Our family really enjoys stopping at the Botanical Gardens when we are in the San Francisco Golden Gate Park. The place is SO green, it is lovely. They are squirels everywhere, for the pure joy of the children. It is a oasis of peace in the middle of the city.

The San Diego Wild Animal Park is a great place for families with children and a great place for animals. We took a train to access the remote area where animals roam almost free. They are big areas to live and cohabitate. It is nice to see the animals not being confined the way they are in a zoo.

I went to Color Me Mine in Alameda several times and each time was a very nice experience. The staff is extremely patient and helpful. They have a lot of theme days/evenings (pyjama party and babysitting are ones of them). We eventually decided to have my daughter birthday party there and it was a huge success. The children had tons of fun and the employee who helped us went out of his way to make the party a great one. The owner Joey is wonderful and that shows on his staff!

Located just 40 minutes north of San Francisco in Santa Rosa, California, is a unique opportunity to experience an African Safari. Before we went to Safari West, we were reluctant to pay the tour prices for what we though would be just another animal experience. But boy were we wrong! After experiencing Safari West first hand, I now think the experience is worth every penny! It’s not just about looking at animals. The experience transported us to a different world and it was amazing to get face to face with some of our favorite animals like giraffes and rhinos.

We also really enjoyed the authentic African Safari jeep ride where passengers can sit on top of the jeep if they choose to. The ride was rather bumpy and could be uncomfortable for a young child. Our girls who are 8 and 11 had a blast.

The most impressive thing about Safari West is how happy the animals look. Instead of being caged up in a small enclosure at a zoo, here at Safari West, they roam freely over the 400 acres of land that make up the wildlife reserve. The animals are so happy that when we visited in spring, the Zebras just had babies (and were in hiding), and the birds were laying lots of eggs. We also loved our guide. She did such an excellent job educating us throughout our journey about the wildlife we encountered.

If you aren’t ready to jump on the plane with your kids to fly to Africa, Safari West will offer you an authentic safari experience at the fraction of the cost of an air plane ticket.

Tips
- Dress warmly even if the sun is out. It can be very breezy.
- Bring cash to bring to tip the guide. Everybody in our jeep tipped, she was so great!
- No pets allowed

We visited the Marshall Gold Discovery Park several years ago and we had a blast! Everything is right there, from the location of where the gold was found, to the mills, to the little stores. We loved it. We looked for gold. You can go to the river for free or pay $5 and get to be shown how to do it and you are sure to find a couple of little nuggets. We looked like little kids having fun!