop into the 3rd Street Market Hall. There is something for everyone here! With over 20 vendors, you can enjoy everything from oysters to BBQ to Pho. As you guess in Milwaukee, there is also an entire wall of beer taps for you to enjoy too! Keep those kids busy with free board games, shuffle board, bags, and darts. There is also a Top Golf simulator, if you’re in the mood to hit a few balls. You could pop in for some lunch or stay all afternoon!
Another Milwaukee favorite is the Public Museum. This is a great spot to see dinosaur bones, walk through “Old Milwaukee”, and visit the butterfly house. Although it’s a cool museum, you probably could do the whole thing in two hours.
If you aren’t in the mood for dinosaur bones, you could visit the Pabst Mansion. This is a really neat old house, but might not appeal to the kids. They offer various specialty tours too, like a mimosa tour on Sundays and Blue Ribbon Toast tour.
I never tire from visiting markets, so for dinner we’re going to another one! Milwaukee Public Market is one of my favorite places in the city. There are plenty of places to eat, including my favorite – St. Paul Fish Company – but there are also lots of shops. For the kids, there are some great bakeries and candy spots too. They offer indoor and outdoor seating, so enjoy some nice weather and people-watching too!
If it’s a nice night, there are plenty of places to stroll along the lake front and enjoy the breeze off Lake Michigan.

Nightlife

I didn’t include any specific nightlife in Milwaukee because it really depends on the time of year you visit and what is in town at the moment. Milwaukee offers a lot of cool music venues and sports options, so here is my list of family-friendly nightlife!

Milwaukee Brewers – great for you baseball fans
Milwaukee Bucks – check out some basketball
If you’re wondering about the Packers, Green Bay is a hike from Milwaukee at an hour drive north. Plus, as a native Chicago girl, I shouldn’t encourage you to see the Packers anyway.
Milwaukee Symphony – gorgeous building right in downtown Milwaukee. Their season offers the typical classical choices, but they also do special concerts for families featuring movie music.
Summerfest – this is a huge outdoor party all summer long. They get really big musical acts (Imagine Dragons, AJR, Lumineers, SZA, Keith Urban, Maroon 5, Gavin Degraw, OAR…you name it, they got it). Summer fest grounds are also home to a variety of festivals throughout the summer as well.
The Pabst Theater is another really cool venue to see some music. This is probably better for adults only though.