San Francisco is a great family travel destination

Sometimes, planning a family vacation with means finding space for kids run around – even if it’s in a big city like San Francisco.  Here are some great open spaces and fun activities to take the kids when you head to California’s northern gem:

Parks and playgrounds for newborns and older children in San Francisco include:

Golden Gate Park’s cherished Children’s Playground, the first children’s playground in a public park in America, was recently renovated. The huge park, 1,013 acres, is an ideal place to take a picnic, try fly fishing, see the buffalo, rent a bike or skates or play golf. Visit the Conservatory of Flowers, Japanese Tea Garden, San Francisco Botanical Garden, pedal a boat on Stow Lake, or visit the de Young Museum and the green California Academy of Sciences.

Other neighborhood playgrounds include the Chinese Recreation Center located at Washington and Mason streets, Portsmouth Square at Kearny and Clay streets, North Beach Playground at Lombard and Mason streets, Mountain Lake at Lake and Ninth Ave., the Rooftop at Moscone Center at Fourth and Howard streets, and Nob Hill’s Huntington Park at California and Taylor streets. The Marina Green and Crissy Field, along the waterfront in the Marina offer picnic areas with the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz in the background.

AT&T Park (SOMA): AT&T Park now offers “dynamic pricing” making seeing a Giants home game affordable for families. Ticket prices are readjusted the morning of the game based on market demand. For many games that are not in high-demand, tickets may be available for $5 per seat. The Giants Kids’ Meal is one of the best deals in the ballpark – which includes a hot dog, bag, juice box, fruit bar and a toy in a souvenir bucket for $5 of families can bring food into the ballpark to save money.

AT&T Park boasts a playground within the ballpark called the Coca-Cola Fan Lot, located on the Promenade Level, behind the Left Field bleachers. This interactive play area offers slides located inside the 80-foot Coca-Cola bottle made of Alaskan Cedar, to Little Giants Park where kids may play baseball.
Fans may also visit the Build a Lou Seal Store by Build-A-Bear Workshop® and create a plush Lou Seal or one-of-a-kind Giants bear.

San Francisco Zoo (Sunset District): The San Francisco Zoo, home to exotic and rescued animals from all over the world, is located across from the Pacific Ocean. Kids can watch lemurs leap through the largest outdoor lemur habitat in the country; visit Penguin Island; marvel at the troop of gorillas; and feed farm animals in the popular Children’s Zoo. Take rides on one of the world’s only old-fashioned miniature steam trains and the historic Dentzel Carousel.

Zeum (Howard and Fourth streets, downtown San Francisco): It’s always a great idea when visiting a major metropolitan city to expose the kids to some culture. A multimedia arts and technology museum where kids and families explore creativity through hands-on programs including clay animation, video production, and more.

Check out part one of our San Francisco Family Travel ideas.