80+ Things to do in San Francisco with Kids

After eight years of living in the San Francisco Bay Area and getting out and about as much as possible I've found myself with a wealth of knowledge when it comes to exploring the city by the Bay. Over the years I've shared LOTS of different posts about different places to visit in San Francisco, but I've never shared a round up post. So today I'm doing just that. It's a long post, but I hope you'll find it a great resource for exploring San Francisco with kids.

San Francisco really does have a lot of fun things to see, do and experience with kids. Whether it be taking in iconic views, exploring the historic side of the city, getting hands on at an interactive museum, playing in the great outdoors, spending some downtime in a park or playground, eating tasty treats, or getting a little culture, there's something for everyone here. 

Because this is such a long post I've broken everything down into the following categories:

Iconic San Francisco

Amazing Views

Playgrounds

Museums & Galleries

Tasty Treats

Play Outside

Street Art

History

Tours

Where I have a dedicated post with extra information you'll find an underlined link.

Let's take a look...

Dream Big with Pact Pajamas

Disclaimer: I received this product for free from Moms Meet (momsmeet.com) to use and post my honest opinions. Compensation for this post was provided.

When you find a new product that you love, do you feel like you want to share it with everyone to let them know just how great it is? I sure do! It's one of the things that I enjoy about having this blog. I get to share all of my favorite things with you here and on social media.

Today I'm sharing my latest favorite find with you. They're cozy. They're comfy. They're cute. They tick all the boxes that I look for when shopping for my kids. They're the Dream Big kids' pajamas from Pact!

I mean, look at these pics of Lola and Mathilde... don't their pajamas look cute and cozy? Perfect for snuggling up on cool evenings or playing camp in the backyard. 

Royal Gorge Bridge & Park

Recently we headed to Southern Colorado for a weekend and while we were there we spent half a day checking out Royal Gorge Bridge & Park.

Located near Cañon City, just over two hours south of Denver, Royal Gorge Bridge is the highest suspension bridge in America with the top of the towers standing 1053 feet above the Arkansas River below. The deck of the bridge stands 956ft above the river. That's pretty high! The bridge was constructed in 1929 and has been a popular tourist location ever since. While the bridge itself is the main drawcard, there are plenty of other fun activities in the park to keep visitors occupied. There's a great playground with a carousel, gondolas to take visitors across the gorge (with views over the bridge), a zipline, a skycoaster (think hang gliding above the gorge but attached to a cable), and Via Ferrata rock climbing tours. 

After learning about Royal Gorge Bridge earlier this year it has been at the top of my Colorado bucket list. The kids are too young/small for some of the add on activities in the park (no ziplining or rock climbing for us just yet) but we were looking forward to taking in the views from the gondolas as well as directly from the bridge. Unfortunately, our visit coincided with some incredibly windy weather, so many of the popular attractions in the park, including the gondolas, were closed as a safety precaution. Luckily, the bridge itself was still open as was the playground on the other side, and they were worth the visit on their own. 

Let's take a look at our visit to Royal Gorge Bridge & Park...

Neon Alley in Pueblo

Recently we headed to southern Colorado for the first time and spent a weekend exploring a new to us part of this beautiful state. We based ourselves in the city of Pueblo which was a pretty central point for our adventures - plus Kim was getting his second Covid shot there. He had booked his first shot in Pueblo when it was impossible to get one closer to Boulder or Denver and we didn't realize he'd have to go all the way there again for his second shot. It actually worked out pretty well though as the kids and I tagged along and we got to explore someone where new. 

Now, when I mentioned to people that we were going to Pueblo everyone said pretty much the same thing. There's nothing to do there. I had originally expected that we'd just use Pueblo as our base for the weekend and not really spend any time there, but after doing a little research online I discovered a place in Pueblo that I just knew we had to visit. Neon Alley!

If you've been here a while you'll know that I'm a huge fan of street art. I'm also a big fan of vintage neon signs. Neon Alley combines the two together. Imagine an alley way filled with neon signs, murals and posters on every surface. That's Neon Alley! 

Pictures speak louder than words, so instead of me waffling on about Neon Alley, let's take a look..

Manitou Cliff Dwellings

One thing that you may not know about me, is that I am a huge history buff. Learning about human endeavors from a time gone by just fascinates me. I wanted to be an archeologist when I was a kid and I love nothing more than seeking out historical sites when we travel. History and architecture: they're my two big things. It's partly why I'm a total city girl. I love exploring beautiful natural sites, but it's the mark that humans from eras past have left on this world that truly fascinates me. Historical buildings, ruins, sites where important events happened... these are the things that really inspire me when we travel.

Of course, as an Australian much of my life has been spent living in places where there is a wealth of oral history, but not much in the way of physical history. No historical structures, no temples to ancient gods, no long lost ruins... There are the occasional rock paintings and canoe trees, but Australia is a big country and these permanent historical reminders tend to be far and few between. Plus they tend to be located in rather remote places. When it comes to buildings, anything built in the1800s is considered old back home. Living in California and now Colorado it's pretty much the same. While I do find those Victorian or gold rush era buildings interesting, it's earlier history that really gets me. It's one of the reasons I loved living in Europe so much. I didn't have to look far to find medieval buildings, Roman ruins or prehistoric temples. It was a dream come true! 

With international travel off the table for the foreseeable future I had figured that visiting historical sites would be limited to watching documentaries for now. But then I learned about a historical site right here in Colorado that I couldn't wait to visit. 

Have you heard of the Manitou Cliff Dwellings? Located just near Colorado Springs these reconstructed ancient dwellings built into a red sandstone cliff face were home to the Anasazi over 700 years ago. Much like the more famous cliff dwellings in Mesa Verde National Park, these ancient homes serve as a reminder of the long human history in the South West. 

The kids and I visited Manitou Cliff Dwellings over Spring break back in late March and I'm so excited to share our visit with you here on Little Hiccups. 

Beehive Piñata DIY

For Mathilde's recent bee themed birthday party I made a beehive piñata. If you've been here a while you'll know that making piñatas is one of my favorite things. I find the repetitive work very relaxing and I love that it gives me a creative outlet. 

Most piñatas that I make for the girls are made from cardboard. This type of piñata is super easy to make and I can usually get one made in just a few hours - which is great because I'm totally a last minute crafter! For Mathilde's beehive piñata, however, I went with a good old balloon and papier-mâché style. These are also easy to make but are much more time consuming. The crafting itself doesn't take all that long, but the drying time between each layer means that I need to allow at least three days for the whole project.

I've shared a simple papier-mâché piñata DIY here in the past (you can see it here) but it was a decade ago so I figured it was time for an updated DIY with better photos!

 

Here's how to make your own papier-mâché piñata...