How can I entertain an 8 year old in the San Francisco Bay Area?

Answer 1

Besides the other fine suggestions (except for the ps2 one) if the 8 yr old has been caught up in the pirate mania of the last couple of months, there are a couple of old time wooden sailing ships docked along Pier 39, Fisherman's Wharf, and the Marina Plaza area of San Francisco. They weren't pirate ships, but let the little one's imagination run wild. There are othe historical ships in the area, including a WWII Liberty ship and a submarine.

Across the bay there is historic Jack London square, right along side the marina. Lake Merrit, a beautiful urban lake plays host to ducks and other wildlife. A fun feature for an 8 yr old is the Children's Fairyland Park, a low tech, fairy tale themed park where various nusury rhyme and Mother Goose settings have been recreated. If the child has a scientific bent, the Lawrence Hall of Science is located in the hills east of Oakland/Berkeley.

At the South end of the Bay, San Jose has several museums, including the Children's Discovery Museum, an award winning children's science museum. San Jose also has an incredible Egyptian Museum, said to contain the lagest collection of ancient Egyptian artifacts outside of the British Museum of Natural History.

On the bay, I suggest a ferry ride to either Alcatraz or Angel Island. Or perhaps, a simple bay cruise is more appropriate.

Go online, do some research and score some discount coupons and brochures. Besides the 3 cities I mentioned add Monterey, Santa Cruz, Silicon Valley, San Mateo County, Alameda County, Santa Clara County, Marin County, Napa County to your search.

Welcome to my town(s) and have fun!

Answer 2

The San Francisco Zoo
http://www.sfzoo.org/

Marine World
http://www.sixflags.com/parks/marineworld/index.asp

Answer 3

For one day you might take him to the Exploratorium. It's full of exhibits that are fascinating to children (and adults too).

Exploratorium
at the Palace of Fine Arts
3601 Lyon Street
San Francisco, CA 94123
Directions to the Museum (recording): [phone]

http://www.exploratorium.edu/visit/index.html

Answer 4

let him play ps2....lol...jk