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Amusement Park
Marine World Africa USAin Vallejo is a combination between a theme park with rides, a zoo and sea world. Great  for any age. Go online and you can get cheeper tickets or get a season pass if you live close by.Great Americain Santa Clara has thrilling coasters for older kids, fun shows, KidZville (rides, play area, and showsfor younger children) and even a water park.Bonfante GardensGilroy Gardens I love this place. It is located in Gilroy, so it is not as "local" as the other places andis hotter there during the summer. It is a great amusement park for younger kids (under 7) and is set in a beautifulgarden. It is always so clean there, and usually the only teenagers around are the ones working there (unlike at Great America). Fabulous place for toddlers! Check their website for days/hours of operation, they have a very modifiedschedule for fall and winter.Fairylandin Oakland is great for  younger kids. Reasonable entry fee includes r ides and shows. You have to payfo parking or bring change to park alongLake Meritt ( agreat place to rent paddle boats and paddle around lake with older kids). Don’t forget to buy a lit  tle Fariyland key tohear all the stories around t he park, They even offer a sleepover t oo.Pixi Playlandin Concord , is a great little children's theme park with small rides and a roller coaster. Nut Tree in Vacaville is a small rides theme park great for little ones and shops located near the Vacaville Outlet stores. Dont forget to check out the Jelly Belly Factoryfree candy and factory tour to while you are in Vacaville.Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk  Rides, roller coasters, and an arcade, line the beach boardwalk pier. Check on line for  tickets and discounts also check Costco for passes. Don’t forget to bring your beach gear .The Jungle in Concord is a large indoor playground structure of tubes and fun. Babies under 1 year are free and theyhave a great little play area with play equipment just for toddlers too, like ball pits and small crawl holes andminiature slides. Great place for birthday parties like Chucky Cheese is.
Aquarium
The Monterey Bay Aquariumis world class... fun, educational, big! The breathtaking setting makes a great weekenddestination in early Fall when both the crowds and the fog are gone. Stay overnight and enjoy kayaking on the bay(Monterey Bay Kayaksoffers naturalist led tours). Let your kids burn off some energy at the Denise the Menace  playgroundbefore the drive home.Seymour Marine Discovery Center in Santa Cruz near Natural Bridges State Beach  Stinehear  t Aquariumnext to the California Academy Natural History Museum in San Franciscoand Morrison Planetarium.Aquarium of the Baylocated off of Pier 39 and have a nice lunch at the tropical themedRain Forrest Cafe after with aquarium fish as you dine.
Zeumat Yerba Buena Gardensin San Francisco provides fun hands-on art activities for all ages. While you're at  Yerba Buena ride the old playland carousel and enjoy the colorful playground area. Bowling and ice skating are alsoavailable.Museum of Children's Art (MOCHA) in Oakland is unique in that it only displays artwork by children. Galleryadmission is free but there is an open studio fee for participation. 18 months and 5 years for $7.
Fun Things To Do With Your Children Around The Bay Area
 
The San Jose Museum of Art has many kid-friendly exhibits. On one visit we enjoyed exhibits of Chihuly glass,modern art furniture, photo collage, and cartoon drawings. The museum is within walking distance of the TechMuseumand the Children'sDiscovery Museum. Where The Wild Things Are located at 101 Fourth Street in San Francisco. Maurice Sendak classic children's storyWhere the Wild Things Are has become an interactive experience. Adults and children can tour through halls of larger-than-life characters sprung right off the storybook's pages. Children under 3 are free.
Aviation/ Museum
Hiller Aviation Museumin San Carlos has very interesting vintage and experimental aircraft exhibits. Children ages8-17 can register for the Young Eagles program and fly for free  above the San Francisco Bay with a licensed pilot in a real plane!Fleet Week Watch the Blue Angle do their stunts above the San Francisco bay and also tour the naval ships that come in to dock during fleet week.October 8-13check the schedule for the events and tours. The planes are reallyloud and echo through the buildings so just be mindful of your little one’s ears. Great fun though!
Beaches
Natural Bridges State Beachin Santa Cruz is scenic and has lively tide pools just a short hike from the main beach.Nearby natural trails lead through the winter habitat of monarch butterflies. The Seymour Marine DiscoveryCenter is near by and is a worthwhile side trip.Alemeda Beach Robert Crown Memorial Park -Each year in June there is a Sand Castle Building Contest you canparticipate or watch this year it is onJune 13, 2009. It is a quiet little beachfront and you will usually see kite flyingand windsurfing or kitesurfing going on during most of the year.
Biking Trails
Canada Roadin San Mateo is closed to motorized vechiles from Hwy 92 to Edgewood Rd. along Crystal SpringsReserv ior on most Sundays. Stop for a look down the Pulgas Water Temple . Tour the house and gardens at nearby Filoli Mansion.Iron Horse Trail and Bike trails that you can ride toHeather Farms Park in Walnut Creek where they have large duck  ponds, trails, playgrounds, pool, flower gardens and a touch and smell garden too. In the evenings in the summer youcan even watch outdoor movies under the stars.
