Top 20 Places to Take Kids in and around Los Angeles - 2020
Best Places for Kids in the Los Angeles region!
The best places to take kids in the Los Angeles, based on KidsOutAndAbout's annual reader survey. But there is LOTS more to do in the Los Angeles! Get great ideas here! What is listed below are far from the only opportunities for family fun and learning; they're just what was voted this year.
Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens
Nurturing wildlife and enriching the human experience.
Universal Studios Hollywood
With thrilling theme park rides and shows, a real working movie studio and Los Angeles’ best shops, restaurants and cinemas at CityWalk, Universal Studios Hollywood is a unique experience that’s fun for the whole family.
YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles
The YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles is committed to strengthening communities through youth development, healthy living and social responsibility. This commitment ensures that every individual has access to essentials needed to learn, grow & thrive.
California Science Center
The California Science Center provides an innovative model for science learning by combining exhibits with an on-site Science Center School and Amgen Center for Science Learning as well as a teacher professional development program.
Wildlife Waystation (Unfortunately, recently CLOSED)
The Wildlife Waystation was a 160-acre private animal sanctuary located in the Angeles National Forest just north of Los Angeles, California.
Martial Arts History Museum
Los Angeles Museums are the best and making its way up the ladder is the Martial Arts History Museum in Burbank. Designed as an educational, cultural and artistic experience, it is a place in which visitors and young people can learn about each of the different Asian countries (China, Japan, Korea, Thailand, the Philippines, etc.) and how martial arts played a significant role in their culture, history and traditions.
Griffith Park
With over 4,210 acres of both natural chapparal-covered terrain and landscaped parkland and picnic areas, Griffith Park is one of the largest municipal parks with urban wilderness areas in the United States. Situated in the eastern Santa Monica Mountain range, the Park’s elevations range from 384 to 1,625 feet above see level. With an arid climate, the Park’s plant communities vary from coastal sage scrub, oak and walnut woodlands to riparian vegetation with trees in the Park’s deep canyons. The California native plants represented in Griffith Park include the California species of oak, walnut, lilac, mountain mahagony, sages, toyon, and sumac. Present, in small quantities, are the threatened species of manzanita and berberis.
Rose Bowl Aquatics Center
The Rose Bowl Aquatics Center, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, opened in 1990 and is located in Pasadena’s beautiful Brookside Park, just south of the famous Rose Bowl Stadium. This world-class aquatics facility offers year round aquatic and fitness programming to children, youth, families and seniors so that all generations can achieve the benefits of healthy living habits, regular exercise, and sports training. Today we serve more than 450,000 patrons annually.
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor
Dive into the wet, wild world of Six Flags Hurricane Harbor. At this 22-acre waterpark next door to Six Flags Magic Mountain, you'll splish-splash into a world of fun. Enjoy two of the tallest fully-enclosed speed slides in Southern California, a 1,300-foot river, a wave pool, an interactive lagoon and a kids' play area.
Los Angeles Dodgers Game
The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball as a member club of the National League West division.
My Local Library
Of course, the libraries in the Los Angeles area are not really ONE place, but MANY places... but it's important to emphasize how valuable libraries are for family learning and fun. The libraries in our area are wonderful about posting their events to the KidsOutAndAbout calendar so you always can get ideas for free things to do with your kids that celebrate education and imagination. KidsOutAndAbout.com takes this opportunity to salute the wonderful children's librarians who serve our community with such dedication.
La Brea Tar Pits
Rancho La Brea is one of the world’s most famous fossil localities, recognized for having the largest and most diverse assemblage of extinct Ice Age plants and animals in the world.
Olvera Street
Olvera Street is a Mexican marketplace where you can enjoy tradition and culture. It is a historical monument in Los Angeles.
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Centrally located between the beach and downtown Los Angeles, LACMA features artwork covering the expanse of art history—from ancient times to the present—and the globe.
Descanso Gardens
Descanso Gardens is an urban retreat of year-round natural beauty, internationally renowned botanical collections and spectacular seasonal horticultural displays. Visit for a stroll, a concert or a class — there are so many ways to explore.
Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden
The Arboretum is an 127-acre botanical garden and historical site located in what was the heart of Rancho Santa Anita in Arcadia. Our mission is to cultivate our natural, horticultural and historic resources for learning, enjoyment and inspiration. We strive to reflect Southern California’s distinct climate, community and openness to new ideas. In addition to concerts and tours, we offer activities and events that cater to every audience.
Grand Park
A city’s urban heart is an expression of its people, its diversity, its interests, and its passions. The new Grand Park, with its majestic views extending from the Music Center to City Hall, provides Angelenos of all walks of life a place where they can come together to celebrate, reflect, and shape the future, in one central gathering place.
Angels Flight® Railway
Since 1901, L.A.'s Angels Flight has ferried passengers to the heights of Bunker Hill.