It’s kind of hard for me to believe that I’ve never been to San Francisco. It just seems like such an obvious place for me to visit – food, books, views, hills, water – everything that I love is there in spades. Oh, and they just happen to have some of the best museums for kids ever! Read on please.
A definite must-see for us would be the California Academy of Sciences – I’m guessing we could spend the better part of a day there. There are natural history exhibits, a planetarium, an aquarium with penguins among the residents, and a four-story living rainforest that’s encased in a gorgeous glass dome.
The academy is right in the middle of Golden Gate Park so we might finish up our afternoon with some outdoor play at the Koret Children’s Quarter Playground and a ride on the nearby Golden Gate Park Carousel.
No city visit is complete for our family without stopping by an indoor market, and San Francisco has one of the great ones at Ferry Building. I’d love to explore, sample, and pick up a picnic lunch to take on a ferry ride to Sausalito where we might take a walking tour of the waterfront or visit the Marine Mammal Center to learn about their work with seals.
Opened in 1969, the Exploratorium was one of the first interactive hands-on museums for children, encouraging them to explore and learn about science and art. I’m not sure where we’d spend the most time – in the World of Matter? The Microscope Imaging Station? Or maybe we’d get stuck in the Tactile Dome, traveling in total darkness with only our sense of touch to guide us.
And of course, no trip to San Francisco would be complete without riding a cable car at least once….
I know I’ve only scratched the surface of the many fun things we could do on a family trip to San Francisco. If you live in the area or are planning a trip there yourself, don’t miss the chance to win 3-day Go Cards from Smart Destinations for your family. Should you win and choose San Francisco as your family destination many of the attractions I mention are included, as are a number of others. You’ve got one more week to enter the raffle at Passports With Purpose and help build a village in India. (Hint: raffle chances make a great gift for that hard-to-buy-for person!)
What’s your Monday Dream this week? Please feel free to share your link below, making sure you link back to this post. For more information see About Monday Dreaming.
All photos from Flickr. Bridge courtesy of www.alainpicard.us. Carousel courtesy of microwavedboy. Ferry Building courtesy of Jamison Wieser. Cable car courtesy of Ronnie Macdonald.
Mara, I’m in shock that you’ve never been to SF! As you already seem to know, you’d LOVE it! Right up your alley!
The girls and I were just talking with a friend about the Exploratorium this week. thogh I was in SF a few months ago, the girls haven’t been for a long time! I hope to get them out there for a visit this coming year, especially since my sister is living in Palo Alto right now… And I’ll remember to come back to this post to make sure I don’t miss anything!
SF is one of my favorite cities in the world…so far, anyway! It has such personality! It doesn’t hurt that I spent two months living in the heart of the city as a college student!
Check, check, check all those things off your list for sure. San Fran has so many cool places for kids, all really innovative too. They’re always trying new things.
And…why the heck haven’t I gotten a Monday Dream up in a bazillion months? Soon.
Thanks so much for this post (5 years ago! Ha!). My family and I are going to be in San Fran in 3 months and I am checking out what other families have done while there. My sister lives out there so she already gave us some great ideas but the trip to Sausalito is one we hadn’t considered. I’m just starting my travel blog and although right now we are starting with our local area and other planned travel in the US we are planning a world tour so I’m just gearing up. Any insights or suggestions you can give me on travel blogging is welcomed!! Take care and thanks for the helpful post! Brooke