Unique & Hidden Gem Activities for Families
Explore the best unique & hidden gem activities for families options for kids and families in Hayward
Japanese Gardens
Tranquil botanical garden with teahouse. This 3+-acre botanical garden features traditional Japanese arrangements, a teahouse & a koi pond.
Sulphur Creek Nature Center
Wildlife rehabilitations & education. This wildlife rehabilitation facility offers educational programs & a discovery center for kids.
Meek Park
Mansion grounds with gardens & play area. Landscaped grounds of a historic mansion with play structures, picnic space with grills & open lawn.
Hayward Shoreline Interpretive Center
Ecology center with exhibits & events. Ecology center offering exhibits, programs & activities relating to the region's estuary.
Ardenwood Historic Farm
Living museum with horse-powered farming. A working farm with a train & crops grown using historic methods, plus volunteers in period attire.
Dublin Historic Park and Museums
Local history & 1850s-era buildings. A 10-acre park with preserved buildings from the 1850s tells the story of the city's early settlers.
Coyote Hills Vista Point
Visit this great place for kids and families!
California Nursery Historical Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Forest Home Farms Historic Park
Scenic park with a Victorian-era house. Farmland featuring a Victorian house museum & public events on its lush, 16-acres.
Train of Lights
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum
Silent film museum with movie screenings. Museum in an historic former cinema devoted to silent pictures, with guided tours & a film series.
Secret Sidewalk
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Shinn Historical Park and Arboretum
Park with gardens & a historic house. Small green space featuring scenic gardens & a 19th-century house open for occasional group tours.
Zscape Games
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge
Habitat for native & migrating animals. Large nature preserve housing various migrating birds, as well as native flora & fauna.
Dream Time Sculpture
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Children in Tree Sculpture
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Central Park
Land & water activities in a scenic spot. Lakeside park with a golf course, 4 playgrounds, boat rentals, a fishing area, picnic sites & paths.
Swings and Wings
Visit this great place for kids and families!
The Busy Bee Activity Center
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Aqua Adventure Water Park
Family-friendly waterslides & pools. Recreational facility featuring waterslides, pools, swimming lessons & an on-site eatery.
MuseumSRV
Local history in a former railway depot. Quaint exhibits dedicated to local history in a restored 1891 railway depot, with a gift shop.
The Meyers House and Garden
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Mission Hills Park
Green space with a 50-ft. slide. Neighborhood park featuring grassy open space, a playground, a BBQ pit & a 50-ft. slide.
Niles Canyon Railway
Vintage train rides & history exhibits. Living history museum providing rides on vintage trains (1910-1960) & exhibits on railroad history.
Doug Siden Visitor Center at Crab Cove
Aquarium & marine life exhibits. Bayfront education center with an 800-gallon aquarium & interactive exhibits about marine life.
Dreamland Art & Play
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Pacific Pinball Museum
Historic & playable pinball machines. Museum displaying rare & vintage pinball machines, which are also playable, amid colorful local art.
Huckleberry Botanic Regional Preserve
Hiking & native plants in a wooded area. This 241-acre wooded preserve features a self-guided, botanic interpretive trail & restrooms.
The Gardens at Lake Merritt
Destination known for its scenic gardens. Tranquil destination with 7 acres of scenic, themed gardens plus occasional gardening workshops.
Washington Township Museum of Local History
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Jack London's Cabin
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Children's Fairyland
Storybook-themed amusement park standby. Vibrant, longtime amusement park pairing a storybook motif with rides & theatrical performances.
The Museum of Art and Digital Entertainment - (The MADE)
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Pardee Home Museum
Museum in a 19th-century Italianate home. Built in 1869, this Italianate mansion houses a museum with period furnishings & decor.
CuriOdyssey
Science & wildlife center for kids. Museum for kids focusing on environmental science & wildlife with indoor exhibits & an outdoor zoo.
Coyote Point Recreation Area
Large playground, trails & picnic areas. Bayside park offering a sizable playground with 6 slides, as well as trails & picnic areas.
Sugarloaf Open Space
Natural area with picnic spots & trails. More than 3,000 acres of woodlands, grasslands & chaparral with picnic areas & multi-use trails.
Magic Mountain Playground
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Lucy Evans Baylands Nature Interpretive Center
Visit this great place for kids and families!
California Kids Fun Puppet and Magic Shows
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Baylands Nature Preserve
Marshland with trails & bird-watching. Vast marshland with 15 mi. of trails for walking, running & biking, plus bird-watching & kayaking.
The Lace Museum
Modest showcase of lace & lace history. Stalwart museum exhibiting lace, and describing its historical use & the art of lacemaking.
San Mateo Japanese Garden
Asian-inspired gardens with a koi pond. Spring blossoming Japanese gardens with a koi pond, pagoda & teahouse in a 16.3-acre city park.
Imagination City
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Rockridge-Temescal Greenbelt
Playground & creek amid redwood groves. Urban greenbelt offers a playground, climbing wall & creek amid butterfly gardens & redwood groves.
San Mateo Central Park
Japanese gardens & an ice-skating rink. Vibrant, 16-acre park featuring Japanese gardens, a mini train ride, playground & ice-skating rink.
Bay Play
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Pinstripes
Bowling, bocce & Italian-American fare. Italian-American fare, bowling & bocce in a sprawling space with indoor & outdoor seating & a bar.
Diablo Escapes
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Old Borges Ranch
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Castle Rock Regional Recreation Area
Woodlands, fields, a pool & picnic site. Scenic land along Pine Creek with a pool, volleyball courts, a softball field & a large picnic area.
Palo Alto Junior Museum and Zoo
Hands-on science & nature exhibits. Child-oriented venue with animals like birds & turtles, plus interactive educational exhibits.
Mission Peak Regional Preserve
3,000 mountain acres for recreation. Vast mountain preserve popular for biking, hiking, horseback riding, R/C flying and hang-gliding.
The Museum of American Heritage
Exhibitions on inventions & technology. Charming museum in a 1907 home showcasing technology & inventions from the 1750s to the 1950s.
Elizabeth F. Gamble Garden
Public garden & historic home. A 2.5-acre plot encompassing herb & rose gardens, a historic home, a carriage house & a tearoom.
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