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.
Natomas's big park, with a lake, a baseball-themed spray park and a playground that's shaded all the way over.
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.
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.
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.
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 free adventure playground run by Fairytale Town for school-age kids who like to get messy, with an after-school program and a monthly Community Day open to all.
Free tours of the Capitol itself, with lawns outside for the kids to run on.
The space-themed Enchanted, with rocket ships to climb and room for kids up to eight. Story time and toddler art come with entry, like the others.
A small, walkable zoo tucked into Land Park, with giraffes you can feed from a raised deck and a carousel. Fairytale Town and Funderland are right across the street.
A hands-on science museum in an old riverside power plant, with a Toddler Zone for under-fives and a planetarium upstairs for kids four and up.
Forty acres of lawn and huge old trees around the Capitol, with a rose garden and plenty of squirrels to chase.
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.
A tiny old-school amusement park in Land Park, sized for little kids: a two-year-old can ride most of it, from the teacups to the train.
A big indoor trampoline park with a ninja course and climbing walls, plus a separate indoor playground for kids seven and under that you can go into with them.
Old-school mini golf, go-karts, bumper boats and batting cages, with junior rides for little kids. Height rules vary ride by ride.
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.
More than a hundred cars from the very first ones to now, and on some days you can go for a ride in one.
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.
The bigger of the local Sky Zones, with a foam pit, a ninja course, a trapeze and a toddler zone.
A rebuilt 1840s adobe fort in Midtown where kids can poke through the old rooms at their own pace, a quick visit that suits school-age kids.
Trampolines, a ropes course, an indoor zip line and climbing walls across from Arden Fair, with a separate area for kids seven and under. Grip socks required.
