Free & Cheap Things to Do with Kids
Explore the best free & cheap things to do with kids options for kids and families in Oakland
Children's Fairyland
Storybook-themed amusement park standby. Vibrant, longtime amusement park pairing a storybook motif with rides & theatrical performances.
Pacific Pinball Museum
Historic & playable pinball machines. Museum displaying rare & vintage pinball machines, which are also playable, amid colorful local art.
Habitot Children's Museum
Hands-on learning lab for kids. Museum engaging kids ages 1-5 with interactive exhibits like a wind tunnel & face-painting table.
Doug Siden Visitor Center at Crab Cove
Aquarium & marine life exhibits. Bayfront education center with an 800-gallon aquarium & interactive exhibits about marine life.
Rockridge-Temescal Greenbelt
Playground & creek amid redwood groves. Urban greenbelt offers a playground, climbing wall & creek amid butterfly gardens & redwood groves.
Doyle Hollis Park
Park with a playground & an amphitheater. Park featuring a playground & basketball, plus a fountain, picnic areas & an amphitheater.
Temescal Regional Recreation Area
Oasis for picnicking, swimming & more. Urban, lakeside retreat offering swim & picnic areas, a fishing dock, trails & playgrounds.
Pyramid to Moses
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Berkeley Natural History Museums
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Shorebird Park
Picturesque setting with a nature center. Scenic marina park offers picnic sites, play areas & a nature center with fish & wildlife displays.
Adventure Playground
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Joaquin Miller Park
500-acre park & trails through the trees. Dog-friendly woodland park on 500 acres boasting rustic trails, meadows & picnic sites.
Virginia-McGee Totland
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Huckleberry Botanic Regional Preserve
Hiking & native plants in a wooded area. This 241-acre wooded preserve features a self-guided, botanic interpretive trail & restrooms.
Chabot Space & Science Center
All about outer space plus a planetarium. Big complex featuring interactive exhibits on outer space, a planetarium, a gift shop & more.
University of California Botanical Garden
Sprawling collection of diverse plants. Established in 1890, this 34-acre garden features a collection of plants from around the world.
Roberts Regional Recreation Area
Sports & picnicking amid redwoods. An 82-acre park in a stand of second-growth redwoods, popular for picnics & recreational sports.
Codornices Park
Rose garden, views, picnicking & hiking. Comprising the Berkeley Rose Garden plus areas for ball playing & hiking, picnicking & kids' play.
Oakland Aviation Museum
Display aircraft & historical exhibits. Museum housing an extensive aircraft collection & various aviation exhibits in a historic hangar.
Exploratorium
Hands-on science museum. Hundreds of interactive, educational exhibits & activities illustrating scientific principles.
Mission Bay Kids Park
Purpose-built activity center for kids. Interactive play zones, climbing structures & sandboxes in a modern kids' park with picnic benches.
Inspiration Point
Scenic overlook at a nature park. Observation area with sweeping views & interpretive plaques, plus a parking lot & trail access.
Tilden Nature Area
Site for scenic hikes & wildlife views. Nature preserve featuring easy & challenging hiking trails with scenic views & wildlife sightings.
Tilden Nature Area Environmental Education Center
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Leroy King Carousel
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Children's Creativity Museum
Interactive arts & technology museum. A place for kids to explore arts & technology by making music videos, animating short films & more.
Blake Garden UC Berkeley
Artful UC Berekely park for scenic views. UC Berkeley's College of Environmental Design's green space with scenic views & diverse plant life.
Heart of San Francisco Series
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Chinatown San Francisco
Famous neighborhood for Chinese culture. Iconic area with the largest assembly of Chinese eateries, shops & cultural events outside of Asia.
Aquarium of the Bay
Waterfront museum with aquatic animals. Aquarium with creatures from local waters, including otters, sharks & jellyfish, plus a touch tank.
Magowan's Infinite Mirror Maze
Colorful maze of mirrors & archways. Arched doorways & columns form the basis for this colorful mirrored maze for adults & children.
Musical Stairs
Visit this great place for kids and families!
San Francisco Carousel at Pier 39
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Sea Lions
Marina docks with sea lions galore. Docks off Pier 39 that are a favorite hangout of hundreds of sunbathing, barking sea lions.
Sea Lion Viewing Area
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Oakland Zoo
850+ native & exotic animals on display. Long-standing zoo features 850+ native & exotic animals, a wildlife theater & educational programs.
Tenderloin Playground
Indoor/outdoor recreational hub for kids. City-run recreational center & children's playground offering special events & classes.
Helen Diller Civic Center Playground
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Knowland Park
Undeveloped area with diverse wildlife. This open, largely undeveloped park is the habitat for many native plants & animals.
