Whether you want to expose your toddler to an educational museum or play in a sunny playground, Los Angeles has many options for you. Better yet, several of the best locations for toddlers are completely free of charge, or at least quite affordable. Moreover, Los Angeles' mostly beautiful climate ensures that plenty of exciting outdoor activities are available, many of which are perfect for a day out with your toddler.
There are many spacious parks throughout the Los Angeles area that are lovely places to take your child. In parks such as the Pan Pacific Park on Beverly Boulevard, you can push your toddler on the swings, have a picnic under a tree or play tag on the open fields. Barnsdale Art Park in Los Feliz features 360-degree city views, plus an art museum and a Frank Lloyd Wright building for older children. Further east, Echo Park has a large lake where you and your toddler can feed the ducks.
LA's largest park, Griffith Park, has dozens of inexpensive toddler-friendly activities. Some of the most popular Griffith Park attractions include miniature train rides ($2.50 per ride as of June 2009), a merry-go-round ($2 per ride) and picnics at the abandoned former site of the LA Zoo. Slightly pricier but cheaper than many LA attractions is the current Griffith Park LA Zoo (free for children under 2, $8 for kids 2 to12, $13 for adults) which is home to birds, koalas, chimps and more.
If you and your toddler are looking for a more educational way to spend your day out, try out some of LA's free museums. For art lovers, check out The Getty Center. Your toddler will love the monorail ride to the top of the center. Once in the Getty Center, you can explore the outdoor sculpture garden, look at halls of master paintings or take in breathtaking views of the city.
Other fabulous Los Angeles museums with free admission include the California Science Center, the Los Angeles Maritime Museum ($3 suggested adult donationas of June 2009), the Hollywood Bowl Museum and the Travel Town Museum. Many other LA museums offer free admission on occasion. The Los Angeles County Museum of Art has free admission on the first Tuesday of the month, the Huntington Gardens are free the first Thursday of the month and the dinosaurs at the Natural History Museum are free on the first Tuesday of the month, just to name a few.
Keep an eye out for free concerts in LA. LACMA has Friday-night jazz concerts during the warmer months and Pershing Square has Tuesday and Thursday lunchtime concerts. If your toddler is under 2, she can get into Bob Baker's famous Marionette Theater for free (otherwise, admission is $20 as of June 2009). Other cheap LA toddler-friendly activities include Public Star Parties at the Griffith Observatory, the early-July Lotus Festival in Echo Park and the LA DWP Holiday Light Festival, which run from late November to early December in Griffith Park.
