Unique & Hidden Gem Activities for Families
Explore the best unique & hidden gem activities for families options for kids and families in Scotts Valley
Haven Play Lounge and Events
Visit this great place for kids and families!
The Mystery Spot
Iconic gravity hill offering tours. Opened in 1941, this roadside landmark is a tilt-induced visual illusion with tours & a gift shop.
Roaring Camp
Train rides & all-ages special events. Family-friendly park offers train rides amid natural landscapes, seasonal routes & special events.
Pogonip Open Space
Scenic sloped park with hiking & biking. Scenic open space offering a hiking & biking trail network amid redwood & oak forests & slopes.
Highlands County Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Loch Lomond Recreation Area
Reservoir park for fishing & boating. Scenic 175-acre reservoir park for fishing, boating & hiking (seasonal & can be closed by drought).
Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History
Hands-on exhibitions & special programs. Expansive venue with hands-on art & history exhibitions, plus special programs good for all ages.
Chanticleer Ave County Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
UC Santa Cruz Arboretum & Botanic Garden
Rare plants & a butterfly garden. Vast collection of rare plants with a succulent garden, a butterfly area & a eucalyptus grove.
Westlake Park
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Ocean View Park
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The Santa Cruz Children’s Museum of Discovery
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History
Wildlife, plant & archaeology exhibits. Galleries & interactive programs exploring flora, fauna, geology & peoples native to the Bay Area.
Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary Exploration Center
Theater & interactive exhibit gallery. Educational multimedia exhibits include theater, touch pools & a remotely operated underwater robot.
Neary Lagoon Pier
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Neary Lagoon Park
Wildlife habitat with floating walkways. Wildlife refuge with trails & floating walkways, bird-watching areas, tennis courts & a playground.
Walton Lighthouse
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Steamer Lane
Iconic surf spot with a surfing museum. Famous cliffside surfing spot since the 1930s, featuring a surfing museum inside a lighthouse.
Santa Cruz Surfing Museum
Exhibits exploring wave-riding culture. Rotating exhibits on surfing culture & local history housed in a historic, preserved lighthouse.
Lighthouse Point
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Seymour Marine Discovery Center
Aquarium & interactive science museum. Interactive marine science museum & aquarium, with hands-on exhibits, a touch pool & a gift shop.
Blue Whale Skeleton
Visit this great place for kids and families!
New Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum
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Lost Worlds Funtropolous
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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.
McClellan Ranch Preserve
Former horse ranch with a nature museum. Former horse ranch from the 1930s featuring a nature museum, community garden & historic buildings.
De Anza College Planetarium
Venue for astronomy & laser shows. This large planetarium offers educational astronomy shows & entertaining laser displays.
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
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Hellyer County Park
Urban park with a multi-use, paved trail. Green space featuring a 15-mile paved trail, plus picnicking, disc golf, a dog park & a velodrome.
Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum
Exhibits featuring mummies & artifacts. Museum with displays on Egyptian burial practices, plus artifacts including jewelry & bronze tools.
Rosicrucian Park
Unique architecture, gardens & fountains. Park drawing visitors with rose gardens, statues & fountains, plus Egyptian & Moorish architecture.
Bill's Backyard
Visit this great place for kids and families!
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.
Discovery Meadow
Children's museum & sizable green space. Children's museum situated atop a sprawling green lawn used for summer festivals.
Monopoly in the Park
Green space with a giant monopoly board. Tiny park featuring a larger-than-life monopoly board, plus animal statues & benches.
Japanese Friendship Garden
Spacious & tranquil traditional garden. Covering 5.5 acres, this serene Japanese garden features a koi pond & a quaint red arch bridge.
Mission Gardens
Historic mission's landscaped grounds. Tranquil garden park surrounding the historic Mission Santa Clara de Asis at Santa Clara University.
Rotary PlayGarden
Accessible children's playground. Interactive & accessible children's playground with slides, climbing equipment & seating areas.
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.
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.
Emma Prusch Farm Park
Community farm with orchards & gardens. Compact community farm features heirloom vegetable gardens, orchards, chickens & a fair.
Hidden Villa
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Redwood Grove Nature Preserve
Redwood forest with a boardwalk. This 6-acre Redwood forest features a boardwalk, observation decks, picnic tables & a rose garden.
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.
Pioneer Memorial Park
Quaint green space with benches & paths. Small, serene park located next to the library featuring ample benches, walkways & shaded areas.
Seven Seas Park
Family-friendly recreation & a dog park. Neighborhood gathering place offering a dog park & lots of kid activities including a spray pool.
California's Great America
Thrill rides & waterslides. Family-friendly theme park with thrill rides, water attractions, live entertainment & food options.
Ulistac Natural Area
Rustic park with native plantings. Rustic riverside park boasting trails, bird-watching & a range of native plants on 40 acres.
Windy Hill Open Space Preserve
Forested fields for hiking & picnicking. Open grasslands & forest area with 12 miles of trails for hiking, bicycling & horseback-riding.
Barron Park Donkeys
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Alum Rock Park
Large park with mineral springs & trails. Spacious park featuring hiking & biking trails, mineral springs & several picnic areas.
LEGOLAND Discovery Center Bay Area
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Magical Bridge Playground
Play structures around a grassy mound. Slides, swings & climbing frames around an artificial hill, plus a treehouse & bridge.
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
Fine art museum with a sculpture garden. Classic & contemporary art museum with an outdoor sculpture garden featuring Rodin bronzes.
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
Stanford University's cacti garden. Historical cacti garden with artful views & unusual plants on Stanford University grounds.
Handcar Tours
Visit this great place for kids and families!
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
Exhibitions on inventions & technology. Charming museum in a 1907 home showcasing technology & inventions from the 1750s to the 1950s.
Other Things to See
Top Public Schools & School Districts
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Best Kid-Friendly Restaurants & Cafes
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Best Sports & Fitness Activities for Kids
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Best After-School Programs & Activities
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Best Parks for Outdoor Fun
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Top Private Schools for Kids
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Things to Do with Kids at Night
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Language Classes for Children
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Best Camping Spots & Outdoor Adventures
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Kid-Friendly Hiking Trails & Nature Walks
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Best Places for Birthday Parties
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Free & Cheap Things to Do with Kids
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Music Lessons & Performing Arts Programs
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Things to Do with Toddlers
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Best Tutoring Centers & Academic Support
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Best Family-Friendly Attractions
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Best Kids Camps & Summer Programs
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Best Theaters & Live Shows for Kids
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Best Indoor Play Areas for Kids
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Best Museums & Educational Spots for Kids
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Best Water Parks & Splash Pads
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Top Amusement Parks & Fun Centers
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Best Sports Leagues & Youth Athletics
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Best Science Centers & Discovery Zones
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Best Zoos, Aquariums & Animal Encounters
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