Free & Cheap Things to Do with Kids

Explore the best free & cheap things to do with kids options for kids and families in Carson

Dominguez Rancho Adobe Museum

Dominguez Rancho Adobe Museum

Museum of early California history. California history museum in an 1826 adobe on the site of the first Spanish land grant in the state.

Ken Malloy Harbor Regional Park

Ken Malloy Harbor Regional Park

Recreation area with trails & playground. Lakeside park offering nature trails, picnic spots with BBQs, lighted sports fields & a playground.

Wilmington Waterfront Park

Wilmington Waterfront Park

Modern, landscaped harborside promenade. Industrial-area riverwalk featuring a distinctive bridge, play areas & a community event space.

Lomita Railroad Museum

Lomita Railroad Museum

Museum devoted to steam train history. Museum exploring the history of steam trains, featuring engines & other cars, plus tours & events.

Compton Creek Natural Park

Compton Creek Natural Park

Green space with fitness & picnic areas. City greenway featuring walking paths, fitness equipment, picnic areas & an amphitheater.

Cherry Cove Park

Cherry Cove Park

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Signal Hill Park

Signal Hill Park

Basketball, playground & picnic area. A 10-acre community park offering a basketball court, playground, BBQ areas & picnic shelters.

Hilltop Park

Hilltop Park

Small park with sweeping city views. Compact green space offering panoramic vistas, BBQ & picnic areas & walking paths.

Long Beach Firefighter's Museum

Long Beach Firefighter's Museum

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Aquarium of the Pacific

Aquarium of the Pacific

Sea-life exhibits in a waterfront space. Pacific Ocean dwellers on display at this large aquarium with touch tanks & behind-the-scenes tours.

Discovery Well Park

Discovery Well Park

Visit this great place for kids and families!

ShoreLine Aquatic Park

ShoreLine Aquatic Park

Green space for picnics & water views. Grassy, open park on the water offering picnic areas, a lighthouse & special events.

Rainbow Lagoon Park

Rainbow Lagoon Park

Japanese-style park with open turf lawns. Turf recreational lawns & waterfront walkways are the draw at this traditional Japanese-style park.

Long Beach

Long Beach

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Magic Johnson Park

Magic Johnson Park

Visit this great place for kids and families!

LA Waterfront

LA Waterfront

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Bixby Park

Bixby Park

Park with a playground, sports & more. Park featuring a bandshell, a community center, a playground, sports facilities & more.

Los Arboles Rocketship Park

Los Arboles Rocketship Park

Elevated green space with a playground. Urban retreat offering elevated views of the city & a playground with a rocketship structure.

Deane Dana Nature Center

Deane Dana Nature Center

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Deane Dana Friendship Park and Nature Center

Deane Dana Friendship Park and Nature Center

Nature center with panoramic views. Green space & nature center featuring panoramic ocean views plus hiking trails & picnic facilities.

Pirate Park

Pirate Park

Colorful, pirate-themed play destination. Small gate-enclosed park geared toward young children with pirate-themed play structures & murals.

Redondo Beach Pier

Redondo Beach Pier

Dining, shopping & entertainment locale. Landmark pier known for scenic oceanfront dining, shopping & nightlife, plus music & festivals.

Fort Lots-o-Fun Park

Fort Lots-o-Fun Park

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Los Angeles County Fire Museum

Los Angeles County Fire Museum

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Torrance Beach

Torrance Beach

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Seaside Lagoon

Seaside Lagoon

Summertime swim spot & sandy beach. Seasonal spot for swimming, open during summer, with a sandy beach, snack bar & a play area.

Long Beach Lifeguard Museum

Long Beach Lifeguard Museum

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Hermosa Beach Museum

Hermosa Beach Museum

Historical society & heritage museum. Historical society featuring a quaint museum devoted to local heritage, with archival photos & more.

Cabrillo Marine Aquarium

Cabrillo Marine Aquarium

Fish on display, a touch tank & more. Longtime aquarium showcasing Southern California fish via exhibits, a touch tank & other activities.

Lookout Point Park

Lookout Point Park

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Polliwog Park

Polliwog Park

Playgrounds, disc golf & a large pond. Park boasting a large pond & amphitheater for events plus a 9-hole disc golf course & play areas.

Manhattan Beach Botanical Garden

Manhattan Beach Botanical Garden

Peaceful gardens with self-guided tours. Quaint, compact botanical garden featuring a wide variety of native flowers, grasses & trees.

Point Fermin Park

Point Fermin Park

Playground, amphitheater & trails. Grassy park atop rugged coastal bluffs featuring a playground, amphitheater, trails & picnic areas.

Point Fermin Lighthouse

Point Fermin Lighthouse

19th-century lighthouse & scenic grounds. Historic lighthouse situated on picturesque grounds with sea views & Victorian cottage gardens.

Columbia Memorial Space Center

Columbia Memorial Space Center

Kid-friendly exhibits about space. Modern locale featuring family-friendly, interactive exhibits about space, including a simulator.

