4 Ways to Entertain Teens in Cedar Rapids

There is plenty to do in Cedar Rapids and the surrounding areas. Next time your teenager tells you, “there’s nothing to do!” be prepared with our list of fun activities for teens in Cedar Rapids, IA.

1. Arcade Games

  • Pizza Ranch FunZone
    Pizza Ranch is a family-friendly buffet restaurant offering pizza, chicken, salad bar and dessert, with the FunZone Arcade.
  • Quarter Barrel Arcade & Brewery
    Who doesn’t love games? Kids can stop by Quarter Barrel in downtown Cedar Rapids with a pocket full of quarters (yes, real coins) and spend the day playing iconic vintage arcade games and eating delicious pizza. They’ll be able to hang out with Pacman, beat the high score on The Simpsons Pinball, and have a blast playing the space-themed 1979 game Asteroids! Quarter Barrel also has a full menu of great food, hosts fun events, and puts on trivia night a few times a month, so there is plenty of excitement to join in on.
  • SpareTime Entertainment
    Luxury bowling lanes, a huge Game Zone Arcade, an epic laser tag arena, escape rooms, and more!

2. Game Time

  • Cedar Rapids Kernels Baseball
    It’s always a “Party at the Park” with the Cedar Rapids Kernels, the class A Midwest League affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. With affordable tickets, delicious food and cold beverages, you can choose from more than 70 home games played at Veterans Memorial Stadium each season. A night out with the Kernels provides family-friendly excitement, weekly theme nights and surprises for fans to enjoy a night of minor league baseball.
  • Cedar Rapids RiverKings Football
    Returning in 2024 after a brief hiatus due to Covid and a change in ownership, the Cedar Rapids RiverKings hit the gridiron at the Alliant Energy PowerHouse for an action-packed season of play with the American Indoor Football league. The Riverkings will face teams from across the country in the high-energy arena football atmosphere.
  • Cedar Rapids RoughRiders Hockey
    For more than 20 years, the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders have been crashing the boards at The Stable (ImOn Ice) and making history. The RoughRiders are a Tier 1 Junior Hockey team in the United States Hockey League featuring players aged 16-20 on their way to play in college or the NHL. Every game is an action-packed adventure with a lively crowd and competitive atmosphere, so don’t miss a second of the fun. Get your tickets, bring your cowbells and get ready for a raucus good time at The Stable.
  • Hawkeye Downs Auto Racing
    Feeling a need for speed? Since 1925, the Hawkeye Downs Speedway has been one of the Midwest’s crown-jewels of short-track racing. The asphalt track hosts weekly racing spring through fall including enduro racing, drag racing and driving of regional and national racing series including ASA, IMCA, NASCAR, ARCA Midwest Tour and the American Indycar Series. Friday nights at the Downs are a local staple and a high-octane good time!
  • Iowa Raptors Soccer
    The Iowa Raptors thrive in creating commitment, competitiveness and communtiy as they provide a pathway to the professional level for adult and youth soccer players. This consisitently high-ranking team plays in the Midwest Central Conference of the UPSL and calls the Alliant Energy PowerHouse home for their winter season. Plus, don’t miss the Lady Raptors hitting the field for their fourth season in the WPSL!