Children's Museums
Bay Area Discovery Museumin Sausalito is a great children's museum in a beautiful location. Great place for babies too with things for them to do.Children's Discovery Museumin San Jose located near the Tech museum. A great place to take kids of any age. The exhibits are great. Theyalso have The Wonder Cabinet for kids under 4 years old. This is a great place to go for the little ones, where they don't get pushed around by bigger kids, yet they still get to do all the great hands-on stuff.There's also a "Crawl Space" inside the Wonder Cabinet for infants and crawler, so they don't get trampled by the  toddlers! There's also an Art Studio too. Check website for calendar, I think they are closed most Mondays.
Children's Theaters
California Theat re Center in Sunnyvale. Adult actors perform classic fairy tales. Peninsula Youth Theatre in Mountain View. Young actors perform both new and old favorites. Costumes and se  ts are  spectacular.Young Performer's Theatre in San Francisco. Several especially fun and witty shows.
Fun Things To Do With Your Children Around The Bay Area
 
Ha Ha This a wayCircus classes in Berkeley. Children are taught to learn how to juggle etc. kids 3 to 4. Thursday at 3:30. For kids 4-6, classes start at 4:30 on Thursdays. $80 per session (8 classes).
Farms
Ardenwood Historic Farmin Fremont hosts fun events throughout the year. Our favorites are the Harvest Festivalin October and the Christmas Faire in early December. Events typically include house tours, train rides, food samples,farm activities, arts & crafts, andmusic.Emma Prusch Farm Park Has a nice little farm. Depending on the time of year, you can see a lot of aminals (babies too!) there. They recently added a large play structure. Lots of picnic areas. Huge grassy field and has a paved path to walk around.Deer Hollow FarmLocated inside Rancho San Antonio Open Space Preserve. You have to hike a bit to get to the farm.Take a jog stroller with you for the dirt trail, especially if you plan on continuing to hike the trails. Also, best to go in the morning during the hotter months. It can get really warm out there.Little Farm at Tilden Park above Berkeley hills. The Farm is free and bring celery or lettuce to feed the animals. The park also has train rides, pony rides, a lake to swim in,Lake Anza , botanical garden, nature center next to the farm, camp sites and trails and they just reopened the beautiful Carousel to ride. These other attractions do charge a small fee so bring some money with you. Parking is free.
Food AttractionsJelly Belly Factoryin Vacaville gives free tours of the factory and candy samples. Check out theNut Tree  near the Outlet Stores for somesmall amusement rides too.Rain Forrest Cafenext to the pier in San Francisco is an amazing rain forrest theme restaurant withwaterfalls, aquarium, animatronic jungle animals and thunder and lightning sounds. Pop over toGardens
The UC Berkeley Botanical Gardenchildren under 5 are free. This was an accidental find for us. We just happenedupon it on our way back from the Lawrence Hall of Science and were amazed at the number and variety of plants.The place has the feel of an educational/research garden, not a fancy for-show garden. The plant "zones" range fromalpine to desert to tropical and everything in between. Don't miss the greenhouse that holds the carnivorous plants.Edible Schoolyardin Berkeley. Founded by Waters to celebrate the transformative power of growing, cooking, andsharing food, it is a colorful, lively place to cultivate a love of gardening. Go after school hours, weekends or springbreak because during the day it is crowded with classes from school field trips. You can't eat what you find in the garden. Pack a picnic lunch to eat on the hay bales or bring the lunch down the hill toHopkins Park and let the kidsrun around until naptime.Berkeley Rose GardenFree to the public. Has meandering paths, stunning views of SF, and roses of all hue. There isalso a nice size park across the street with a concrete slide, so bring a unfolded card board box to slide down on and apicnic lunch. Bring a tennis racket and play in the tennis courts next to it as well.Wat Mongkolratanaramis Berkeley's Thai Buddhist temple. Located at Russell St and Martin Luther King Jr. near.Monks invite the public to sit on the lawn at brunch and eat delicious and bountiful Thai food.
Historical Museums & Parks
The Museum of American Heritage in Palo Alto has well done kid-oriented exhibits and special events.John Muir Home National Historic Site in Martinez. Take a tour of John Muir’s home and gardens. Your kids canclimb to ring the bell at the top of the house, pick and eat the fruit from the fruit trees in the garden and hear stories about John Muir and his family and also watch a video if you have older children who can sit through it. OnSaturday April 18, 2009  there is a special Free event to celebrate John Muir’s birthday so don’t miss it!If you go
Fun Things To Do With Your Children Around The Bay Area
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