Parks and playgrounds with restrooms in Sacramento

A solar-system playground built so kids of every ability can use it, with ramps, spinners and separate areas for babies, preschoolers and big kids. There's a pond with fishing piers too.

A big art museum that actually plans for kids: Tot Land downstairs is for play, books and making things, and there are loaner strollers at the door. Do the galleries first and save Tot Land for the reward.

Sacramento's big old park, with duck ponds, a rock garden, an adventure playground and a wading pool in summer. The zoo, Fairytale Town and Funderland are all on its edges.

Natomas's big park, with a lake, a baseball-themed spray park and a playground that's shaded all the way over (a big deal in July).

East Sacramento's favorite park (everyone just says McKinley), with an adventure playground, a separate tot lot and a rose garden next door. Summer brings a wading pool.

A Natomas neighborhood park with a little duck-and-frog spray pad that's just right for toddlers, and ranch-themed playgrounds under big shade covers.

Free tours of the Capitol itself, open on weekdays only. Expect a security line and no toy weapons, then let the kids run it off on the lawns outside.

A small, walkable zoo tucked into Land Park, with giraffes you can feed from a raised deck and a carousel your kid will ask to ride twice. Fairytale Town and Funderland are right across the street, so it's easy to make a whole day of it.

A hands-on science museum in an old riverside power plant, with a planetarium upstairs for kids four and up. Everyone calls it MOSAC.

Forty acres of lawn and huge old trees around the Capitol, with a rose garden and plenty of squirrels to chase. No playground, so think picnic and a run on the grass after a Capitol tour.

A storybook play park where the nursery rhymes are things to climb on, with farm animals and kids' theater in between. Grown-ups only get in with a kid (as it should be).

Old-school mini golf, go-karts, bumper boats and batting cages, with junior rides for little kids. Height rules vary ride by ride, so know your kid's number before you go.

A small state museum about California Indian life, with hands-on things for kids, on the same block as Sutter's Fort. Do both in one morning.

Gold Rush streets on the river with wooden boardwalks and old-fashioned candy shops, a block from the railroad and history museums. Start at the visitor center on 2nd Street and just wander.

A rebuilt 1840s adobe fort in Midtown where kids can poke through the old rooms at their own pace. It's a quick visit, which makes it a pretty good one with school-age kids.