Summertime Day Camps for Kids in San Jose, California
If you live in or around San Jose, California there are plenty of adventures to keep them very busy! You have your choice of interesting museums, water parks, theme parks, arts, and entertainment. Combine learning with an outing, or just go for the fun of it!
One place where you can get a combo is The Children’s Discovery Museum, a wonderful source of enjoyment, as well as learning, for children of all ages. A couple of opportunities for enjoyment that they have to offer are:
The ZOOMzone Exhibit, which gives parents and children the opportunity to learn more about science, math, technology, and life skill challenges (April 1st to July 1st).
Another family fun event at the Discovery Museum is planned for the evening of June 10th, when the museum recreates a Family Lunada. This is a wonderful opportunity to learn about a tradition that citizens of small towns and pueblos in Mexico enjoy. They gather together on the night of a full moon and share music, stories, and poetry with one another. This tradition is recreated in the Museum’s outdoor amphitheatre.
The Museum offers a host of other interesting and fun activities, just waiting to be discovered. Check their website to find other great activities to catch your interest!
If you love to celebrate your Celtic Roots, or just love to have a good time, then you should plan on attending the Campbell Highland Games & Celtic Gathering, held in Campbell on June 17, from 9am to 5pm (just a dance step away from San Jose). You will find such a wonderful variety of activities, as well as colorful Celtic clothing, culture, and food.
Plan to enjoy the wonderful sound of Scottish Pipe Bands, where you’ll have a hard time not tapping your toe to the music. You and your children will be impressed by the strength of men and women as they compete in the Scottish Heavy Athletics, where they will amaze you with their technique and abilities. They will compete in such activities as the Caber Toss, Scottish Hammer, and other amazing feats of strength. You will also enjoy the energy of the Highland Country Dancing, and the competition of the Shinty, Rugby, & Soccer games.
Parents will also enjoy the representation of clans and societies at the festival. You never know, you may run into someone you’re related to!
When the kids get hungry, either before, during, or after these activities, you will be able to quench their hunger and thirst with authentic Celtic food at the food court. You and the kids will also enjoy perusing the crafts booths to find interesting and beautiful items to buy. What a great day you’ll have with the family and tickets are only $8 to $10.
All Aboard! If your kids love railroads (or if YOU are the one with the conductor’s hat), then Roaring Camp Railroad in Felton is the place for you. The original railroad was named The Santa Cruz & Felton railroad, which started rail trips to Big Trees and the Beach in 1875.
When you visit Roaring Camp, you will find two trains to satisfy your urge to hear the clickity-clack. One train trip will take you to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, on a meandering roll through Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park, winding down through the San Lorenzo River Gorge, across a steel truss bridge built in 1909, and through a tunnel constructed in 1875.
Another iron horse, an 1890 steam engine, will take you through monolithic redwood groves, and pull you up the winding grade to the summit of Big Bear Mountain. These redwoods are the first virgin stand of coastal redwoods protected from logging, way back in 1867.
There are a few summertime events at Roaring Camp that I bet you and the kids would really enjoy. Why not take dad for a train ride on Father’s Day? Spend June 18th enjoying a chuck wagon BBQ, live blue grass music, and model train displays at Roaring Camp. Dad will love it, and so will the kids!
For fun in the evenings at the Camp, reserve one of these Saturday’s (July 1, 15, or 22) for a Starlight Evenings train ride. These train trips start at Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, winding you through the redwood forest, and then bringing you back to the beach. Why not delight your kids with dinner on the wharf in Santa Cruz, after a great 60 minute ride through the forest? Reservations are required, so call or check their site on the internet for details.
Roaring Camp also offers a day especially designed for the younger kids. Plan to spend a day at their Ã?¯Ã?¿Ã?½Day Out With Thomas’, Thomas the Tank Engine’s only Northern California visit in 2006. What youngster wouldn’t love to meet Thomas in person? Thomas the Tank Engine will be available July 28th to 30th, and August 4th to 6th. Reservations are required, so call or check their site on the internet. There are many other activities throughout the year, so take a look when you visit the website! Get your tickets out and be ready to climb aboard for a great ride!
