Treehouse at Santa Maria Discovery Center.
Family fun and much more, discover the top kids activities of SLO County
Looking for fun places to take your family in SLO County? Check out our list for some special spots made just for the little ones.
Santa Maria Valley Discovery Museum—While it may not be exactly in SLO County, it’s close enough for us! There is a tree house, a truck converted into a play area, a bank, play kitchen, crafting area, spaceship, cowboy section, rock wall, and dinosaur dig. The nice thing about this place is that there are no stairs for little ones to climb and it isan open concept setting so you can easily watch your children from a distance. Open 10 a.m.- 5 p.m. Tuesday -Saturday , 12 p.m. – 4 p.m. on Sundays. Located at 705 McClelland St. Santa Maria, Ca 93454. www.smvdiscoverymuseum.org (805) 928-8414
The Exploration Station—The Exploration Station is a non-profit where local families can enjoy science exhibits and the interactive displays designed to spark the imagination including displays about the human body, weather, electricity and more.Open 1 p.m. – 4 p.m Thursday – Saturday 1 p.m. – 4 p.m. Located at 867 Ramona Ave. Grover Beach, Ca 93433 www.explorationstation.org (805)473-1421
Central Coast Aquarium—The Central Coast Aquarium in Avila Beach is home to dozens of local species, from the giant pacific octopus, to sea stars, rock crabs, smooth hound sharks, and lesser known gumboot chiton. Children and adults can enjoy hands-on experiences like the exhibit hall’s touch tanks or close encounters with swell sharks,and more academic programs where the kids can learn to walk on sea legs aboard a fishing boat! Open Tuesdays- Sundays 10 a.m.- 4 p.m. Located at 50 San Juan St. Avila Beach, Ca 93424 www.centralcoastaquarium.com (805) 595-7280
Morro Bay State Park—Morro Bay State Park offers excellent tent and RV camping, birding, beach activities, and also has the Museum of Natural History, a marina, the golf course, kayak rentals, and extensive hiking trails all around. The park includes the famous Morro Rock and the embarcadero. Open 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Located at 20 State Park Rd. Morro Bay, Ca 93442 www.centralcoastparks.org (805) 772-2694
Paso Robles Children’s Museum—There’s a full size fire truck to play on, a toddler area for smaller children to play in, it has a a book area and a ball pit , and a wonderful pretend kitchen/pizzeria, and more!Open 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Weds, and Saturdays, 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. Thursday, Friday, and Sunday. Located at 623 13th St. Paso Robles, CA 93446 www.pasokids.org (805) 238-7432
A few more wonderful ideas of places to visit for kids:
Bob Jones Trail
Board Walk in Grover/Pismo
Tide pools
Bike rides anywhere
Beach days in Avila, Pismo, Cayucos, Morro Bay, Moonstone Beach
The Sunset Drive-in
Avila Valley Barn
