When you’re traveling with family, you sometimes have to choose between family fun and adult fun. This can be difficult in big cities that tend to cater more to adult entertainment. Luckily, you can find many family friendly choices in San Francisco that will make your kids smile and keep adults happy too.
Whether you’re taking in some of the top tourist sights or you’re just looking for a way to help your kids get their wiggles out, check out these great family friendly activities in the Bay Area.
Pier 39
Visit the renowned Pier 39 for a fun-filled day of activities. From the Aquarium of the Bay, featuring a 3-D theater and exhibits of many local species of sea life, to the 7-D experience, a rollercoaster-type ride in front of a large screen, you’ll find activities for the entire family. There are shops, restaurants, a Mirror Maze and even a museum of arcade games that can be played for pennies. Make sure to spend an entire day here, allowing the kids and adults to take turns choosing the next exciting experience.
Exploratorium
You’ll find rooms of hands-on, educational activities for kids and adults of all ages at the Exploratorium. Want to know how electricity works or how earthquakes are formed? You’ll find out thanks to the in-house experiments. The kids can wander between interactive exhibits, having fun but secretly be learning at the same time. This is a perfect option for the unavoidable rainy or foggy days in the city.
Cable Car Museum
A trip to San Francisco isn’t complete without a look at the world-famous cable cars. Head to the museum in the Nob Hill neighborhood and learn about the history of the beloved cable cars. Kids especially like taking a closer look at the big wheels that pull the cables. When you’re finished at the museum, take a ride down Powell/Hyde line for 7 dollars per rider. Your kids will love knowing how the cars work before taking a ride.
The Walt Disney Family Museum
Another popular museum in the Bay Area is The Walt Disney Family Museum with its Fantasia Theater. Pay for admission to the museum, and you’ll also get entry to the theater to watch a classic Disney movie. You can check out the museum’s calendar to see what the upcoming films are as well as other programming happening each day. Also, the museum has just opened its newest original exhibition celebrating the works from one of the most accomplished and versatile animators working today, Andreas Deja. On view from March 23 to October 4, 2017, Deja View: The Art of Andreas Deja will showcase original works on paper and maquette of Deja’s most iconic Disney characters, from menacing villains such as Scar and Jafar to larger-than-life muscle men like Gaston and Hercules, and the much beloved Mama Odie and Lilo Pelekai.
Whale Watching
If your family isn’t prone to seasickness, there are several whale watching tours that leave from the city each morning between June and November. Travel several miles out into the Pacific Ocean, and you’ll get the chance to see humpback and blue whales, as well as dolphins, sea lion and many species of birds. Book a tour for a couple of hours and you’re sure to see some of these creatures in their natural habitats.
San Francisco is full of activities for all interests and ages. Do you have a favorite family-friendly activity that we forgot? Let us know!
