Discover art, history, and nature in Wauwatosa

Wauwatosa brings together different things to explore: permanent murals, historic architecture, a hardwood forest, and parks with distinctive features. As you plan your trip, you can decide whether to focus on art and local history, nature, or activities involving bikes and wheeled equipment. These preferences can help guide your search for a suitable vacation rental, without requiring every experience to fit the same kind of outing.

Public Art and Historic Stories

The North Avenue Mural Arts District (NoMAD) features murals in Wauwatosa designed by artists as permanent installations. This permanent approach sets these works apart from a temporary painting event. If you’re interested in public art, you can plan NoMAD as a cultural highlight of its own.

Historic architecture also shapes the area: the Kneeland-Walker House is a historic Victorian mansion with gardens. In the Village of Wauwatosa, historic architecture meets a walkable setting. For a self-guided exploration, the Wauwatosa Historical Society offers a series of walking tours. You can use the tours for free on a mobile device or print them before your visit. Another way to explore historic Wauwatosa is the puzzle game in the Historical Society’s experiential history series, which takes place there.

ART 64® offers another form of art: the live painting competition turns the Village of Wauwatosa into an outdoor gallery. Firefly Grove Park is also home to Mama Rosa, Wisconsin’s first troll. The figure is made entirely from recycled materials from Wauwatosa’s urban forest. Together, these artistic offerings include murals, a live painting competition, and a figure made from reused materials.

Parks and Nature with Distinctive Features

Hartung Park has rolling terrain, trails, a pond, and a stone labyrinth. These features give the park several points of interest: when choosing what to explore, you can consider different interests, from a walk on the trails to the pond or labyrinth. The park also has a playground and outdoor fitness equipment. If you’re traveling with children, you can consider these as activity options alongside cultural discoveries.

The Forest Exploration Center offers a different natural setting: a 67-acre, mature hardwood forest in the heart of Wauwatosa. This gives you a choice between the natural forest landscape and Hartung Park’s distinctive features. You don’t have to combine them into a single outing: the choice may simply come down to whether you’d rather explore a forest or a park with a pond and stone labyrinth.

Biking, Wheeled Activities, and Local Vendors

Firefly Grove Park is home to the first pump track in southeastern Wisconsin. Its multidirectional design includes several transfer points, two wall rides, and two deep bowls. In addition to bikes, visitors use skateboards, inline skates, and scooters there. These specific features can help you decide whether the pump track is of interest to your travel group; it’s quite different from a walk through a park or a self-guided exploration of local history.

The Tosa Farmers Market is located along the Oak Leaf Bike Trail. It features Wisconsin farmers, food producers, local vendors, and educational offerings. If you’re interested in regional food and local vendors, the market offers another distinct experience in Wauwatosa. Alongside the pump track, it represents a different set of interests: activities on various wheeled devices on the one hand, and local vendors and education on the other.

Explore History on Your Own or Through a Game

There are different ways to explore local history: the walking tour series is self-guided, while the Historical Society’s puzzle game takes place in historic Wauwatosa. Decide whether you’d prefer a walking tour or a playful way to discover local history.

Explore More Places

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