Arts and Crafts

• Check local rec centers for offerings
• All Fired Up (Burlingame)
• Color Me Mine (Daly City, Menlo Park)
• Home Depot Kids Workshops (Multiple Locations)
• Marvegos (San Mateo) 
• My First Art Class (Multiple Locations)
• Start the Art (Pacifica)

Gymnastics

• Check local rec centers or offerings
• Accel Gymnastics (Burlingame) 
• Peninsula Gymnastics (San Mateo) 
• San Mateo Gymnastics (Belmont) 

Language Classes & Schools

• Check local rec centers for offerings
• A+ Immersion (San Mateo - Mandarin) 
• Genius Learning (Burlingame - Mandarin)
• Pacific Rim International (San Mateo - Mandarin, Japanese) 
• Step by Step, Paso a Paso (San Mateo - Spanish) 
• Universe of Colors (San Mateo - Spanish, French, Italian) 
• Welcome Amigos (San Mateo - Spanish) 

Music & Dance

• Check local rec centers for offerings
• Peninsula Music Together (Multiple Locations) 
• Myriad Music School & Dance Academy (San Mateo) 
• Small Fry Dance Club (San Mateo) 
• Tutu School (Redwood City) 

Soccer

• Check local rec centers for offerings
• AYSO (Multiple Locations)
• Burlingamer (Burlingame) 
• Force North (San Mateo) 
• Kidz Love Soccer (San Mateo) 
• Soccer Shots (Palo Alto) 

Swim Lessons

• Check local rec centers for offerings
• Aitken’s Peninsula Swim School (Redwood City) 
• Aqua Sports Swim Academy (San Mateo) 
• British Swim School (Multiple Locations)
• Burlingame Aquatics (Burlingame) 
• Highlands Rec Center (San Mateo) 
• Kings Swim Academy (Multiple Locations) 
• La Petite Baleen (Multiple Locations) 
• Peninsula Jewish Community Center (Foster City) 
• Peninsula YMCA (San Mateo) 
• Shipman Swim School (San Mateo) 
• San Mateo Athletic Club @ CSM (San Mateo) 

Other Classes & Programs

• Busy Bakers Kid’s Baking Classes (San Bruno) 
• Broadway Tennis Center (Burlingame) 
• Community Gatepath Little Explorers (Burlingame, Redwood City)
• Free Forest School (Multiple Locations)
• Gold Medal Tae Kwon Do  (Belmont)
• KidPower Workshops (Multiple Locations) 
• Kuk Sool Won, San Mateo
• SF Zoo Little Learners (San Francisco)  
• Tinkergarten (Multiple Locations) 
• Tiny Treks (Multiple Locations) 
• Happy Baby Signs Sign Language (Multiple Locations) 

• Check local rec centers for offerings
• Blossom Birth (Menlo Park) 
• Fit4Moms (Multiple Locations) 
• Nandi Yoga (San Mateo) 

Bounce Houses

• Pump It Up (Belmont)  
• Rockin’ Jump (San Carlos)  

Children’s Theaters

• Bay Area Children's Theater (Oakland) 
• Palo Alto Children's Theater (Palo Alto)
• Peninsula Youth Theater (Mountain View) 
• San Carlos Children's Theater (San Carlos) 

Library Story Times

• San Mateo Libraries  
• Burlingame Public Library 

Movies (Kid-Friendly Screenings)

• Cinemark 20 (Redwood City) periodically hosts “Family Friendly Showings” (daytime, no trailers or ads, volume lowered, lights dimmed).  These showings are communicated via an email distribution list; email 485@cinemark.com or call (650) 701-1341 to be added to the list.  The theater also hosts a Summer Movie Clubhouse on Wednesday mornings from June 16 - August 4
• Curiodyssey Cinema Nights (San Mateo)

Play Spaces & Gyms

• Gymboree Play & Music (San Mateo)
• Hop N Play (San Bruno)  
• La Petite Playhouse (Redwood City) 
• MyGym (San Carlos)
• Center for Youth and Children's Services (Foster City)
• PJCC Family Gym (Foster City)  
• Safari Run (San Mateo)  
• The Little Gym (Millbrae) 

Beaches & Tide Pools

We are lucky to live close to so many wonderful beaches! We have highlighted a few which are popular with parents and kids.

