Things To Do With Family In Fresno, California
There are five hundred thousand people living in Fresno, which is the fifth biggest city in California. Fresno has a great location and a Mediterranean temperature, so families can have fun there all year long.
Families who come to Fresno will never run out of things to see and do together. From visiting fun places like the Fresno Chaffee Zoo and the Forestiere Underground Gardens to taking part in seasonal events, there is always something to do. There are 13 great things for families to do in Fresno that will help them get the most out of their trip.
Go Back in Time at Meux Home Museum
The Meux Home Museum is in downtown Fresno and is made up of a restored Victorian house museum from 1889 and a carriage barn. History buffs will love it there. People in the Meux family can go on a guided tour to learn about their past and see what life was like in the 1900s.
Some of the best parts of the tour are seeing the fancy old furniture in the formal parlor and dining room, the beautiful stained glass windows, the well-kept bedrooms on the second floor, and the huge attic playroom that is full of toys and props from the Meux family. The Meux Home Museum gives families a look into Fresno’s past through its clothes from the past and toys from the early 1900s.
Picnic at Woodward Park
Woodward Park is a great place for families to spend time in Fresno. It’s a 300-acre botanical oasis close to the city center with playgrounds, an amphitheater, and bike and walking trails to explore. When families go to the park, there is a lot of open space and shade where they can find a great spot for a picnic and enjoy the natural beauty of the area.
At Woodward Park, kids can watch nature shows at the amphitheater, look at koi at the Shinzen Japanese Garden bridge, go camping, or cool off at the Pop Laval Water Playground. Family-friendly Woodward Park is the perfect place to spend a relaxing day outside enjoying nature.
Take part in the Rogue Festival.
Attend the Rogue Festival
Fresno marks the Rogue Festival every February. It is an open arts event with musical performances, readings from literature, independent films, and activities for kids. The event, which lasts for several days, showcases local talent through poem slams, unique dance shows, live folk bands, and vendor booths.
The kids enjoy story time, and parents can go on a date night to a comedy club show or an experimental theater play. The Rogue Festival is a celebration of the performing and visual arts for people of all ages that takes place downtown in Fresno’s Tower District. It has many free events that show off the area’s lively creative community.
See Musical Performances at the Saroyan Theatre
The famous Saroyan Theatre in downtown Fresno is owned by the Fresno Convention Center. It has been putting on world-class shows since it opened in 1939. Families can see a wide range of musicals, from big Broadway musicals and symphony bands to rock concerts and comedy tours.
Families have really loved The Lion King musical, The Blue Man Group performance art, and, around the holidays, The Nutcracker ballet. With more than 2,000 seats spread out over several balcony levels that look like European opera houses, the Saroyan Theatre gives families an unforgettable watching experience. Its beautiful interior architecture also adds to the experience.
Check Out Exciting Exhibits at Discovery Center
Another family-friendly spot in Fresno is the Discovery Center science center, which has three floors of fun, interactive exhibits that are sure to get kids interested in science and technology. In the vivarium, kids can see snakes, turtles, and other reptiles. In the fossil sandpit, they can dig for dinosaur bones. In the prism tunnel, they can learn about optics, and with robot arms, they can move things around.
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In other exhibits, kids can race pine wood cars down spiraling tracks, learn about marine ecosystems in the aquarium room, figure out what traits gemstones have, use pipes and levers to make music, or look at the stars in the planetarium. New traveling exhibits come to the Discovery Center all the time, so it’s always fun and educational for families.
Enjoy Theater Performances at Good Company Players
Fresno’s Good group Players is a well-known and respected theater group that puts on musicals, comedies, and dramas at Roger Rocka’s Dinner Theater, which has only 266 seats, and other places in town. Well-known plays like Beauty and the Beast, Annie, Peter Pan, and A Christmas Carol are put on for families to enjoy. The sets and costumes are of good quality and bring the stories to life.
Good Company Players wants to get kids and adults alike excited about the performing arts by putting on shows just for kids every Christmas and lowering ticket prices for kids. Going to plays at Good Company makes memories that families will treasure and brings people together while helping talented local actors.