3. Get Active

  • AirFX Trampoline Park & Mini Golf
    Featuring wall-to-wall trampolines, foam pits, dodgeball, basketball, soft play, ninja warrior courses, Clip 'n Climb climbing walls, Lazer Frenzy and an outdoor mini-golf course – there is something for everyone here!
  • Butterfield Skate Park
    Located in Marion's Lowe Park, this concrete playground includes ramps, rails and more!
  • Cedar Creek Lanes
    Cedar Creek Lanes is known for small prices and big fun. More than just bowling, it is a family center with a game room, pool tables, arcade games with ticket-prizes and full snack bar.
  • Cedar Rapids Bowling Center
    Cedar Rapids' #1 family fun center for all ages! Bowling, open play, league play, tournaments, food and drinks on site, parties, corporate events, birthdays.
  • Civil Axe Throwing
    Partake in axe-throwing - a game of skill where players hurl a dulled hatchet at a wooden bullseye.
  • Escapology
    Cedar Rapids' premium real-life escape game experience! Up to 8 players will be challenged by working together to solve a series of riddles and puzzles that lead them to the final code that frees them from the game room. Do you have what it takes to escape?
  • The Fantastic Escape
    Step into an adventure where you have one hour to solve the puzzles before you can escape. Fun for all ages.
  • Four Seasons Indoor Golf
    Eastern Iowa’s premier indoor golf simulator and entertainment facility. Conveniently located just minutes from Cedar Rapids, these private simulators are perfect for golfers of any ability and offer year-round playing and entertainment. With multiple simulator bays located in private rooms, you have it all to yourself including a refrigerator/freezer, microwave, stereo, flat-screen TV (equipped with HULU Live and ROKU), and restroom.
  • The Fun Station
    Featuring a large multi-level indoor play adventure maze that features several slides and activities. Our game room features over 40 redemption and video games. Conquer Lazer Frenzy a lazer maze that is fun for the whole family. Make sure to come hungry and grab a bite to eat at the Box Car Cafe. The Cafe features pizza, sandwiches, flatbreads, kid meals and a 35 item all-you-can eat salad bar!
  • Hurling Hatchet
    Let the axeperts at the Hurling hatchet show you how to throw, learn games and have an experience like no other!
  • ImOn Ice Arena
    ImOn Ice has been serving Cedar Rapids as a community center for over 20 years. As a multi-purpose sports and recreation venue with two sheets of ice, we offer public skating, learn to skate, figure skating, youth and adult hockey, speed skating, birthday parties, private lessons, plus more!
  • May City Bowl
    Enjoy open bowling, leagues, and even glow bowling every Saturday from 8-midnight. This is a great atmosphere for birthday parties and corporate outings.
  • Mini Pines Mini Golf
    This 18-hole, fully inclusive miniature golf course is courtesy of the Cedar Rapids Parks & Recreation Department. It features completely accessible holes throughout – one of only a few courses to offer this level of play for individuals with mobility disabilities. Features include a pond area, nine-foot waterfall, and a final “horse race” hole where anyone has a chance to win. The course is lighted so your play can continue well into the evening. Conveniently located next to Twin Pines Golf Course which features a driving range and 18-hole traditional golf course.
  • Ringer Golf
    Whether you’re an aspiring golfer or new to the game, Ringer Golf features three full Trackman simulator bays. Trackman is widely known in the golf industry as the gold standard of technology offering the most vivid of graphics and an unbelievable set of data points to precisely measure everything about your swing and the resulting shots.
  • Riverside Skate Park
    Drop in at Cedar Rapids’ newest skate park! Completely reimagined, rebuilt and constructed in 2023, the new Riverside Skate Park is a great way to enjoy time in the sun, burn some extra energy and make new friends!
  • SkyZone Trampline Park
    The world's first all-walled trampoline playing court is in Cedar Rapids offering a variety of activities such as Open Jump, Dodgeball, Capture the Flag, SKYSLAM, the Foam Pit and now SKYWARS!
  • SpareTime Entertainment
    This family-fun facility features games, lanes, food and fun! Your experience will include luxury bowling lanes, a huge Game Zone Arcade, an epic laser tag arena, escape rooms and more!
  • Super Skate
    A Cedar Rapids staple for over 40 years, rent your skates and hit the rink for some old-school fun!
  • Waterfall National MiniGolf
    Airport National Public Golf Course welcomes you to their FUN mini golf course. Great for a family day out, birthday parties or group outings.
  • X-Golf Cedar Rapids
    Whether you’re booking a solo tee time or lesson to get seriously good at golf, or just looking to kick back and enjoy with friends and family of all ages with courses designed for all ages and levels from amateurs to pro athletes.

4. Get Creative

  • Cedar Rapids Public Library
    The downtown library is a major destination! Offering an always-growing collection of eBooks and traditional books, rooftop garden, technology hub, LEED-Certified sustainable building, coffee shop onsite and sensory inclusive options.
  • Cedar Rapids Self-Guided Mural Tour
    Discover more than 30 murals throughout downtown, the New Bohemian District, Czech Village and beyond. Plus check out the great self-guided digital art tour.
  • Eastern Iowa ARTS Academy
    Sign up for a whole variety of artistic endeavors from playing in a rock back to creative writing club learning ancient art forms.
  • Iowa Ceramics Center & Glass Studio
    Get your hands dirty at the Iowa Ceramics Center and education center offering clay and warm glass creations during weekend family classes.
  • NewBo CIty Market
    NewBo City Market is a year-round public market in the heart of Cedar Rapids' New Bohemia neighborhood, a place for shopping, dining, meeting friends, and enjoying fun activities. Shopkeepers at the Market The NewBo City Market is a showplace for small food entrepreneurs featuring the best locally grown and prepared goods Iowa has to offer. A place where you'll find produce, specialty foods, meats and seafood, flowers, baked goods, prepared foods, and crafts from local farmers and entrepreneurs. Events at NewBo City Market Concerts, flea markets, festivals, and cooking classes are all on tap to make this a must experience destination.
  • Pinspiration
    The world's first Pinterest-inspired DIY Arts & Crafts studio offering the trendiest DIY projects, splatter rooms and more!
  • Potter's Obsession
    A pick and pant your own pottery studio offers great options and unique memories in Cedar Rapids!

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