We haven’t seen rain in three years, so my bag of tricks for what to do on a rainy day is a little low.  With all the recent rain, I have totally maxed out my ideas!!  Browsing around the web, I found a dearth of inspiration for what to do with kids on a rainy day in San Francisco, so I thought I would share my ideas of the best rainy day activities with kids in San Francisco in hopes that some of you may share yours with me and give me some inspiration of new ideas to try.

Visit the Library

If you have been following me, you know I am a huge library fan (my sister is a librarian, go figure!).  The library is a great place to go on a rainy day.  In addition to the usual story time, San Francisco Library has a ton of other fun events throughout the year.  Check them out here.

Try a New Kids Museum

The Bay Area has a ton of great museums, with all the rain, we have been maxing out our free Discover and Go passes through the library to try new ones.  Our favorites are:

California Academy of Sciences
Exploratorium
Children’s Creativity Museum
Chabot Space and Science Center
Curiodyssey
Hiller Aviation Museum

Visit an Art Museum

A lot of parents don’t want to take their kids to art museums for fear that they are not kid-friendly.  We have actually found most of the ones in the bay area to be super kid friendly with great exhibits just for kids.  It also helps to bring a drawing pad and some pencils and you can have them pick out their favorite artwork and try and draw it.  We have had a ton of success at:

Asian Art Museum
DeYoung Museum
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
Walt Disney Museum

Visit the Ferry Building

The ferry building is a fun and delicious place for both kids and adults to explore.  End your visit with a stop at Boulettes Larder for hot chocolate and beignets.

Indoor PlaySpaces

There seem to be more and more indoor play spaces popping up.  They are a great place for the kids to run around and get some energy out.  Here are a couple we love (or others have told me about):

Peekaboo Factory Kids love this indoor maze of tunnels, slides, and soft structures.  Bring socks.
PlayHaven This is a great indoor playspace for kids under 3.
Peeka Doodle
House of Air Jump all the stir craziness out at this trampoline park.  Reserve ahead of time as they often sell out on weekends/rainy days.
Pump It Up What Kid doesn’t love a bouncy house?!

Go for a Swim

San Francisco has a bunch of great pools that you can get day passes to for $6 for adults, $1 for kids (or free through SFPL Discover and Go ).

Try a New Sport

Hi-Five Sports Zone: Drop in Classes and Activities
Planet Granite: Climbing Classes They have hourly drop in classes on Saturdays.  Call ahead to reserve a spot.
San Francisco Baseball Academy Open hitting hour 9AM on Saturdays, sign up ahead online.

Go to a Movie

Our kids are just getting to the age that movies are an option.  My kids tend to be super sensitive to scary parts of movies, so I check out common sense media first to make sure the content will be okay with them.

Ghirardelli Square

Ghirardelli Square not only has shopping and eating, but it is also right next to the Hyde Street Pier, where you can board the historic ships as well as visit the Maritime Museum. Admission for kids 15 and under is free and adults are only $10; and afterwards some chocolate and ice cream, not a bad morning.

Visit Fort Point

The boys did this with Mr. H back in December and LOVED it.  I can’t wait to go check it out.  There is a ton of great history and interesting stories to discover.

Stop and Smell the Flowers

The conservatory of flowers is a great place to expose kids to new things and spend a morning.  It is also super warm, which is nice in these rainy winter months.  We usually combine this with a visit to the DeYoung or Academy for a more full morning (and lunch options).

Bowling or Ice Skating at Yerba Buena

Take your pick depending on your kids age/interest Yerba Buena offers both open ice skating and bowling.  A great way to spend a morning.

What are your best rainy day activities with kids in San Francisco?  Maybe we will see you out there exploring; rain is in the forecast!

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