Outdoor activities for kids near San Rafael

Old-growth coast redwoods on a flat boardwalk loop. Quiet, shaded, and short enough that small legs can do it.

• 6.0 mi
• 3 and up
• Outdoors

Before you go Parking or shuttle must be reserved in advance — people are turned away at the gate every weekend. The main boardwalk is stroller-friendly; the side trails are not. Cool and damp even in August.

Wide-open headlands, a dark-pebble beach, old military bunkers to explore, and the postcard view back at the bridge.

• 9.8 mi
• 3 and up
• Outdoors

Before you go Fog and hard wind are the norm, not the exception. The road in is narrow and winding — worth knowing if anyone gets carsick. No shade and limited facilities, so bring water.

One of the oldest public playgrounds in the country, with a century-old carousel and a bank of long concrete slides.

• 15 mi
• 1–10
• Outdoors

Before you go Bring a flattened cardboard box — the concrete slides barely work without one, and every regular family has one in the trunk. Weekend parking is tight; transit is genuinely easier.

The Little Farm, a vintage merry-go-round and a small steam railway, all in one stretch of the Berkeley hills. A rite of passage for East Bay kids.

• 16 mi
• Under 10
• Outdoors

Before you go At the Little Farm you can feed the animals, but only lettuce and celery — bring it from home, there’s nothing to buy on site. The train and carousel keep their own limited schedules, so check before counting on them.

A dedicated children’s zoo and a little steam train, which is often the part they actually remember.

• 17 mi
• Under 10
• Outdoors

Before you go It sits directly on the Pacific and runs far colder and foggier than downtown, in summer especially. Bring a real jacket — this is the single most common mistake here.

A storybook park built entirely at toddler scale — nothing loud, nothing scary, no long lines.

• 19 mi
• 1–8
• Outdoors

Before you go Adults are only admitted with a child — don’t plan to send one grown-up in to scout. It’s a half-day park; don’t block out the whole day.

A gondola lifts you over the whole zoo and out across the bay — worth the trip on its own.

• 26 mi
• All ages
• Outdoors

Before you go Built on a hillside, so a stroller is real work. The East Bay bakes in summer while SF is foggy — hats, sunscreen and more water than you think.