Your Questions Answered – Child-Friendly Travel in Los Angeles

Other posts by MudslideMama

One of the best things about writing a travel blog is the back-and-forth we get to have with our readers. Comments left on posts, interactions in online forums, and even (gasp!) meeting fellow vacation lovers at travel conventions – well, the Traveling Mamas love it all. We get a pretty steady flow of questions in our “ASK” section as well. These tend to be specific, sometimes personal travel questions, and one of us will respond within a couple of days. But occasionally, the questions asked are relevant to general travel: That’s just what happened with this question, regarding child-friendly travel and family activities in and around Los Angeles.

Kids on Horses at Will Rogers State Park, CA (Jennifer Miner)
Kids on Horses at Will Rogers State Park, CA (Jen Miner)

Hi. I live in Mumbai, India. I saw your website and was immediately taken by it. I plan to visit the USA along with my husband and 2 daughters (6 and 2 years) in the last week of April for 3 weeks. Please could you suggest places to visit which would be interesting for kids: I would be heading to LA first and would prefer a relaxed vacation (so in and around the LA area would be great). My younger daughter gets car sickness, so that complicates matters.
Please help.
Ravi (name changed)

Hello, Ravi,

The Traveling Mamas received your question, and since I (Mudslide Mama) live in LA, I thought I’d reply. Hello!

Los Angeles is an amazingly family-friendly city, believe it or not. The only problem for you is, people really need to take either cars or buses to get around. I’m sorry to hear about your daughter’s propensity for carsickness. There are many child-friendly activities in and around Los Angeles!

Fun at Getty Villa (Jen Miner)
Fun at Getty Villa (Jen Miner)

The Getty and the Getty Villa, along with the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) all are interesting museums that have children’s programs. On Sundays, there is a great children’s program at LACMA that is free.

Universal Citywalk is fun as well, but very touristy. There are a lot of shops there, and many movie theaters. Universal Studios Hollywood itself is a California theme park (but some of the rides are better suited to older children than your own). The La Brea Tar Pits (next to LACMA by the way) and California Science Center are very child-friendly. However, if your daughter gets very ill in moving vehicles, so that driving around is not an option, I’d recommend staying in Santa Monica. This is a separate city from LA, but really, you wouldn’t know it. Santa Monica is surrounded by LA on three sides, and the Pacific Ocean on the fourth. It has a fun walking area, a promenade along the ocean, and of course the beach is right there. Best of all, the Santa Monica Pier has a small, relatively inexpensive amusement park, along with an old-fashioned carousel, and a “Heal the Bay” mini-aquarium under the pier that has touch tanks filled with specimens of local sea life. My kids are growing up in LA, and they still ask to go to the Santa Monica Pier quite a lot.

Santa Monica Pier (Jen Miner)
Santa Monica Pier (Jen Miner)

Just south of Santa Monica is Venice, which has some canals like its famous namesake in Italy. This is alsowhere “Muscle Beach” is, and a thriving artist community called Bergamot Station. Abbot-Kinney, also in Venice, has a hopping art scene, and little boutiques for unique, non-chain store shopping. Just to the north of Santa Monica is Pacific Palisades, which is home to the gorgeous Getty Villa. There are also some great, child-friendly and accessible hiking trails in this green, leafy part of Los Angeles.

I hope your family has fun in the States. I’m glad you’re planning to spend some time in and around Los Angeles. What with the ocean, the mountains, and (needless to say) Hollywood, there’s truly a little something for everyone here.

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March 23, 2009 | Filed Under Adventure Travel, Destinations, Family Travel 

Comments

9 Responses to “Your Questions Answered – Child-Friendly Travel in Los Angeles”

  1. Topics about Travel » Your Questions Answered - Child-Friendly Travel in Los Angeles says:
    March 23, 2009 at

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  2. Mara says:
    March 23, 2009 at

    Great post – I love L.A. and definitely think it’s a great place to go with kids. I like everything listed here and have two additional suggestions, on the more easterly side of the city:

    1. Griffith Park has the Los Angeles Zoo (worth visiting) and also Travel Town, a *free* display of steam trains with a little train for kids to ride (tickets are cheap).

    2. The Huntington Library and Gardens are a great place to visit and their children’s garden is amazing, with lots of interactive and fun stuff to do. There’s also a great Japanese garden. And I believe at the end of April the rose garden will be in its full glory.

    Also, the aquarium at Long Beach is great fun too.

  3. travelojos says:
    March 23, 2009 at

    I think LA is very underrated. If you like doing stuff outdoors, it’s a great city to visit with kids. The weather is always great. Griffith Park has some pretty challenging (hilly trails) and nice views. Their are some nice beaches close by too. Puls all the usual attractions like Disney etc. A lot of very good Mexican food too.

  4. Kim says:
    March 24, 2009 at

    If you’re down in Santa Monica, a fun beach restaurant with kids is Back at the Beach, we sit in the sand in the back and let the kids play. Just watch out for the birds, they love the food!

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  8. Sharlene says:
    March 26, 2009 at

    I think that was a great response. I live in OC and am not a huge fan of LA but there are some great things to do if you don’t mind dealing with the traffic. Reading your response made me want to venture up north!

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