• Parkside Aquatic - located on the lagoon right in San Mateo. It has a playground with both big and little kids play structures, picnic tables, a sandy beach with a swim area.
• Beaches at Foster City lagoons (all have sand beaches, playgrounds and bathrooms)
• • Gull Park 
  • Catamaran Park 
  • Marlin Park
• Fitzgerald Marine Reserve (Half Moon Bay) - a wonderful beach with a large tidepool area. 
• Rockaway Beach and Mori Point (Pacifica) - a small dog-friendly beach with a variety of short, child-friendly hiking trails nearby.
• Dunes Beach, Venice Beach, Roosevelt Beach (Half Moon Bay) - large sandy beaches, connected by the Coastal Trail. All are state beaches, and parking is currently $10. 

Fairs & Festivals

• Cherry Blossom Festival (San Francisco, April)
• Hometown Days (San Carlos, May) 
• Central Park Music Series (San Mateo, Summer)
• San Mateo County Fair (San Mateo, June) 
• SummerFest Street Festival (San Mateo, June) 
• Garlic Festival (Gilroy, July) 
• Pumpkin Festival (Half Moon Bay, October) 
• Halloween Fun Fest (San Mateo, October) 
• Harvest Festival (San Mateo, November) 

Farmers’ Markets

• 25th Ave (San Mateo)  
• College of San Mateo 
• Belmont 
• Foster City
• Burlingame
• San Carlos
• Kiwanis (Redwood City)    

Farms & Ranches

• Ardenwood Farm (Fremont)
• Deer Hollow Farm (Los Altos)  
• Elkus Ranch (Half Moon Bay) 
• Harley Farms (Pescadero) 
• Hidden Villa Farm (Los Altos) 
• Lemos Farm (Half Moon Bay) 

Food Trucks

• Hiller Museum (San Carlos)
• Moveable Feast (Multiple Locations)  
• Off the Grid (Multiple Locations)

Fruit Picking (Berries, Apples, Pumpkins)

• Gizdich Ranch (Watsonville) 
• Lemos Farm (Half Moon Bay) 
• Pastorino Farm (Half Moon Bay) 
• Swanton Farm (Pescadero) 
• Webb Ranch (Portola Valley) 

Hikes & Trails

• Bay Trail (San Mateo) 
• Coyote Point (San Mateo) 
• Devil’s Slide (Pacifica/Half Moon Bay) 
• Edgewood Park (Redwood City) 
• Huddart Park (Woodside) 
• Leo J Ryan Park (Foster City) 
• Rancho San Antonio (Los Altos) 
• Sawyer Camp Trail (San Mateo) 
• Stulsaft Park (Redwood City)  
• Sugarloaf Trail (San Mateo) 
• Thornewood (Woodside) 
• Twin Pines Park (Belmont) 
• Waterdog Lake Park (Belmont) 
• Wunderlich Park (Woodside) 

Museums & Zoos

• *Bay Area Discovery Museum (Fort Baker in Marin) 
• *California Academy of Sciences (Golden Gate Park, SF)
• Children’s Discovery Museum (San Jose)   
• *CuriOdyssey (San Mateo) 
• *Exploratorium (Pier 15, SF) 
• Habitot Children’s Museum 
• Happy Hollow (San Jose)
• *Hiller Museum (San Carlos) 
• Lawrence Hall of Science (UC Berkeley) 
• Oakland Zoo  
• Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo (Palo Alto)
• Randall Museum (Corona Heights, SF)  
• San Francisco Zoo (Outer Sunset, SF) 

* Check out the Discover & Go program: Use your library card to get free tickets! Go online and pick a day to see if passes are available for the attraction you want.     

