San Francisco presents a good selection of family-friendly places. Besides offering wonderful sightseeing opportunities, the city has a vast collection of museums that are well-spread throughout the Bay Area. Most of these museums offer hands-on learning and interactive exhibits, which promote children’s active learning and creativity. Some introduce kids to imaginative techniques such as stop-motion animation.
Family are notoriously difficult to entertain. Fortunately, there are a myriad of cures for boredom in San Francisco. The city is brimming with family-friendly activities: Where else can you search for wild parrots in the morning and ride a historic cable car in the afternoon? If you’re on the hunt for your next urban adventure, we’ve put together a list of our favorite things to do with family in San Francisco.
With so many attractions, it can take work to determine the best things to do in San Francisco with family. Here, you will find a list of the activities and attractions your entire family will enjoy.
1. Bay Area Discovery Museum
Families with kids in San Francisco can head up to this interactive children’s museum for a day out filled with interactive arts and science exhibits. It’s right off Horseshoe Bay, at the northern end of the Golden Gate Bridge, and occupies around 7.5 acres of National Park land. Toddlers can enjoy the Tot Spot, a multi-sensory playground specially designed with stimulating outdoor tunnels, obstacles, and other explorative features. Older kids can join in on various STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) activities.
2. Fisherman’s Wharf
San Franciscans famously love to hate Fisherman’s Wharf’s cheesy souvenir shops and kitschy attractions, but don’t be so sure your kids share that sentiment. You may be tired of watching street performers and sea lions hang out at Pier 39, but these are exciting activities for youngsters seeing them for the first time, and acts like braving the line for an ice cream sundae at Ghiradelli Square will make you nothing short of a hero in your children’s eyes. Sure, Fisherman’s Wharf is touristy, but playing tourist is pretty cool when you share the experience with your kids.
3. Exploratorium
The Exploratorium encourages guests of all ages to touch, explore, and play with more than 650 interactive exhibits. Investigate the living world; experiment with thoughts, feelings and behavior; explore the local environment; and much more. All this science making you hungry? The Exploratorium houses a cafe and a waterfront restaurant, both serving seasonal and sustainable cuisine prepared by local chefs. All ages are welcome. Strollers are also available on a first-come, first-serve basis.
4. California Academy of Sciences
The most visited museum in San Francisco is the California Academy of Sciences. It’s one of my personal favorites, too. There are several fun activities for both kids and adults.
Walk through the four-story rainforest and watch the butterflies fly around the rainforest. Grab tickets to see a show at the Morrison Planetarium. You can also head down into the large and colorful Steinhart Aquarium.
5. Point Reyes National Seashore
Another option for the nature lover or if you are looking to get out of the city is the Point Reyes National Seashore. Take note, with traffic and the distance this could be an all day event to visit. But if you are looking to get away from the hustle and bustle, this is your escape.
The drive out is beautiful and once you are there the views of the coastline along the Pacific Ocean are pretty epic. Look ahead and plan to visit on a day that the lighthouse is open. They also have a visitor center with small museums and rangers on staff to help make recommendations on what you should do while there (based on the weather and what is open and closed).
The Visitor Center closes at 5 pm on some days so be sure to check the hours as you will want to stop to get a map and look around the museum there. Also, check on what days the lighthouse is open so you can make the walk down.
6. House of Air trampoline park
Active kids can jump and bounce to their hearts’ content at this indoor adrenaline and trampoline park that’s right next to the southern end of the Golden Gate Bridge. Even mum and dad, or complete novices can join in the fun. House of Air hosts a good variety of activities in its massive indoor facility. There are trampoline jumping sessions, aerials, physical training on trampolines, trampoline dodgeball, trampoline basketball dunks, to other active sports such as rock climbing, ninja obstacles, and fitness classes.
7. San Francisco Cable Car Museum
San Francisco’s historic cable cars are as iconic as the Golden Gate Bridge. San Francisco is the only city in the world that still employs manually-operated cable cars. The three historic cable car routes travel through North Beach, Fisherman’s Wharf, Union Square, Chinatown, the Embarcadero, and Nob Hill.
Whether you hop off to explore these vibrant neighborhoods or just pick a route and ride from end to end, a trip on a historic cable car is a uniquely San Francisco way to soak in the sights of the city with kids. Afterward, be sure to check out the free San Francisco Cable Car Museum in Nob Hill where you’ll find exhibits dedicated to cable car history and view the actual cables at work as they power the cars around the city. The Powell-Hyde and Powell-Mason lines stop right in front of the museum.
8. Golden Gate Bridge
Of course, when you visit San Francisco you will want to check out the Golden Gate Bridge the top California landmark! We didn’t stop (parking is pretty much impossible down there) but instead drove across the bridge to get to the Bay Area Children’s Museum to see a view of the Golden Gate Bridge. We then headed out to Muir Woods.
It is an iconic place and well worth a visit. If you want to see it from the water, be sure to check out the Golden Gate Bay Cruise! Or jump in a GoCar for a GPS-guided tour!
9. Golden Gate Park
Many of the best things to do in San Francisco are conveniently found within the city’s 1,017-acre Golden Gate Park. At Stow Lake, rowboats and pedal boats can be rented by the hour; visitors can float underneath the lake’s bridge, past waterfalls and look for wildlife like birds and turtles. At the western end of Golden Gate Park, west of Spreckles Lake along John F. Kennedy Drive, a grassy meadow is home to a herd of bison. Younger kids will also love the antique merry-go-round at Koret Children’s Corner and Carousel, which also features a playground and picnic area.
One of the highlights of Golden Gate Park is the California Academy of Sciences, which features a rainforest, natural history museum, planetarium and aquarium (the daily penguin feedings and swamp talks featuring Claude, an albino alligator, are especially popular with families). You can save on admission by purchasing your tickets three or more days in advance.
10. Pier 39
Here is an activity that is in the heart of city life! An always busy area that is filled with shops and entertainment! It has a really cool vibe and look and feel to the area and some fun shops and restaurants you will want to check out.
We walked through the Pier 39 area and checked out a few shops before sitting down to eat . . . we stupidly put our backpack on an open seat at our table and someone walked by and stole it! Be aware down here as it is an area known for things like this to happen.
You can also go to a look out over the San Francisco Bay where you can see Alcatraz or if you planned ahead (I am so not good at planning ahead) you can take a boat ride out to tour Alcatraz! I am really disappointed that we missed it. Next time!
Be sure to look for the Sea Lions sunbathing and if you want you can check out the Aquarium On The Bay. And if you want to keep exploring head over to Fisherman Wharf for more restaurants and stores.
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