Explore Fresno Chaffee Zoo
With more than 190 species from all over the world, the Fresno Chaffee Zoo is one of the best places to visit in Fresno. African lions, tigers, cheetahs, grizzly bears, otters, penguins, and other exotic birds can be seen in wildlife displays. Guests can get close to animals at the zoo’s Sea Lion Cove, Stingray Bay, and Lorikeet Landing, among other places.
The Islands of Adaptations area is all about Madagascar’s different environments, and there is also an exhibit about a tropical rainforest with strange reptiles. Fresno Chaffee Zoo is a great place for families to spend a day because it has eating areas, gift shops, and misting stations, as well as special events that happen all year long.
Marvel at the Forestiere Underground Gardens
The Forestiere Underground Gardens are an interesting place to visit in Fresno. They are made up of a network of underground tunnels and courtyards that were artistically created with fruit trees and vines by Baldassare Forestiere in the early 1900s. People are amazed as they walk through the dimly lit catacomb passageways that lead to courtyards outside with skylights above.
Since it stays between 60 and 70 degrees underground all year, it’s a great place to explore on hot summer days. From the citrus farm and greenhouse tunnel to the garden patio and aquarium, this one man built this one-of-a-kind historic site all by himself over 40 years. Families will find it fascinating to learn about his work.
Attend the Big Fresno Fair
Over 600,000 people come to the Big Fresno Fair every year, making it one of the biggest events in Fresno. This fair is fun for the whole family and takes place in October. It has carnival rides, concerts, horse racing, livestock events, and displays of the area’s agricultural products.
You can ride the Ferris wheel with your family, see a show, play games on the midway, watch a demolition race, or eat some tasty fair food. Many local families and tourists look forward to going to the Big Fresno Fair every fall because there are deals and discounts on certain days.
Explore Kearney Park
Kearney Park is a famous 56-acre public park in the middle of Fresno. It has Japanese gardens, picnic areas, sports fields, and lots of shade from big trees, making it a great place for family fun. People can walk along the quiet paths in the Shinzen Friendship Garden pond and feed the koi fish. They can also play disc golf across the park, have a dinner with friends, or let their kids run around on the playground.
There are also events in the park, such as food truck festivals and summer movies in the park. Kearney Park is a popular community park in Fresno that is great for families. It has a lot of open green area and nice facilities.
Go Wine Tasting at Local Vineyards
You can find a lot of family-friendly vineyards in Fresno County. These vineyards have facilities and events for people of all ages. A lot of wineries let pets stay on leashes and have play areas for kids as well as wine tasting rooms and patios for adults.
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Some even have discovery trails, picnic areas, and bocce ball courts. During certain times of the year, there are fun family events like grape stomps, live music, and outdoor movie nights. Families can enjoy Fresno’s growing wine country in a friendly way at well-known farms like JS Estate Wines, Hannah Nicole Vineyards, and Viaggio Estate and Winery.
See Exhibits at Fresno Art Museum
The Fresno Art Museum is in Fresno’s Cultural Arts District. It has interesting changing displays of modern art from around the world, as well as new and interesting programs. Families can look around three floors of galleries that show sculpture, drawing, photography, and more.
The museum also holds public events like film screenings, poetry readings, art workshops for kids, and live acts, making it a lively place for people of all ages to visit. The Fresno Art Museum is a great place for families to learn about art, culture, and creation while they are in Fresno.
Conclusion
There are lots of fun things for families to do together in Fresno, from museums and cultural places to fairs, parks, and seasonal events. Families traveling to Fresno can spend valuable time together, have fun, and make memories that will last a lifetime by doing activities that combine nature, learning, and fun.
Families will have a lot of choices when they visit Fresno. There are yearly events like the Big Fresno Fair and the Rogue Festival, as well as attractions that are open all year, like the Fresno Chaffee Zoo and the Forestiere Underground Gardens. Because the weather in Fresno is warm all year, you can plan outdoor activities in any season.
Families will have a meaningful trip to Fresno if they visit the city’s lively arts scene, historic sites, science discovery centers, wine country, and community parks, all of which are open to people of all ages.