Theme Parks

• Children’s Fairyland (Oakland) 
• Gilroy Gardens (Gilroy)  
• Great America (Santa Clara)  
• Pixieland (Concord) 

Parks & Playgrounds

• SMPC Member Tracy Park compiled this comprehensive list of Northern Peninsula parks & playgrounds, from San Bruno to Redwood City. Thank you, Tracy!  

Other Notable Parks & Playgrounds:

• Adventure Playground (Berkeley Marina) 
• Dennis the Menace Park (Monterey) 
• Frontierland Park (Pacifica) 
• Golden Gate Park (SF) 
• Julius Kahn Playground (SF, Presidio Heights)
• Magical Bridge (Redwood City, Palo Alto) 
• Palo Alto Duck Pond (Palo Alto) 
• Sharon Park (Menlo Park)  
• Tilden Park (Berkeley) 
• Vasona Lake County Park (Los Gatos) 

Trains

• BART 
• SF Muni
• CalTrain 
• South Bay Historical Railroad Society, Santa Clara Caltrain Station 
• Amtrak
• Central Park (San Mateo) 
• Trains & Planes at Hiller Aviation Museum (San Carlos)
• Randall Museum Model Train (SF)
• Airtrain at SFO
• Billy Jones Wildcat Railroad, Oak Meadow Park (Los Gatos)
• SF Zoo Train
• SF Cable Cars
• Niles Canyon Railroad (Sunol)
• Oakland Zoo Train
• Gilroy Gardens Train
• Railroad Park (Morgan Hill)
• Railroad Museum (Sacramento) 
• Roaring Camp Railroad (Felton) 
• Tilden Park (Berkeley) 
• Train Town (Sonoma) 
• Napa Wine Train (Napa)
• Skunk Train (Fort Bragg)
• Railroad Park Resort (Dunsmuir) 
• Yosemite Mountain Sugar Pine Railroad (Fish Camp)
• Golden State Model Railroad Museum (Point Richmond) 
• Railtown 1897 (Jamestown)
• Western Railway Museum (Suisun City)

Other Excursions & Programs

• Aquarium of the Bay (San Francisco) 
• Costanoa (Pescadero) 
• De Anza Planetarium
• Filoli Gardens (Woodside) 
• Friendly Pony Parties & Barnyard Pals (Half Moon Bay) 
• Monterey Bay Aquarium (Monterey)  
• Peninsula Humane Society (Burlingame) 
• Ryan’s Ride for Kids (Burlingame) 
• Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk (Santa Cruz) 
• Tiny Treks (Multiple Locations) 
• UC Botanical Gardens (Berkeley) 

• SMPC Playgroups (San Mateo)
• Healthy Horizons Support Groups (Burlingame, Menlo Park)
• Mills-Peninsula Support Groups (online)
• Center for Children and Youth (Foster City)
• Happy Baby Signs - Sign Language Playgroups (Multiple Locations) 
• DayOne Baby (SF) 

• Coastal Cleanup (Multiple Locations)
• • Pacifica Beach Coalition (Pacifica)
  • Bayfront Cleanup (San Mateo)
  • Flows to Bay (San Mateo County)
  • Surfrider SF
  • Save the Bay
• Family Connections (Redwood City)
• Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy 
• My New Red Shoes (Redwood City) 
• Peninsula Humane Society (Burlingame) - Age 13+
• SF/Marin Food Bank (San Francisco) 
• There With Care (Menlo Park) - Age 12+
• San Mateo County Parks Department - Plant, remove weeds, clean up park
• Samaritan House (San Mateo) - Provide meals, Age 12+
• Generations United (Redwood City) - Provide meals, be a reading partner
• Life Moves - Provide meals
• California State Parks - Habitat restoration at various state recreation parks throughout the Bay Area, Ages 8+
• City Trees - Plant or prune trees, Age 10+
• California Volunteers - Variety of opportunities, use search filter to select "Great for Kids"
• City of San Mateo Volunteer - General San Mateo City volunteering site, Most opportunities require age 10+