San Francisco is expensive. Doing things with your kids here does not have to be. Every item on this list is free, with the timing rules that make it free where they apply.
Free museums, every day
1. Cable Car Museum — the giant winding wheels that pull every cable car in the city, spinning behind glass. 1201 Mason St.
2. Randall Museum — live animals, a model railroad and drop-in activities, on a hillside with a view. 199 Museum Way, Tue–Sat 10am–5pm.
3. Musée Mécanique — free to enter, coins only if you want to play. Pier 45.
4. San Francisco Public Library, Main Branch — the children’s floor is a destination in itself, with free storytimes citywide at branch libraries. 100 Larkin St.
5. Fort Point — a Civil War fort directly under the Golden Gate Bridge. Thu–Mon, 10am–5pm.
Free museum days
6. de Young Museum — free to everyone the first Tuesday of the month, and the permanent collection is free daily from 4:30pm. Under 18 always free.
7. Legion of Honor — same deal, on a bluff with an ocean view.
8. SFMOMA — everyone 18 and under is free every day.
9. Conservatory of Flowers — free to all on the first Tuesday of the month.
10. The Golden Gate Park gardens for residents — San Francisco residents get free or reduced entry to the Botanical Garden, Japanese Tea Garden and Conservatory with proof of address. The Botanical Garden is also free to everyone early in the morning.
Animals and the outdoors
11. Sea lions at Pier 39 — free and reliably entertaining.
12. The Golden Gate Park bison — a herd in the middle of the city since 1892, on JFK Drive west of Spreckels Lake.
13. Heron’s Head Park — a wetland with a hundred bird species, a nature play area and easy parking. Cargo Way at Jennings St.
14. Presidio Tunnel Tops and the Outpost — the city’s best playground, free, with a bridge view.
15. Ocean Beach — kites, sandcastles, and bonfires in the designated fire rings from March through October.
16. Fort Funston — hang gliders overhead and a dog beach below.
Only-in-San-Francisco oddities
17. Seward Street Slides — two long concrete slides in a tiny Corona Heights park. Bring a flattened cardboard box.
18. The Wave Organ — a sculpture at the end of the Marina jetty that plays the bay through pipes. Best near high tide. 1 Yacht Rd.
19. The Ingleside sundial — one of the largest sundials in the world, sitting in a residential circle. Entrada Court.
20. Andy Goldsworthy’s Spire and Wood Line — sculptures made of trees, hidden in the Presidio.
21. Balmy Alley and Clarion Alley — two open-air mural galleries in the Mission, free and always open.
Views and walks
22. Grand View Park — climb the tiled Moraga Steps at 16th Ave and keep going for a 360-degree view.
23. Twin Peaks — the classic city panorama, free to park at the top.
24. Walking the Golden Gate Bridge — the east sidewalk is free; it closes to pedestrians in the evening, so check the hours before an after-dinner plan.
25. The Sutro Baths ruins and Lands End — a Victorian bathhouse in ruins on the edge of the Pacific. Watch kids near the water.
26. Alamo Square and the Painted Ladies — a playground, a big lawn and the most photographed row of houses in America.
27. Yerba Buena Gardens — a downtown rooftop park with lawns and a waterfall memorial, free to wander.
Prices and hours were checked in September 2026 and can change, so confirm before you go.
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