THE LIST
FUN THINGS TO DO WITH
KIDS IN LOS ANGELES
Below is a list of places I have personally visited and enjoyed in Los Angeles with my daughter.
Happy adventuring.
OUTDOORS
Take a nature walk through shady Fern Dell in Griffith Park.
Take your camera and go birding at Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve.
See birds, animals, and plants at the El Dorado Nature Center.
Go whale watching with Harbor Breeze Cruises.
Ride the train at Travel Town and explore dozens of old locomotives.
Take a spin on the Griffith Park Carousel, which inspired Walt Disney to create Disneyland.
Look for tadpoles, hike trails, and see various birds at the Audubon Center at Debs Park.
Ride the Ferris wheel at Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier.
Find sea creatures in tide pools at Abalone Cove.
Feed a giraffe and see more than 1,400 mammals, birds, amphibians, and reptiles at the LA Zoo.
Pick strawberries at Underwood Family Farms.
Ride the double-decker trolley at The Grove.
Explore 150 acres of beautiful gardens at Descanso Gardens.
Discover plants and wildlife at South Coast Botanic Garden.
Take a journey to beautiful Catalina Island - just 22 miles off the coast of Southern California.
Splash in the waves in family-friendly Paradise Cove in Malibu.
Swim in the historic pool at the Annenberg Community Beach House.
Rocket down the giant slides at Ralph Foy Park in Burbank.
Explore a gold mine in the mountain town of Julian.
Sing along to the Sound of Music at the Hollywood Bowl.
Rent a swan boat at Lake Balboa.
Enjoy a Balboa Bar or frozen banana at Sugar ‘n Spice on Balboa Island.
Explore Bronson Caves, aka the Batcave from the ‘60s Batman TV show.
Go wild and explore the ruins of the Old LA Zoo in Griffith Park.
See exotic wild animals up close at America's Teaching Zoo at Moorpark College.
Enjoy interpretive displays, a library, and nature hikes at the Stough Canyon Nature Center in Burbank.
Climb down the cliff stairs and check out sea stacks, tide pools, and sea caves at the photographic El Matador Beach.
Go birding at the Sepulveda Basin Wildlife Reserve.
Walk the stone labyrinth at Arlington Garden in Pasadena.
Go rock climbing at Chatsworth Oaks Park.
Hike the Santa Ynez Falls Waterfall Trail.
Feed the ducks at Kenneth Hahn Park.
Strike a pose at Urban Light at LACMA.
Hike up to the pond at Ernest E. Debs Park and have fun on a nearby tree swing.
Go birding at Ballona Wetlands.
Take a spin on the 1920 Herschel Spillman Carousel and a huge Ferris wheel at The Pike in Long Beach.
Take a gentle hike to see ducks and turtles at the duck pond at Franklin Canyon Park.
Spend the day at Pan Pacific Park with an activity center, barbeque pits, three playgrounds, and The Grove right next door.
Enjoy the gardens and galleries at The Huntington.
INDOORS
Take a journey to the Ice Age at the La Brea Tar Pits Museum.
Go climbing at Sender One LAX.
Visit the LA Fire Department Museum located in Hollywood in an old fire station from the 1930s.
See exotic birds, reptiles, and mammals at the STAR Eco Station.
Step aboard Air Force One and Marine One at the Ronald Reagan library.
Get a scoop or two at Bennett’s Ice Cream in the original Los Angeles Farmers Market.
Run away with the circus for two hours at Circus Vargas.
Visit the ancient world of Greece and Rome at the Getty Villa.
Climb above it all the Cayton Children’s Museum.
Take in a show at the Bob Baker Marionette theater.
Ignite your imagination at the Columbia Memorial Space Center.
Explore the Heal the Bay Aquarium under the Santa Monica Pier.
Go on a scavenger hunt and find Vicky at the Battleship Iowa Museum.
Touch a moon jelly, hand-feed the lorikeets, and see an abundance of fish at the Aquarium of the Pacific.
Make art at LACMA.
Delve into rich art, culture, and history at the California African American Museum.
Walk under the giant rock (aka Levitated Mass) at LACMA.
Buy a classic toy at Kip’s Toyland — the oldest toy store in LA.
Pan for gold and also discover the art, history, and culture of the American West at the Autry Museum.
Race (toy) cars at the Petersen Automotive Museum.
Watch airplanes land at LAX at the Proud Bird Restaurant.
See a Disney movie at the El Capitan Theater.
Climb into a police car at the Los Angeles Police Museum.
Strike up some fun at Pinz Bowling.
Get blown away in the Discovery Cube wind tunnel.
Explore the historic Queen Mary from stem to stern.
Frolic with the butterflies at the Butterfly Pavilion at the Los Angeles Natural History Museum.
Have hands-on fun at The Children’s Museum at La Habra.
Climb the giant Raindrop Climber at the KidsSpace Children’s Museum in Pasadena.
Play in Noah’s Ark at the Skirball Cultural Center.
Walk beneath the enormous Space Shuttle Endeavour at the California Science Center.
See a live show in the Samuel Oschin Planetarium in the world-famous Griffith Observatory.
Hop over to the Bunny Museum in Pasadena.
Get weird at Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum on Hollywood Boulevard.
Throw a birthday party at Pump it Up.
Pick up a comic book or two at House of Secrets.
Check out the cool model railroad in action at the Train Shack in Burbank.
Discover new art at the Craft Contemporary Museum.
EVENTS
Listen to bands, watch fireworks, play games, and enjoy carnival rides at the St. Francis De Sales Festival on the first weekend in May.
Celebrate ancient traditions at the annual Dia de Los Muertos event at the Hollywood Forever cemetery.
Ride human-powered rides at the Original Renaissance Faire.
Enjoy a family hoe-down at the 4th of July Barn Dance at Will Greer’s Theatricum Botanicum.
Ride the Polar Express train in Fillmore or Perris.