Hermosa Beach Pier

Hermosa Beach Pier

Fishing & sweeping Pacific Ocean views. Long-standing 1,140-foot pier featuring beach & sunset ocean views, plus public restrooms & fishing.

El Dorado Nature Center

El Dorado Nature Center

Wide-ranging park for flora & fauna. 105-acre park featuring a visitor center, flora & fauna, lakes, a stream & walking trails.

Manhattan Beach Pier

Manhattan Beach Pier

Longtime landmark with a cafe & aquarium. This restored 928-ft. concrete pier is the oldest on the West Coast & features a cafe & an aquarium.

Roundhouse Aquarium

Roundhouse Aquarium

No-cost ocean & marine life education. This free aquarium sits at the end of Manhattan Beach Pier & is host to classes, parties & camps.

Seal Beach Pier Playground

Seal Beach Pier Playground

Beachfront, kids' playground & sandbox. Fenced beachfront playground offering children's play equipment, a sandbox & benches.

Golf N' Stuff

Golf N' Stuff

Mini-golf park with rides & go-karts. Boasting an 18-hole mini-golf course, this amusement park also offers an arcade, go-karts & rides.

Augustus F. Hawkins Nature Park

Augustus F. Hawkins Nature Park

Tranquil green space with nature center. Calm, 8.5-acre retreat featuring native flora & wetlands, plus a small museum with nature exhibits.

Point Vicente Interpretive Center

Point Vicente Interpretive Center

Park with exhibits & whale-watching. Natural & local culture exhibits in the visitor center of a waterfront park with whale-watching.

Wilderness Park

Wilderness Park

Compact park with a duck pond. Small public park featuring a duck pond, walk/jog paths & grassy areas popular for picnicking.

South Park Recreation Center

South Park Recreation Center

An outdoor pool, tennis courts & more. Green space with an outdoor pool, tennis & basketball courts, a baseball field & a kids' playground.

Sproul Museum

Sproul Museum

Museum of local & Sproul family history. A notable local family's home, now housing a collection of local historical & family artifacts.

Treasure Island Park

Treasure Island Park

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Dennis the Menace Park

Dennis the Menace Park

Grassy local park with a playground. This neighborhood park is a family destination with a big grassy lawn, a playground & picnic tables.

Hathaway Ranch Museum

Hathaway Ranch Museum

Visit this great place for kids and families!

El Segundo Blue Butterfly Preserve

El Segundo Blue Butterfly Preserve

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Seabridge Park

Seabridge Park

Playground & picnicking with water views. 3.9-acre neighborhood park offering a playground, facilities & picnic tables with water vistas.

Exposition Park

Exposition Park

Public green space with museums & arenas. Urban space comprising 160 acres with arenas & museums, plus some green areas with trees & gardens.

California Science Center

California Science Center

Hands-on exhibits, IMAX & the Endeavor. Admission's free to permanent exhibits at this kid-friendly spot, also boasting IMAX & the Endeavor.

Space Shuttle Endeavour

Space Shuttle Endeavour

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Exposition Park Rose Garden

Exposition Park Rose Garden

Charming park devoted to roses. Cheerful formal park featuring a collection of roses & a gazebo.

Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County

Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County

Dinosaur skeletons & rotating exhibits. From T. rex skeletons to an insect zoo, popular attraction holds more than 35-million artifacts.

Vista del Mar Park

Vista del Mar Park

Pocket green space near ocean & runways. Pocket green space & recreation area with ocean & airport views plus barbecue pits & picnic spots.

Ballona Discovery Park

Ballona Discovery Park

Educational park with wetland plants. Educational wetland park featuring an interpretive walk & gardens with native plants.

Knott's Berry Farm

Knott's Berry Farm

Old-school theme park with rides & charm. Classic theme park boasts fast rides, old-fashioned charm & famous fried chicken.

Knott's Berry Farm Independence Hall

Knott's Berry Farm Independence Hall

Replica of a famous historic building. Reproduction of Philadelphia's Independence Hall, including a copy of the Liberty Bell.

Grand Hope Park

Grand Hope Park

Playground, lawns & iconic clock tower. 2.5-acre urban park featuring a playground & grass lawns amid an iconic mosaic-adorned clock tower.

DTLA Arts District

DTLA Arts District

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Knott's Soak City

Knott's Soak City

Seasonal spot with aquatic attractions. Waterslide park with multi-person raft slides, lazy river & toddler areas as well as shops & snacks.

Kid Mamba Mural

Kid Mamba Mural

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Adventure City

Adventure City

Amusement park for children. Children's amusement park for family fun via rides, a petting zoo, an arcade & more.

Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve

Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve

Protected coastal estuary & bird habitat. 1300 acre ecological preserve with over 200 avian species spread around the coastal wetlands.

Biddy Mason Memorial Park

Biddy Mason Memorial Park

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Kyoto Garden

Kyoto Garden

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Public Art "Aquarius"

Public Art "Aquarius"

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Blue Ribbon Garden

Blue Ribbon Garden

Visit this great place for kids and families!

America Tropical Interpretive Center

America Tropical Interpretive Center

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Explore More Activities

Discover more events and activities happening in Carson.