Marina Bay Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Marina Park
Shoreline park with mile-long trail. 30-acre park along the shore with picnic tables, a mile-long workout trail & large group shelters.
Helen Diller Playground
Play area with a climbing wall & slides. Climbing structures, sand boxes & swings in an adventure playground with a long, twisting slide.
Chabot Park
Disc golf, fishing & forested hikes. Leafy nature area with a big lake, hiking trails & a disc golf course, popular for fishing & biking.
Randall Museum
Children's museum on 16-acre park. Museum with wild-animal exhibits & hands-on experiences for exploring science & the arts.
Angel Island Immigration Station
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Angel Island State Park
Island park with campsites & city views. Large island with campsites featuring hiking & biking trails plus panoramic views of San Francisco.
Miller/Knox Regional Shoreline
Waterfront park with beach & rail museum. Waterfront space with a picnic area, beach, fishing pier, panoramic views & a model railroad museum.
Kennedy Grove Regional Recreation Area
Low-key park featuring eucalyptus trees. Quiet spot for picnics & other gatherings, with a rustic cottage, hiking trails & fragrant trees.
Washington Manor Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Koret Children's Playground
Large vibrant playground with a carousel. Lively playground featuring a variety of equipment, an old-fashioned carousel & ample grassy lawns.
Pogo Park #1 - Elm Playlot
Visit this great place for kids and families!
The Wave Garden
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Osher Rainforest at the California Academy of Sciences
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Lake Chabot Regional Park
Scenic park for hikes, boating & fishing. Parkland featuring a 315-acre reservoir for canoeing & fishing, plus trails, picnic areas & a cafe.
San Francisco Botanical Garden
Green refuge with rare plant collections. 55 acres of serene gardens showcasing diverse plants from around the world & a magnolia collection.
Fort Point National Historic Site
Civil War fortress. Fort from the Civil War era located under the Golden Gate Bridge offering cannon drills & tours.
Huntington Falls
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Tiburon Open Space Committee
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Bay Area Discovery Museum
Interactive kids' museum. Indoor/outdoor museum inspiring kid creativity via interactive exhibits, a play space & art classes.
Sausalito Boardwalk
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Paradise Beach Park
Scenic spot for picnics, beach & fishing. Waterside park in a residential neighborhood, offering views, picnic lawns, a fishing pier & beach.
Golden Gate Park
Gardens, trails, museums & festivals. The city's 1,017-acre oasis draws hikers, bikers, art lovers & music fans, plus gardens & museums.
Briones Regional Park
Rolling hills, wildlife sightings & more. Pastoral, 6,255-acre park with rolling hills, wildlife viewing, campgrounds & other features.
Meek Park
Mansion grounds with gardens & play area. Landscaped grounds of a historic mansion with play structures, picnic space with grills & open lawn.
Dunphy Park
Oceanside park with a gazebo & courts. Waterfront space featuring sand volleyball & bocce courts, plus a gazebo & benches.
Kennedy Park
Green space with many amenities for kids. Big, popular park with a playground, petting zoo & train, plus greenery, trails & picnic areas.
Murphy Windmill
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Civic Park
Green space with native gardens & gazebo. 10-acre park with gardens, picturesque views & a community center & gazebo used for weddings.
Lindsay Wildlife Experience
Education center with 50+ animal species. Environmental education center housing 50+ species of live, nonreleasable California wildlife.
Blackie's Pasture
Bayside park with trails & fields. Scenic waterfront park featuring grassy fields, a playground & paths for walking & biking.
Japanese Gardens
Tranquil botanical garden with teahouse. This 3+-acre botanical garden features traditional Japanese arrangements, a teahouse & a koi pond.
Marin Headlands
Rugged coastline & wildlife haven. Stretch of coastal basalt headland & habitat for bobcats, coyote, deer & abundant birdlife.
Sugarloaf Open Space
Natural area with picnic spots & trails. More than 3,000 acres of woodlands, grasslands & chaparral with picnic areas & multi-use trails.
San Francisco Zoo
100 acres of animals & more. Families come for the more than 2,000 animals, kids' zoo, steam train, carousel & special exhibits.
Point Pinole Regional Shoreline
Scenic park offering multi-use trails. Sprawling park with scenic, multi-use trails through meadows, eucalyptus woods, bluffs & beaches.
Round1 Bowling & Arcade Southland Mall
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Refugio Valley Park
Play equipment, a pond & picnic areas. Park featuring a walking path around a duck pond, picnic tables, restrooms & 2 play structures.
Jumpity Bumpity Daly City
Visit this great place for kids and families!
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