Another fun activity in San Jose is a visit to Happy Hollow Park. You and the kids will have a fun packed day, with a great variety of activities to enjoy. The children will love to venture into the petting zoo, where they will be able to stroke the soft coats of baby goats and many other small animals.
From the Petting Zoo, journey through the park to the Puppet Theater, where you will all get great laughs watching the antics of Pinocchio’s wooden and cloth cousins. After enjoying the marionettes, replenish your strength with something to eat in their Picnic area, and get ready for the rest of the park.
Next you may venture to the Rides & Play Area. Here the kids will be able to burn off some of their energy playing with other munchkins, and enjoying the rides. They will be talking about the fun for the rest of the week! Be prepared to pay $5-6 for tickets to enter Happy Hollow, and about $6 per car load for parking. Also be prepared for a great day of fun with the kids!
If you want to enjoy a day of indoor fun and interesting activities, head to downtown San Jose to the Tech Museum of Innovation. This is another place that combines learning and fun in a way that kids really enjoy.
There are many interesting things to see at this museum, some of which are Genetics-Technology with a Twist, NetPlanet-A New Tech Exhibit, and Silicon Workshop. All three of these are offered through the end of 2006.
This museum offers so many things to look at and experience, it’s a must see for the summer. Check their website for hours, location, and cost. You won’t regret this Tech Trip!
The next event will make you see stars – well – fireworks, to be exact. The America Festival is a three day event that culminates in a 4th of July Fireworks display.
July 2nd will have you enjoying their Summer Flick Picnic at Discovery Meadow in San Jose. This day the event is free, and starts with the gates opening at 4pm. You will enjoy live bands playing the sounds of the sixties from 5 to 8:30 pm, and then be able to watch the movie “Grease” on a huge outdoor movie screen.
July 3rd will find you and the kids enjoying rides in Kidland, as well as interactive games and prizes, mascots from some of the local sports teams, and lots of delicious food and beverages. There is also a Day on the Meadow Concert on the 3rd ($15.00) that you can enjoy. Gates open at noon and close at 10pm.
July 4th, the Big Day! Enjoy the festivities from noon to 10pm on this day, with activities and great food. Fireworks start at 9:30 and will wow everyone watching! Get there early and enjoy!
There are many other activities in and around San Jose that will keep you and the kids busy and bustling the entire summer. I’ve listed a few below for ideas, but you’ll have to check their websites for details. Have fun in the planning, and in the doing. Don’t forget your sunscreen, your kids, and your patience!
Paramount’s Great America in Santa Clara. Check out the fun with New Survivor: The Ride, thrill rides, family rides, Nickelodeon Central (characters, kids rides, & attractions), and the Boomerang Bay Water Resort.
Don’t forget the Santa Clara County Fair, held in the Fairgrounds in San Jose. You’ll find the usual fun fair activities, such as a destruction derby and the midway. You’ll be able to drag the kids through the livestock barns to marvel at the cute animals (and the smell). Don’t forget the sticky cotton candy and candy apples, yummy corn dogs, and slurpees. You’ll have games to play, and bands to listen too, as well as excited kids to laugh with!
You and the children should also plan to attend the Juneteenth Festival, which is a celebration of the Emancipation Proclamation which took place on June 19th, 1865. This festival takes place on June 18th and 19th in the Plaza de Cesar Chaves in San Jose. You will learn about past accomplishments of African Americans, as well as how African Americans can make positive impacts on the USA and the World.
If all of the above doesn’t wear you out before the end of June, then head for Raging Waters, the Center for Performing Arts, an ice hockey game watching the Sharks, and check out batting averages with the San Jose Giants Triple A baseball team.
Then for those car buffs and speed demons, you really don’t want to miss the San Jose Grand Prix, July 28th to 30th. There are many activities for kids and adults to enjoy, so check out their website for details.
The San Jose Museum of Art and Children’s Musical Theater in San Jose offer many fun exhibits and performances for the family to enjoy.
Well, I’m tired just thinking about all these activities, but so excited to be able to share the wonder of San Jose in the Summer with you! Are we there yet?
The following website is a great resource for almost all of the activities I’ve listed, as well as many I didn’t. Check it out!
http://www.artsopolis.com/
