Favorite Things to Do With Kids in Santa Rosa
As of July 2023
We moved to Santa Rosa in October 2021 and have really enjoyed it so far as a family of five (kids now nearly 8, 6, and 3).
While we’re still learning lots about the area, we’ve developed an early set of favorite places we like to visit most.
We’re hoping that you will share your favorites with us so we can improve our list! For folks newer to town or just visiting, we hope this helps.
The complete list is below. But before that, we wanted to share two subsets worth calling out. Also, it’s worth two caveats (1) that this is mostly Santa Rosa with a few places in the nearby vicinity we felt were worth including, and (2) the list is generally regular visit places, not “once in a great while” kind of places like fancy restaurants or rare events.
Essentials:
Notable:
Playgrounds/Parks
Howarth Park - typically 1-3 hours, good for a hike over/around Spring Lake, playing on the large and various playgrounds, riding the small train or carousel. Parking on weekends can get tricky.
Coffey Park - typically 1-2 hours, nice wide open field, two great playgrounds, and exercise equipment around the loop the kids like to experiment with!
Flat Rock Park - typically 2-3 hours, beautiful trail and a nice creek with plenty of rocks to climb and play near.
Rincon Ridge Park - typically 1-3 hours, neighborhood park. Nice large open field, basketball court, fun playgrounds, and a good sidewalk loop for riding scooters or bikes.
Restaurants
Acme Burger - great burgers and sides and options for non-burger folks. Homemade pickles to accompany the food. Straus soft-serve vanilla and chocolate (or swirl) cones or shakes for dessert. A bit of foosball while waiting.
Mombo’s Pizza - kids love a slice and watching sports on TV while eating.
Aji Sushi - tasty and sometimes give the kids a treat.
Hank’s Creekside - delicious and popular breakfast spot.
Vine Burgers - best tasting burgers in town.
Kafal - best Indian food in town.
Hang Ah Dim Sum - have only had take out / delivery but always tastes great
Zoftig Eatery - the Korean BBQ Burrito is worth the trip by itself, even better with the crispy/salty sweet potato fries on the side. Kids like the pesto pasta. Also Maccabi salad.
Cascabel - lots of great options here.
Grossman’s - incredible for any meal of the day!
Dessert
Quail and Condor - absolutely incredible!
Amy’s Wicked Slush - so refreshing and tasty, especially on a hot day
Tan’s Donuts - pretty reliable
Goguette Bread - sensational ice cream to go along with the great bread and some cookies
Fun Activities (Less Frequent)
Scandia - mini golf and arcade
The Epicenter - arcade, play structures, indoor trampoline park, bowling, indoor soccer leagues, mediocre restaurant, and Amy’s Wicked Slush!
Pump it Up - bouncy house enormous slide, basketball room, and obstacle course.
Theaters
Airport Movie Theater - comfy reserved seats
Luther Burbank Center - surprising to see some of the talent they can pull here
A Theater for Children - great productions where kids get to be on stage performing!
Museums/Libraries
Children’s Museum - great to come anytime but especially for one-off events like the Halloween Party, Bubble Bash, and more.
Rincon Valley Library - cozy and less crowded than the main downtown branch, and just as easy to send holds there instead.
Camps
Wa-Tam - kids have a blast, get completely covered in dust. Thursday night performance is pretty stale but the kids still have fun.
Schulz Museum - good variety of summer camps