Fun Orange County Parks

OC kids playgrounds and nature play trips

Outdoor-Places-to-Go Gifts for Southern California Families

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They say the best gift is one you want yourself! I could go for ANY of these outdoor-places-to-go gifts perfect for Southern California families. Some are annual passes. Some are museum memberships. And one is a gift to support nature in California without anything in return.

Picking just two or three of these outdoor gifts is probably plenty to keep you entertained for around $300. That’s about $25 a month. We routinely buy #1 and #2 in our family. Then, we switch off years when we add on one of the following: #3, #6, #7 or #14. Rotating out our 3rd and 4th choices, keeps things fresh since we don’t get access every year.

$$ vs. $$

The thing that strikes me about my list of 14 places is that if you choose everything on the list, it will cost your family of four approximately $1700 for a full YEAR filled with all sorts of outdoor fun. Just WAY too many places to visit in one year.

Compare that to a one year annual passport to Disneyland, which will cost a Southern California family of four between $1316 and $1836 for just ONE place with blackout dates, of course.

Outdoor Places-to-Go Gifts for Southern California Families

  1. OC Parks Annual Day Use Pass — available for purchase online ($80)
  2. California State Parks – California Explorer Annual Pass ($195)
  3. Mission San Juan Capistrano ($60)
  4. America the Beautiful – National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Annual Pass ($80)
  5. Los Angeles County Arboretum & Botanic Garden Family Membership ($85)
  6. The Huntington: Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens–Gift Box Membership ($159)
  7. Descanso Gardens Gift Membership ($80)
  8. San Diego Botanic Garden Membership–formerly Quail Botanical Gardens ($85)
  9. Gift Certificate to Island Packers for an Island Trip to Santa Cruz Island ($200)
  10. Northern Sierra Mountain Meadow Gift through The Nature Conservancy ($25-$250)
  11. Aquarium of the Pacific Family Membership ($139)
  12. Los Angeles Zoo & Botanical Gardens Family Membership ($146)
  13. Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County Family Membership ($119)
  14. San Diego Zoo AND Safari Park ($274.50)

If you want these gift memberships in time for Christmas, hurry and order today. Otherwise, just write your gift on a card and the actual pass or membership will arrive later. Better yet, wrap them up for yourself and get outdoors!

All photos in this post feature Huntington Library & Gardens