Unique & Hidden Gem Activities for Families

Explore the best unique & hidden gem activities for families options for kids and families in Los Altos Hills

Redwood Grove Nature Preserve

Redwood Grove Nature Preserve

Redwood forest with a boardwalk. This 6-acre Redwood forest features a boardwalk, observation decks, picnic tables & a rose garden.

Barron Park Donkeys

Barron Park Donkeys

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Foothills Nature Preserve

Foothills Nature Preserve

1,400-acre nature preserve with trails. Miles of trails guide visitors through woodlands & fields, past streams & lakes in this vast park.

Hidden Villa

Hidden Villa

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Pioneer Memorial Park

Pioneer Memorial Park

Quaint green space with benches & paths. Small, serene park located next to the library featuring ample benches, walkways & shaded areas.

Magical Bridge Playground

Magical Bridge Playground

Play structures around a grassy mound. Slides, swings & climbing frames around an artificial hill, plus a treehouse & bridge.

Rodin Sculpture Garden

Rodin Sculpture Garden

Famed sculptor's work in outdoor setting. Garden at Stanford's Cantor Arts Center showing 20 statues by famed sculptor Rodin (open all hours).

Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University

Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University

Fine art museum with a sculpture garden. Classic & contemporary art museum with an outdoor sculpture garden featuring Rodin bronzes.

Monte Bello Open Space Preserve

Monte Bello Open Space Preserve

Destination for scenic views & trails. Large area with views of Santa Clara Valley & trails, including one for biking & horseback riding.

Elizabeth F. Gamble Garden

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.

Arizona Garden

Arizona Garden

Stanford University's cacti garden. Historical cacti garden with artful views & unusual plants on Stanford University grounds.

Palo Alto Junior Museum and Zoo

Palo Alto Junior Museum and Zoo

Hands-on science & nature exhibits. Child-oriented venue with animals like birds & turtles, plus interactive educational exhibits.

The Museum of American Heritage

The Museum of American Heritage

Exhibitions on inventions & technology. Charming museum in a 1907 home showcasing technology & inventions from the 1750s to the 1950s.

Windy Hill Open Space Preserve

Windy Hill Open Space Preserve

Forested fields for hiking & picnicking. Open grasslands & forest area with 12 miles of trails for hiking, bicycling & horseback-riding.

Baylands Nature Preserve

Baylands Nature Preserve

Marshland with trails & bird-watching. Vast marshland with 15 mi. of trails for walking, running & biking, plus bird-watching & kayaking.

Lucy Evans Baylands Nature Interpretive Center

Lucy Evans Baylands Nature Interpretive Center

Visit this great place for kids and families!

McClellan Ranch Preserve

McClellan Ranch Preserve

Former horse ranch with a nature museum. Former horse ranch from the 1930s featuring a nature museum, community garden & historic buildings.

Sunnyvale Heritage Park Museum

Sunnyvale Heritage Park Museum

Center promoting local history & culture. Local-history museum with rotating exhibits in a replica home of the area's founding family.

De Anza College Planetarium

De Anza College Planetarium

Venue for astronomy & laser shows. This large planetarium offers educational astronomy shows & entertaining laser displays.

Seven Seas Park

Seven Seas Park

Family-friendly recreation & a dog park. Neighborhood gathering place offering a dog park & lots of kid activities including a spray pool.

Fremont Older Open Space Preserve

Fremont Older Open Space Preserve

Year-round hiking & biking with vistas. Scenic spread on 739 acres with rolling views & trails for hiking, biking & horseback riding.

California's Great America

California's Great America

Thrill rides & waterslides. Family-friendly theme park with thrill rides, water attractions, live entertainment & food options.

Ulistac Natural Area

Ulistac Natural Area

Rustic park with native plantings. Rustic riverside park boasting trails, bird-watching & a range of native plants on 40 acres.

Mission Gardens

Mission Gardens

Historic mission's landscaped grounds. Tranquil garden park surrounding the historic Mission Santa Clara de Asis at Santa Clara University.

Winchester Mystery House

Winchester Mystery House

Quirky mansion with odd design details. Sprawling landmark with a staircase leading nowhere & other odd features designed to confuse ghosts.

The Escape Game San Jose

The Escape Game San Jose

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge

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.

Filoli Historic House & World-Class Garden

Filoli Historic House & World-Class Garden

Historical estate & botanic garden. An early-20th-century country estate & botanic garden, open for docent-led tours.

Pulgas Water Temple

Pulgas Water Temple

Scenic beaux arts monument with a pool. Beaux arts monument with a reflecting pool celebrating the Hetch Hetchy Aqueduct completed in 1934.

Rosicrucian Park

Rosicrucian Park

Unique architecture, gardens & fountains. Park drawing visitors with rose gardens, statues & fountains, plus Egyptian & Moorish architecture.

Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum

Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum

Exhibits featuring mummies & artifacts. Museum with displays on Egyptian burial practices, plus artifacts including jewelry & bronze tools.

Coyote Hills Vista Point

Coyote Hills Vista Point

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Rotary PlayGarden

Rotary PlayGarden

Accessible children's playground. Interactive & accessible children's playground with slides, climbing equipment & seating areas.

Ardenwood Historic Farm

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.

LEGOLAND Discovery Center Bay Area

LEGOLAND Discovery Center Bay Area

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Monopoly in the Park

Monopoly in the Park

Green space with a giant monopoly board. Tiny park featuring a larger-than-life monopoly board, plus animal statues & benches.

Discovery Meadow

Discovery Meadow

Children's museum & sizable green space. Children's museum situated atop a sprawling green lawn used for summer festivals.

Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose

Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose

Shows, workshops & interactive exhibits. Children of all ages explore more than 150 interactive exhibits including a full-size fire truck.

Bill's Backyard

Bill's Backyard

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Imagination City

Imagination City

Visit this great place for kids and families!

The Lace Museum

The Lace Museum

Modest showcase of lace & lace history. Stalwart museum exhibiting lace, and describing its historical use & the art of lacemaking.

Children in Tree Sculpture

Children in Tree Sculpture

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Laurelwood Park

Laurelwood Park

Hiking trails to Sugarloaf Mountain. The city's largest park (225 acres) offers trails leading to Sugarloaf Mountain & scenic picnicking.

Aqua Adventure Water Park

Aqua Adventure Water Park

Family-friendly waterslides & pools. Recreational facility featuring waterslides, pools, swimming lessons & an on-site eatery.

Central Park

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.

Dream Time Sculpture

Dream Time Sculpture

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Shinn Historical Park and Arboretum

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.

Japanese Friendship Garden

Japanese Friendship Garden

Spacious & tranquil traditional garden. Covering 5.5 acres, this serene Japanese garden features a koi pond & a quaint red arch bridge.

Washington Township Museum of Local History

Washington Township Museum of Local History

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Lost Worlds Funtropolous

Lost Worlds Funtropolous

Visit this great place for kids and families!

California Nursery Historical Park

California Nursery Historical Park

Visit this great place for kids and families!

San Mateo Japanese Garden

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.

Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum

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.

San Mateo Central Park

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.

Train of Lights

Train of Lights

Visit this great place for kids and families!

Emma Prusch Farm Park

Emma Prusch Farm Park

Community farm with orchards & gardens. Compact community farm features heirloom vegetable gardens, orchards, chickens & a fair.

Explore More Activities

Discover more events and activities happening in Los Altos Hills.