California is a big state and you can expect to find things to do with kids on a big scale. The best way to plan children's activities in the Golden State is to separate them by the regions in which you are visiting. The northern, central and southern regions of California are very different in their landscape and in their indoor and outdoor offerings of things to do with children of all ages.
Northern California covers wine country, the north coast, gold country and the high sierra. In San Francisco, take the kids on a bay cruise, or tour the USS Pampanito submarine docked at Pier 39 on Fisherman's Wharf. On Pier 45, kids can view mechanical toys of the 19th and 20th centuries at the Museum of the City of San Francisco and the Musee Mechanique. Also on Fisherman's Wharf is the wax museum.
In wine country, kid-friendly activities include the Napa Firefighters Museum, the Connolly Ranch farm, Train Town in Sonoma, Peanuts cartoon creator Charles M. Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa and Old Faithful Geyser and the Petrified Forest in Calistoga. There also are many hiking and horseback trails in the Napa Valley and Sonoma Valley areas.
For outdoor activities, Lake Tahoe, Yosemite National Park and the Eastern Sierra offer opportunities for camping, hiking, swimming and biking. In Sacramento, kids will love touring the Jelly Belly Candy Factory and the historic towns of the old gold country.
Central California, which includes the central coast and Death Valley National Park, is the place to bring kids for swimming, surfing, boogie boarding and boating in the majestic Pacific Ocean. Many of these seaside towns have boardwalks with arcade games and miniature golf. Popular kid attractions are Monterey Bay Aquarium in Monterey and Seymour Discovery Marine Center north of Santa Cruz.
For kids, Death Valley National Park is a giant natural sandbox where they can tumble down sandy dunes, find interesting rocks and hike down a volcanic crater. Death Valley National Park contains numerous areas of interest that offer incredible views and intriguing areas to explore.
Southern California holds a bevy of things for kids to do. It encompasses Los Angeles, San Diego, Santa Monica, La Jolla and many beach towns. The big-name amusement parks are located in southern California, including Disneyland in Los Angeles, Sea World in San Diego, Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, Legoland in Carlsbad, Knott's Theme Park in Buena Park and Universal Studios in Hollywood.
But southern California offers many other attractions on a smaller scale, such as Goat Hill Junction in Costa Mesa and Zoomars Petting Zoo in San Juan Capistrano. Several attractions cater to children of certain ages, like Adventure City in Anaheim for kids under 12, Seeds of Wonder Children's Garden for ages 18 months to 6 years old, and Bowers Kidseum in Santa Ana for kids ages 6 and older.
For a day at the zoo or aquarium, southern California offers many choices, including the Los Angeles, San Diego, Santa Ana, Santa Barbara and Orange County zoos and the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach, Sea Life Aquarium in Carlsbad and Birch Aquarium in La Jolla.
For activities that combine learning with fun, consider the California Science Center in Los Angeles, the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center in Balboa Park, the Ocean Institute in Dana Point Harbor and the Discovery Science Center in Santa Ana.
