Betty Ann Ong Chinese Recreation Center

Free and genuinely fun for machine obsessed kids because you can watch the giant wheels pulling the real cables under the streets.

A small playground on a pretty lawn, with the turtle fountain nearby and plenty of places to sit.

A compact Chinatown play space with a clubhouse and restrooms, especially useful in a neighborhood with very little open space.

Fairmont tiki bar with indoor rainstorms.

Nob Hill grand hotel with a kids' menu, a rooftop garden, and holiday teas for school-age kids.

One-floor Chinatown museum in a Julia Morgan building. Small enough for a rainy half hour, and better with school-age kids than toddlers.