By Codelia Mantsebo
Renowned for being the epicentre of the tech world, merging creativity, innovation and artistry, San Francisco effortlessly offers kid-friendly activities that are swanky and cooler than most cities.
While there’s plenty for the adults to indulge in, from cutting-edge cuisine to admiring the work on the art district, San Francisco is filled with cool activities that will keep all the youngsters happy.
We’ve narrowed down the best things to do with kids in San Francisco whether its chocolate-making tours or visiting fun learning laboratories.
Exploratorium
Pay homage to San Francisco’s reputation as tech hub it is and visit Exploratorium. The interactive museum will keep the kids entertained for hours; with six galleries and around 600 interactive indoor and outdoor exhibits—spanning topics from astronomy to cooking.
Visitors can delve into the mysteries of human memory, emotion, judgment, and perception or explore their sense of touch in an engaging exhibit way through a series of textures. Exploratorium is a must-visit, created to answer your questions on the mysteries of science.
7D Experience
The 7D Experience is an uber-cool arcade featuring 3-D games in theaters with roller coaster-style motion. The digital theater’s 3D effects, riders experience the illusion of roller coaster motion as they take aim at its screens, vanquishing armies of digital zombies, cowboys, or aliens. There are different games, so everyone in the family can join along, or the family can play in teams.
TCHO Chocolate Factory
TCHO is currently close as they have moved to a new location in Berkey. The one hour long tour guides your kids through a cool chocolate warehouse, where they can handle real cacao pods, and witness the massive choco-churning machines at work. The tour includes a short movie and a tasting of a few chocolate varieties.
The Coastal Trail
For those who enjoy hiking, take the kids is to hike the Coastal Trail. The trail starts in the SF Presidio and takes you all the way to Ocean Beach. It’s one of the best places to get amazing shots of the Golden Gate Bridge and the beautiful waterfront below.
The Walt Disney Family Museum
Dedicated to the life and work of Walt Disney, creator of some of America’s most beloved animation including Mickey Mouse, this museum offers a comprehensive history of this American legend. The museum features contemporary interactive galleries while high-tech exhibits are narrated in Walt’s own voice, with early drawings, cartoons, movies, music, listening stations, more than 200 video screens and model of Disneyland.
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California Academy of Sciences
San Francisco has some of the world’s best museums and The Academy of Sciences is a must visit, featuring the country’s largest natural history museum, an aquarium, and a planetarium.
A four-story rainforest under a 27-meter-tall dome and a breathtaking coral reef ecosystem are all highlights of this incredible exhibit. Visitors can also step into the Shake House to feel what San Francisco’s two biggest earthquakes felt like – the 6.9 magnitude Loma Prieta quake and the 7.9 magnitude Great San Francisco quake of 1906.
