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5 Days in Boise

Back in 2019, our family took a weekend trip to Boise and it was SO fun – we all absolutely loved it and said we’d for sure be back.

Four and a half years later, we finally made it happen!

Usually, my girls and I go to my parents’ house in Las Vegas for Memorial Day with my sister and her boys, but that wasn’t feasible this year so as we looked for other options, Boise quickly rose to the top.

We had the BEST time and within 18 hours of arriving, we’d extended our trip an extra day.

what to do in boise

The AirBnb we picked was a MASSIVE hit – we’ve stayed in a lot of Airbnbs around the world and this is maybe my favorite one we’ve ever stayed in. The pictures were nice but it was even better in real life! We would absolutely stay there again.

Here’s what we did during our 5 days in Boise!

fun things to do in boise Day 1 in Boise: We left after the girls finished their last day of school and arrived around 5 p.m. We checked into the house, unpacked, played a bit in the game room, and then headed into downtown for dinner at Fork. The restaurant was gorgeous and the food was delicious but the real star was the Butter Cake. It was INSANE and one of the best desserts I’ve had. After dinner, we stopped at the grocery store to pick up supplies for the week and then we went back to the house, got ready for bed and the girls snuggled up in their bunk room and Bart and I watched a show before bed.

Day 2 in Boise: I woke up before everyone else and spent about an hour in the sunroom catching up on emails and doing some work. The little girls came up after a bit and snuggled up with a bunch of picture books I’d brought. Once everyone was awake, we played a few games together and then got ready for the day and headed out to breakfast at Certified Kitchen and Bakery. The neighborhood was DARLING and we sat outside on some park benches and ate our breakfast (the chocolate chip scone was maybe the best scone I’ve ever had. The oatmeal, chia seed pudding, and egg sandwich were also all terrific).

Afterward, we hopped back in the car and drove to Jump to try out the 5 story slide (it’s only open for very specific hours, so check before you go). It wasn’t very busy, so we each took a few turns on the slides and climbed on the big climb structure before heading to downtown for the Farmer’s Market. After we’d walked all the way through, we stopped in Rediscovered Bookshop (which we’d visited last time) and spent a bunch of time browsing before we headed to Esther Simplot to rollerblade on the Greenbelt (we’d all brought along our helmets and rollerblades for exactly this reason). We went just under 2 miles and stopped at Ann Morrison park for the girls to play on the playground.

fun things to do in boise

After we skated back, we went to lunch at The Wylder which was DELICIOUS. The Honey Badger pizza was wildly popular and the brussels sprouts were amazing. We had made plans to have my cousin Ben and his family over for Sunday dinner and we wanted to take advantage of the gorgeous dining room, but I didn’t want to cook, so we ordered takeout Indian food, picked it up and took it home to put in the fridge for Sunday night.

fun things to do in boise

We headed back to the house with the plan to go back out for dinner. Instead, we watched a movie (I fell asleep for part of it), stayed around playing games, reading, and relaxing and everyone was happy to eat cereal or yogurt and fruit for a late dinner around 9 p.m.

fun things to do in boise

Day 3 in Boise: On Sunday morning, we had a relaxed morning of playing games and reading, then we got ready and headed to church (we went to the chapel my mom had attended as a child when she lived in Boise and that my grandparents attended for the decades they lived in Boise) and then took our picnic lunch of sandwiches from Lemon Tree Co to the Boise temple to have a little family lunch (the pear sausage was definitely the best one!). On our way home, we drove past my grandparents’ old house and then made a stop at the park down the street that we used to walk to every night after dinner when we’d visit them. Afterward, we dropped our sandwiches back at home so they wouldn’t sit out and then went to the Old Idaho Penitentiary which was really interesting.

fun things to do in boise

We’d planned to do the Botanical Gardens afterward (they’re right next to each other!) but it was clear the girls, especially the little ones, were DONE. Instead, we headed back to the house and everyone hung out, read books, and Bart and I took a walk with Ani until it was time to set the table for dinner and get the food all heated up. We had the BEST time visiting with Ben and Shayla and our kids all played together really well. It was a perfect visit and I wish we lived closer!

Day 4 in Boise: On Monday morning, Bart and I went for a long walk through the neighborhood while the girls enjoyed the bead kit I’d brought along. Afterward, we had breakfast at our place and hung out for quite a while (Ella, Ani, Bart and I learned a new game I’d brought called Mystic Market), before we all got ready and headed to Meridian to Sid’s Garage for lunch (the sweet potato fries were the biggest hit, and the Steakhouse burger was my favorite. We had a few shakes too and the Death by Chocolate one was our favorite).

places to eat in boise

Afterward, we stopped by a local cemetery and then went to Discovery Park. It was BUSY but the pump track/skate park wasn’t too crazy so we pulled out our rollerblades and spent about half an hour trying out the pump track. Afterward, we headed back to the house (it was HOT out there!) and spent a few hours playing games (I think Ella and I played 7+ games of Qwixx) and then went back to the Greenbelt to rollerblade again before dinner. We slid into Yoi Tomo Sushi and Grill 5 minutes before their last call (the girls LOVED the Despicable Me roll the best) and then we considered going back to The Stil for ice cream (we’d gone last time we visited Boise) but we were all too full and decided to skip it and went home instead.

Day 5 in Boise: Bart and I went for another long walk and then came back to find the girls had packed everything up. We showered quickly and then packed up our own things, loaded up the car and headed for home, with the plan to hit Goldstein’s Bagels & Bialys on our way out of town. They were sold out of a lot of things, plus their toaster was broken, so two of the girls got bagels and the rest of us decided we’d rather do doughnuts and acai bowls. We stopped at Guru’s (which we’d visited last time) and picked up five doughnuts (the potato doughnuts were BY FAR my favorite) and then 2 big acai bowls at Boise Juice Co. Around noon we finally hit the road and stopped halfway home at Shoshone Falls to check out the “Niagara of the West” since so many people had said it was in fine form at this time of year. After a quick stop there, we made the rest of the drive home, unpacked, and were all delighted to be home after a terrific trip.

We’re all hoping we make it back sooner than another 4.5 years!

fun things to do in boise

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5 Comments

  1. How do I save this? I am heading up again in a few weeks and have a bunch of stuff we want to do!

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